Archive for April, 2018

Kudos to MOM!

The ultimate superhero would have to be mom! Not only does she run the whole household, make sure everyone’s fed, clean and presentable, but she never stops for a moment to take a well-deserved break.

Well, that’s what life in our barn feels like anyway! So this year, for Mother’s Day, I’ve taken it upon myself to arrange a whole weekend of spoils for everyone in the family – because if they’re well taken care of, no-one’s going to bother me and I will be able to do absolutely nothing for a few days straight…

With Bill’s credit card in hoof (don’t tell him), I found the most fabulous May offerings at Destination Irene (of course) and I guarantee, after this, there’ll be no mistaking that I’m the BEST MOM EVER!

Firstly, I’ve booked us in to African Pride Irene Country Lodge with the Kids Club package. Bill and I will enjoy some Camdeboo Day Spa treats whilst the calves are looked after by the complimentary 2 hour calf minding service (and we’ve paid for a little extra time!).

I’ve booked the Camdeboo Day Spa’s Mother’s Day Pamper Package (of course) which includes a Six Heavenly Facial, Scalp Massage and a MILK Foot Ritual. Just what every tired mom needs!

For Bill, I’ve booked the Hot Rock for Men – he needs those hard working muscles relaxed.

The following day Bill is going to enjoy a round of golf whilst I enjoy popping over to Irene Farm to catch up with my besties at The Deck restaurant. What a treat – with its new renovation, we will enjoy a wonderful cuppa whilst the calves play happily on the jungle gyms.

Afterwards I plan to pop into The Deli to stock up on delectable treats for the week, extending my Mother’s Day spoils a little longer!

Mooother-in-law has offered to take the calves for the next night, allowing Bill and I to book an additional Ultimate Romance package. Dinner, Bed and Breakfast with another two Camdeboo Day Spa treatments means I’ll have the BEST Mother’s Day ever!

Not forgetting that Mooother-in-law is a mother too, I’ve booked the Mother’s Day Lunch at Meadow Green Restaurant for all of us. How’s this for an awesooome menu – a plated starter of Salted Backed Beetroot, buffet main course including a soup station, salad bar, carvery, hot dishes, vegies and starches, stirfry bar and a live action station. Ending off with a plated dessert of Mom Knows Best Trio, cheese and breads – this is one lunch worth booking for! At just R599 per person, not only does mom get to enjoy the day off but she gets to eat like the queen that she is too!

If only we had more Mother’s Days in a year! There’s loads more offers I’d love to book… African Pride Irene Country Lodge’s Ultimate Shopping package and their Ultimate Spa come to mind! Not forgetting Camdeboo Day Spa’s Ladies Day Off, Just for You and Date Night packages. And what about Meadow Green Restaurant’s Buffet Breakfast, Around the World in 80 Bites and Saturday Night Live. Sigh, too many fabulous offerings and too little time!

Next year I think I’ll announce its Mother’s Month in our barn – that way I’ll have every excuse to enjoy a full month of Destination Irene.

Kudos to all the hard working mom’s out there – I hope you get to relax as much as I’m going to…

Til’ Next Month,
The Dairy Cow

Sometimes my barnwife duties extend a little beyond just raising our calves and making delicious milk for the farm. As Bill’s better half I’m pleased to say that every now and then he ropes me into ensuring his business associates and their wives experience the best that Destination Irene has to offer – and I’m always happy to oblige.

One such occasion was just last week, when Bill arranged a men’s golf day (which always includes a few hours at the 19^th hole) and so he tasked me with ensuring the ladies were spoilt to a fine dining meal.

Of course, the Meadow Green Restaurant at African Pride Irene Country Lodge was the only option and I promptly booked a table for five. Out of town guests are always impressed with the menu choice and gorgeous ambience of the Meadow Green Restaurant. I met the ladies on their arrival and we sat down to a gorgeously laid table ready for a dinner of note…

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True to their word, the chefs and their team offer delectable meals made with locally sourced fresh ingredients which make every plate amazing. From a starter choice of fresh salads including pumpkin, modern Caesar and camembert (cranberry filled with pickled red onion and cranberry vinaigrette), to seafood options and soup of the day, my guests were excited to order their favourites and I knew the evening would only get better from there.

On request, two of the ladies were given a tour of the vinoteque walk-in chilled wine cellar returning to the table with a couple of bottles to get the evening started. Nothing like a good glass or two to break the ice and get the conversations flowing.

Highly recommend by our friendly waiter, most of us opted for the Rib Eye Steak when it came time to ordering mains. With an on-site meat aging fridge, the chefs can offer premium matured meats grilled to perfection. Accompanied with choices of pap and sauce, hand cut chips, basmati rice or crushed rustic potatoes and baby vegetables, we were all eagerly awaiting this delicious choice.

For those who preferred other options, the menu included choices of basil penne, mushroom risotto, lamb neck, chicken supreme and kingklip – all promising to be excellent. When the mains arrived, they lived up to their expectations and I’m pleased to say that only good words of praise were said around the table.

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To finish off our evening, as us ladies never skip a dessert opportunity and when presented with the options, the waistlines were long forgotten! Chocolate flower pots, fruit salads in brandy snap baskets and my personal favourite, Lindor fondant with macadamia nougat ice cream, were soon adorning our table. Needless to say, every last bite was eaten and well enjoyed!

I now know you can never go wrong with the a la carte menu at Meadow Green Restaurant and my choice was affirmed when Bill thanked me the next day. Apparently the guests enjoyed it so much, they were begging their bulls to another meal before heading back to their home towns.

Till Next Week,
The Dairy Cow

From an outsider’s point of view, living on the farm looks like the ultimate way of life. Little does one realise that the ‘behind the scenes’ effort that goes into creating this idyllic setting can get very hectic at times! Farmer van der Byl understands the stress of a dairy cow’s life – making sure our milk is nothing short of mooolicious and nutritious! Lucky for us, we have the Camdeboo Day Spa on our doorstep any time we feel the need to escape the world as we know it…

Last week I decided that Bill and I needed some ‘down time’ from our everyday routine. With the permission from our head of the herd, we took the morning off and strolled across the road to enjoy all that Camdeboo Day Spa has to offer.

Stepping into the beautifully decorated setting, I immediately felt a sense of relaxation. Friendly therapists were there to greet us and show us around the facilities. I was impressed to see the trophies and certificates adorning the walls amongst which were for the 2015, 2016 and 2017 World Luxury Spa Awards – Best Luxury Day Spa Continent Winner, as well as the Spalicious Professionalism award for 2016.

Our booking was for an Indigenous Massage but we were also able to use the Spa facilities for the morning which added all the more to our relaxing experience.

A sauna, steam room, outdoor swimming pool, heated Jacuzzi and my favourite, sensation showers meant that by the time we ventured on back to the farm, we felt like we didn’t have a care in the world! (One or two brave souls were utilising the techno gym area – I take my hat off to those that find exercise relaxing!)

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Time for our Indigenous Massage and we couldn’t have picked a better treatment to have. Soothing coconut oil combined with hot stones and of course, the very talented therapists – I think I might have caught myself snoozing once or twice during the hour! Bill and I both agreed that the therapists must get the best training on the market (not surprising at all), because they both were excellent in ensuring our treatment was moootacular.

Afterwards, my therapist kindly showed me some amooozing products that she thought would work wonders on the knots in my shoulders and she was right! The Camdeboo Day Spa also has its own range of scrub, body wash, body butter as well as a hand and nail cream, aptly named, Milk. With these products in tow, I’m going to feel like I’m visiting the spa every day in my own home.

After a refreshing shower, we sat down at the lovely café for a home-made ice tea and a bite to eat.

Back at the barn, my eldest calf was curious to hear all about our experience. She has just two years to go until she can join us at Camdeboo Day Spa for spoils of her own and she can’t wait…

Till Next Week,
The Dairy Cow

Fewer things make a Mooommy Cow happier than a good old lie-in on a Sunday morning and a scrumptious breakfast to booot. Alas, my calves are still too young to make me breakfast in bed!

With Bill being away so often lately – important farmyard upgrades to attend to – I have been left with all the cooking duties. Cooking and me are only friends for a limited number of days so when my beauty sleep got rudely interrupted by a nagging 5 year old who was STARVING last Sunday morning, I decided a trip to Irene Farm was desperately needed…

Luckily The Pasture at the Irene Farm wasn’t fully booked, as they usually are, and so my brood and I happily sat down to a table in the shade. Well, the next few hours were the best I’d had all week!

The order of the day

Firstly, the Sunday morning Chef’s Hot Table spread is mooolicious to say the least. If your ultimate weekend breakfast starts with fresh toast, smoked country style bacon, egg (scrambled or fried), local beef boerewors braised in spicy chakalaka sauce, oven baked mushrooms, tomatoes and spicy potato hash or ground millie pap, then no need to dine anywhere else!

Secondly, after enjoying my breakfast in peace whilst the calves were off gallivanting on the farm, I ordered a well-deserved cappuccino. Rich roasted coffee with delicious foam (or a decadent dollop of Irene Farm double thick cream) is the BEST accompaniment to such a fabulous breakfast.

Thirdly, I took a few moments to relish in the fact that whilst I was enjoying my own company, although I would have preferred my better half there, and the calves were as happy as pigs in the pigsty! Jungle gyms, tractors, walks around the farm and the various farm animals to see make for much entertainment.

Sipping on my coffee, I was pleased to see all the happy families around me enjoying it just as much as we were. Parents being able to have a conversation as their calves were busy playing, grandparents catching up and friends discussing travel plans at the table next to ours. The Chef’s Hot Table certainly caters to all their guests.

I finally decided to herd the calves back to the table (the 5 year old had long forgotten just how starving he was when we arrived!) for their turn to eat. A glass of milk and fresh fruit juices were enjoyed by all. My calves thought the best part of their morning was that delicious scones and flapjacks were included in the Chef’s Hot Table spread – which meant that they had more than their fair share of dessert for breakfast!

With full bellies, happy faces and dirty feet, we herded on home just before the lunch time crowd arrived. And our lazy Sunday continued… The best part was, I didn’t have to cook another meal that day! Snacks were more than sufficient as the Chef’s Hot Table had done its job!

I predict a few more Smunchday Sundays in the near future… we’ll have to include Bill next time!

Till Next Week,
The Dairy Cow

Our offers bring all the bunnies to the yard!

The calves are just about jumping out of their hooves with excitement for the upcoming Easter weekend – and the sugar rush is still to come!

The Easter Bunny hopped in for a warm cappuccino last week after been caught in the rain whilst making all his preparations and he was just as excited too! After gushing about how impressed he is with the African Pride Irene Country Lodge Meadow Green Restaurant Easter Sunday Lunch spread for just R595 per person, he went on to say that he thinks the Irene Dairy Farm Easter Sunday Lunch will be just as good.

Always excited at the thought of Easter being a time for family and friends to enjoy each other’s company, the Easter Bunny was doing double bunny hops in my barn when I mentioned the latest fabulous offers that African Pride Irene Country Lodge have just released…

In fact, not a day later the Easter Bunny popped in again to let me know that he and his extended family (we all know how quickly a bunny nest can grow!) have booked just about every offer there is! His excuse – he needs plenty of rest and relaxation after his busiest weekend of the year and African Pride Irene Country Lodge guarantees just that!

The Easter Bunny and his fam will be enjoying the Kid’s Club offer. An interleading room for the kids, breakfast on the house, 2 hours of bunny-minding services and in-room movies. They’re sorted!

His recently wed brother, Barry, and his new wife have booked the Ultimate Romance (of course, still in their bunnymoon phase!). Dinner, bed and breakfast with a bottle of bubbly and two selected spa treatments… that bunny nest is sure to be growing soon!

His bunny-in-law is a shop-a-holic and so the Ultimate Shopping package is what the in-laws booked. Bed and Breakfast, a 10% discount voucher, R100 voucher and a retail gift from Irene Farm were too good for her to resist. And the complimentary shuttle service over to Irene Farm will ensure she can carry all her shopping bags back to the lodge with ease.

Of course, his younger sis is a total spa bunny so her and her bae have booked the Ultimate Spa offer. Bed and breakfast with two selected spa treatments – they will be the most relaxed of the bunch!

The choices are too good to be true from Ladies Day Off to Just for You, Winter Bliss, Hot rock for Men (so they don’t feel left out) and Date Night – every bunny has their favourite, favourite!The Easter Bunny’s dad loves a round of golf and the Golf Getaway offer was a no-brainer – bed and breakfast with a round of golf thrown in… thank goodness there are some fabulous Camdeboo Day Spa offers that his mom can enjoy whilst dad’s practicing his swing!

Best we all hop on the bunnywagon if we don’t want to miss out…

The calves can rest assured that we’ve got the Easter Bunny covered – he’ll surely be spoiling them rotten this year! As for Bill and I, we are gearing ourselves up for a sugar rush of epic proportions! Luckily there’s loads of space for our calves to work off their energy on Irene Farm.

Happy Easter everyone – from our barn to yours x

‘Til next month