She's Definitely a City Girl

This morning Malia had a field trip to Wheeler Farm. She has been looking forward to it all week so in spite of her having a rough night and a juicy cough, we went anyway. She was super excited to see all the animals. We saw bunnies, cows, chickens, turkeys and pigs. Although petting the animals is not actually a part of this particular farm, she was able to quickly pet one of the sheep who was hanging out right by the fence.

We saw the milking shed and our guide showed us where the cows stand, where they have a snack for the cows to keep them busy, how they keep the cows from running away and even the trench in the floor where all the cow poop goes. And then she asked where the poop goes after that. Malia piped right up, “In the potty!” I totally laughed. And then the guide told them about how manure goes in the gardens to help everything grow.

We also got to go on a wagon ride and as we crossed the bridge that spans Little Cottonwood Creek, Malia told me there were sharks in the water. It took a lot of talking to convince her that there were no sharks in the creek, only little fish. I guess for a three year old who has never seen any water bigger than a swimming pool the creek looked like a big enough place for sharks to live.

Malia has really enjoyed all her field trips and while this was the last one for this year, she will have another full year of trips starting in the fall.

 Watching the blacksmith make a chain

 Looking at the pigs who were lounging in their house

In the tree house

Old McWheeler Had A Farm…

Today Matthew had a fieldtrip to Wheeler Farm.  Yes, I know it was snowing.  We went anyway.  And in spite of the snow (and the enormous amount of mud that a wet day creates on a farm) we had a great time!  I didn’t take any pictures (I figured I had enough on my hands with the snow, hats, gloves, mud and patrolling a four year old on a farm) so you’ll have to use your imagination.

Now taking a kid who is allergic to milk and eggs to a farm can be an interesting experience because when the lovely tour guide asks questions like “What do we get from cows?” or “What do we get from chickens?”  she expects a four year old to know the answer.  Poor lady must have thought the completely blank stares meant Matthew was short-bus-special until I whispered to her that he is allergic and therefore hasn’t a clue in the world where milk, yogurt, cheese and eggs come from since he has never eaten them.

Matthew had mixed feelings about the animals: He was impressed by how tall the cows were.  One of the horses was awesome because it was so long.  The tom turkeys gobbled at the kids (Every one of them jumped at least six inches.  Maybe I’m a mean mom, but it totally made me laugh!) and after the tour guide told them that they do that to make everyone think they are in charge he sidled back to me and told me, “They scared me out.”  The coolest goat was the one with one horn.  He wouldn’t touch the sheep’s wool the tour guide had.  All through the tour he kept making horse sounds.  And he couldn’t wait to see the “hens.”  (Don’t ask me where he learned that word.  I have no idea.)  He has been excited about this adventure for weeks and I don’t think he was in any way disappointed.

Although Matthew seemed underwhelmed, I really enjoyed watching the blacksmith doing his thing.  We watched him turn a metal rod into a lovely leaf and I was very impressed.  I mentioned that it made me appreciate my silverware a whole lot more and the blacksmith told me that many years ago forks were frequently made with only two tines because they were easier.  After seeing him hammer a red hot rod into a recognizable shape, I would definitely have to agree!

I think my favorite moment (again, I think I’m a mean mom) was when we were feeding the ducks.  The duck feed for the day was wheat and I held Matthew’s first handful while he took little sprinkles and scattered them around.  Then he got a second handful and before he could pass it to me, one of the ducks came and ate right out of his hand.  He went very still, then slowly lowered his arm and let the rest of his wheat drop to the ground.  Needless to say, he was totally done feeding the ducks at that point.  On our way back to the car, he informed me that the duck was “very naughty.”  When I tried to get him to tell Kev about it later this evening, he shook his head and whispered to me, “It’s too scary.”  I seriously hope he doesn’t end up having naughty duck dreams for the next thirty years because I thought it was hilarious!

So while I wouldn’t necessarily suggest going in the snow, Wheeler Farm is a fun place to visit!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Last night, due to some unexpected vomit from her kindergartener, a friend of mine offered us a family ticket for the Festival of Lights at Wheeler Farm. So we quickly changed our FHE plans and bundled everyone up to see the lights and Santa! We started off the evening with a hay ride, viewing the lights all around the farm. Matthew doesn't remember his last hay ride (he was only four months old) and absolutely loved it. His running commentary of, "Whee! Lights!" was highly entertaining. When the ride was over he was not ready to be done, as evidenced by his exclamation of, "NO WAY!!! WHEE!!"

Next on the agenda was a visit with Santa. Before we left home, Daniel and Nathan had both written a letter for Santa. But neither of them asked him for anything. Nathan wished Santa a merry Christmas and Daniel wrote him a poem about how busy this time of year is for him. I am so pleased that my kids are starting to understand that Christmas isn't just about getting stuff. Anyway, when we walked in Daniel was calm and collected, Nathan was so excited he couldn't stand still, and Matthew was super friendly and hollered, "Hi, Santa!" The big boys talked to Santa, told him what they want for Christmas (only one surprise for us), and Matthew got shy once we walked right up to Santa. But when we were done he happily said, "Bye, Santa!" and proceeded to get his candy cane open on his own and eat the entire thing. ("NummEEE!!")



After we spoke with Santa, we headed back into the cold and had some hot chocolate at what Nathan refers to as the "cool food court."

Although it was dark and somewhat hard to see, the boys really wanted to see the animals, so we wandered around and saw the chickens, the pigs (Matthew was standing just a few inches away from the fence when one oinked and it scared him), and a cow (Matthew wouldn't go anywhere near the big old beast).

We enjoyed ourselves enough that we think we will probably go again next year!