Mike's Farm

As you may remember Ryan and I spent Christmas just the two of us in North Carolina this year. Christmas Day we were very lazy and the day after wasn't much better. Come Saturday we knew we had to get out of the house and do something. We had heard a lot about Mike's Farm, a local farm and restaurant that is very popular around here, and decided to give it a try. We left around two thirty Saturday afternoon since we knew the restaurant opened at four and they were doing Christmas Light hayrides starting in the evening. It was semi warm when we left the house but I did change in to a heavier sweater thinking it would get colder as the sun went down... boy am I glad I did!

 

We got to Mike's Farm a little after three o'clock and the place was packed. There was a huge line of people, which we naturally got into, not quite knowing what it was even for. We eventually realized it was the line for the restaurant that was not even open yet! As the sun got lower it started getting colder and Ryan and I spent a good bit of time in that line. At four o'clock it started moving. By the time we got to the front the first seating was full and we added our names to the wait list with an hour and a half wait looming in front of us! By this time it was pretty chilly but we made the best of it. We explored the farm store, the bakery, and got ourselves tickets for the hayride for after dinner.

Waiting in the cold to eat

At almost exactly an hour and a half we were called in to eat. The place was packed and absolutely adorable, decorated with old farming equipment, fake store fronts, and other fun things. The dinner is served completely family style and you eat as much as you want and they will bring you more of whatever you desire. Ryan was in heaven! We had our drinks served in mason jars (water for me, sweet tea for the hubs) and instantly had a full table of food. Biscuits, ham biscuits, fried chicken, pork loin, macaroni and cheese, corn, string beans, mashed potatoes, gravy... it was incredible.

The macaroni and cheese was to die for!

 

My full plate

Now I knew with my gall bladder issues I should not eat a lot of this stuff (ie the fried chicken and the macaroni and cheese and the gravy... you get the idea) but I figured I could do small pieces and portions and be ok. Nope. Even before the end of dinner I was six shades of white and deathly nauseous. Thankfully I had my medicine with me (Zofran, you rule) so I took that and sat there trying not to make any sudden movements. I skipped on dessert (banana pudding, chocolate cake, and cheesecake.... yes Ryan had all three) and sipped my water until Ryan was finished. I felt terrible but I definitely didn't want to go home after paying for the hayride and all the waiting we did.

 

So we went back out in the cold and got in another line for the hayride. The longer we stood in line the better I thankfully felt. It also helped the family behind us had two very entertaining kids and an even more entertaining mom. She was cracking us up the entire time we were in line and on the hayride. At one point she had asked us which line we were in, and we told her, and her son piped up "MOM! Stranger Danger!! You can't talk to them! Do you know them??" Hearing her explain how mommys are allowed to talk to strangers more than six year olds had us both laughing. We definitely had great conversations as we all stood in line. Finally we got on the hayride!

 

We had some Christmas music playing on our hay wagon and we rode in the dark for awhile... we were starting to get nervous about there actually being lights on this Christmas Light Hayride but we finally rounded a bend and BOOM! Lights everywhere. It was gorgeous!

 

 

Towards the end of the hayride I noticed a figure walking in front of our tractor. He was in USMC cammies and heading towards a building in front of us. The music changed to Kenny Rogers A Soldier's King, which I had never heard before, and our tractor stopped. During the following lyrics the Marine knelt down and handed over his medal to the baby and I basically had tears in my eyes. It was beautiful.

 

"He stood before the son of God, come to pay our debt
He smiled up at the soldier that the world would soon forget
So he held out his medal and said this for you I bring
There he swore allegiance to the newborn baby king"

 

 

After there were a few more lights and some fake snow (which was the soapy kind but still really gorgeous) and then we stopped again. Lee Greenwood's God Bless the USA started playing and then this giant American flag lit up with huge lights going off like fireworks behind it. Then a recording of children saying the Pledge of Allegiance played and the entire hayride stood up and said it along with them. Very patriotic and very touching for a finale!

 

That was the end of the hayride and by this point we were both pretty chilly! We got one last picture in front of the Merry Christmas sign (hey, it was still Christmas weekend!) and then got back in the warm car and headed for home.

 

We definitely hope to at least go back to the restaurant (after my surgery) and maybe even bring my family as it is definitely the sort of place my parents would get a kick out of. We also hope to maybe try to go next fall for their pumpkin picking and more hayrides! Definitely recommend a visit if you're in the area.... just be prepared to wait to eat! It is worth it.