People often make big fancy plans when organizing a family holiday. Parents want to see their kids at theme parks dressed as princesses, or racing down a waterslide on a swanky cruise ship, or perhaps soaking in the fun of an all-inclusive resort. All these things sound fabulous, but I’m currently at a family farm in Australia and if you have not done a farm stay before, consider putting it on your holiday wish list. You don’t have to go to Australia to do it – farms are everywhere, and it’s great for kids to see where their food comes from.
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On top of the usual days filled with rounding up sheep, collecting eggs, and riding tractors, I’ve been surprised by the fun they can find by simply being outside at a farm.
Five strange things my kids have fun doing at the farm:
1. See how close you can get to a bird’s nest before the mama bird starts pecking at your head. I shut this activity down because I don’t like to stress out mama birds.
2. Lie on the ground and let dirty ol’ farm puppies lick you silly.
3. Yabbying. This is where they find a water dam, tie a piece of meat to the end of a piece of string, and lure the yabbies out with the meat. Then bring the yabbies home and eat them. True story. Oh, and a yabby is pretty much a crayfish. Gross, I know.
4. Wear a chicken like a hat, because why not?
5. Find a run-down old farmhouse; make up ridiculous stories about how it’s haunted, and then dare each other to go in it alone.
Remember: kids can have fun no matter where they go and we don’t always have to manufacture it for them. Give them a chance to figure out how to have some good ol’ fashioned fun outside and with each other.
Have you ever stayed at a farm? Was it your cuppa tea or did the smell of the pig pen put an end to any farming holiday future?
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