Happy September Mamas!
Moms, and all parents, what I love most about motherhood is the exploration you do with your children that you never did as a kid yourself.
I never visited a farm as an inner city kid with my parents for fun. I don’t recall ever going to a farm on a school trip. I actually don’t remember going until I was an adult with friends to go pumpkin picking with my then boyfriend who is now my husband.
I am so thankful we had friends that helped take us out of our own bubbles of the city to explore other things!
So yes, I might have been 20ish when I first went to a farm for some fall fun, but I am so happy that my husband and I now keep the tradition alive for my kids.
It started as family trips to the pumpkin patch only during the september- october halloween season.
Because of quarantine, I needed to think of outdoor activities that we could do beyond the zoo and beach. Who knew farms varied so greatly?! This city girl certainly had no idea!
I’m beyond obsessed now. For my kids, it means mini road trips, animals to see, new play areas to play in, and like the best ice cream in whichever town we’re in.
This summer we visited 2 and a half farms! I say half because one was at a zoo, but amazing nevertheless.
There are so many benefits for children and families in visiting a farm. Here are some reasons I find it beneficial:
- It brings your children’s imagination to real life – Between the cutest of shows, fun story books, nursery rhymes/children’s music and your child’s first foods, all usually involve farm animals! Such as Old MacDonald had a Farm, The Three Little Pigs, and yummy scrambled eggs!
- A love for animals, nature and the outdoors develop – I’ve not visited a farm yet that didn’t have a slew of fun things to do for the kids. However, even in the simplest of things like picking fruit or running through the farm fields, there’s something so special about being out in mother nature that you and your children will appreciate, I know we do!
- Making it an outdoor classroom – There is so much to learn on the farm. How do we get to make those yummy scrambled eggs, where does the milk we drink come from, where do plants and flowers live and how do some of our favorite fruits grow?
I could probably go on about this, but I’m no teacher! So as a city mom, I can tell you that in Philadelphia and the surrounding region and suburbs there are so many farms to visit and explore. So far in my limited experience this summer every farm we visited has been fairly empty and a great way to explore in a socially distant fashion. Below are the farms we visited and that I do recommend especially for toddlers and preschoolers!
Here we picked blueberries and took a hay ride to pick flowers too! We also ate in their restaurant al fresco and ended our day with their delicious Dave’s Homemade Ice cream. Their pumpkin patch has been a favorite of ours and we intend to visit again this month. They had hand washing and hand sanitizing stations available just about everywhere! Normally they have bounce houses and playgrounds for the kids open, but due to covid I did not see those operations running, perhaps by the pumpkin picking season there might be more available. Still it was a very fun time and did I mention that their blueberry wine was divine (for mamas only of course)!
At Hellerick’s they had amazing farm field playgrounds for the kids! They had mini tractors to ride and bikes for the adults as well. They even do goat yoga and have a fun ziplining course for teens and adults. We visited the sunflower fields which was a mini dream come true for me. Without being professional photographers, we managed to take amazing photos and my kids helped cut the sunflowers for mama. We picked nine, it was more than enough! The beauty we were surrounded by was absolutely breathtaking. They too had hand sanitizing stations everywhere and we were completely socially distant the entire time. We didn’t have enough time to figure out where to eat, but we did have enough time to stop by for delicious ice cream at Chubby’s which was recommended by one of their employees. Chubby’s also had cute sidewalk activities like chalk and toss games for the kids. The flavors of ice cream were SO GOOD!
- Elmwood Park Zoo – 1661 Harding Blvd, Norristown, PA 19401
So this was a small barn, but you still get the farm vibe! They had an adorable goat experience. The goats were friendly and photogenic and were definitely a highlight to the overall zoo experience that we were not expecting. I’m also going to plug in the ice cream there as well, it is a must! Plus we love ending most of our summer and fall outings with ice cream in hand and all over our faces of course!
So what’s next on my list you might be wondering especially if you’ve already checked out my recommendations above. Below are a list of recommendations I’ve been holding onto from other moms that I know. This is one of my FAVORITE reasons for being in the mom social influencing space. I’ve met such amazing mothers who have other amazing recommendations and this is what I live for! Haha, okay I of course live for my children and so much more, but I LOVE this part of my new found blogging journey. I hope this is helpful to you!
- Hill Creek Farms – 1631 State Highway 45, Mullica Hill, NJ 08062
- Little Lost Creek Alpaca Farm -1980 Quarry Road, Salford PA, 18957
- Solebury Orchards – 3325 Creamery Rd, New Hope, PA 18938
- Sandy Hill Farm – 1918 Sandy Hill Rd, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462
- Linvilla Orchards – 137 W Knowlton Rd, Media, PA 19063
Let’s not forget how fun farms are in the Fall! We’ve got apple picking and pumpkin picking coming up!
We know that due to covid-19 there may be restrictions in place. Wear your mask, sanitize and be socially distant and all *should* be fine. If at all possible go off peak times. Take a half day off or an entire day off from work if needed. If you can’t, try a weekend morning. I can only speak from personal experience that when we’ve gone we had no issues with crowds. It’s important to get outdoor time. I especially recommend it before October. Before we know it the nice weather will be out the window! So let’s make the most of this upcoming season and enjoy!
What’s your favorite farm/fall activity? Tell me below!
Modern Latina Motherhood 