Author Archives: megan

Spring Trees

Posted on May 1, 2014 by megan

I’m often curious what my girls think of each season. Even more so, I’ve wondered how many details they observe and notice. So, I decided to turn it into a craft project for their entire class. Buttons are always a good starting place. Stella’s kindergarten class was sure that the trees this time of year are all very pink, purple, white, and green, it being spring and all.

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First, I traced their arms and hands. The students agreed the outlines make perfect tree trunks with branches for spring blossoms.

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All 16 of them took a wee bit of time to cut out.

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Each child’s interpretation of spring blossoms on a tree was unique. And obviously they’d noticed that some of the blossoms are set free by the wind.

Oldest Message in a Bottle

Posted on April 29, 2014 by megan

A couple of years ago, I told you about a man who casts bottled messages off the coast of Canada, just to see who might write back.

If that story set your imagination bobbing dreamily out onto the open sea, then listen to this:

Last month, fishermen in the Baltic Sea hauled in their catch and discovered what may be the oldest message in a bottle ever recorded.

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Photo courtesy of International Maritime Museum Hamburg via NPR

The message within was scrawled on a postcard dated May 17, 1913, and signed by a man named Richard Platz. His note asked the bottle’s recipient to forward his message to his own address in Berlin, reported the German online news source The Local.

Sounds like he just wanted to see if it might ever make its way back to him, don’t you think?

Instead of reaching Platz, though, the bottle ended up at the International Maritime Museum in Hamburg. Researchers managed to track down Platz’s granddaughter, 62-year-old Angela Erdmann, who lives in Berlin. Erdmann said she never knew her mother’s father, who reportedly died in 1946 when he was 54 years old, but upon hearing the news of his bottled message, she visited the museum to see it for herself.

“That was a pretty moving moment,” she told German news agency DPA. “Tears rolled down my cheeks.”

WINNER! The Long, Long Trailer Movie GIVEAWAY

Posted on April 15, 2014 by megan

We pulled Jenny from our hat!

On March 29, Jenny said:

“Glamping with MaryJane has become one of my escapes from reality. The day I received it in the mail I read it cover to cover, in fact, I carried it with me to my daughter’s karate class and several moms learned about glamping that day. I compare MaryJane’s book to my childhood favorite by Dr. Seuss I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew because both books allow me to dream big and focus on my future. Glamping is a dream for my future!”

Congrats Jenny. Watch for an email from the farm.

And the original post was:

Lucy and Desi … honeymooning in a glamper?!

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In this 1954 classic, you’ll laugh at all the antics that ensue when Lucy and Desi decide to buy a 40-foot trailer for their first home. And you’ll relate while Lucy glams up her new home and Desi grumbles his way down the highway.

From the cover: “They quickly find that the interior of a moving trailer is ideal for tossing a Caesar salad—and everything else. That backing up their 40-foot, three-ton home is only a little more difficult than threading a needle wearing boxing gloves. And that trailer-park folks are neighborly sorts who turn the lovebirds’ rig into the wrong, wrong trailer by crashing the wedding night.”

If you like glamping, you’re going to love this DVD! Leave a comment telling us what you like most about my mother’s book, Glamping with MaryJane, and we’ll enter you in our giveaway. We’ll put your name in a hat and pull out the winner … stay tuned!

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WINNER! Rich Herbal Cream GIVEAWAY

Posted on April 14, 2014 by megan

The WINNER! of Amy’s Rich Herbal Cream is …

Sue D.

On March 29, Sue said:

“Love the fact that hand-collected rainwater is used. I’ve never heard of that before!”

Congrats Sue. Watch for an email from the farm.

And the original GIVEAWAY post was :

Big WELCOME to the business, Del Jardin, from San Saba, Texas, that has joined our Project F.A.R.M. (First-class American Rural Made).

Amy’s rich, herbal creams, containing sesame and olive oils, rainwater, comfrey, rose, calendula, and natural essential oils, along with a natural sunscreen with Vitamin E, are created with an extra dose of love—the very best ingredient! Visit her lovely website here.

Amy (left), Bob, and Hannah

Del Jardin is based in the beautiful Texas Hill Country on the J.G. Ranch in Cherokee, where Amy grows the herbs she uses in her products, wildcrafting some also. “Being a cowgirl out in the Texas sun and wind, I needed products that protect and heal the skin. After years of perfection, I offer you my healing creams.”

Amy has 13 stores, salons, and spas that sell her products. She also packages them in larger quantities … massage therapists love them! Leave a comment and we’ll toss your name into our Giveaway hat for a free bottle of Amy’s healing cream.

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Next Time You’re in Town

Posted on April 12, 2014 by megan

We had a great time on our recent trip to Manhattan, and people always ask where we ate (mostly because there are a million fabulous choices). We do have one place we always visit … every year.

Mia was just 1 and Stella just 3 when they peeked their heads over the polka-dot booth for a mirror pic with our friend Ashley on their first visit.

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Last year, the girls and I even had the same booth for lunch!

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This year, the whole family enjoyed lunch together.

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I do love a good burger and fries, but usually prefer to serve up the cows we raise. You know you might be from Idaho when your kids refer to beef as cow at the dinner table. The cows at Brgr have enjoyed a good, grass-fed life too! Yay for restaurants taking steps to improve our food. We are proud to support them, and their burgers are delicious. Gotta love any restaurant with slogans like “Cows were designed to graze on grass …” and …

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Farmgirls in the Big Apple

Posted on April 9, 2014 by megan

You know the saying … You can take the girls out of the farm, but you can’t take the farm out of the girls. Or something like that, right? It’s so true, but it’s always good to venture out and double check. Besides, coming back home can feel so good.

We were pretty excited for our adventure. The teddy bears might have felt otherwise, but they were good sports.

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It was a windy day, but the pilots got us safely out of Idaho and on our way to the big city.

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We checked into our hotel with a midnight snack, then off to dream about our first day in the city.

Good morning, Manhattan!

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Look out city, here we come (in our farm boots, of course).

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We loved the Museum of Natural History, and after an entire day wandering the halls, we still have a list of things to do for next time. I love it when my girls voluntarily hold hands.

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Rockefeller Center is awesome, especially on a windy day with all the world flags flapping above. And of course, having just learned to ice skate back home, the girls had fun watching the Zamboni do its thing.

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We could have spent the entire week in Central Park. But alas, it was time to pack up and head home.

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Good night, Manhattan. Until next time … tomorrow to be exact, when I share why we were in NYC plus a Big Moment GIVEAWAY!

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Get Out a Hankie

Posted on April 2, 2014 by megan

Oh, my …

Before you go any further, grab a hankie.

Really.

Otherwise, happy tears will be pooling into your lap after watching this video.

Are you ready? Hankie in hand?

As you might imagine from watching adorable Emily James caress her flowing pre-cut locks, her favorite princess is Rapunzel.

Hair is serious business to this 3-year-old.

But, “serious” took on a whole new meaning when Emily decided to cut her hair and donate it to kids who’ve lost their hair to cancer.

Emily’s mom, Amy, had donated her own hair in high school and thought it would be a win-win way to tame Emily’s unruly locks (if you’ve ever tackled a little girl’s tangles, you know how trying it can be!).

“We hope to instill an attitude of giving to all of our kids,” Amy James told Today.com. “We want them to realize that everything we have is a blessing from God and it’s really important to give to others when we can.”

Emily agreed to let her Uncle Matt, a stylist, cut her hair—on one condition.

Her Rapunzel doll had to be shorn too, too.

Done deal!

Following the haircut, both Emily and her mom (and, presumably, Rapunzel) reported that they were enjoying the low-maintenance style and felt happy about sending six inches of lovely locks to the Canadian Cancer Society, where they are destined to become a wig for a pediatric cancer patient.

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Posted on March 29, 2014 by megan

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Countdown Calendars

Posted on March 22, 2014 by megan

I’ve always loved countdown calendars, but in the past, I’ve only let my passion for them find a home during the Christmas season. The first time I flipped through the pages of Countdown Calendars, I was dazzled out of my Advent-Calendar-for-Christmas rut and treated to a myriad of traditional and unique projects designed for all sewing levels.

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Besides helping to reward patience and build excitement around anticipated holidays, countdown calendars can be used to celebrate any special event in life. Consider making a birthday countdown calendar, where each day’s passing is marked by adding a candle to a birthday cake. Or for your next big vacation, count the days until you leave with a calendar housed inside a suitcase and decorated with the theme of your destination. And don’t forget the little events that make life special, too. Use a countdown calendar to record the progress of a weekly goal or help your family keep track of their chores, or create one to post a sweet message to your loved ones every day of the week. And really, who doesn’t adore a piece of hand-crafted loveliness hanging on their wall reminding them to celebrate?

Countdown Calendars provides 24 of these project ideas and well-written instructions for each, complete with supply lists, patterns, and tips for assembly. The editor also includes a picture and short biography of each artist with their projects. I really like knowing a little bit about the person behind the creative genius. The fun fabrics and pieced designs in the photos provided just the right amount of eye candy and left me dreaming of projects I might attempt. Now that spring’s officially here, I might have to start the countdown to summer for my first project!

This Hotpad is Just Right

Posted on March 12, 2014 by megan

When searching for the perfect porridge, chair, and bed, Goldilocks realized they aren’t all equal. Some were too big, too small, too soft, too hard, or too hot!

I think it’s safe to say I’ve had the same dilemmas with hot pads. One of our farmgirl sisters recently sent along a pair of hand-knit hot pads and you guessed it, they are the perfect thickness, texture, and size, which might not seem like such a big deal, but how many times have I grabbed my pot with a too-big hot pad all askew and found myself running my hand under cold water to comfort the burn that resulted. The perfect hot pad does make a difference, and these are just right.

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