How to Adventure with Toddlers + Jeter Mountain Farm Portraits
Adventure days with a toddler...
can either be amazing or terrible, lol. Amirite? As a first time mom, I've had the full experience of both, and I'm here to tell you, there are things you can do to help tip the scales in favor of the amazing toddler adventures. And if these adventures involve photos whatsoever, let's set yourselves up for success in any way we can.
Today's Rundown: I'm sharing stories of my adventure day to Jeter Mountain Farm with two of my best friends and my toddler, along with a few helpful toddler tips. SO- if you're here for the beautiful orchard pics, feel free to scroll on down. :) Regardless of why you're here, I'm glad you are and I hope some aspect of this blog post brings you joy/encouragement today!
Ok, ready... set... GO!
If you've never been to Jeter Mountain Farm in Hendersonville, NC, I highly recommend going. I went two years ago (while pregnant) and fell in love with the flower fields and the views of the mountains.
Pro tip- plan to make it a day trip because they have so many things to do- all kinds of fruit picking options depending on the season, flower fields in the summer, an indoor barn playground for kiddos, apple cider donuts (of course!), a cider house, a coffee shop, a market, a smokehouse, live music on Saturdays and more. Plus it's SO family oriented. And did I mention the mountain views? <3
So, now that the scene has been set, let's dive into a few of those tips and tricks to help make your family adventures the right kind of memorable!
1.Set Reasonable Expectations for the Toddler and for Yourself
On this trip, my friends and I planned to put our main energies into the flower fields, peach groves and honey crisp apple orchards and anything else beyond that was bonus. (Setting reasonable expectations out the gate!) I brought the diaper backpack fully equipped with all the things, my camera bag, and my toddler in hand. I did not bring the stroller... I was very nervous about that. There haven't been many instances where I didn't have the comfort of a stroller on outings, but I gave myself a pep talk. My kid really can walk on his own for 2+ hours without breaks and whatever happened, I had two amazing people with me to help. So we rallied and carried on! And you know what??? My 23 month old did great! Jace loved walking by himself, he had the best time climbing the stairs into and out of the wagon, and {Spoilers} picking peaches was the absolute highlight of the day for everyone. Jace calling every peach and apple he saw "Ball!" is definitely making it into the baby book of memories!
(And come to find out, strollers aren't allowed on the farm wagon, so it ended up being the right call.)
2.PLAN AROUND NAPS
That morning, I loaded up the car and headed up for an 11am adventure. My son, Jace, usually naps between 2-4pm (we are not early morning people in this family...) so this gave us a 4 hour window before a meltdown would potentially happen. I didn't plan anything else that day and I wanted to give us the opportunity to be spontaneous, take our time, enjoy the experience, and hope my toddler would take a nap on the way home. The result?
*Drumroll*
I'm happy to report, it worked very well. We kept a consistent pace throughout the day, with lots of breaks, worked within Jace's most awake and energetic part of the day and gave him a quiet, unstimulating space to crash on the way home. I on the other hand could not crash on the way home and had to grab a coffee to stay awake, lol.
3.Pack for worse case scenarios
Meaning, bring extra diapers, lots of snacks and treats to keep littles happy, a spare set of clothes for you and the kiddo, etc. For me, snacks and food are our challenging things right now. My son is super picky with his food decisions and will go on hunger strikes and have meltdowns multiple times per week, sometimes day, over food. So when planning for a day trip where we would be on the move a lot, I knew to focus more on bringing enough snack/munchie things vs trying to force one full meal into the equation. He ended up snacking on pouches and granola bars on every wagon ride, tried the peaches and apples in the orchards and it ended up working out well. He probably didn't eat as much as he would have if we stayed at home, but he had a nice big dinner that night to make up for it. So I call it a win.
My last and favorite tip:
4.let the toddler lead...
This truly makes the biggest difference in any family adventure day. What I mean by this is allow your youngest kid to set the pace of the day. Now hear me out- When Jace was little, I was a big advocate for "let baby adapt to your lifestyle, don't change to accommodate baby's lifestyle" attitude. Jon and I took Jace to restaurants, breweries, we were out and about through nap times etc. But then my baby became a toddler and meltdowns entered the chat. So our tunes have changed... a little. Following the rhythms of our toddler over the last few months has been very helpful with managing his moods/meltdowns but also allows us some compromise and flexibility so we as parents are not stuck doing the same things every day. Besides, kids do love to explore and experience new things and it's so much fun to witness and experience it all alongside them. <3 So while patience will be needed to accommodate the toddler's pace, it really is worth it in the end.
Our first wagon stop was the flower field, which I LOVE, but I knew it was going to be hot. (There are no trees + it's the middle of the day.) The adults knew this and could mentally prepare, but my child could not. So I paid close attention to his behavior and for his warning signs of hunger, thirst and overheating. After spending about 20-30 mins wandering the rows of flowers, taking photos and admiring the mountain views, I knew my kid needed a break. So, I took my kid to the nearby tent for some shade and snacks, while happily allowing my friends to take on the activity of this stop- flower picking. I love most flowers so being able to hand off that task to my friends, so I could care for my kid was really helpful. After about 10 mins, the girls came with their floral spoils and we moved onto peaches.
The peach grove was WAY more enjoyable- primarily because my son thinks anything round is a ball and gets very excited as soon as eye contact is made. So needless to say, peaches were his jam! (Pun fully intended.) Peach trees are also very short and within reach of toddler hands, so picking "balls" aka peaches, was a very fun and interactive thing for Jace. We also spent 20-30 mins here, but with the shade from the sun, my toddler having so much fun and having space and freedom to run around, it felt like no time at all. Side note: the peach photos of Jace below are some of my favorites from the day because he was having fun and was so authentically his joyful self.
The last stop was the apple orchard, and by this time we were all feeling a little tired from being in the sun and carrying so much by this point. Admittedly, it was early in the season for honey crisp apples, so when we got to the orchard, all the good apples were at the tops of the trees and out of everyone's reach. Luckily my friend had a brilliant idea and used Jace as a height extender and personal apple, I mean "ball", picker to snag the reddest and prettiest ones higher up. (See photos below!) We basically stayed long enough to fill our basket and headed back to the wagon soon after that.
We didn't stay much longer after that, just long enough to divide our spoils, try some of the ciders on tap, tour the market and fill Jace's belly with goldfish. It was a very good day overall, and even though it was an entire extra bag to carry around, I was SO glad I brought my camera. Photographing sweet adventures like these are some of some of my greatest joys and I adore looking back at galleries like this. So if you need inspiration for your next family photo session, might I suggest bringing the photographer on your new family adventure day? Getting candid photos of the family being themselves are always my clients favorite photos to print and display in their homes. Give it a try and let me know how it goes!
PS: Please bring me along on your Fall adventures this year! Apple picking, pumpkin patches, corn mazes... so many great settings for photos. I'm grinning just thinking about it. :)
Love and hugs,
Christina
