Moving From the Suburbs and Starting Cotton Creek Farms
When we decided to give up the suburbs and move north to the farm in 2015, some friends and family referred to it as a mid-life crisis. Our financial advisor Nancy called it living the dream. We refer to it as Life 2.0. Looking back, it was the best decision we could have made for our family and we're so thankful we took this leap of faith.
After living in the Detroit area for two decades, we said goodbye to high-stress jobs, long commutes, and way too busy schedules. In 2018 we officially moved into our Thompsonville, Michigan alpaca farm and began living a quieter life filled with open land, sunset views, and a herd full of alpaca love and goodness.
Today our farm has turned into a full business with a small herd of alpacas and our rescued llamas Lucy and Lilly. We are active breeders of alpacas, we have a large online store, we produce USA made alpaca products, and we do everything we can to give back to the community in which we live.
We're members of the national Alpaca Owners Association (AOA) and Jason serves as the treasurer on the AOA's Board of Directors. Our farm is listed as an AOA Mentor Farm For Youth and we serve as board members for the Alpaca Association of Michigan. We also operate a 4-H club called Farm and Fleece through the Northwest Michigan 4-H Livestock Council.
And finally, in 2026 Rebecca's book The Alpaca Handbook will officially be available for sale from The Globe Pequot Publishing Group, Inc.
Why Raise Alpacas?
Everyone who visits our farm asks how we decided on raising alpacas. And while we can't remember how we started talking about camelids, we can tell you we knew at our core that an alpaca farm was the right decision.
A random stop at an alpaca farm was all it took for us to fall in love with these animals and know they were an important part of our Life 2.0 adventure.
Alpacas are social creatures who are smart, curious, and highly trainable. Once you build their trust, they love humans and eagerly seek attention. And what is probably more important, alpaca create amazing fiber that is eco-friendly, hypoallergenic, as soft as cashmere, and three times warmer than sheep's wool.
Who wouldn't fall in love with these magical creatures?
Our Objectives in Farming
- Maintain a healthy herd based on sound livestock management
- Establish a loving and nurturing environment for our alpacas (to us they are family and not livestock)
- Create a breeding program that consistently improves the quality of our alpaca fleece quality, confirmation, and personality
- Produce high-quality fiber that can be used to make sustainable, USA made alpaca products
- Contribute to the alpaca industry within Michigan and the United States
- Carefully match prospective alpaca owners to the right animals so their business objectives and goals are obtained
- Offer mentoring services that support new and existing alpaca farms
- Educate the public on the magic of alpacas
- Give back to the local community through events and 4-H involvement
Learn More About Our Farm
- Read our origin story
- Follow the timeline of our farm and business
- Meet our alpaca herd
- View awesome products in our online alpaca store
- Visit offsite press and media mentions
- Learn more about alpacas and the industry in our blog
- Learn how to contact us
- Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, or Google