Filming!

And here, we have arrived for my guest spot on Home & Family, hosted by Paige Davis and Mark Steines! Welcome to Universal City.

First, we start out with a little setup.

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  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    How exciting!

  2. Laurie Dimino says:

    Saw you on the show- you look FABULOUS!!! Of course they saved the best for last…had me sitting on the edge of my seat until the END of the show- but of course you were worth the wait! Thank you for all of the inspiration you have brought into my life over the past 3 1/2 years!
    Hugs,
    Laurie

  3. Winnie Nielsen says:

    You and crew must be so very excited!! Thanks for showing us all of what really happens behind the scenes. I love that half house motif. Who would have thought? Clever Hollywood!!

  4. Enjoyed the show and seeing MaryJane.

  5. Lorraine says:

    I also thought Mary Jane rocked! The hosts did a nice job – but Mary Jane was the bomb! Loved the idea with the 5 gallon bucket and diapers. I won’t give it away :o)

  6. Beccie says:

    is there a video of this show for those of us who cant seem to get out of bed before 10AM???

  7. MaryJane, your appearance on this show was great. Well done. You Rock!

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Big City Scavenger Hunt

We’ve arrived in Los Angeles! Hollywood! Universal Studios! Sunset Boulevard! Melrose Avenue! Hey, wasn’t that Melrose Place, a nineties soap opera? Hang on a tic, look at that Ford. All I could think was, “What an awesome farm truck!”

And so began the farming scavenger hunt on the drive from the airport to the hotel. That yellow Chevrolet next to it was calling my name.

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  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    Hope you have a great time–what am I saying, it sounds like you ARE having a great time!

  2. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Enjoy your visit! I wish we got the channel so I could watch on Friday night. Please do a post next week to give us the highlights.

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My Night with Sean

You know you’re in L.A., specifically Universal City, when your hotel lobby is plastered in photos of movie stars. Swoon. That and tiny plates of food that look as though they were baked and served to leprechauns (or maybe fairies), traffic that boggles my mind, oh, and shopping, and celebrities.

That’s right. Celebrities.

Justin Bieber

  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    So-o-o great!

  2. Laurie Dimino says:

    You are just too funny!!!!
    Take care of yourself in that big city!
    Looking forward to sitting down and watching you on my VHS- yes I still record shows using vhs!
    Hugs,
    Laurie

  3. Winnie Nielsen says:

    What fun!!! I so remember watching Sean Connery in films like Gold Finger and thinking he was the most handsome man ever!!!!

  4. Debbie says:

    Was Elvis hot or what? And Sean Connery? Lordy, lordy.. You might want to switch to iced tea for the remainder of your trip… Just a thought… 🙂
    xo

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sock-em-bop-em

We’ve been nut harvestin’ here at the farm this week. During the summer, edible English walnuts are covered with a green husk. In the fall, when the walnuts are ready for harvest, the husks crack and break apart. I purchased my English walnut saplings from Burnt Ridge Nursery, 360-985-2873, www.burntridgenursery.com, and I’ve been very pleased with how well they’ve grown and produced fruit. Below is my father’s walnut cracker invention …

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  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    What a great invention and idea! Shells are hard to contain, but I’m guessing not with this cracker. Thanks for the idea.

  2. Winnie Nielsen says:

    What a cool idea for walnuts! You are very lucky that they grown right in your backyard. We have Pecans here in Florida which are ripening now in time for holiday Pecan Pies!! Mmmmmm!

  3. drMolly says:

    What a wonderful invention! Black walnuts are so difficult to crack – this would work so well for them.

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Beau Coop

Hold on to your egg shells, farm sisters, because you might just …

CRACK UP

when you hear this:

Neiman Marcus has unveiled its 86th annual Fantasy Gifts collection, and, MERCY!

The selection this year had me sucking air in through my teeth, then exhaling it in a whistle.

Got your Christmas gift list handy?

Well, then, take a gander at this lil’ beauty:

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  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    Oh the things some people will do to help others. But to each his own. By the way, is this a hen house or a hen mansion? (tee, hee, hee!)

  2. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I saw this last week on Cv online and thought, what are you kidding? Does it come with a/c and a grounds keeper? After I got over the sticker price, I have to admit it is really a cool hen house!

  3. Awesome, looks like something I could live in much less the chickens, it is awesom.

  4. Adrienne says:

    Looks like a nice “affordable” house for…me! We had chickens when I was a kid, and I don’t remember them being all that glamorous. I remember a lot of stinky smells, flying feathers, and lots and lots of manure to haul out one wheelbarrow load at a time. We kept our chicken coop nice and clean, but I can’t imagine storing my canning in there like they show in the picture! On the upside, anything to encourage people to farm is great!

  5. drMolly says:

    how utterly absurd!

  6. Shery says:

    Shades of Queen Victoria’s chicken coop! I saw an old lithograph of it online somewhere’z. How the English love their poultry. When my folks went to Plymouth years ago (to hook up with shirt-tail relatives), my momma noted that free-range eggs in restaurants were much more expensive and highly prized. Mom’s 1st words were “Chicky dink” – due to a print in their house that featured a little girl offering a pan of water to a baby chick. Grandma LOVED chickens. By the time I came along, arthritis no longer let her keep up with a milk cow and chicken chores. She made the best fried chicken EVER and she often said to me with a wink, “If you knew what a chicken ate, you’d never eat a chicken.” 🙂 Chickens are the catfish of the feathered kingdom … ok, maybe vultures place first. Much emphasis is put on keeping a clean coop and fresh food for hens, correctly true, but Grandma’s statement was true to the chicken’s basic nature … OH, how they love to freely scrounge and forage!!

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he’s crackin’ nuts

After we gathered the walnuts from our 100-year-old black walnut trees.

We had to figure out how to get crackin’ (remove the hulls) so they can dry.

Best way to do that?

With a tractor, of course.

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  1. Chrissy says:

    Getting the hulls off those nuts is tricky. One time my dad took the tire off of the work jeep parked in front of the shop. It was on blocks as I recall. We put a tin trough under the wheel and while the vehicle was running, we threw the nuts under and they hit the side of the shop peeled up pretty as you please. Thinking of the danger in that method makes me glad thereafter we’d just put them in the driveway and drive over them, then beat the squirrels to them.

  2. Terry Steinmetz says:

    Yummy! Can’t wait for the recipes! My favorite is black walnut cake my mother-in-law used to make. It smelled and tasted so-o-o good!

  3. Debra Davis says:

    I’ve used hulls from my friends’ black walnuts to dye wool. It makes a rich warm brown. Really nice. Did not have to patience to pick nutmeats from the shells, so am curious to see how you do it.

  4. Pingback: Today’s Recipe: Black Walnut Pesto Bread | Raising Jane Journal

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behind the scenes behind the barn at the farm

From: Thane @ MaryJanesFarm
Sent: Friday, October 12, 2012 9:01 AM
To: MaryJane Butters
Cc: karina; louise; molly; carol; gabe; etcetera; nick; briano; brianw; kurtis; saralou; lucas; megan; ashley; kim; andy; kate; chelsea
Subject: P and R drive

On 10/11/2012 6:41 PM, Thane wrote:

I regret to inform you that one of our hard drives, which contained the R drive and the P drive, passed away yesterday. It will be sorely missed. Rather than bore you with the complexities of the situation, know that Gabe and I have set up a temporary backup. If all goes according to plan, you will never notice a difference. If you do notice anything, please let me or Gabe know. More important, anything saved on those drives today is probably gone. Please …

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    The is nothing worse than getting that “blue screen of death” when you try to use your computer!!!! Mine at work died suddenly last fall and wiped out 7.5 years of archives and folders. Bleh

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Home & Family Debut

Have you seen the Hallmark Channel’s new show that launched Oct. 1, Home & Family, hosted by Paige Davis and Mark Steines? It’s two full hours every day of home improvements, crafts, parenting tips, lifestyle, health & fitness, and oh, so much more. Can you say “dog pilates?”

You haven’t seen it yet?

Well, here’s the deal.

Prepare for it. Because …

Are you ready?

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  1. I would not miss this for the world Mary Jane, my DVR is all set to record it.
    Thank you for letting us all know about it.
    Hugs,
    Debbie

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  4. Kathy Bernard says:

    I have to say I have never heard of Glamping but I have to say I love the idea. I also think I am going to be a follower of your website because looks like things for me. Thanks for a great segment on the show.

  5. Teresa Bryant says:

    Saw you on Home and Family, have never saw the show before or heard of you. I enjoyed the show so much and you part of it. I checked out the web site. I have really enjoyed it. I text my sister to check it out! And called my daughter with the word of the week. I’ll be checking in daily. Thanks for the fun. Teresa

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Home & Family Debut

Have you seen the Hallmark Channel’s new show that launched Oct. 1, Home & Family, hosted by Paige Davis and Mark Steines? It’s two full hours every day of home improvements, crafts, parenting tips, lifestyle, health & fitness, and oh, so much more. Can you say “dog pilates?”

You haven’t seen it yet?

Well, here’s the deal.

Prepare for it. Because …

Are you ready?

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  1. Terry Steinmetz says:

    Wish I could see this, but alas, we only have an antenna for our TV. But not to worry, I’ll be dreaming with you while you share all bout glamping with the world!

  2. Can not wait to see it girls, what fun you will have.

  3. Brandy #250 says:

    Yeah!!!Yipee!!! DVR is set & ready!!!
    Thanks Brian:)

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Little Chunky Monkey

Who wears a little pink halter here at the farm?

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  1. Isn’t it wonderful what a little love can do.

  2. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Ponies are so much fun and so full of personality. No doubt she would prefer to eat and be plump but we all do have to watch our figures!! Ha!

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