Marsh Farm, Essex

Last weekend, as part of Beatrice's second birthday celebrations, we headed to nearby Marsh Farm, in South Woodham Ferrers, Essex to join them for one of their character days. The day in question was Peppa Pig aka Beatrice's bestie.

Having never ventured here before, we were greatly impressed by the value for money presented here; unfortunately it was bitter cold (sorry Beatrice for your winter birthday) so we only stayed for a few hours but we packed plenty in. In fact we never even made it to a few of the included activities.

Set over a huge piece of land, Marsh Farm has something for all children under ten and mine were enthralled despite the cold weather.

First up we enjoyed the Peppa Pig meet and greet - the staff and Peppa herself, were very friendly and happy for the children to have a photo alone with Peppa and then one with all the family. They even had a member of staff designated to take family snaps, which I thought was a nice touch. Beatrice was utterly delighted meeting her hero, and whilst Bridget is four and considers herself a little too grown up for Peppa Pig, she was excited too.

Bridget and Beatrice meeting Peppa Pig at Marsh Farm

Peppa Pig at Marsh Farm

Bridget and Beatrice waiting to see Peppa Pig at Marsh Farm

Straight from here we went to the fairground rides, of which there was a just a couple geared towards small children; the classic cups and saucers ride and a carousel. Both Bridget and Beatrice love the rides and so were very happy as you can see. I thought it was great that these were inclusive of the entrance price too - not like some other places I've visited, such as The Hop Farm in Kent, where everything is an additional cost.

My baby Beatrice enjoying her 2nd birthday at Marsh Farm

Bridget at Marsh Farm

Next on our agenda was a visit to the indoor barn animals and we were thrilled to see some baby lambs and piglets cuddled up to their mummas. Super cute. 

Piglets at Marsh Farm

Baby lamb at Marsh Farm

There was also some interestingly attired Shetland ponies with multi-coloured hair - Bridget was impressed and said it reminded her of Shimmer & Shine. Indoors there were also ferrets, guinea pigs and some rabbits. Each keeping the girls more than interested.

Shetland pony, Sparkle at Marsh Farm

The adventure playground is of excellent quality and there really is a section for all ages covered, it's set over a wide area with lots of different climbing apparatus and slides etc. 

By the time we'd done all of this, we were freezing and so headed to the Indoor Soft Play Barn which handily has a restaurant and coffee shop attached. This was a great opportunity for the girls to run around and warm up, with Glen following hot on their heels, whilst I enjoyed a lovely hot chocolate.

We went for the tractor ride next; which seems to be a standard at these types of places, and whilst it was good, it was a very short ride compared to Barleylands (also in Essex) or Willows Activity Farm (in nearby Hertfordshire) which we visited at Christmas time. We did get to ride swiftly through muddy puddles, spot some interesting birds and look out for other wildlife whilst waving at various dog-walkers but we we just on the tractor ride for less than five minutes.

We then had a walk around the Animal Trail spotting some giant rabbits, a number of birds, poultry and ducks and even alpacas and llamas. Apparently in the summer you can do llama walking which sounds fun (although not for me!). It did mention on the website about an Animal Trail book where you collect stickers throughout the trail, but we never got given one, so maybe this is just in the summer too. Nevertheless the girls really enjoyed spotting all of the animals.

The girls had a go on the mini tractor park and the bouncy pillows - massive bouncy castle-esque creations and were just delighted with everything. 

We also enjoyed the jewel hunting which we did on the way out. It's a huge sandy area with colourful glass jewels which the children collect. Equipped with buckets and spades, I can imagine spending hours here with my two as they love any kind of treasure hunt, but by this point we really were freezing and so it was a quick ten minute dash.

Beatrice Jewel Hunting at Marsh Farm

Bridget Jewel Hunting at March Farm

Unfortunately, the cold prevented us having a game of crazy golf, or attempting the huge chicken and egg maze and we didn't even find the aviary or the den-building area. Again, it looks like in the summer months there is a huge array of additional activities, from goat-racing, educational pet shows and interactive entertainment; so we'll definitely be looking to do a return visit in the summer months - we had a great time with what was available anyway. Family time is so precious and especially celebrating Beatrice's birthday just the four of us.

Happy family time for Beatrice's second birthday at Marsh Farm

The price of tickets if you purchase in advance of visiting is £12.50 for the character event, and everything mentioned is included in that price, which I think is excellent value for money. Under two's go free but we just missed out on that. 

Marsh Farm is an ideal day out with toddlers and pre-schoolers as there is so much to do and I'd advise bringing a picnic once the weather warms up if you're planning a visit and making a real day of it. We'll definitely be back soon.

Little Farthingloe Farm, Dover

During a week’s stay at my Mum’s caravan in Deal, Kent, back in March, the first Sunday fell on Mother’s Day and before heading out for a lovely dinner, we wanted to enjoy some of the local countryside first.

The day before we had headed to Betteshanger Park and carried out a nature trail, which had gone down brilliantly with Bridget (3.5years), Beatrice had only just learned to walk, so she had been a buggy participant.

Bridget wanted more of the same, so we looked up some local nature trails and found Little Farthingloe Farm on the Folkestone Road in Dover, just a fifteen minute drive from Deal, which we thought would hit the spot nicely.

Small, but perfectly formed would be an adequate description of Little Farthingloe, which boasted a ton of sheep, a donkey and a couple of pony’s, which kept Bridget and Beatrice entertained for quite some time. Bridget really enjoyed stroking the ponys, and they were quite tame, if a little unkempt.

Little Farthingloe Farm

There was also an adventure play area which was great for Bridget, but a little too old for Bea.

The ‘woodland trail’ is said to take 30 minutes in total, but it took us closer to an hour, what with stopping to look at various things along the way and the fact there was some quite thick mud due to the cold and wet weather in the days leading up to Mother’s Day. Luckily Bridget was sporting her wellies.

The trail begins by an absolutely mammoth open grassy hill, which was quite fun to climb actually, and once up the top you had spectacular views over the local countryside and the animals in the fields. 

Mothers Day hike at Little Farthingloe Farm, Kent

As we headed into the trail, there was a lot to see along the way. I had made some ‘nature trail checklists’ for Bridget and Bea, which had things such as mushrooms, spider’s webs, animal footprints, pine cones and so on, and we happily trudged along most of the trail stopping to tick off things from our list. 

There was also a bug hotel – which fascinated Bridget, even though its’ rooms were mostly vacant at that time of the year.

We found a few little dens along the way too. 

Little Farthingloe Farm Woodland Trail

Towards the end of the trail, it gets somewhat trickier to navigate. I’m sure if it hadn’t been wet underfoot and muddy, it wouldn’t have been much of an issue, but as Glen was carrying Bea, Bridget and I were buddied up. I do have a bit of a tendency to fall over anyway, regardless of mud, so it was almost inevitable it would happen at some point, and unfortunately it happened as we went downhill in amongst a load of mud, twigs, and trees. I took Bridget down too, till we were both flat on our bums in the mud. Absolutely hilarious – but Bridget was beside herself now, and petrified to come down most of the rest of the trail. It certainly made for a talking and laughing point for the rest of the day, and we were both smothered in mud.

There is a lovely little tea room at LittleFarthingloe Farm, which we didn’t get the chance to enjoy as I didn’t fancy covering their seats in mud, but I do chuckle thinking about the bundles of people who were enjoying a Mother’s Day slice of cake and cup of tea who probably heard Bridget’s screams from up the hill.

We had a lovely hour and a half at LittleFarthingloe Farm, there is no charge for entry and it’s a nice spot for family fun. It’s definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area, just watch out when coming down the woodland trail!

Homemade Nature Trail

If you're keen to make your own family nature trail - all I did for mine, was find pictures of each of the following and pop onto a sheet of paper - you can do this any time of the year and add to it depending on where you're going and what you're likely to see.

• Mushrooms growing
• Two stones that look the same
• Animal footprints
• A feather
• A pine cone
• Birds
• Squirrel
• Berries growing wild
• Spiders web
• A brown leaf
• A log on the ground
• Butterfly
• Ladybird
• A pond or stream
• A tree tunnel
• A rabbit hole

Family Day Out: Stepney City Farm

We enjoyed a fabulous afternoon out this week at Stepney City Farm, in the East End of London; a gem I'd never visited before and that was fun for all of the family.

Stepney City Farm



Bridget saying hi to the chickens

Fun at Stepney City Farm

Stepney City Farm
 


The city farm is fairly compact as far as farms go, but packs in plenty.

Animal feed is available to purchase at the farm reception so children are able to try their hand at feeding their favourite animals, Bridget loves animals so she found this super fun.

There are lots of 'buzz facts' boards up around the farm with interesting little nuggets of information about farm life and the animals within, which provide an interest and an educational side to the trip - perfect for older, more curious children.

Stepney City Farm buzz fact

In the centre of the farm is a huge area dedicated to some allotments for local residents. My Dad has recently took over an allotment so this proved to be quite interesting to my Mum and I, less so for Bridget and Beatrice and my brother Dan who came along for the fun. You can tell a real care and dedication goes into these small growing patches, every effort has been made to repel birds and bugs from eating the produce and we saw some impressive things growing, from courgettes, tomatoes, squash, onions and an abundance of beautiful smelling fresh herbs. The farm apparently sells 'veg boxes' to locals too, which I thought was great. 

 

Allotment at Stepney City Farm

The farm hosts a number of events for locals - there was a music group for toddlers taking place when we arrived and there's a play section with lots of toys and ride ons available to enjoy - again popular with Bridget.

There is a little farm shop, which was unfortunately shut on Friday when we visited, and a picnic area too.

Stepney City Farm runs as a charity organisation, so rather than ask for an entry price fee, there are simply donation points to offer up what you can afford or would like to pay. This makes for an affordable day out for the family, especially if you have more than one child; a lot of farms or petting zoos charge a fair amount per adult and child, so for the summer holidays, this is a great shout as a cheap way of keeping them entertained for a day!

Stepney City Farm has a heart and soul that is based all around the local community, and there's something really special about that.

 

Stepney City Farm is open Tuesday-Sunday 10am-4pm and is about a ten minute walk from both Limehouse and Stepney Stations.

Old MacDonald's Farm, Padstow

During our recent stay in Padstow, Cornwall we enjoyed a lovely family day out including Glen, Bridget and I,plus Glen's sister Claire, her husband Matt and their two girls, Lola (almost 9) and Pearl (2 and a half) for a Sunday morning at Old MacDonald's Farm on the outskirts of the town.

Set over a large enough area for the children to run loose, but small enough for us to keep an eye on them and be hot on their heels, Old MacDonald's Farm was winding down for the winter months, however it has to be one of the best value days out I've had with Bridget anywhere. The ticket price for both children over the age of two and adults is £7.00 but as they claim, there really are no hidden extras, everything within the farm is included, and there is plenty to keep the family entertained for hours.

Firstly and foremost, it is a farm with plenty of animals to see, feed and pet. From chickens, goat's, birds of prey, horses and even a Shetland pony or two, there’s plenty of wildlife to keep the children entertained and bags of feed were reasonably priced at just £1.00, which meant the children got the chance to feed them and really build up their confidence with animal handling.

The goats were particularly keen and the girls happily got involved in feeding them, which is lovely.

Goat feeding at Old MacDonald's Farm, Padstow

Feeding the goats, Old MacDonald's Farm

The chickens had their own little coops and there was the chance to see where they laid their eggs too, which is great and really educational.

The egg laying section

Feeding the chickens at Old MacDonald's Farm

The girls were encouraged to brush and pet the pony and horses, which Bridget and Pearl loved doing, and Pearl was brave enough to go for a ride on the Shetland Pony for a quick trot around the farm, which was lovely. 

Pony grooming at Old MacDonald's Farm

Bridget and Pearl enjoying petting the Shetland Pony

Pearl taking a trot on a Shetland Pony

Lola was enticed later to have a canter around on a larger pony too but we didn’t manage to persuade Bridget – next time hopefully.

Lola about to go for a canter

Also at Old MacDonald’s Farm were a couple of different adventure playground sections - it was a little wet, but the girls had their wellington boots on so got straight into playing. There was a trampoline section too which went down well and an area with Little Tykes cars and other mini vehicles. 

Bridget enjoying the trampoline

Pearl on the slide

Bridget on the swings with Daddy

In the centre of the farm was a pedal go-kart track which we all had a go at and was lots of fun, and there was also a mechanical train which took us round the whole farm and was lovely. There was even a crazy golf section, which again was all included in the price, but we didn’t have time on this particular day to indulge. 

Go Karts at Old MacDonald's Farm

We just stayed for the morning, but you could have easily broken the day up with a snack at the cafe or taken your own picnic and then gone back for more fun. We were also told there are lots more animals in the summer months such as sheep, cows and pigs and in the lambing season you can get the children involved in feeding the lambs, which they would absolutely adore.

I would thoroughly recommend Old MacDonald's Farm for anyone staying in the Cornwall area for a fun, educational and excellent value day out with the family.