Farm Experience- 4/17,18,19

When the Leadbetter's, who live in Connecticut, suggested meeting up for a weekend at a farm in Pennsylvania, we instantly agreed!  The idea of a "farm stay" is quickly becoming a popular travel niche for families- thanks to the Today Show most likely. Regardless, we knew that spending time with our friends, in nature, getting our hands dirty doing some farm chores, completely unplugged, and teaching our kids about where their food comes, from sounded right up our alley...

So I began searching for the right farm for us... We knew we wanted to be in the heart of Amish country, with breakfast served each day, didn't want to break the bank (it's a farm after all, not the Ritz) and wanted to be able to help out on the farm and learn about farm life. Is that really to much to ask? For several days, it appeared so. I was getting discouraged calling all these places and not finding one to fit our needs/wants. 

Then, I stumbled across Eby Farm and we made reservations for what would become one of my favorite weekends away in years...

We left on Friday morning, allowing the kids to skip school- the prefect start to any vacation, right? We decided no stopping until Pennsylvania. It would only be a 3 hour drive, but we were going to need lunch. Thanks to Yelp, we found the BEST spot for lunch. Not only was the view of the Pennsylvania farmlands amazing, the lunch on the patio was perfect and the bakery treats were practically sinful. 

Macy is delighted to be at Brown's Orchard and Farm Market, in Loganville, PA. Do NOT miss this place it's ever along your route... 

Next stop- Eby's Bed and Breakfast. I had been told that Amish country/Lancaster County, PA can be very touristy. Hearing this, I knew we all wanted nothing to do with that, and was so pleasantly surprised when just a few miles off the beaten path we saw our farm-

This is an 80 acre, 7th generation working dairy farm in Gordonville, PA- right in the heart of Amish county. The farmhouse we would stay in, is over 200 years old and the original family home on the farm-

Mike and Lynette Eby now run the farm and bed & breakfast. They live in the brick farmhouse, and have 4 children ranging in age from middle school to college. Mike's parents have built another home on the farm (just over the covered bridge- love that!), and they have guest rooms available also. 

There are 3 guest rooms in the brick farmhouse. One is an efficiency apartment- two bedrooms, one with bunk beds, bathroom and a full kitchen- which was the original kitchen for the house. The other two rooms have double beds and each have a private bathroom. It was the perfect set up for us, since we had 3 families traveling all together. Our bathroom had the original claw foot tub! Now updated with a shower too... The guest rooms have a separate entrance from the family, as well as a small breakfast room/livingroom. There are tv's in each room, cable and wifi. But we loved that there was also a welcome note encouraging guests to avoid the screens and spend time outside in nature while on the farm!

We'd decided when we made the reservations that this would be a screen free weekend for us- kids and parents. Usually our kids are allowed to watch a movie in the car on trips that are over an hour, and we bring along an iPad or two for fun. Well, not this time. And they honestly didn't care. We had some good books in the car and fun games, then once they got to the farm- not a peep about a screen. I even had a bunch of rainy day fun planned, however I'm not sad one bit that we didn't have to bust any of that out. Thank God for sunshine!

We had no idea from the website how kid friendly the farm would be. The website hasn't actually been updated since 2006 I think, but has the sweetest poem- 

In the heart of the country
Lies a home with a heart
That welcomes each one
From wherever they part.

We offer our beds
That melt off the stress,
And breakfast by morning
Will make you feel blessed.

And over the river
And through the woods
Lies another sweet homestead
Filled with even more goods.

The farm is a storybook
All in itself
With nearly 200 years
Of history's wealth.

You see it's the parents
Who moved off the farm
And onto a life
With grandchildren and charm.

There are 81 acres
Of God's country land
And nearly 100 cows
That can be fed by hand.

So take your pick
Of which home you would like
To stay in and rest
Through a cozy, quiet night.

We had 7 kids altogether, so were delighted to find chickens and baby goats in the backyard- 

An awesome tree house-

A swingset and baseball diamond in the backyard too- 

We played baseball and kickball all weekend- it was seriously the perfect farm for us. So of course this sign was in the driveway-

There is also a gorgeous creek, The Pequea (pronounced pick-way, that runs right through the farm-

There were people (mostly Amish) fishing in it all weekend. Next time we will too!

When you've had a working farm for almost 200 years, you earn this sign on your barn-

Apparently last year they had a huge celebration. What an accomplishment! 

When I called to make the reservations, I was told that one of their neighbors, the Esh's, also dairy farmers, (however the Esh's are Amish while the Eby's are Mennonite), open up their home on Friday and Saturday nights for a family style dinner, a glimpse into their lifestyle and religion, while enjoying  meal with their family- they have 7 kids. YES PLEASE! 

I called Sally Esh and left a message for her. Because they are Amish, they can not have a phone in the home. So their phone, for her business primarily, is located across the street from their home in a shed. I left a message and then Sally called me back several hours later and we were booked in for dinner Friday night!

We arrived at their home- a neatly manicured farm-style home, and were instantly taken aback by the simple way of dressing for both she and her children. Her husband was still out milking...  While the home had modern appliances in the kitchen (all gas powered) there was only 1 lamp that we noticed. We'd learn later that that too was gas powered. Thank goodness for the setting sun shining in on the 20+ person table that was already covered in delicious food- meatloaf, mashed potatoes, homemade bread, chicken and dumplings- the list goes on and on. It was a ton of food. 

While we ate, we were able to tell Sally about ourselves (there was also another family of 5 there that night) and we got to ask her questions about being Amish. It was a wonderful exchange of cultures. Sally told us that her mom did these dinners while she was growing up, and now she has chosen to keep up the tradition because while they don't travel far (no airplane travel is allowed), it is a way for her family to meet people and learn about different cultures. 

After dinner our kids went outside with Sally's kids to swing on the swing set and play kickball. It was awesome to see kids from two different worlds come together to play. 

The dinner experience was priceless. But in reality, very inexpensive. Adults were $15, kids $7.50 and 6 and under free. 

We were not able to take any photos while at Sally's, respecting the Amish rule of no photography.

Brian went out early on Sat & Sun morning to see the milking process, and captured some beautiful sunrises-

Love the fog in this one from Sunday-

Saturday morning we were served chocolate chip pancakes, OJ and farm fresh milk- which was delicious! It is filtered, but unpasteurized. 

After breakfast, we got the farm tour, fed the baby calves (one was just 2 days old) and milked the cows. Milking is done twice a day, thankfully with modern machinery and not by hand anymore. 

Mama milking cows- 

baby cows-

Who's ready to bottle feed those babies?

Tate and Nick (who were inseparable all weekend) milk one of the baby calves with a bottle-

I was in charge of grain-

Then it was time to try milking by hand! Here is Joyce, the 6th generation farmers wife, giving us instructions-

Go for it Tate! It was a little tricky to do actually. Thank goodness for modern technology!

This cow was so patient to let us all try milking her-

Our little farm hands-

Saturday after our chores, we took off to go exploring for a bit. We found a great 5 mile biking trail (all 13 of us brought bikes), farmers market (where we picked up local pork and fresh vegetables to cook our own dinner that night), an Amish bakery, and the town of Intercourse-

Hehehe. Us girls couldn't resist a picture with the sign! And while we were pulled over to take the picture, we got passed by a buggy-

The kids ate all lined up on the front porch for each meal. The weather was absolutely perfect!

Sunday morning before breakfast (which was an amazing blueberry oatmeal, along with an egg casserole) one of the Eby teens took Macy and few others to see a baby calf that had been born overnight in one of the fields-

On Sunday we had a good wind, so we broke out the kites we'd brought along. The fields have not yet been planted, so it was the perfect space for flying a kite-

Before we all went on our ways Sunday (very sadly I must mention), we decided to take a walk to the covered bridge. On our way, we passed one of the barns and I looked in. OH MY! What I saw was a cows rear end, with smaller legs sticking out of it. For a second, I was so confused. Then I realized the cow was in the process of giving birth!

We all decided we'd tell the kids and show them, hoping not to scar them for life... Then we decided to carry on with our walk, because who knew how long it would take a cow to give birth? (The Eby's were at church, but they probably would have just rolled their eyes at us if we'd rang their doorbell to tell them a cow was giving birth. It's not like each cow gets a midwife!)

So on we go to the covered bridge-

Finally, a photo of the adults-

Megan & Kerry, Chris & Sara, me & Brian-

The kids waited patiently while we took our photos!

Drew, Callem, Shane, Nolan, Macy, Nick & Tate-

Then it was back to the farm to check on our laboring cow... I was a little worried about what we'd find to be honest. But boy did we see something beautiful, a baby had been born!

We'd only been gone about 25 minutes, so now you know- a cow gives birth quick! The baby was so wet, and we watched the mama cleaning her up. Then within about 20 minutes, we watched that baby try to stand and walk-

It was so amazing! We couldn't have known that we'd see this incredible side of nature on our weekend away... Priceless.

I named that calf Pickles. And before we left a couple hours later, we walked over to say good-bye and she was laying in the sun, looking strong- 

There are two barns on the farm, the new barn and the old barn. The old barn is the original barn, with a stone foundation. If you get a chance, spend a minute on the website reading about the old barn. In 2005, they lost the old barn in an arson fire. The Amish community came together, even though the Eby's are not Amish, but Mennonite, and had an Amish barn raising for their family. Lynette has made an fantastic scrapbook about the process that we were able to see while at the farm. 

Here is the "new" old barn. It is all post and beam, and breathtakingly beautiful-

 I really enjoyed the time that we got to spend talking with Lynette about farm life and being a dairy farmer in the heart of Amish country. After breakfast on Saturday, we all had our second cup of coffee and drilled her with a bunch of questions we had. She was so informative, and really made us all have a deeper appreciation for the hard work that she and her family do each and every day.

 We learned that once a dairy cow is too old for milking, they are sold off for dog food! Who knew? Brian and I nearly died laughing while we were driving home and saw this Purina (dog food company) Factory not even 30 minutes from the farm-

 What a weekend. I loved hearing the clip-clop sound of the horse and buggy's passing our farm. The sound was so peaceful. I never tired of seeing the Amish families on board, taking a minute to appreciate the life they have chosen. One that is indeed harder than my own, but one that also intends to bring them a lot closer to our God.

The Eby's, and most dairy farmers around the area, sell their milk to Land O'Lakes. The milk truck comes every other day to drain the milk from their tank. I enjoyed watching it back down the long driveway on the farm Sunday morning, noticing at the very same time that an Amish buggy was passing. New vs. old. Just fascinating to me.

There is a sign on the farm that you read when leaving that says "Be a Blessing." It is in the perfect spot. This weekend away with our dear friends was such a blessing. It was so refreshing to our souls to be connected with nature, good people and new experiences.  Disconnecting leads to reconnecting. Imagine that.

We can not wait to go back! We enjoyed every minute we were there and learned so much. We've told so many friends about our experience and hope they too will take advantage of this unique experience. 

Who wouldn't want to meet this little guy?

Side note- on the way home we stopped off for lunch in Columbia, PA (home of the Turkey Hill Ice Cream Experience, btw) and found Hinkle's Pharmacy. While this is still a pharmacy, it is also an old time diner and soda fountain. The lime rickey was fantastic! It has been open for over 120 years- and the menu and prices haven't changed much...