Finally Taking the Tour The Whole World is Flocking To

Sometimes we don’t fully notice the most amazing things in our own backyard.

For the past four years our daughter has been working at The Jersey Barnyard in La Grange.

She worked there her junior/ senior years of high school and has returned from college at UT to work there the past two summers, holidays, etc.

I think it’s such an amazing departure for her from the hustle and bustle of big city/ big college life to come back, and I am so glad she’s found a second home there.

Part of her job is giving guided tours to visitors and school groups.

She said the tour groups include some locals, but more often include people from all different parts of the nation – and even different countries.

She’s given tours to people from South Korea and Chile. Last week there were people there from Austria. There’s been documentaries filmed there, and even an episode of the TV show 90-Day Fiancée.

And while we’ve gone to see her at her job, and have treasured our yearly outings to The Jersey Barnyard for their annual Easter Saturday festivities (for the past 15 years!) – we’d never actually taken the official tour of the iconic farm owned for more than 100 years by four generations of the Frerichs family.

Until a couple of weeks ago. It was amazing.

Come along ... though my details will pale in comparison to the insight and funny stories you will get from the young ladies who give tours at the farm: The tour starts with stops at several of the pens around the visitor center -- the heifers, the pigs, two different breeds of goats, then lambs (all of which you can hand feed grain to).

And then you get to the cute little Jersey calves, which you can bottle feed.

Your tour then strolls by the ducks and chickens and rabbits –- all of which have interesting back stories, like the one-legged chicken.

Then you hop on a hay ride, pulled by a tractor (ours was driven by Janessa Behlen), down to the milking parlor of the farm, where you can get up close and personal with one of the jersey cows.

You can even try your hand at milking it. I talked our youngest son into letting me try to squirt some milk directly from the teat into his mouth.

My aim was off and I ended up covering his face in fresh milk.

You hear about the hard work it takes to keep the dairy running (twice-a-day milkings of the farms’ dozens of cows, seven days a week, 365 days a year). Then it’s back to the visitors center where you can buy some milk and other treats.

There was someone on our tour from Florida, and a family from Austin.

It was an amazing Saturday at the barnyard (pro tip, book a morning tour if the day is hot) – and we didn’t have to leave Fayette County to experience it. But alas, you won’t get to take a tour from my favorite guide – our daughter is headed back to Austin in a few days for her junior year at UT.

But I think, no matter your age, you’d love your experience out there too.

The Jersey Barnyard is located at 3117 State Hwy 159 La Grange. Their phone number is (979) 249-3406.