Raspberries!

Alice and I were sitting on the grass in the back yard, me with a book and Alice chasing around her ball. When I looked up to check on Alice, she had crawled over to the edge of the yard and had stood up with the aid of a metal post and was going for a blackberry on a bush nearby. I rushed over to stop her from putting it in her mouth because it wasn't ripe yet, and then thought that maybe she would like picking raspberries. We've tried feeding her raspberries in the past with little success, but I decided to give it another try. As soon as I sat her in the rows, she knew exactly what to do! She went for the raspberries with both hands and was just stuffing them in her mouth like she was starving or something. If she couldn't find anymore at her height on one bush, she'd crawl to the next. She also learned if she pulled down on a branch that she could reach some of them better.

I've been searching the Internet for apple or raspberry costumes for Alice but haven't had any luck. We want to do what we did last year--Bruce and I be farmers and Alice be the produce. I could try making something but that would require creativity and a sewing machine--two things I don't have. I'm still considering using the peapod outfit (and calling it a soybean, for the soybean field on the property) but I think I'll need to modify it so Alice can somehow crawl in it comfortably. I'm thinking she probably won't be walking quite yet by then. She has been testing out her standing abilities lately--she can stand for a few seconds on her own and is so proud of herself when she does.