On Thursday we went on a homeschool field trip to Deck Family Farm, a 320-acre organic farm in the Willamette Valley. From their site: “We raise cows, sheep, pigs, chickens, and turkeys on grass pastures, providing a natural habitat that mimics what their wild ancestors lived in.       Pasture raised animals not only live a more stress free life than their confinement-fed counterparts, but they also grow to provide a tastier and healthier meat.”

We love the Deck family and admire the hard work they do to provide such high quality food for their community. (I’ve written about their farm in this space a few times before, including expressing my gratitude here.) Our family typically visits their farm at least once a year. We’re usually just popping by, though, and Bracken really wanted to get a chance to spend more time there and see all the animals. When I saw a homeschool field trip to Deck Family Farm was being offered, I knew that would be the perfect opportunity. Children from the local Waldorf School were out visiting that day as well, so we had quite big crew.

We saw sheep, cows, pigs, horses, and chickens. And the highlight throughout the day was visiting the baby animals. Bracken got to bottle feed a lamb! That was quite the memorable experience. The day was filled with admiring baby pigs, bottle feeding calves, and holding fluffy chicks. We visited the laying hens in their giant pasture (with Bracken exclaiming: “That looks like my chicken Honey!”), loving the way their mobile coops can be moved around. There are some busy folks out at their farm, and it seems taking care of all the animals and moving them from place to place is like a well synchronized dance.

Jeff and I have put a lot of love into our little homestead here, but I must say that seeing all that pasture- it’s a dream for us. To have more space to grow and raise our own food is something we dream about quite regularly. (We’re not thinking of a huge farm for us, but a bit more space and some pasture would be awesome!) What they do at Deck Family Farm is inspiring and every time I feed my family meat from their farm, I feel good knowing where it comes from, it’s the source I trust most.

Thanks for the tour, Deck Family Farm! I know so many kids came away that day with memories that will stay with them forever!