Stringers go to the Farm

Today, NanaB suggested that we all go to the Wolcott Mill Metropark Farm Center (same place as where we saw Santa this year).  I'm beginning to really like the programs at Wolcott Mill.

Anyway, once per year, Wolcott Mill welcomes kids of all ages to pet baby animals on the farm.  During the course of the morning, we petted a little pony, 3-day old piglets, 3-day old goats and lambs, 2-week old calves, chicks, ducklings, rabbits, and Niki even found a cat to pet.  In addition, we met Fern and Tom, two HUGE draft horses.

My pictures aren't great - it was hard to get pictures sometimes in dark barns, and I was also putting my camera away quite a bit so that I could pet baby animals, too.  

We started in the big farmhouse and paid our admission fee ($3 per person).  Behind the counter, there were some chicks in a cage. Peter took the opportunity to holler "CHICKEN BUTT" at them.  Turns out that Niki spent breakfast teaching this joke to the kids, specifically for sharing with the chicks:

Peter or Charlotte:  "Guess what?"

Chick:  "What?"

Peter or Charlotte:  "CHICKEN BUTT!"

There were tractors there, so I took pictures of them.  Of course.

Peter, NanaB, and Niki meet Ferdinand.  Ferdinand was greeting people at the entrance.  Charlotte decided that Ferdinand was not a baby and headed deeper into the farm to find the baby animals.

Grandma Jo, we found these piglets for you.  These three were less than a year old, and each spent time in a farm worker's arms being held out to toddlers, snorting happily.  When a piglet's snorts turned to squeals, the farm worker would declare the piglet's shift up, and the piglet would burrow in with his fellow piglets.  Peter was ENTRANCED!

Then we we went into this dairy barn, and met this little calf, along with many of the adult mama cows.  This calf wanted whatever was in NanaB's pocket.

Charlotte, showing a calf how to pose.

There were plenty of barn cats cruising around, and Niki (and later, Peter), spent some quality time with this guy.

In this barn, a farm worker told Peter and Charlotte that if they sat together, very still, they could hold this little kid.

Charlotte and her little striped kid. 

This was a neat old Farmall.  You can see the dairy barn and the sheep and goat barns in the distance.

Peter  really liked the chick.  I did not get a picture of the duckling we petted.

Our final stop was the horse barn. They did not have any colts to touch, and having just read Farmer Boy, I can understand why.  But, they had these HUGE 13-year old draft horses, Fern (in front) and Tom (in back) for us to meet.  Niki was brave and said "Hi" to Fern.

Another picture of Charlotte and Peter greeting Fern.  Each of them let me lift them up to pet her nose.  Fern's hoof had to have been as big around as little Peter's head!

Here's our little Farmer Boy and Charlotte-Pony!