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July is National Ice Cream Month, so it only makes sense that part of the Campbell family July would include a visit to Young’s Jersey Dairy near Springfield, Ohio—our homeland for many generations back.
I remember visits to Young’s when I was a wee lad. It was much smaller then (as was I!) and it was mainly just an ice cream place. Now it’s a sprawling, multi-million dollar business!
There is a batting cage and miniature golf course, a full service restaurant, as well as the quick fried foods available with at the ice cream “stand”. (A very large “stand”… hard to still call it that!)
They have a kids’ fun zone, with trailer rides, miniature tractors to ride, and all sorts of fun things. There is a gift shop with all kinds of goodies, Young’s-related and otherwise. Really, it’s quite amazing what this place has grown into!
But my favorite part is that they still have the place where you can visit the animals. They certainly have remained “small” while growing so large.
There are goats, and pigs, and sheep, as well as the cows of course. Only about thirty Jersey cows in total produce all of the Young’s Dairy products! (Ice cream and cheese and… milk? Not sure of the latter…)
We visited on Monday and Tuesday of this week and were surprised by the number of people there with us. On a July Monday mid-afternoon, the place was packed! Tuesday was a bit better as it was raining all afternoon, but still quite busy—long lines for ice cream.
I, of course, had a scoop of one of my favorite flavors: White Chocolate Raspberry Swirl! (They have so many to choose from, but I always make sure to get some of that!)
And, as if all of this weren’t enough, somewhere in the last couple years, Young’s has begun selling Schuler’s donuts! Folks, it seriously doesn’t get better than that! And, likely anyone from Springfield can confirm that!
It’s fun to visit the places of your childhood. In fact, while we were visiting my childhood ice cream place, we also drove past the house where I grew up. It was neat to show my kids the actual buildings and locations while telling them the earliest stories I can recall.
Do you enjoy going back to your childhood favorites? How often are you able to revisit those places from your past?
For me, we get to Young’s at least once every year. (And Schuler’s Bakery of course, too!)
It’s fun to stay connected to your childhood. Keeps you feeling … Young?
