The Amazing Maisie at the Maize Maze

Sorry, it should have been titled something like Maisie and friends at the farm, but I couldn't resist the alliteration and the homonyms.

Oh what fun we had on Saturday when we met up with Kathy, Matt & Chani and Lisa, Doug & Briana for a morning at Cagle's Dairy Farm. Our original intention for meeting up was to do the whole pumpkin patch/picking out the pumpkin thing but the morning turned into so much more. We had absolutely gorgeous weather, sunny and warm with a cool breeze and some big fluffy white clouds in the sky, we couldn't have asked for better.

We decided to start by taking a trek through the maize maze where we took a few wrong turns but in the end we successfully managed the maze without having to raise our distress flag even once!

Chani loved the distress flag and in the end didn't want to give it up having a grand old time walking around with it. She looked so cute with it and without even trying, it matched her outfit perfectly!!

The girls then spied these really cool jumping pillows so that was our next stop. The farm has two jumping pillows, one being quite large and then a smaller one for those under 45-inches, which is the one we chose.

I thought that Maisie would be all over it as she loves jumping on trampolines but Maisie chose to just observe while the other little girls and boys jumped away. It looked like great fun especially watching Chani trying to keep on her feet and Briana going at it full force, landing any which way and laughing the entire time.

The pony ride was our next stop and Bri and Chani were chomping at the bit to get on the cute little ponies for a ride. Maisie though is not an animal person and no amount of cajoling, coaxing, bribery or peer pressure was going to get Maisie up on one of those giant creatures. Bri and Chani were all smiles riding and sure had a blast!!

Lunch was next on our agenda and then Maisie and I stopped back over near the jumping pillow where she had fun riding on the little pedal tractors trying out four or five of them making sure to ride on at lease one in every color.

I would say that our next stop was the pumpkin patch but first came two or most likely three trips to the bathroom for Miss M. She wanted to go time and time again as all the sinks were at her height and as she loves washing her hands, it served as a great excuse to use water.

Maisie enjoyed climbing on the big pumpkin and having her picture taken but when I asked her if she wanted to pick out a pumpkin to take home she said "no, but thank you for asking." Now that was stinking cute!

Kathy and Lisa got to realize how "lucky" they were to have their children still in diapers because after yet another stop at the bathroom and more adventures in hand washing we then headed over for a dairy tour and hay ride.

Our first stop was the calf barn where we learned about the breeds on the farm, Holsteins and Jerseys and about how they are tagged. We saw two of the calves being fed milk from a bottle and we were given cabbage to feed the calves but Maisie kept her distance and the little boy who I handed the cabbage to was delighted to have extra opportunities to feed the calves.

The milking barn demonstration was our second stop and all the children sat up front for the up close and personal view. All but Maisie that is, as she was more comfortable being held high and far away from the giant cow safe in Doug's arms!

The final tour stop before the hayride was the processing plant. Well that was a quick tour for Maisie and I as the noise of the facility freaked her out completely. Even before everyone was in the building I had Maisie in my arms, I grabbed some chocolate milk and we waited out on the lawn for everyone to finish and join us. This was Maisie's first taste of chocolate milk and she thoroughly enjoyed it thinking it a great treat.

Finally what Maisie had been waiting for, the hayride! All the little ones thoroughly enjoyed the hayride and the various stops along the way. Especially fun was to watch the pig races as they raced around a track vying to be the first to get to the chocolate milk treat at the end.

Also fun was to see the cows being herded up to the wagon so that they could feast on strategically placed buckets of hay. It was amazing seeing the cows so close and to realize how huge they really are.

After alighting from the wagon they handed us some feed for the goats. Much to my delight and surprise Maisie took the feed and then held her hand out for the goat to feed. I think this may have been one of the highlights of the day for Maisie as she spoke about feeding the goats for much of the ride home and once seeing Eammon, it was the first thing she told him about her day.

The first time we were at the jumping pillow, Maisie just chose to observe but over the course of the morning she asked to go back time and time again. The first time back she didn't want to jump but that was the time she rode on the tractors At the very end of our time at the dairy we made one last trip back to the jumping pillow while everyone else was purchasing their pumpkins. Finally the time was right as she had the entire pillow to herself. It must have been what she'd been waiting for because she climbed right on and just had a blast jumping and jumping.

It was such a fun day and especially now that the weather is so beautiful, we can't wait to do more days out with friends!

I am so far behind on blogging and so much has been happening that I want to document and share, so I'm going to have to make time and get online over the next few days so stay tuned and check back often for more Moments with Maisie!