A Little Farm in Abbotsford.

On Victoria Day my parents and I drove all the way out to Abbotsford to take Babe to visit Maan Farms, which my father had spotted while running errands a few days before.

The place is a family-run farm, market and winery and for kids it has a small petting zoo and play area.

It was Babe's first time seeing pigs and only her second time seeing goats. However the first time she saw goats they were on the roof at Coombs so this time was much more interactive. The baby goat was so cute I wanted to load him in the back of the truck when no one was looking. But then I remembered that my apartment doesn't allow dogs and likely won't allow goats.

Babe's favorite was the rooster because he was so noisy. They also had baby chickens in a coop, ducks, rabbits, goats, pigs, peacocks and an alpaca. 

My favorite, the baby goat.

Babe also loved the slide. It was pretty big and really fast. The older kids were really having a blast on it, using burlap sacks to increase their speed. The first time I let Babe go down I let her sit up and she fell back and bumped her head. But that mishap didn't stop her from repeating the ride over and over... and over again.

Here is a sequence of her sliding on her back:

And here is a sequence of her sliding out of control:

She LOVED it!

Babe also went on her first water slide (on my lap) in Richmond last week and had a blast. She made an excited inhaling noise the whole way down each time. I think I definitely have an adrenaline junkie on my hands. 

After playing outside we had a tasty lunch in the market. The menu is super simple. But we all ordered paninis which were very good.

I don't know that I would recommend driving all the way out to Abbotsford just to visit the farm but if you can tie it in with another reason to head out there then I would definitely say take the kids to Maan Farms. FYI there is a place nearby where you can take the kids and fish for trout in a pond. I think it is this place, but I didn't catch the name when we passed it. Anyway, you could hit both places in one day and maybe that would justify the long drive. 

According to the Maan Farms website they also have a pumpkin patch and corn maze in the fall so that could be a great time to visit as well.

The trip was a bit of a bust for me though. Despite the misleading farm name, they do not farm men there, I did not find one and I am still single. Too bad :)

A Fun Saturday: Doors Open Richmond.

I'm sorry that I didn't get a chance to blog about this earlier thereby giving any of you who didn't know about the opportunity a better chance to come out this weekend. But I did want to post tonight about the places we went so that if you are inspired you can still come out tomorrow.

This weekend is Doors Open Richmond. An annual festival where many of Richmond B.C.'s cultural and heritage sites are free and open to the public to check out. Please visit the website HERE if you want to see a list of the over 40 places that are participating in this year's event.

There were lots of places that I wanted to check out with Babe but with a little one in tow you really have to limit the amount of time you spend trucking all over the place. So I decided that this year we would visit some of the many houses of worship along Number 5 Road.

I drive past them weekly and I'm always curious about what they look like on the inside and I know that many are open to everyone all the time or at least have visitor hours but I was uncomfortable just showing up so Doors Open Richmond was the perfect opportunity to visit.

We first went to the Thrangu Monastery. We were allowed to take photos inside so that's why I have more from this place. Babe loved it. When we arrived they were in prayer and Babe seemed soothed by the soft, rhythmic chanting. There are 10 monks in residence at the monastery and according to the pamphlet it is the first of its kind in the Pacific Northwest.

Next we went to the Az-Zahraa Islamic Centre where we were greeted by the most well-mannered and eloquent little boy I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They had a room set up with informative displays on aspects of Muslim faith from art, food and calligraphy to the true meaning of jihad and reasons for the hijab. They also had an tour of the facility which Babe and I only made it partially through because she was determined to run amuck.

After the islamic centre we walked next door to the Gurdwara Nanak Niwas, the Indian Cultural Centre. We briefly toured the facility which was in the middle of hosting a sikh wedding. Babe and I loved seeing all the women in their beautiful traditional clothing and we even got to sneak a peek at the bride and groom! Afterwards lunch was being served downstairs which looked and smelled amazing. However we had plans to meet my mom for lunch so instead Babe just snacked on some watermelon and grooved to the music. There were so many people and things that I wanted to photograph but I didn't want to intrude on the wedding. I wish we had time tomorrow to go and check out the other Gurdwara tomorrow.

Finally we stopped in at the Ling Yen Mountain (Buddhist) Temple. By this time we were in a bit of a hurry to meet my mom but Babe, now a little tired and hungry still enjoyed it. She was awed by the big gold Buddha and she was in love with the volunteers after they gave her a couple of baby-sized buddhist bracelets. The courtyard is beautiful and walking along the outdoor halls and listening to the wind chimes was really relaxing. Afterwards we went in the back garden and I took off my shoes and walked along the pebble pathways for a little foot massage while Babe played with the rocks.

Minoru Chapel is also open to visitors this weekend but we didn't get a chance to go. We walk by it all the time and the outside is so pretty I'd love to see the inside. But that will have to wait until next time.

So if you still don't have anything planned for Sunday (May 5th) maybe head out to Richmond and check out some of the many Doors Open locations. Otherwise I hope you enjoyed the photos from our tour of some of the many places of worship in Richmond and keep them in mind the next time you are out this way.