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Be like the bee, always seeking the nectar of knowledge. Life is sweeter that way.

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Hence the term, Busy Bees! Love that pink and green color combination.

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Kimberly Nelson!

Kimberly Nelson (kmnelson77, #3492) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning a Beginner Level Shopping Green Merit Badge!

“For this merit badge, I had to acquire some reusable shopping bags. I’ve been using reusable bags for quite some time, but many of my bags needed replacing, so I picked up a few new ones so I had at least six. I also used a reusable bag I already had to hold all of my reusable bags and placed them in the bin in my car, so they are always with me on grocery shopping day.

Having the new bags has worked well. They are stiffer and stand up better for the person bagging my groceries. Having them all in one bag is easy to grab and having them in the car definitely helps to have them when you need them. No more, I forgot my bags at home!”

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Kimberly, I love your new fun and bright bags for this project. Like you, I find that having lots of bags available in the car really helps make it easy to grab one for shopping. I also find that these bags hold quite a lot so it makes getting groceries home from the market more efficient too.

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Marlene Laverty!

Marlene Laverty (#7503) has received a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning a Beginner Level Cheesemaking Merit Badge!

“I made yogurt using my goats’ whole milk. I had a choice between using a yogurt culture or plain store-bought yogurt. I have to start with a bacterial culture to get the process going. I made my yogurt with 1 cup organic store-bought yogurt as a starter. I made sure the store-bought yogurt had live culture in it. I heated up a quart of whole milk to 180ºF to sterilize it and placed the pot of milk in a sink halfway filled with cold water to cool it down to 80ºF. Using a whisk, I mixed the milk slowly into the cup of yogurt. I have a Euro Cuisine yogurt maker with jars. It’s really just a covered hot plate with jars, but it keeps the milk and starter at the correct temp to get the cultures moving and growing. I poured the mixture into the jars. Twelve hours later (the longer the time, the more sour) … yogurt!

It turned out a little thin. Nice and sour and just a bit sweet. Great for granola! I will drain some of my yogurt to make Greek-style yogurt. Using a fine mesh sieve and butter muslin, the yogurt can be drained of most of the liquid to make a much thicker yogurt. All in all, very happy with the result. It’s great with honey and peaches too!”

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Congratulations Marlene on getting your goat cheeses made. My daughter raises dairy goats and I remember when we first tried making cheese decades ago. It does take time to get it right , but oh it is so good when you do. Now my daughter makes a soft goat cheese , kinda like a cream cheese consistency, and sells it . It is delicious and she has customers keeping her busy with orders. Enjoy your new and healthy addition to your diet!!

    • Marlene says:

      Thank you so much. I think I have made the goat cheese style you are talking about and oh, there is nothing like it! I am learning to make bagels just to go with the soft goat cheese. I have had a few batches of the cheese that didn’t come out right, but the chickens love the failures. They eat it right up. I love my goats, they give milk, manure for the garden, fiber, meat in some cases. They are such an all purpose critter! And the babies are so fun to play with.

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Young Cultivator Merit Badge: Let’s Go to Town, Expert Level

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 7,428 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—10,886 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! ~MaryJane 

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

For this week’s Each Other/Let’s Go to Town Expert Level Young Cultivator Merit Badge, Andy and I—you guessed it—went to town.

photo by James Steakley via Wikimedia Commons

If only earning Merit Badges were so simple …

Once we got there (several yard sales and snack breaks later), we headed over to our local library. Not for books this time, no siree, but to see what was thumbtacked up on the ol’ community bulletin board.

We saw:

  • Services from a pet psychic (Yeah. That’s all my chickens need. They already think they’re Marie Antoinette if their diva behavior is any indication.)
  • Tuba lessons (BYOT)
  • Something called Pickleball
  • Massage therapy for the ticklish
  • A seminar on DIY world domination
  • Matchmaking services for the romantically challenged
  • How to cook with inedible ingredients (say what now?)
  • Lost: guinea pig
  • Found: weird-looking rodent
  • Soccer for seniors
  • Conquer your fears through total immersion therapy (please sign waivers, provided)
  • Community theatre actors wanted
  • Underwater basket-weaving classes
  • Sign Language, Shakespeare, and You

There were probably lots more, but they were all stapled and scotch-taped and thumbtacked right over one another, all willy-nilly. I thought someone needed to offer a community class on the Proper Etiquette of bulletin-boarding, but Andy was all about … drum roll, puhleeze …

Pickleball!

To earn his Expert Level badge, Andy and I were going to choose three different after-school-type activities. He had already joined Band last week, and I wrangle him in to my Book Club meetings every third Thursday (I lure him with the scent of chocolate-chip cookies. Works every time. Little guy is cute, but he isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to noticing things. Ah well. He gets cookies and some literary education, to boot. Although, he wasn’t real fond of The Bridges of Madison County, and when it was his turn to pick the novel, he chose Sir Farts-A-Lot Eats the Booger as revenge. How childish. Although, I have to say, I secretly enjoyed the book).

Anyway, where was I? Ah yes. Pickleball was to be our third activity! We were both really excited. Andy because he likes balls, me because I love a good pickle.

Sadly (and you may be one step ahead of me on this), there were no vinegary cucumbers to be found when we got to the arranged meeting place. Instead, there were paddles, nets, plastic balls with holes in them, and a tennis court.

photo by Stephen James Hall via Wikimedia Commons

I was instantly suspicious. This looked like some sort of *gasp* SPORT.

Suddenly, I knew how Andy felt every third Thursday.

Putting my fear of all things sports-related aside for the greater good, I attempted learning the oddity that is pickleball. Turns out, I wasn’t really so bad. It’s kind of like ping-pong on a larger scale. And I’m happy to report one of the sports moms brought juice boxes and crackers, so I made it through a happy camper. And Andy earned his badge. He put it right next to his dog-eared copy of Captain Underpants (I think I know what we’re reading next month).

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I first learned about pickleball this summer from a friend who is a talented tennis player. It seems like it might be easier but since I failed so miserably at tennis……I doubt I will venture out to try this game. Maybe being the Keeper and provider of snacks is the best role for me. It seems that anything that involved a ball is pretty much NOT going to work for me. Besides, someone has to be in the cheering side, right?

  2. Karlyne says:

    It sounds like pickleball might be easier on the joints, just in case Senior Soccer doesn’t work for me…

  3. Krista says:

    This is the first time I have heard of pickleball. Now I have a new sport to try out with the family. I loved participating in after school activities when I was younger and love seeing kids staying involved with their peers and communities.

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Teresa Roberson!

Teresa Roberson (carolinacateyes, #7386) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning an Expert Level Recycling Merit Badge!

“My recycling system at home runs like a well-oiled machine! I have been successfully recycling at home for months now. In late July, I enlisted my granddaughter, age 12, to recycle. She has recently moved from the city back out to the country, where there is no garbage pickup, but a recycling/garbage convenience center is nearby. We set up four cardboard boxes on the back porch; one for newspapers, one for plastics, one for aluminum cans, and one for rinsed metal cans. Rachel also recycles plastic shopping bags to return to Walmart. No, I still can’t convince her to use fabric bags! I periodically visit and can’t help but see her progress; she tends to hyper-focus on things that interest her. She has even decorated a couple of her boxes! She also has recruited her aunt, maternal grandmother, and maternal great-grandmother to recycle as well. Occasionally, her dad will drop off a bag of glass items at my work location for me to recycle at my convenience center. I also collect the shredded paper and the cardboard boxes from work to recycle just down the street from my office.

As I travel from school kitchen to school kitchen in my county, I see so many items that could be recycled if anyone cared to listen and act responsible. When I retire next year, I think this will be my mission. My school district needs to set the example by recycling instead of collecting garbage for a landfill. At least Rachel is on the right track, and she has others doing the same. She talks about recycling with her friends and teachers at the middle school. Hopefully, the younger generation will get on board to save this planet one metal can, one plastic bottle, one plastic bag, one cardboard box at a time.”

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Teresa, what a great job all of your ideas were when it comes to making recycling easy and helpful to manage. Sometimes I think we finally get results when we lead the way. Hopefully your granddaughter can help move the needle forward with other family members seeing the value and making the change to help clean up our beloved Earth!

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Jacey Titus!

Jacey Titus (OnceUponaFarm, #7468) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning a Beginner Level Aprons Merit Badge!

“I made a half apron for a homesick friend. It is on its way to her. I have also made one for myself and wear it every time I am cooking or baking. The first attempt turned out great. I need to fix the tension on my sewing machine, but that is all. I may adjust the pattern and make some for my little kitchen helpers.”

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Jacey, this was such a sweet and kind idea to make for your homesick friend! I know she appreciated your gift and your support for her.

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Hope Johns!

Hope Johns (woolybunny28, #7249) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning a Beginner Level Quilting Merit Badge!

“A talented quilter in my knitting group offered to teach me how to quilt! I jumped at the opportunity, since quilting has always been on my wish list. We started out with the basics, how to properly cut your fabric, and different methods of piecing (I now love strip piecing!). I learned how to read a quilt pattern and how to select colors for a quilt. I made a mini quilt for my kitchen table using fabrics I had purchased a while ago in the hopes of using them in a quilt. I quilted it on my sewing machine and sewed the binding down by hand.

I LOVE how my mini quilt turned out, and I learned so much. The whole experience was so enjoyable that I have already started on a second quilt—the next one is definitely going to be bigger! I see many quilts in my future …”

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Fantastic Hope! How wonderful that a friend took the time to teach you the basics of quilting. I wish I could see you first completed project . Enjoy making future ideas turn into beautiful quilts for your home. Post us a photo over in the MJF Chatroom to share. Here are so many other Farmgirls who love to quilt or wish they knew how. Everyone would love to admire your newest project .

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Young Cultivator Merit Badge: Big Kid Now, Expert Level

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 7,504 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—10,886 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ 

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life   

For this week’s Each Other/Big Kid Now Expert Level Young Cultivator Merit Badge, Andy asked me to help him by shadowing him as he shadowed another.

I know. Sounds shady. Like a film noir, Humphrey Bogart/Lauren Bacall, cue the Magnum P.I. theme music shady. But in order to earn his badge, he needed to follow in the footsteps of someone (a mentor or Farmgirl Sister) who was working in the profession he was most interested in. He had waffled a bit, I admit, while earning his first two badges in this category, but he finally settled on what he thought was his dream job.

Donut Maker and Baker Extraordinaire.

He added the Extraordinaire part, as I’m sure you deduced.

I knew he was coming at it from a purely preteen, adolescent, constantly hungry, sugar-crazed, glazed and frosted, point of view, but I figured he could learn that the hard way.

Also, I enjoy a good maple bar like any red-blooded American farmgirl, so I didn’t mind waiting in the wings. The sprinkled, deep-fried, apple fritter wings … where was I?

The neighborhood baker at the local donut shop was only too happy to oblige Andy’s request. In fact, I thought I heard something mumbled manically under his breath about slave labor and needing the fryer deep-cleaned, but I couldn’t be sure. Probably just my imagination.

Bright and early the next morning, we were off. And by ‘bright and early,’ I of course mean, in the dead of night with nothing but moonlight to light our way to the donut shop. Andy resembled a cast member of the Walking Dead, and I must admit, I didn’t look too good myself. Nobody looks good at 3:30 a.m., except maybe the aforementioned Bogey and Bacall. But they had makeup artists and better lighting.

Mr. Donut Maker and Baker Extraordinaire Senior was already up and ready to go. I’m not sure what his veins are pumping with, but I’m fairly certain it’s caffeine and sugar, not the normal blood the rest of us have. I got myself to the coffeemaker faster than you could say ‘good morning, sunshine’, and when I couldn’t find a mug fast enough, I used a large mixing bowl.

It was either that, or put my lips directly beneath the coffee spout and guzzle. And I am a lady, let me remind you. Most of the time.

Mr. Donut Maker and Baker Extraordinaire Junior found some energy somewhere in that gangly body of his, and jumped right in. He had been hoping for a hot breakfast of chocolate-glazed goodness before any actual work, but one narrow-eyed squint from his new boss kept him on the straight and narrow. He was put to the test by cleaning out some ovens.

He spent half the time reenacting the witch scene from Hansel and Gretel until Mr. Baker plugged his donut hole with a pastry just to keep him quiet.

All in all, it was one long day … that somehow was over by 2 p.m. Baker’s hours are a thing not to be taken lightly.

Me, I take mine with extra sprinkles and a mixing bowl of strong coffee. Because I am a lady.

Just not before 9 a.m.

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  1. Karlyne says:

    Yep, that’s the life of a commercial baker – nailed it, MBA Jane (and Andy)!

  2. Krista says:

    Super early mornings are not my thing either, but since having kids I have gotten better at being a morning person. I do have limits still though. I think I will leave the donut making to those who function better in the mornings and have caffeine for blood!

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is Peggy Smith!

Peggy Smith (Forever Young, #1815) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level The Secret Life of Bees Merit Badge!

“The health difference between regular honey is being pasteurized and filtered. Pasteurization is the process where it is heated at high temperatures to kill any yeast that may be present in order to prevent fermentation. Raw honey comes straight from the beehive. It is totally unheated, unpasteurized , unprocessed honey.

I buy pure raw honey from a local bee farm, Bekemeir’s, in Neosho, Missouri, which is close to where I live. I read the book Nature’s Little Wonders.

I have been taking a teaspoon of this honey every morning for a year now for allergies. I have not been back to the doctor since; it really works for me. I also cook with it.”

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  1. Gerald says:

    Good to know all the differences. It makes a difference in what type of flowers they feed upon in flaver.

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