Today’s activities are described by Noah and Emmie, excerpts from the daily journals they’ve been writing on our trip.
Noah’s Recap
Today I went to a dairy farm. I learned how they make cheese, milk, and ice cream. We also watched a tape. Next, we visited a horse riding place. I rated it 10 stars. We saw most of the deer. My horse was named Pokey.
Emmie’s Recap
Today we went to a place where we learned how to milk cows. Next, we went to ride a horse. It was a long time of riding. Finally, we got back to the barn! Yay! Also, there was a mommy cat with a kitten drinking milk from the mom. I got to pet the baby. He or she was so cute! My horse’s name was Charlie. They had to choose my horse, it was fun.
Emmie and Eilidh on the wagon for a brief ride to the Country Dairy processing facilities.
Country Dairy in New Era, Michigan, now features a large store and restaurant. However, it’s retail presence started with this modest stand offering drive-through purchases of milk, cheese, and ice cream in the late 1980s.
We all had to wear hair nets before entering the bottling plant.
We took a peek inside the cheese cooler, where blocks of cheese age between 3 months and 12 years before being cut and sold in retail servings.
One of the most interesting parts of the tour was witnessing the robotic milking process. Cows step onto the platform, the robot identifies the cow, and if it is time to milk, serves a snack and begins the milking process. If it’s too early to milk, food is not served and the cow returns to the barn or pasture.
Emmie was able to pet a baby calf.
The tour concluded with a cheese curd sample plus chocolate milk.
Amanda and Noah are pictured with cheddar beef sticks, made from cattle raised by family members 1.5 on a farm 1.5 miles south of the dairy.
Eilidh washed down her beef stick with Country Dairy milk!
Eilidh was technically old enough to ride her own horse but insisted on riding with Amanda.
The one-hour ride took us mostly through tree-covered trails, shielding us from the light rainfall. On paper, the low 60s temperature seemed cool, but it turned out to be perfect for the ride.
Emmie posed with the mama cat and her baby when we returned to the barn after the ride.
Amanda and I celebrated our anniversary at The Pizza Factory in Shelby. The exterior and interior were pretty modest, but the food was solid.
Love all the smiles! Hairnets are nice, too. Vacation looks fun, fun, fun????☺️.
I also liked Noah and Emmie’s writings!
And Eilidh drinking milk, too!