Secret Places

The urban farm is one of Beatrice's favourite places.  She is a frequent visitor as Thursdays with Granny Leona and Granda Brian often follow a "feed the ducks, go to the farm, then the market and off to Dalchoolin" sort of pattern.  We were only introduced to it at the start of the summer and shared this wonderful little secret with Josie today.

Bea has developed a particular rapport with Billy the Goat.  She accepts his name as simply his name.  I on the other hand always have a little smile that emanates from the satisfaction that quirky word play brings.  He has recently been put into an enclosure with his brother Paddy.  Paddy has a beard and looks exactly like your imagining of a Billy Goat Gruff.  Billy and Paddy fight like siblings do, often with little head butts and loud, slow releases of breath.  Bea quite deliberately favours Billy.  He is the goat she loves and the one she wants to feed.  Thankfully, Josie was on hand today to distract Paddy.

The livestock is limited, but not just to two goats...there is a third called Archie, a shetland pony, two curly pigs, one enormous fat pig, numerous flavours of chickens, ducks, rabbits and guinea pigs.  Often "the lady" Anna is on hand to help with the petting of the rabbits.  Today however, there were only young teenage girls wiping the rabbits' fur with disinfectant wipes so we had to suffice with sticking little fingers through chicken wire to stroke them.

This secret rural oasis is, for those of you who watch a lot of Cbeebies (as I do) a cross between Big Barn Farm and Mr Bloom's Nursery.  You can wander through poly tunnels and look at the tomatoes, peas, beans, carrots, potatoes, corn, pumpkins and the like growing.  You can buy fresh eggs and you can wander through the orchard, between bushes dripping with gooseberries, plums, apples, raspberries and blueberries, looking for a little cottage to play in.

If you get lost, it is signposted...and it's name...well, that should be obvious...

The house provided considerable entertainment today to two little girls and to two mummies who were eavesdropping....

Josie...."Can I have two spotty drinks please?"

Bea... "Sure....pour, pour, pour, pour....there you go"

The next conversation is illustrated....( and you ought to be able to tell, unedited)

"I'm picking my tomatoes.  This is my tomato tree"

"Here Jose have a tomato"

"Er, no.   I'm going to the house"

"Wait for me"

There is so much that is good about this special, little secret place.  It is packed with so many interesting things to see and do and is generally populated and staffed by people who are Mr Tumble's friends (see the Cbeebies thing keeps giving!)  It is small enough to be easy to visit and large enough to be a big adventure for a 3 year old.  It is free, which means you actually want to buy grain for the hens (you are allowed to bring your own carrots for the rabbits or goats) ...and you feel almost benevolent if you buy the freest of free range eggs or a giant hanging basket.  This may just be a secret I don't want to keep.