Tucked away on a quiet street in Springville, Utah, the Jacob and Sarah Jenkins family has created a small outdoor paradise known as the “Living With Kids Homestead.” The name is a play on words, alluding to the fact that the homestead offers interactive experiences with baby goat “kids” for the enjoyment of human kids of all ages.
Sarah and Jacob Jenkins moved with their four children to Springville a little over seven years ago. Prior to arriving here, the family lived in Arizona, California, Florida, Oklahoma, and Lehi, Utah. They traveled frequently for Jacob’s job in multi-unit management. The Jenkins decided to move to Springville to adopt a quieter lifestyle on a property that had a larger yard where the kids could play and get off electronics.
Immediately after the Jenkins’ arrival in Springville, Jacob’s brother asked if the family wanted his goats for free. The couple accepted, and just a few years later, brought the Living With Kids Homestead to life as an L3C, which is an LLC with a nonprofit focus. Currently, the homestead features goats, honeybees, chickens, and ducks.
According to Jacob, the primary focus of the homestead is “to take kids and adults off electronics and get them engaging with animals and nature and experiencing the power of that.” The Jenkins’ achieve this goal by offering hands-on classes on how to make lotion, soap, and cheese with goat’s milk. They also provide interactive animal experiences where people can come to pet, feed, and hold their baby goats.
Jacob explained that they teach classes to people from all walks of life, including troubled youth. There are some youth facilities nearby that help troubled youth and teens with addictions. Jacob explained that some of the parents of those youth have come into town and stayed in the Homestead basement (which is available to rent). Then, they check their kids out of the facility and bring them to the homestead to spend time with the animals.
Besides troubled youth, the Jenkins have also shared their healing goat farm with disabled adult groups, youth groups, and families. They even host wedding receptions, bridal showers, birthday parties, and other special events in their spacious backyard.
During the summer, the Living With Kids Homestead offers 5-day summer camps for kids as young as two years old. Each 2-hour day features a new and exciting experience. This is the typical format the Jenkins follow for their summer camps:
Day 1— Day of Goats: To kick off camp, the Jenkins allow kids to interact with the goats on the farm.
Day 2 — Day With Chickens and Ducks: Kids usually get to hold baby chickens or ducks. If there are any fertilized eggs available, the Jenkins use candling techniques to show kids the difference between fertilized and non-fertilized eggs.
Day 3 — Day of Gardening and Bugs: Kids get to collect bugs around the farm and feed them to the ducks. They also decorate pots and plant seeds in them to take home.
Day 4 — Day of Bees: On this day, kids learn all about bees. Sometimes, Jake dresses in a bee suit and takes camp attendees over to the hives so they can observe the bees up close. Participants also get to try fresh honeycomb and take home a little honey bear.
Day 5 — Family Fun Day: The final day of camp, kids can invite friends, neighbors, or whoever they want to Family Fun Day. There’s typically a dunk tank, water slide, animal interactions, and other activities to enjoy.
When summer camp season is over, private groups can still schedule lotion, soap, and cheese classes throughout the year. These are popular options for families, dates, girls’ nights, youth groups, and religious groups. Homeschooling co-ops also frequently sign up for classes.
The Living with Kids Homestead is an approved educational vendor through some state agencies. This means that homeschooling groups can often use their homeschool funding (such as Utah Fits All, and Children First Education Fund) to pay for classes and other interactive experiences at the Homestead.
The Jenkins offer class attendees the unique experience of creating lotion, soap, and cheese from the beginning to the end of the process. They don’t use pre-made base, artificial surfactants, or other undesirable additives. Instead, they use all-natural ingredients and allow participants to create their own products from start to finish.
Families, groups, or individuals who would like to sign up for classes or interactive animal experiences can do so on the Living With Kids Homestead website (livingwithkidshomestead.com). Anyone interested in purchasing goat milk, honey, lotion, cheese, or other products from the Living With Kids Homestead can purchase products by appointment. Product purchases and inquiries can be made by contacting Jacob Jenkins at (801) 462-3370.
