Our Day at Centennial Farm

This past weekend I decided to not work and spend some quality time with Dylan. Since funds are tight, I was looking for something fun to do that wouldn't cost a lot of money. The Orange County Register has a great listing on Saturdays called Cheap and Fun Things To Do Today in the OC so I took a look and saw Centennial Farm. We haven't been there in a long time, so I thought this would be the perfect thing for us to do. Dylan thought so too. We spent almost 2 hours here and spent no money. The perfect Saturday!

Centennial Farm is part of the Orange County Fairgrounds and many people don't know it's even there. This is a real working farm. School groups can come here and learn about what products come from the animals, watch and learn how to milk a cow, and see an amazing garden! The farm is open to the public at no cost, of course donations are always appreciated.

No farm is complete without a red barn!

Inside the barn we learned all about pigs and cows. What type of food we get from the animals and what kinds of products are made from the the animals. Did you know that crayons are made with byproducts from pigs? I sure didn't!

Everyone knows that dairy products come from cows, but Dylan found it interesting to see what parts of the cow different meat came from. He also learned about the various types of cows and how only certain cows are used for milk. I didn't have the heart to tell him where veal came from.
I don't like veal, so I  figured it was ok - since we won't be having veal anytime soon.

Dylan trying to make his eyes look the sheep.

Centennial Farm has great farm animals too!

Just outside the barn were two enormous oxen! Standing next to one makes them seem even bigger. You can just see the strength and power they have, yet they are so gentle. Something I learned is that Ox is just a name - not another kind of animal. Oxen is actually the name given to a large cow that is bread to pull carts or plows. They are known for their strength and stamina.

Moving right along, it was time to see the baby animals. These are my favorite. I don't care how bad farm animals smell, there is nothing cuter than baby farm animals. We were super lucky because it was feeding time for the baby calf. She is only 5 weeks old and so cute!

Piglets in Orange County? You betcha!

Dylan loved petting the piglets. 

So we've seen the animals, but a real working farm has so much more than animals. Centennial Farm has the most beautiful garden and crops that you just don't see every day in Orange County. Sure, maybe years and years ago before all the buildings and homes ... but not today.

I'm not talking about a rose garden. A garden filled with wildflowers and poppies is what you find here.
Such beautiful colors.

The vegetables were just as beautiful. I couldn't stop taking pictures of the perfectly lines rows of lettuce and peppers. I never knew there were so many different kinds of lettuce!

He may be smiling in the picture, but don't let that fool you.
This boy does not like salad, let alone lettuce!

We may live at the beach, but I think we would do pretty good on the farm too. Who knows, we may live on a farm one day ... or at least in a house big enough to have a pretty cool garden like this one.