Breakfast on the Farm

I'm ready for my close-up!
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I'm not sure when Breakfasts on the Farm started, but I think it was after 1980.

Otherwise, it's hard to believe my folks didn't go.

It's one fun event, that is for sure!

This year's Dane County Breakfast was outside of Ashton on the Meinholz place, Blue Star Dairy.

The weather was perfect.

The farm beautiful.

Breakfast Hall/Pole Barn
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It takes hundreds of people to pull it together, with thousands of details to sweat.  Starting, for the guests, with parking.  The hay field was recently mowed and a week of dry weather meant no fuss, no muss.

For a working farm milking 500 cows twice a day, nearly around the clock, it is impressive to see immaculate gardens, neatly cut grass, and well-groomed cows.  I have no idea how many hours it all took, but it is a very large number!

The breakfast is a way to learn
the origin of dairy products.
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Dozens of cooks prepared cheesy (it is a dairy breakfast) scrambled eggs, pancakes, and sausage.  We passed through 4 lines as the plate filled up, then gathered a milk, string cheese, and a yogurt to go (Again, it is a dairy breakfast).

A strategy to get fed fast is to arrive early.  We got there a little later than usual, but the line moved fast.

It helped the cue that the line wound under three majestic Poplar trees and a yogurt sponsor offered small cups of their product.

Music on stage all morning.
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There's more.

Musical entertainment.  Mascots. Face painting. A very cool display of Lego creations.

Cows and an up-close look at a dairy operation starting with a maternity ward of expecting cows and calves just a couple days old getting steady on their feet.

Who doesn't love mascots?
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If you wanted details, you could learn what cows eat every day. (I'd need plenty of salad dressing on my portion, thank you very much.)

There was one of the prettiest pastures I've ever seen and a herd of cows right out of central casting.  Several sauntered to the fence to saw howdy and pose for pictures (see top picture).

Arrived just in time for the party!
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When you see dairy photos on this blog over the next year or so, I probably took them on the Meinholz farm.

If you've never had breakfast on the farm, you should.  Friends attended with us this year, and it was their first.  I don't think it will be their last.

June is Dairy Month, so there are more breakfasts on tap, you can look for one near you here.