"So much fun on the farm, on the farm it’s fun it’s fun. So much fun on the farm. ON THE FARM IT’S FUN!!!"…Sang Stepping Stones around the lunch table this afternoon after an incredibly fun morning at Incledon Farm in Georgeham. We set off at 9.30am and arrived to be welcomed by the very lovely Farmer John and his wife Jean who were incredibly kind and informative. It wasn’t long before Jean popped back to the house to collect Drift, the newest member of their family, a gorgeous puppy Border Collie dog who they only collected yesterday. The children were thrilled to meet her and it was obvious she felt the same way as we watched her little tail wagging as they all said hello and gave her a little stroke.

After taking it in turns to sit in the big blue tractor came the chickens, many many chickens. What a fab experience for the kids to be able to get so close amongst the feathered friends, as Farmer John told us all about their laying habits! He kindly scooped one up gently into his arms so that we could all have a feel of the soft feathers and say "hello". Later we were lucky enough to find a chicken laying in the barn and the children were able to touch a freshly laid egg! It was still warm!

We then went to visit the female sheep in the barn who appeared to be on the large side. As it turned out they were all pregnant and awaiting their first scans next week. Congratulations and all the very best to all of them! 😉 Farmer John says we can visit again in the spring to meet the little bleeters. Of which we most certainly will do. It was here that the children also enjoy feeding the calves some hay. They were very cute and very popular.

Lastly, we met Geoff, an extremely happy and loveable Border Collie, clearly beautifully looked after and loyal to his owners. He was very happy to see us and the feeling was mutual. The children enjoyed having a go sitting on the quad bike on our way back through the main barn.

It was now time for a well deserved snack. The children were so well behaved and did a brilliant job coping with all of the walking that they had worked up quite an appetite. Farmer John was kind enough to hop into his tractor to fetch the trailer which is where the kiddies parked to refuel. Cheese, crackers and apple as a special treat. They seemed to enjoy it and it didn’t take long for the word to spread as the chickens found us and very much enjoyed their fair share of biscuits too! Needless to say they will be laying some absolute crackers tomorrow!

We finished our visit with a swift rendition of "Farmer in His Den" to which John very kindly took the lead. It was such a fun and happy experience for everyone involved. The children must have taken so much from the visit and their little faces said it all. We made it back to school just in time for lunch! Thank you so much to the parents that accompanied us, we wouldn’t have been able to go without your help. We really hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did. Our next visit is already pencilled in the diary! 🙂