ellaslist Had The Perfect Birthday Party At Calmsley Hill City Farm

By: Emma Salkild, ellaslist explorer 

I love my kids’ birthdays, but I hate throwing kids’ parties. And I know I’m not alone! Planning a kid’s party can be so stressful. The preparation requires as much stamina and skill as leading a small army into battle.

But I do think celebrating birthdays are important for the whole family – it’s a time for reminiscing and reflection. I think about the day I gave birth and what it felt like the first time my child was in my arms. I look back on all the years of laughter and tears. I ponder the future.

But during my kids’ parties I’m always so busy making sure that everyone else is happy – even the adults – when all I really want to do is just watch my son having fun and for him to see that I’m having fun too.

Calmsley Hill City Farm gave my family all the peace, joy and child-like wonder that I’ve been craving over the last seven parties that I’ve had to host. I said to my mother afterwards, “That’s it. My boys are having all their parties at Calmsley.” And this is why:

 

Calmsley Hill Lives Up To Its Name

From the moment we arrived at Calmsley I felt … well, calm. It’s incredible to be driving in suburbia one minute then turn a corner and it’s as though you’re in the middle of rural Australia on the world’s most cared-for farm. It felt like we’d wandered through the Wardrobe and discovered Narnia.

We couldn’t hear cars or traffic or all the awful noises that are in a manic indoor play centre. Instead, the soundtrack to our party was tweeting birds and the cock-a-doodle-doo of a rooster to let us know the troubles of city life were well and truly behind us.

The place is huge too with wide-open spaces, quaint wooden fences and rolling green hills.

Amazing Activities

And while all of us felt serene and relaxed, everywhere we turned was something else to explore. “Wow, is that a camel?” my five-year-old asked. As part of our package we had bags of animal feed so my son had the amazing experience of feeding one of Australia’s more exotic animals.

We saw koalas, kangaroos and every farm animal you could imagine. My son got to crack a whip (under supervision of course) in the whip show, and my screen-obsessed nephew literally jumped at the chance to milk a cow – surprising us all. My selfie-prone, Snapchatting 10-year-old niece made sure we all went to the sheep shearing.

And you couldn’t wipe the smile off the face of my 3-year-old birthday boy. He had a few favourites like being greeted by the friendly Kelpie at the farm’s entrance and watching the working dogs round up the sheep. But his favourite was the tractor ride. The wheels were massive and every little bump made him squeal with delight.  

Staff That Want To Be There

The staff were so kind from the lady who made my morning coffee to the young woman who drove the tractor. Everyone was so happy and charismatic; taking pride in everything they did. It was so refreshing to see staff that really cared about us all having an enjoyable day.

Fuss-Free Fun

Best of all I didn’t have to do anything except show up and have fun with my son. I was fresh-faced and glowing instead of the normal wired, sleep-deprived mess you’d find at past parties.

Calmsley Hill Took Care Of Everything:

• They sent me the cute farmyard invitation
• Catered yummy and nutritious meals
• Supplied lolly bags
• Emailed out a map with instructions on how to find it
• Sent a schedule for the day with a breakdown of times for tractor rides, shows and animal talks.

Another perk was being able to relax in a picnic area with free barbeque as well as a kiosk full of coffee, snacks and meals.

Everyone stayed for much longer than they have in any of the other kids’ parties I’ve hosted. The adults kept repeating to me how lovely and refreshing the whole day was. The little toddlers loved it. The kindy kids loved it. The bigger “screen-obsessed” cousins loved it too. My friend’s eight-month-old baby was even engaged. Best of all my son and I loved it. I gave him a unique and exciting experience, and he had a calm and happy mum by his side on his special day.

If you asked me what I would change or do differently about the day, I would honestly say nothing. Calmsley Hill is the perfect party destination and they’ll definitely be seeing my family and me again!