We’ve all heard how important it is to eat a diet high in roughage. Likewise, “roughaging” (spending time outdoors) is essential to our mental health. Even if it’s a settee on the porch, we need it, gotta have it. I aim to be the reason you pulled your bedding out the back door last night.
The ridge above my farm offers breathtaking panoramic views of the Palouse. Our neighbors at Thorn Creek Native Seed Farm steward over 100 acres of this historic Palouse Prairie on Paradise Ridge and it has been their mission to restore native plants to the area.
What is carpe nutrimens, you ask? Seize the food. Oh yes. Yummy, organic, good for you, will make you want to take a nap after breakfast, nutrimens. Mornings at our B&B are a cornucopia of delicious smells, tasty eats, and fantasmical surroundings (fantastic + magical). Eating breakfast outside around a campfire is our preferred way to start the day. So grab yer’ hot coffee and let’s go on a little tour …
Winnie Nielsen says: What an amazing breakfast! It all looks so delicious!! I especially love the aprons and cowboy boot outfits for the occasion. Breakfast around the campfire reminds me of my Girl Scout summer camp days where we lived in wall tents for two weeks and did overnights for some of the badges we worked on. Campfire and breakfast are a sort of magical combo!
Elaine Forster says: Megan was so sweet to share this journal entry with me! I love seeing my aprons on real people! I plan to become a faithful follower! Big hugs to all of you!
MaryJane says: Oh my goodness, we love your aprons!
Karen Kurtz says: Why cant I find Cast Iron skillet s’mores? I really wanted to make them. Great camping treat.
MaryJane says: You can find them in my new book, MaryJane’s Cast Iron Kitchen, http://shop.maryjanesfarm.org/store/p/1286-MaryJane-s-Cast-Iron-Kitchen.aspx
The grass is turning green, the farmers are tilling the land, and we are saying goodbye to this same scene that was frost-bitten not so very long ago.
Winnie Nielsen says: Wow Mary Jane!! A breakfast for Kings and Queens! It all looks so delicious and healthy. Now I am really obsessed with making it there next summer!!! Through new friends, I am learning how beautiful Idaho is and how much I need to plan on seeing it for myself. MJF, your books, and my friends have introduced me to what looks like one of America’s best held secrets. Thanks for inviting me along for a “virtual breakfast” at the B&B!! I am keeping that best apron on standby with a certain denim skirt because when I do get to Idaho, I have several stops to make!! This Florida Farmgirl will be westward-ho!!!
Patty Schultz says: It all looks so delicious and healthy. I would love the cherry cobbler in a canning jar recipe. It is my dream to come to your B&B someday.
MaryJane says: Dream and you’ll come!
Remember the freedom of flying down the road on your first bike?
Or that glorious day when you were finally free of those embarrassing training wheels? (About which you’d been saying, for weeks, “But mooooooooooom, those are for babies!”)
Well, friends, May is the perfect month to …
I celebrated by going on a ride with our Cub Scouts last Sunday and can’t wait to go out again! So much fun! I lived on my bike when I was a kid.
Genevieve Conradi says: Visit the Bicycle Museum of America in New Bremen, Ohio and see the largest collection of bicycles in the United States.
MaryJane says: That would be wonderful to see. It’s on my bucket list next time I’m in Ohio.
More B&B guests are only hours away, so we are down to last-minute prep. There are vases to fill with fresh-picked flowers from the gardens …
Winnie Nielsen says: It looks so gorgeous as arrival time nears! And Miss Nutmeg has her mane all fluffed up to look her best! I hope it is a beautiful weekend for all of the guests! I am drinking my coffee here in the east coast and wondering….hmmmm what is for breakfast at the Wall Tent Retreat?
MaryJane says: If there is a moment, I will snap a photo of breakfast. (I’m trying to stick with my plan to do nothing but gardening today.) I think cherry cobbler in canning jars for starters. And of course, sunrise coffee. My daughter will be arriving shortly to get started on it.
Winnie Nielsen says: Fabulous start to any day! Cobbler of any kind is my favorite and I have never considered it for breakfast? But then, it is just like hot granola, right? Blueberry picking is almost here, and I think I might try blueberry cobbler to start the day some weekend. By the way, I like to make my own blended flavored coffees, and I make one called “Rise and Shine” that has a hint of orange in it. It is made from Italian roast, regular roast, a measure of French Vanilla and a touch of orange. It sort of reminds me of a “coffee creamsicle”. And with cobbler??? I am thinking I better gather the ingredients and put a batch together!
Sharon says: I sure would like to get a reservation!
I am an Interim Innkeeper (traveling innkeeper who manages B&Bs while the owners go on vacation). I have never worked in or stayed in a B&B such as yours, but it sounds so lovely and unique. My best friend lives in Boise and I hope sometime when I travel to visit her (I live in CA) we can arrange to travel to your B&B to be your guests. Cherry cobbler in canning jars! What a wonderful way to start one’s day!
We’re expecting our next wave of B&B guests to start trickling in tomorrow afternoon. Erin and Aaron, our female and male tag team, have been working hard to get everything ready and cleaned up after our guests from last week. Sweeping out tents, shaking out rugs …
Winnie Nielsen says: Oh, I want to come!!!!!! There are so many reasons I want to visit Idaho these days. I hope to retire late next summer and maybe I will get to stay at the B&B before the season ends. It is on the top 5 of my bucket list for sure!! Does it count if I already have my apron packed???
MaryJane says: Have apron will travel. Yes, have your apron bring you here!
Sharon says: I just found out that I cannot get reservations for this summer, so sad that another summer is going by without being able to enjoy your B & B.
Laurie Dimino says: I must admit I am JEALOUS of the lucky ones who are staying at the B&B this coming weekend! Staying at your B&B is on my “bucket list” for sure.
For now I am trying to “re-create” thje feeling in my own backyard this summer with a new tent and lots of glamping accessories. Thanks for all of your wonderful ideas and how-to’s!
Hugs,
Jennifer Venable says: Laurie, what a great idea to create a glaming experience in your backyard. I think I may have to follow in your footsteps. We don’t have the money for a big vacation this year. I could certainly create my own little oasis on my little farm, though. Thanks for the idea!
Winnie Nielsen says: One day I WILL be one of the lucky guests at your B&B!! Looks so fun! I hope you have good weather as well but I bet everyone will love it regardless!!!
I will hopefully come to your Bed and breakfast soon. My mother comes from Pokey Idaho she loves
glamping and is a true cowgirl at heart. I remember and treasure my grandmothers quilts and embordered pillowcases. Your site is inspiring and uplifting I am recovering from knee surgery at the young age of 50. I will be getting my boots on and headed to the local post office to send my Mother a Geranium Basket I created. Happy Mothers Day to All. 🙂
Buy props used in MaryJane’s books and magazine!
5% of profits will benefit www.firstbook.org, a non-profit that provides new books to children from low-income families throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Here’s how:
MaryJane will post a photo and a description of a prop and its cost along with a few details as to its condition here: https://shop.maryjanesfarm.org/MaryJanesCurations. It’s a playful way to be the new owner of a little bit of farm herstory.
Hello,
That blue flower in the photos…is a Douglas’ Brodiaea…wild hyacinth. Here’s a little more info.
Scientific Name: Triteleia grandiflora
Common Pronunciation: broh-dih-EE-uh
Plant Family: Liliaceae
Common Family Name: Lily
Plant Origin: Native
Duration: Perennial
Douglas’ Brodiaea, Blue Lily, Blue Umber Lily, Largeflower Triteleia, Large-flowered Triteleia
Triteleia grandiflora ssp. grandiflora
We are just over Moscow Mountain from you. We are restoring our pasture as well, it was over-grazed to a field of dust before our purchase, lovely to see the “natives” returning. I purchased a kit from Thorn Creek Native and collect seeds off those plants, we are well on our way, but as always, have more to do.
Blessings of the growing kind…
b.
That’s it! I had found the scientific name but couldn’t remember or find the common name, wild hyacinth. I’ll remember it now that I’ve taken such care to forget it, if you know what I mean. Thank you and thank you for your restorative work. It takes a village and then some. We are soooooooo lucky to have Jacie and Wayne for neighbors.
We have a local movement called Alachua County Trust which raises money in our county to purchase and save local habitats unique to our area. We are “friends” of the trust because it not only takes a village to preserve and restore wild lands, it takes money and hard work. But it is so worth every dime!! Your photos and wild flowers are lovely!! Like here in Florida, when we preserve these wild spaces, the critters are happy to be able to thrive, ahem, even the alligators!!
So you have a local land trust? How many years has it been in existence?
I heard that if you take 1 part Tea Tree oil to 2 parts water and put it in a spray bottle and spray your shoes and pants that it will deter ticks… You can also use Eucalyptus oil, 1 part to 3 parts water and it will deter fleas, and ticks as well.
What a great tip. I am going to try this!
Mary Jane, I think the trust has been around formally for about 12 years now. They work to get donations with matching funds to purchase special environmental pieces of land. The goal is to provide a “Green Circle” around the city of Gainesville. We are well on our way to success!
How lucky are you, how lucky are we when citizens go the extra mile. 12 years! The founders of your trust were ahead of their time. It leaves a wake of impact for generations to come.