We love coming to the farm every October with our friends. The pumpkins are excellent - in great…read morecondition, organized by size, and have all of the variations in color you need. I appreciate the colorful corn (though we can maybe start referring to it as flint corn these days...), and and the warty pumpkins. The biggest draw for us, though, is the new calf they usually have in the barn, and the hayride up to feed the cows. It's definitely a core memory for the kiddos.

Came here for a Christmas tree even though I'm Buddhist. As a Buddhist I appreciate how well cared…read morefor the farm animals are, the cows see hale and hearty. Actually I'm not quite sure what "hale" means, but the dairy cattle look very healthy and happy. The Christmas tree selection was outstanding, the service prompt and friendly. This giant of a fellow, must have been 7 feet tall, expertly tied the chosen tree to the top of our vehicle after a fresh cut. Very popular place, a couple days after Thanksgiving they had already sold out of trees over 10 feet tall.

We discovered Heartland Farm Sanctuary in early 2018 and have been fans and supporters ever since…read more Heartland was the first farm sanctuary in Wisconsin and still is the largest in the state. But what makes Heartland stand out is that in addition to love and effort they devote to the homeless farm animals they rescue, the sanctuary also works with youth who are at risk or have special needs. Heartland Farm Sanctuary creates an environment where youth and the rescued animals can "come together to heal, grow, and have fun" (quoted from Heartland). The environment at Heartland Farm Sanctuary is truly different from what you would experience at a traditional working farm (or for that matter, just reading or hearing about animals). I think of my visits to Heartland as something of a Zen experience -- that setting is part of why children can so effectively learn how to interact with animals in a humane fashion. Heartland offers public tours on most weekends from Spring through Fall. There also are week-long summer camps for kids. The animal residents change over time as new rescues arrive (and unfortunately as some older animals pass away). Current residents include donkeys, a miniature horse (Cookie), emus, cows (Beau and Daisy), goats, lamas, turkeys, chickens, geese, ducks, pigs, sheep, and more. The sanctuary also includes two cats (Poppy and Otto) that keep an eye on everything. If you have kids, Heartland Farm Sanctuary is a fantastic place for them to interact with animals and in turn learn in ways that are not possible in the classroom or from watching TV.

Yesterday was our second visit to the Sanctuary (June 2018 and June 2019) and we think we have…read moreestablished a new tradition. A yearly visit (at least!) is good for our spirits since this is a lovely place for animals and people to be surrounded by kindness and compassion - two things that never go out of style! The tours begin promptly and people gather at a small picnic style area with a roof (a new development since our previous visit). Then, we are taken to the barn to see the emus, hens, turkeys, Cookie the mini horse, and the donkeys. We then get to see the pigs and we were lucky enough this time to see Winnie enjoying some watermelon. The last part of the tour is in the pasture area with the goats - Esther is happy to act as tour guide as well! But not only are these tours amazing, this entity has all kinds of activities and projects with children (summer camp, etc). They really put monetary donations to good use. When going for the tour, you may want to bring a water bottle. Their port-a-potties are pretty clean with plenty of toilet paper and hand sanitizer. We still brought some sanitizer just in case, but they offer you some at the end after petting the animals that come to you to hang out in the pasture. In less than 15 minutes driving back, we were already by the West Towne Mall area.

Date of visit: October 21, 2023…read more I did a fair amount of research on corn mazes; my mom said she wanted to do one and since this was her first--and likely only--corn maze, I wanted to make sure I found a good one. Schuett Farms did not disappoint! The price was good ($8, and they aren't cash only!), the staff was friendly, and the mini donuts were outstanding! We were all pleasantly surprised at how affordable everything here was, I appreciated that they were trying to keep things economical for families. The maze was quite challenging, with 10 checkpoints (we only found half of them) and miles of corn to navigate through. I do wish they had staff inside the maze helping ensure people did not trample the corn and it would be nice if they had some trash cans inside to help with the trash that garbage people left inside the maze. Another disappointment: There was an option to "play" on your phone but someone forgot to pay for the QR code and that portion of the game was not operational. Technology is great, but if you don't follow through, it ends up being worse than not having it at all.

Ok, so we were those parents with our tiny tot acting like the whole pumpkin farm was our personal…read morephoto shoot. But, it was so fun and such a great farm! For the fall, they have a hayride, corn maze, gourd launching (yes!), pick your own pumpkins, pick out your own pumpkins, caramel corn, cider, etc. Everything it should be for family fun day. The selection of squashes/gourds/pumpkins really impressed me. I'm certainly not a connoisseur, but they had pumpkins ranging from golf ball sized to approximately 300 pounds (not an exaggeration), all kinds of eating squashes, and piles of decorating gourds. They even had hay bales in both regular and mini sizes so you could really up your fall decorating game. The farm was surprisingly clean for being an actual farm, and everyone was friendly. There are wagons, but they are basically all always in use, so bring your own! I'm really excited to come back next year when tiny tot can walk!

Eugster's is one of those pumpkin-picking-apple-orchard-petting-zoo family farms, this one in…read moreStoughton Wisconsin. Coming for "Lavender Days there was plenty of lavender around for sure. Plus goats, cats, kittens, pigs, ponies, donkeys, chickens, turkeys, sheep, etc... Wife seemed pretty happy walking a goat through the lavender field.

We spent a fun morning here this past Monday. They have so many baby goats and for $2 you get a…read morebottle of milk to feed them. These baby goats do not kid around when it comes to drinking their milk and the bottle will be gobbled up in a flash. You can also feed chickens and they have a model cow you can pretend practice milking. Plan to spend at least two hours here. Right now they have a gorgeous lavender field filled with bees. Very picturesque and looks great in photos.

This an amazing family farm. The history of the farm dates back to 1889... Same family supporting…read morecommunity focused farming. The farm adheres to natural and organic standards... sans any certifications. In part I think because they've always done it this way and in part because they don't seem to want to be bothered by such expensive processes. This said they always stand by their products: Bison, Beef, Pork. What's really interesting and nice is that they are not a wholesaler, they are a community farm with a community retail store right there on the farm. I'm a big fan of their bison and I really like their beef and pork products. I use the ground bison for chili - it's a big hit among family and friends. More and more, I want to know where my food is coming from, I want to meet the people producing it. This is that sort of place.

Their farm products are fabulous. Get bison meat, chickens and fresh eggs from this old family…read morefarm. They have over 100 buffalo on the farm roaming pastures overlooking beautiful Lake Michigan. Excellent products and nice people too. What's not to like about that? You can get their products at the Tosa Farmers' Market and the Indoor Winter Market at State Fair Park. www.mcwfm.org

Historic Wagner Farm is part of the Glenview Park District. We visited for a Halloween event and…read morehad fun. I think my two year old liked seeing cows for the first time, and she seemed surprised by the chickens. Perhaps more than anything she was happy to see the barn cat since she said goodbye to it. We went into the farmhouse and it was interesting to see. She wanted to go upstairs but I was afraid that she was going to wan the to carry her up or down, so I vetoed that for this trip. The playground was probably the biggest hit. It's a small playground with some slides and a sandbox and maybe some other equipment. She had a blast on the slide and I was happy there were no swings because I would have been stuck pushing her for 20 minutes. There's a parking lot across the street, and for this event there was overflow parking in the church lot next door. I will keep an eye on events happening at the farm to see if my kiddo would enjoy coming to something else here.

It is okie for the city farm. But it doesn't really have…read moremany animals out. Maybe it was too hot on that day. Also, the farm looks so empty. We only saw chickens and 2 skinny cows. The horses were into the stable. Stuffs were nice. But really so empty again.....

I have never been to old world Wisconsin before. This was our first visit…read more I had no idea what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised at all the different villages, and the workers they had there in period clothing, explaining to the visitors what they were doing. It was lovely to me and through all the different villages, and take in the history of it all. I would love to see it in fall. I'm sure it is absolutely as beautiful as in every season. Highly recommend for all age groups.

Loved our recent stop here. Got some free passes at the local library so that helped save some…read moremoney. I came here as a kid on a field trip but I forgot how big the whole compound was. Thankfully, they offer trams to bring you between the villages. We opted to walk and it was quite the work out on a late July day. But, loved the experience to help bring us back in time a bit. They do have a few treats along the way like ice cream, food and beer/canned adult beverages/soda, but I definitely recommend you bring water or snacks. It can be a long day if you take your time and check out all the buildings, which I highly recommend. The staff are so friendly and informative and answer questions patiently. Very impressed with all of the staff!!

Continues to a nice place to bring the kids. A little off the beaten path so stays a little…read morequieter. Prices are up this year, pet food is $.50 more expensive than deer park, per cone at $1.50each. Could use some more people on grounds keeping things nice.

This is a super option for a nice long day, or even 2-3 hours, if you are visiting the Wisconsin…read moreDells and you don't want to spend time at all the usual water parks and weird tourist-y places and shops. I typically dislike touristy places but this Farmers market and huge outdoor play space with petting zoo was awesome!! It does cost $12 a person which is a lot, but they offer an annual pass if you live nearby. Ideal for kids ages 5-12 but we were there with a teenager and she LOVED it!! It wasn't crowded at all, super peaceful. It is also nicely accessible for my best friend who uses a rolling walker. Lots of places to sit and rest