do something :: weekend october 1 - 3

we are planning to do some apple picking tomorrow morning, so this week i thought i would feature a handful of local pick-your-own farms in the northeast ohio area.

• patterson fruit farm in chesterland, ohio.  this place is over 45 minutes east of cleveland in geauga county.  they also hold a family fun fest every weekend which will run from sept. 18 - oct. 31. 
• pick 'n save orchard in medina, ohio.  this place is about 40 minutes south of cleveland.  this is the place we're planning to check out on saturday.   the apples are fairly affordable, running between 85-95 cents a pound, though they from their site it looks like they're not offering my new favorite, honey crisp. 
• miller's apple hill in amherst, oh.  this place is about 35 minutes west of cleveland.  not only are there apples ready for picking, they have a special children's play area set up during the fall season called pumpkin land.  let your kids explore the hay maze, check out the scarecrows and visit with some of the animals. oh, they also have a bulk store offering items such as dried fruit, grains and chocolate.  chocolate in bulk?  i think i would be in a big trouble.
• mapleside farms in brunswick, oh.  this place is about 30 minutes south of cleveland.  we've been to this farm once, a while back before emma and gibson were born.  when we went, i had thought they would also offer pick your own apples in addition to the pumpkins, but apparently they didn't.  it was a nice place and we enjoyed the experience, but i felt it was set up to be a bit more of a tourist attraction and less like a "real farm."  
• sage's apples in chardon, oh.  this place is about 50 minutes east of cleveland.  although it's listed as a "pick your own" farm, i couldn't find any information about it on their site.  however, they have honey crisp, and other fruits and vegetables.  

a couple of other things to note:

cleveland metroparks' chalet recreation area will be offering hayrides through october.  they're not free, but it does include the other activities offered at the chalet including square dancing, face painting, pumpkin 101 and more.

tomorrow night, a friend of ours will be performing with lighthouse bible church's worship group and opening up for reilly.  the show starts at 7 p.m. at lighthouse bible church.  admission is $5 and you can get your tix here.

happy fall and happy weekend!