Party outside the box
When you think of birthday parties, you probably don’t immediately envision a farm. But one of the most unusual places you can celebrate in Southwest Florida is a working farm with fields and animals in Alva called 31 Produce. Indeed, Southwest Florida has many unusual venues to celebrate a child’s birthday. All it takes to find them is a little imagination, and a willingness to ask. We recently explored six options.
1 of 2
Amanda Inscore
Hannah Craddock,10; Kasey Hayward, 9; Kendal Nourse, 11; EllaRose Kay Sherman, 9, and Katrina Ludwig, 7, are members Girl Scout Troop 128 of Gulf Coast Council, Service Unit Lee 14. A special thank you to 31 Produce in Alva for allowing us to photograph there, Norman Love Confections for providing the cake, and Gap Kids at the Waterside Shops, Naples for supplying the shirts.
2 of 2
Amanda Inscore
Hannah Craddock,10; Kasey Hayward, 9; Kendal Nourse, 11; EllaRose Kay Sherman, 9, and Katrina Ludwig, 7, are members Girl Scout Troop 128 of Gulf Coast Council, Service Unit Lee 14. A special thank you to 31 Produce in Alva for allowing us to photograph there and Gap Kids at the Waterside Shops, Naples for supplying the shirts.
Experience the farm
At this farm in Alva, children can pet and feed animals, mine for gems, pick fruit, even ride in a wagon through the property. You can bring your own food and cake or buy ice cream at the farm store. 31 Produce also has a kitchen that guests can use.
“We have a variety of animals,” says Pam Chaplow, an employee at 31 Produce. “We have mini donkeys, goats, 175 chickens, miniature cows, tortoise, rabbits and guinea pigs. They can walk through and feed all the animals. We are also a u-pick. We will let them pick strawberries or cherry tomatoes. We can really cater to what they want.”
At the mining stations, gems and fossils are mixed with shark teeth and alligator teeth and children can pan for them. Chaplow says it’s this variety of experiences from farming to mining that makes this so special.
“It gives them a chance to get an experience they don’t normally get,” she says.