Idlewild Homestead and Orchard

06/12/2026

Trigger: Pregnancy loss

Some of you might not know but our family has had a long history of secondary infertility and recurring stillbirth/miscarriage. We have had three second trimester losses as well as four first trimester losses (see first picture). This specific type of grief and trauma is dear to our heart and the immense gratitude that we have for our living children is woven into everything we do here at Idlewild.

Our back to back stillbirth babies were born July 14, 2022 (Willow Rosemary) and July 1st 2023 (Salem Oliver) so every year we try to give back throughout the summer in honor of their short lives. It is deeply important to us that we show our living children that we have the power to take profound grief and do good with it. In past years we have done diaper drives, newborn kits, clothing and food collection, as well as other donations that we keep closer to the heart. This summer we will be giving away birthday party kits for local families who may be struggling to provide a child party to their kiddo(s). We firmly believe every single child should be celebrated on the day of their birth. Their very existence is a miracle.

Kits will include a baking tin with cake mix, icing, veg oil, some decorations like candles/sprinkles/banners, napkins ect. If you would like to donate to our kits or would like to receive one (no questions asked) you can message us! We will be doing it all summer long in honor of our daughter and son who will never have a birthday of their own. We will also be dropping these kits off to local food tables and pantries as well.

06/09/2026

Apparently the internet needs a friendly PSA. DO NOT CLEAN CHICKEN OR DUCK COOPS WITHOUT PROTECTION/MASK.

Better yet a 3M respirator. I'm not judging anyone, it's not as common knowledge as it should be, I just feel it needs said! So many homesteading accounts aren't showing this important aspect. For us, our kids aren't allowed to do anything but grab eggs and get out. They work hard on the homestead but they dont do any chores related to the coop beyond gathering eggs or scoop coop of food. Never cleaning it, or spreading bedding, or spending any amount of time in it. Mr Idlewild cleans the coop with a mask (I don't do it because I have bad lungs and he doesn't). Not wearing precautions can cause pneumonia, pleurisy, salmonella, and several other less common ones. I love animals but you have to be so educated and always keeping best practice at the for front. While chickens are more risk due to the dust and more solid poo than ducks, both can have serious consequences for your lungs if the correct precautions and bedding are not taken. Very simple precautions of hand washing, masking, type of bedding can virtually diminish the risk. Why chance it? As someone with 50% lung function, I would give anything to never have to think about breathing but I promise you only get one set of lungs!!!!!!! Don't take your health for granted! I know a lot of people didn't grow up with these precautions but when you know better, you do better. I hope this can help someone stay safe and better enjoy their animals.

06/08/2026

Thank you everyone for your patience with this week's egg deliveries due to me unexpectedly being in the hospital. Things should resume normal asap. Have a great week!

06/01/2026

06/01/2026

As we enter June our orchard is getting lush with vegetation! The garden vegetables are making leaps in size everyday! Tree fruits are growing!
Join us Monday evenings 6-8 pm to help our little orchard thrive. Bring water, wear your garden clothes , and bring food to share if you feel like it. LCO is at 830 Garfield street in Lawrence Ks. Park cars on Delaware st.

05/31/2026

Outfitted with a little eyelash glue and tiny, solar-powered tags, Kristen Baum and her team at Monarch Watch will be able to watch the progress of monarch butterflies hatched in Lawrence as they fly across the country. https://lawrenceks.news/4uBtIgN

05/29/2026

05/28/2026

We have the opportunity to foster an outdoor livestock guardian dog to try out if it's a good fit for protecting our ducks from coyotes. It came on suddenly under specific circumstances so I am not that well researched but we'd love to help out if we can. We know he is a sweet gentle boy out of the puppy phase and good with kids and up to date on everything so he meets all of our safety and financial concerns but there is a lot of unknowns on our part about the breed so we are diving into learning before we commit to even a weekend visit because we always have to put the animals we have already committed to for life, first and foremost. Please share everything I need to know if we choose to accept this adventure! If you have experience with great pyranees, what do we need to know *if* we decide to move forward?