For the locals: Temecula Berry Co.

If you live in the Temecula area or close by and have not been to the Temecula Berry Co. you must go. The kids and I made our first trip over there last week and we had such a great time.

 As you approach the property you come over a little hill and when you get to the top you see rows and rows of blueberry bushes surrounding an adorable red barn. Scarlett was thrilled to spot the farm and couldn't wait to jump out of her seat.

 We walked up to the barn, grabbed ourselves a red bucket and headed out to the field.

 The parking lot was pretty full when we got there but it didn't feel busy at all. We actually had a whole row to ourselves the entire time we were there picking.

 The kids got to work right away, stashing their blueberry finds in our bucket. Scarlett was so careful to only pick the dark blue ones and was too busy to sample any. Taylor on the other hand was not as selective, throwing even the green ones in his mouth, I think only a few of his picks made it in the bucket.

 We had no trouble finding ripe ones and we only checked about 5 bushes. When we went to check out I realized they only took cash and didn't have any with me, so I told them we would run to the bank and be right back. Instead of having me leave our blueberries behind, the ladie working insisted that we take our berries with us, she trusted us to return, she didn't want the kids to be bummed about leaving the berries behind that they had worked so hard to pick. I thought that was so sweet and the kind of thing you don't expect to hear these days.

They are only open for a short window each summer but we plan on returning soon. On Tuesdays they have story time with Nana and Fridays they have movie nights at the farm, all free of charge. The property is super clean, the staff is incredibly friendly and it has such a great vibe. We have just about polished off our bucket of blueberries between snacking on them, having blueberry pancakes, blueberry syrup and smoothies. Looks like we will be heading back soon. I always love any opportunity to support small, local, family owned business and this one fits the bill perfectly.