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Borrego Springs, CA

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Fair Oaks Farms

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What an interesting experience today was!  Robyn and the girls arrived shortly before 10:00 this morning to pick me up, and we were off on our way to a dairy adventure.  After paying our entrance fees, we immediately signed up for the next bus tour of the dairy operation.  We had a half hour to kill before boarding, so we decided to take in the 4-D movie.

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We all donned 3-D glasses that were almost bigger than the girl's’ faces.  But what the heck is 4-D?  We were about to find out.  As we sat watching the movie pop out at us, a tractor rolled by harvesting grain in the movie and the seats began to shake and rumble.  Then an actor that was demonstrating the old method of milking a cow by hand turned to the audience and squirted a stream of milk from the cow’s teat at us, and a blast of water sprayed each of us from the seat in front of us.  That did it!  Both girls were scared out of their wits and screaming bloody murder!   They both climbed into their mother’s lap in between screeches.  Personally, I thought the whole thing was a hoot.  8-10 year old kids would be thrilled with the movie as well, but little ones not so much. Eye rolling smile  The finale was a cow burping at us and then turning around and sending  some fresh manure our way!  Now there was a THE END!

 

Needless to say, the movie almost created a disaster to the day.  We were able to find a play area for those under five, to help two young ladies forget about their traumatic experience.

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Eventually, we boarded the cow bus and took the tour of one of the big dairy farms about a mile away.  It was more than boring for young children, but I enjoyed it all.  What an operation it is.  The cows are free to wander around to get their feed, and socialize, and visit the rotating milking parlor on their own three times a day.

 

By the time we finished the tour, the girls were hungry and we had a picnic lunch out of the back of the car.

62 Pioneer Campground, IN summer, 20115Then it was on to the playground before enjoying some dishes of ice cream made on the premises.  There is also a tour available of their cheese making facilities, but this was definitely not something to put the kids through.  I purchased a small slab of Havarti cheese to enjoy.  I also took advantage of a free taste of their cheese fondue.   They didn’t tell me until after I had the cheese soaked piece of bread in my mouth that it was made with jalapeño peppers!  Nyah-Nyah  Both Robyn and I agreed that this would be a great outing for families with a bit older children.

 

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

20 comments:

  1. I love the story about the 4D movie. I think my little boys would have loved that. No much freaked them out even at that age but they probably would have bee trying to find thatncow that sprayed them.

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  2. Dairy farm tours are always interesting, this one maybe a bit more than normal. I remember being a mom on a tour with our homeschool group, and the children couldn't get past the smell to learn much about what they were seeing.

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  3. And ya'll missed the birthing barn ? ? ?

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  4. What a hoot! Thanks for sharing.

    Kate

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  5. I remember touring a dairy barn with my youngest when he was in kindergarten (he's now 29). We didn't have a bus though, we had a hay wagon. We all had a great day and still have wonderful memories! :)

    YsMum

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  6. 4-D sounds like fun. Glad it wasn't "smell-o-vision"!

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  7. Having spent a couple days on a dairy farm as a young boy one time I still enjoy the smell of a cattle barn. Instantly brings back pleasant memories of cows being milked, fed & stalls being cleaned. Sounds like that 4D movie had quite an impact on the kids.

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  8. When I was a kid and spent time on my grandparents' farm in the summer, I had my own cow to milk. I got more milk on my legs than in the bucket, but I learned a lot about the art of milking while avoiding a swishing tail.

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  9. Sounds like the 4D had a scary affect on the younger ones, but as you said, older kids would have really liked it. I remember helping a friend at his dairy farm a few times. It is very interesting and my how things have changed since I helped 30 some odd years ago.
    Take care and glad you had a great day.

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  10. What a fun filled day that sounded like... I love the 4-D movies. The girls were so cute with there glasses on!!! To bad they got scared.
    Have fun & Travel safe
    Donna

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  11. That movie sounded like fun..but my 7 year old grandson wouldn't have liked it!! All kids should see that milk doesn't magically come from a carton!!

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  12. Great tour" looks like everyone had a great time.

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  13. Great tour" looks like everyone had a great time.

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  14. I love to see kids learning where their food actually comes from, not just "the grocery store". Nice that you can spend this time with the granddaughters and you can get to know one another.

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  15. I've been to shows where the floor shakes and the lights flash during battle scenes but not where they squirt you. I don't think I would have liked that part.

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  16. Loved the picture of the cow. I'd probably be able to take its picture because it would stand still long enough for me to get most of it in the frame. How you get those awesome bird pictures is beyond me! ;c)

    Always nice to have fun with your grandkids.

    Paul and Marti, R Sanity RV

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  17. I think you are right, Judy. When they are a little older, they will love it. Very interesting to me. My Dad managed a dairy farm in central Indiana. My Mom always said that is how she got started on the slipery slope of gaining weight. She loved all the fresh cheeses, cream, and ice cream.

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  18. Oh what fun!!! Too bad the girls were scared at the 4-D... I would have loved it.

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  19. How wonderful you're getting to spend time with your daughter and grandchildren. They are precious. Thanks for identifying the brown thrasher on my blog. I always know I can count on you to know what kind of new bird I'm seeing. Even though we've lived in Wisconsin all of our lives, we're seeing lots of birds we've never seen before. I guess being outdoors more, makes a difference in how you observe your surroundings.

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  20. We did fair oaks a few years ago. They sure do put on a good show.

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