Springtime at the Andelin Family Farm in Reno

Around fifteen years ago, the Andelin Family Farm opened up to the public, creating fun events for community members in the Reno/ Sparks area. Stephanie Navarro Rocha reports on their current Spring Festival, which opened on April 3rd and will run until May 4th.
At the Andelin Family Farm Baby Animal and Tulip Festival, guests can interact with baby goats, lambs, and calves and receive access to tulip fields and petting zoo areas.
There are also other games and activities, such as giant slides, a jump pad, and more.
On a recent Spring day, a mom and her children laughed as they rode down mini zip lines.
Maya, who is five, enjoyed looking at all the animals and feeding the baby cows.
Current farm owner and operator Cameron Andelin, 47, grew up on this farm, bought by his family in 1981.
The farm began doing public events about 15 years ago when his wife, Natalie, thought it would be fun to make a pumpkin patch for their five kids.
It was something the community could participate in. It started small but as Cameron Andelin explains it grew as the years went on, with appeal to many in northern Nevada.
“Seeing people enjoy and be out here.. like it’s, it’s fun. Just today I was talking to a guest that said I was.. he said I was..I grew up on a farm, we raised hogs and it's been so long since I’ve been out on this,” Andean said. “But It was just very nostalgic to him, so it's just wonderful whether it’s little kids who have never been near a farm animal before or its adults who are nostalgic about their upbringing.”
Depending on the season, Cameron Andelin’s days look different. Recently, with all the baby animals they feed bottles to three times a day, he has begun working at 6 a.m. and ends around 10 p.m.
Taking care of the animals and the farm, while also making it presentable to the public, is constant work.
Moreover, the weather has been adding to this workload as there has been some recent periods of light snow and rain, making everything muddy.
A 33-year-old guest Jessica Ginsburg from Long Island, New York, currently living in Reno, Nevada, loved visiting for a second time.
“So far feeding the goats has been fun. I saw a highland cow that I'm excited to go meet, and I saw that there were other baby goats that I'm excited to go see as well,” she said.
During her first visit this past fall, she said she had a great time participating in the pumpkin picking and was able to take pictures with her baby.
Fall is the farm's busiest season as they hold the pumpkin patch, corn maze, haunted attraction, and zombie paintball.
For now, it's spring time here and parents and their kids recently commented on all the animals they were looking at.
As for upcoming events, the Andelin family farms plans on holding goat yoga sessions, painting classes, private tours, a sunflower festival, and then later in the year, its big fall festival.
Report by Stephanie Navarro Rocha