Where does beef come from? Knowing where their food comes from is just as important for kids as knowing how to cook it, so last week we took a trip to a friend’s farm to see the brand new baby cows, and give the kids a chance to meet their meat.
Our friends Larry and Sheri (whose home we stayed in for our bloggers work retreat) use some of their property as the prettiest wedding manor you’ve ever seen, and some of it to raise beef cows.
When I was out there for the Invigorate Retreat, they had five pregnant mama cows that were due any day, and Sheri graciously agreed when I asked if the kids and I could come by to see them and take pictures after they were born.
WHERE DOES BEEF COME FROM MAMA?
People laugh when we are in a taco buffet line or a restaurant and ask our three year old, “Do you want cow, chicken, or pig?”
I know some parents dread the question, “Where does beef come from?”, but we have tried to teach our kids from the beginning that when we eat meat, we are eating animals.
We explain to our kids, and our friends, that we buy cows from local farmers because we can see the way they are treated and how they live, and know that they are given as happy a life as possible.
As an added bonus, truly farm raised beef just tastes better!
Sheri is just as sweet to her cows as she is to people. It’s completely the opposite of the horrible conditions and mistreatment of the cows in industrial farming.
You can read about my wake up call to the truths of industrial cattle farms on our first post about buying local beef (six years ago!).
Larkin, our little daredevil, was absolutely fearless around the cows. She just took off to go see them!
It seemed as though the cows could tell that she was just a baby, and were incredibly curious about her rather than nervous.
Corban was a little nervous about the size of the cows (although they are only about a year old, they’re still plenty big compared to him!), and at first really wanted Sheri or I to hold his hand if he went near them.
But once we headed to the pasture where the mamas and babies were hanging out, the young cows started following him!
Perhaps there’s some cattle ranching in his future!
Seeing their interest in him seemed to give him some confidence and he decided to try feeding them again.
Corban was absolutely delighted to get to feed the cows by hand, and I was delighted to know that this was one more step in his understanding of real food.
BABY COWS!
The baby cows were absolutely precious, but we made sure not to get too close since the mamas were definitely nervous about our presence.
Corban thought it was really cool that the babies drink milk from their mamas just like he and Larkin do.
This little one was pretty curious and might have come over to see us if mama hadn’t been mooing so persistently to stay away.
While the visit itself was all about fun and excitement, we’ve had several talks since the visit about cows giving us meat, and cow milk, and where food comes from. It’s been a great learning experience as well as a fun memory.
Of course, no trip to the farm is complete without getting to ride the tractor!
Farmer Larry wasn’t home that day, so the kids didn’t actually get to ride, but they did get to pretend and that was almost as exciting.
Sadly I messed up my settings somehow, so don’t have the awesome photos of Larkin climbing and standing on the tractor. But I did get one with my phone. She was going, “Vrrrmmmmm!” pretending to drive.
I’m so thankful for the chance to show my kids a truly sustainable and humane beef farm, and to know that we are part of supporting responsible cattle farming.
And now, if someone asks Corban “Where does beef come from?” there’s a good chance he will respond, “Miss Sheri’s house!”.
Do you have a local beef farm near you? Have you looked for one? I highly encourage you to call and ask if you and your kids can take a tour!
If there isn’t one near you, you can always walk them through the pictures in post and use it as a starting point for a conversation on where beef comes from.
I am hosting Mini Chef Mondays along with 8 fabulous bloggers! Read how Mini Chef Mondays started, plus how to link up!
Join our facebook group to find even more recipes and share recipes too!
Be sure to check out each of their Mini Chef posts as well!
- Semi-Homemade Strawberry Yogurt Recipe // Courtney’s Sweets
- Mini Strawberry Shortcakesl // Momma Lew
- Fresh Strawberry Banana Muffinsr // Baby Loving Mama
- BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches // We’re Parents
- Grilled Fluffernutter Sandwich // Giggles, Gobbles and Gulps
- Four Ingredient Stuffed Mushrooms // Vegging at the Shore
- 5 Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chewy Granola Bars // O’Boy! Organic
- 25+ Cute Foods for Kids! // My Mini Adventurer
The message of where food comes from is SO important…and is often completely ignored by mainstream peeps. What a fun and valuable field trip with your kids! It’s crucial that they be able to make good food choices when they are older – and being exposed to valuable experiences like this will help them so much! Rock on, mama!
Great photos and I love this idea! It’s good for your kids to know up front where their food comes from!