For urban families planning their next vacation, a trip to the farm might not seem as thrilling as a visit to Disneyland or as relaxing as a week at the beach. Sure a farm stay may be easier on the budget, but will the kids enjoy it – or end up bored? And, if the kids aren’t having fun, does that mean parents will regret the choice?

Actually, a farm stay could be the family getaway you didn’t know you all needed.

Picture this: you arrive at the farm, only to find yourself herding sheep with your car. The farmer greets you with a smile and a request – step out with the kids and stretch your arms wide to guide the sheep back through the hole in the fence. Within moments, you’re in the middle of the action, and the kids are already hooked.

Suddenly, the tablets and phones the kids were glued to during the drive are forgotten in the backseat. There’s more to do here, like collecting eggs from the chicken coop – eggs that can be cooked for breakfast (says the kid who never eats eggs). Chores become part of the farm experience: feeding hay to the livestock, filling the water tanks, helping to dig potatoes, sweeping the barn, and more. It’s as if chore time is somehow different from washing the dishes and picking up dirty clothes off the floor at home. “Time for chores!” and the kids are already pulling on their boots.

No, no one is bored.

It’s almost like traveling to a foreign land when many farm stays are only hours from home. Children delight in the unexpected. The sights and smells are new. Fresh cut hay. Cows being milked by machines. Gardens with row after row of vegetables. Tractors rumbling by. Waving fields of grain or corn so tall it seems to touch the sky. Friendly goats that chew on anything. Nights that seem so quiet, yet alive with unfamiliar sounds and movement. Skies filled with stars. By bedtime, the kids are exhausted, their adventures replayed over dinner and drawn into pictures, to be brought home or tacked to the refrigerator with all the others.

These days we tell a story of two worlds: the natural world and the digital world. They are so very different in their impact. Maybe this is when we need to take a breath literally and offer our kids something more real and grounded as a balance. Connection to the food they eat, connection to the people who grow it, an immersive experience that enriches their understanding of the world around them and the ground they stand on. It could do us grown-ups some good too.

Time to plan a farm stay for your next vacation. While not all farms allow kids, most do, so check Yes on the filter that says Kids Allowed as you search the Farmstay site for this and all the activities you are looking for.

And, lest you think kids get all the fun, adults (with or without children) may find the experience brilliantly refreshing, so much so it becomes a regular weekend in the country. Let’s go herd sheep!

Authors Note: From the photos is looks like we all need to go to Pennsylvania but there are wonderful farms all over the U.S. It was just serendipity that these two photos really seemed to fit the story line.

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Valeria shared with us that although the farm has a “way out” feeling, due to being nestled among approximately 1,000 acres of cropland, wooded areas, and other family farms, it’s actually quite close — only 2 miles — from the city limits of Henderson. The farm, farm stay, and their animal inhabitants live on the front 25+ acres of the property, while the rest is considered hay fields and natural habitat.

This “back 100+” acreage is an excellent place for a hike or golf cart ride, and, after being assessed by a semi-local ornithologist, Valeria says they can boast a good population of birds whose species are rated as in-decline. (Bring your binoculars!) Other wildlife in the area are deer and wild turkeys in abundance, an occasional coyote, and once in a great while visitors to the farm may see a red fox, an armadillo, or even otter or bobcats.

When asked what guests typically do when they visit the farm, Valeria said, “while many of our guests arrive with a list as long as their arm, most emerge from the Cottage after a couple of days with hair sticking every which-way, coffee mug in hand, stating — emphatically — that they can’t remember when they’ve rested so well!”

Aside from all that wonderful rest, guests receive “critter tours” to get to know the inhabitants and landscape of the farm, any questions they have are answered, and from that point on, they decide what they’d like to do. Guests are welcome to join in whatever farm activity is happening, whether it be hay season, bringing in the crop, animal feeding and/or grooming, trimming time for horses, gardening, animal babysitting, nature hiking and photography excursions, flower collecting, and much more.

The farm occasionally hosts artist’s workshops, where they prepare and paint gourds that are raised on the farm. Off farm activities can include visits to Civil War monuments, such as Shiloh National Battlefield Park, a pearl farm attraction, Casey Jones Village and Museum, a minor league baseball park, and several state parks within an hour’s drive. Guests may also enjoy horseback riding, canoeing, visiting the nearby Amish community of Lawrenceburg, or attending events at the West Tennessee State Fairgrounds. The town of Henderson boasts a new day spa, only 4 miles from the farm, where guests can find services like massage, facials, manicures, and pedicures.

Local food enthusiasts can make their way to the West Tennessee Farmer’s Market in Jackson, where dozens of vendors sell a wide variety of produce, grass-fed meats, arts, crafts, and products from Stillwaters Farm. The farm itself also has “The Silo”, their very own on-farm store featuring their handcrafted artisan soaps, soy candles, art, photography, and more.

Guests staying at Stillwaters Farm enjoy a free-standing 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 1,000 square foot cottage at the leading edge of the farm. It’s climate-controlled with central heat and air, and it offers an outdoor lounge area with views of the diverse gardens and pastoral vistas. A private drive leads to the private parking for Cottage guests.

Inside, Valeria tells us, “the Cottage is furnished in period antiques, albeit touchable antiques, along with a 1917 cast iron claw foot tub for soaking.” The bedrooms are spacious and the beds have premium mattresses for guests’ comfort. There is a television and DVD/VCR player, along with a small library of videos, and a stereo hidden away in the living room, but there is no satellite, cable, or Wi-Fi service. A small, but eclectic, library is maintained for guests to use.

Guests self-prepare their meals, and the kitchen is outfitted with all major appliances, cookware, tableware, and flatware necessary. The Cottage is stocked with coffee, soaps, and essentials like cooking oil, salt and pepper, and spices for guests to use, and guests are encouraged to partake of the fresh, in-season produce from the farm’s garden.

To learn more, we invite you to visit the Stillwaters Farm listing here on Farm Stay U.S., as well as their website and Facebook page.

(All photos courtesy Stillwaters Farm)

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