Since I was a young girl, my dream was to live on a farm, surrounded by Nature, planting a large garden and having animals. After several decades, that dream became a reality when in May, 2000, my husband Paul, 2 daughters, Amelia and Emily and I moved 100 miles west of Chicago to a small farming community in southeastern Lee County. It has been quite a learning experience, all good, and it continues to evolve. The farm was christened with the name Crooked Row Farm when Paul came home from work one day and saw my garden rows. Need we say more…

We consider ourselves stewards of this 13 acre parcel and we take this responsibility very seriously. Only non-chemical, organic and biodynamic practices are employed here, with free-range heritage breed chickens, Arabian horses, and a small herd of LaMancha and Oberhasli goats supplying much of the fertilizer. Passersby often slow down in amazement when they see the chickens happily scratching in the earth, the Guinea Fowl chasing each other, the horses galloping across the pastures or just lounging in the sun. All of the critters are allowed plenty of room to do their “critter things”.

At Crooked Row Farm, we are blessed to be surrounded by acres of trees, which is unusual for a farming community. Beautiful views, birds and other wildlife are part of our every day life. We are able to watch storms approaching which can be both exciting and frightening. One of the wonderful benefits of living here is the darkness at night, which allows us to see the Milky Way, thousands of stars, planets and meteors on clear nights. It is truly heaven.