Pretty soon the sight of bright yellow school busses will once again grace the farm.  We look forward to that time each season when we have little visitors come to see us and have fun learning on the farm!  We love sharing our farm with folks, especially school children, where they can learn all about farming and agriculture!

SPRING FIELD TRIPS

The sights, sounds and yes — SMELLS of a real farm greet the farm-goers as they venture all around.  In the spring time, the bright green fields, tree blossoms and even newborn baby animals are apart of what can be seen here on the farm.  Not to mention the favorite attraction this time of year – the strawberry patch!  Students will learn all about strawberries and even hand-pick their own fruit.

It’s an experience most will always remember!

Contact us with any questions, or you may make a field trip reservation online.  To continue reading about an educational experience for school classes here on the farm, click here.

Follow Southern Belle Farm on Twitter – click here!

“I am pleased to tell you that I was most impressed with the field trips that my classes and I took to Southern Belle Farm.  Each year my class not only enjoy the trip to the pumpkin patch but also learned many interesting and valuable facts about farm life.  The staff at the farm was always knowledgable , friendly and more than willing to help in any way possible to make the trip a success.  I would highly recommend this trip to all teachers who are interested in an organized and fun-fact filled trip for students.”   - Ms. Peters, First Grade Teacher

“I love how organized all the activities, the variety of activities and how everyone is very helpful and friendly.  The pig races and ice cream are a very special treat the kids really enjoy!  The activities are really aligned with education standards that I teach.  Thank you all!”  - Ms. Lutes, Kindergarten Teacher

Just thought we would share a few kind words from some teachers who have brought their classes on field trips here to the farm, not just one year — they keep coming back!!  We welcome your thoughts and feedback – you can always reach us by email or by phone!

Today is January 11, 2012 – Happy National Milk Day!

Our family was in the dairy business for over 40 years. We carry on this heritage today with educational milking demonstrations with a live Holstein, our farm mascot ‘Belle’.  Miss Belle enjoys visitors into her dairy barn, where school-aged kids get to learn all about farming, cows and where milk comes from.

When we have school groups visit the farm, many of the children have never step foot on a farm before. We ask the kiddos ‘Where does milk come from?’. As you can imagine, we have had a host of very interesting answers…

Can you guess some of the responses we get from the young children?  Share your answer with us on Facebook!

Homemade Play-dough

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup salt
1 Tbsp oil (any type of cooking oil will do)
2 Tbsp cream of tartar
1/8 to 1/4 tsp food coloring

DIRECTIONS:

Mix all ingredients into a pan and blend with a whisk.  When ingredients are blended, place the pan on the stove on medium-to-high heat.  Mix continually until the mixture thickens.  When the mixture starts to clump, take the pan off the stove.  Pour the dough on a floured surface and when it is cool enough to handle, start kneading like bread dough.  Remove from the floured surface when the dough is no longer sticky.  Knead away from the floured surface until the dough is smooth and pliable.  Store in plastic wrap, a plastic bag, or airtight container.

Make-Your-Own Gift Certificates

Show loved ones you really care with a gift certificate for a ‘date night’ to a movie, or to dinner.  Gift certificates can also be for a service or something helpful you can do for someone — for an elderly grandparent, you could rake leaves or wash their car.  A teen can give a parent a gift certificate for ‘a night out’ where the teen will babysit younger siblings to help out the parents.

Just remember that sometimes just time spent together with those you love can be the greatest gift of all!

We are honored to be chosen as the Best Educational Farm of 2011 by Lifestyles Magazine of Georgia.

Our goal at Southern Belle Farm is to educate students on farming and its importance in an exciting, hands-on way! Our 200-acre outdoor classroom makes learning so much fun!  We enjoy watching the little eyes and smiles of children as they venture onto the farm, learning about our animals, watching a dairy cow milking demonstration, hand-picking fresh berries in the berry patch, learning about the work of honeybees and more.  Our seasonal agriculture exhibits are just part of the efforts we make educating youngsters – the future of our community.

We are most honored to receive this recognition, and will continue to strive to educate the community to the best of our ability.

When it gets cold here in Georgia, we have to find something fun to do indoors … So, here’s a little Christmas song trivia for ya!  Have fun!

We’re playing trivia tonight on Facebook – with a YUMMY prize from MiMi’s Kitchen!

Southern Sweets from MiMi's Kitchen at Southern Belle Farm

No need to fret about what you will bring to your holiday gatherings … MiMi’s Kitchen has some southern sweets that will suit any tastebuds.

The oven in MiMi’s Kitchen stays hot this time of year – baking lots and lots of holiday goodies, and she’s sure to have something for you!  There are multiple layer cakes to choose from, such as Mrs. Kathy’s famous Caramel Cake, Red Velvet Cake, not to mention homemade fudge and so much more!

The holidays are such a busy time of year – so we’ve made it easy for you to pre-order your holiday sweets so you don’t have to worry with baking something yourself!

Just give us a call for your southern sweets this holiday season – 770.288.2582.

The holidays are quickly approaching, and usually it means a little rest around here on the farm —  but this year there’s something new in-store!  We just could not bare the thought of seeing no visitors until spring, so we’ve all decided to decorate the barn, and have folks over during the Christmas season!  We’re having an Old Fashioned Christmas here on the farm!

Celebrate the holidays with the fragrance and beautify of a real Christmas tree.  This is the first year we are open during the holiday season, and we look forward to giving you an Old-Fashioned Christmas experience to remember here at Southern Belle Farm!

Fraser Fir Christmas Trees, wreaths and all the trimmings will be available starting on “Black Friday” – November, 25, 2011.  For winter hours and details, read on…

The Legendary Voice of the University of Georgia Bulldogs | Our special tribute to Larry Munson

According to Wikipedia, Lawrence Harry “Larry” Munson (September 28, 1922 – November 20, 2011) was a sports announcer and talk-show host based out of the U.S. city of Atlanta. He was best known for handling radio play-by-play of University of Georgia Bulldogs football games from 1966 to 2008.

But to us (Georgia fans), he’s much more than that.  He had a heart for the Bulldog Nation that was contagious.  It was felt in every game he called – whether a win or a loss, he called the game with passion.  He gave it his all from his early start in the 1960′s and it just grew.  Up until 2008, when he stopped announcing the Georgia Bulldog football games, there was a generation of Dawg fans who had not heard a game announced by anyone else.  Munson’s voice was a staple in Georgia football, and to be honest, it was hard to hear the game called by someone else at first.  But all in all, Munson was a great family man, who we know will miss him dearly.

In 2008, the Carter family choose their 7-acre cornfield maze design in Larry Munson’s honor – not knowing his intention to retire as the Georgia announcer, but what a meaningful tribute it was.  In on of his more famous quotes in game calling … ”Hunker down, you guys! If you didn’t hear me, you guys, hunker down!…I know I’m asking a lot, you guys, but hunker it down one more time!”—calling a defensive series late in the game against Auburn in 1982, which clinched the SEC title for Georgia.  That is where the corn maze design was developed from.

In 2008, the huge cornfield on the Carter’s family farm, known as Southern Belle Farm in McDonough, Ga, depicted the face of Larry Munson with his announcing head set.  Here’s an aerial shot of the 7-acre tribute to the legendary Larry Munson.  May he rest in peace.