MAY 11 • 2023 | 39
school in Adelaide, Australia,
so Lauren went with him. He
earned a master’s in wine mar-
keting and she a master’s in
international marketing.
“We even found a temple
there to attend Rosh Hashanah
services and celebrated Passover
with Jason’s thesis adviser,
” she
said.
The Blanfords now have two
children, Fiona, 9, and Asa, 7.
When they returned to
Chicago after two years in
Adelaide, Lauren accepted a tra-
ditional marketing job. “I tried
my best to love it, but I found
working in an office was just not
for me,
” she said.
The Blanfords realized they
wanted to provide a different
kind of life for their children
and started looking for land in
northern Michigan. “It was hard
leaving our tight-knit Lincoln
Square community, but we knew
we were ready to take the leap,
”
said Lauren.
They had to leave their
Chicago condo before they could
close on their new property. “We
managed to find a short-term
rental in Montague, Michigan,
on an organic farm,
” Lauren said.
“It actually ended up being a
blessing in disguise! We learned
so much living on the farm, and
it felt like the perfect stepping
stone to becoming farmers our-
selves.
”
The family lives in a centu-
ry-old farmhouse. In addition
to hosting overnight guests, they
run a market garden and raise
chickens. They also host com-
munity events, yoga classes and
more.
Last summer, the Blanfords
hosted a “barn mitzvah” for their
fellow congregants at Temple
B’nai Israel in Petoskey, where
Fiona and Asa attend religious
school and Lauren is on the
board.
The glamping project is pretty
much Lauren’s baby. Jason helps
out but has a full-time job as
regional sales director for Volio
Wine Imports.
Over the past two summers,
Lost Woods Farm & Forest
has hosted about 150 sets of
guests.
More information is available at the web-
site, www.lostwoodsmi.com. For reserva-
tions, contact Lauren at thelostwoodsmi@
gmail.com.
The Blanford
family: Lauren
and Jason, Fiona
and Asa
B I R M I N G H A M
Member FDIC
We can’t teach your
teenager to drive.
But we can help you
save for college.
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22775
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Version:
04.24.23