The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,558 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,822 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Farm Kitchen/Unprocessed Kitchen Merit Badge, I was upping the ante and earning Level III. That’s right. The sequel to end all sequels. The coup de grace. The ending of a delicious trilogy.

The advanced EXPERT Level.

Gosh, I gave myself chills. I haven’t been so excited since the shoe sale at the outlet mall.

And if I thought Levels One and Two were fun, I was in for a real treat with the final installment. A dinner party. Who gets a badge for a dinner party? Farmgirls, that’s who. You could say it rocks to be us.

But not just any dinner party, of course: an Unprocessed Dinner Party. And when I say, dinner, I of course mean, dessert.

Evidently, my friends have sweet teeth beyond compare. The point of this party (besides having a blast, naturally) was to introduce them to unprocessed foods, find out their weaknesses, and then help them brainstorm ways to make those unhealthy treats into wholesome foods.

Real foods.

No food-like ingredients here.

No unpronounceable ingredients. (Although I have a heck of a time pronouncing acai and/or quinoa).

No 37 lists of chemicals in one, single, solitary slice of bread, no siree.

No pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, preservatives, food colors, additives, or otherwise frightening additions.

Just, plain, amazing, mouth-watering food. The kind that makes you weak in the knees and breathless. The kind that fills your house with a salivating inducing aroma. The kind that …

Whew! Is it getting hot in here or is it just my dark chocolate lava cake heating up the kitchen? Let me just use my cocktail napkin to fan my face for a sec here. That’s better. Onto the list my pals and I came up with!

• S’mores (Can you imagine this delight with organic, fair-trade chocolate, a homemade cinnamon marshmallow, and perhaps a gingersnap cookie in place of the graham? Or a spicy version with chili-laced chocolate, a vanilla marshmallow, and a chocolate graham? Or maybe a peppermint marshmallow with a white chocolate square and a homemade Snickerdoodle cookie? The possibilities, folks, are endless.)
• Homemade coffee-house drinks and creamers! I thought this one deserved an exclamation point, because who doesn’t love to sip on a frothy, creamy mug of goodness? But a lot of that goodness is filled with unnecessary calories, corn syrup, and fake foods, not to mention a painful blow to your wallet. Better to make your own, and so we did. We slurped (uh, I mean sipped) on homemade Hot Cocoa, Butterscotch Coffees, Hazelnuts Mochas, and Pumpkin Spice Lattes.
• Popsicles! This is another one where the possibilities for flavors are practically endless. We came up with all sorts of varieties, but our favorites included: watermelon basil, green tea with honey, coconut and lime, peach and strawberry sangria, honeydew cucumber, and Greek yogurt. Mmmm.
• The above-mentioned Dark Chocolate Lava Cake with homemade ice cream.
• Homemade Twinkies. Yep.
• And finally, enough cookie and cake ideas for us to open our own bakery.

Have a hankering to make your unhealthy vice more organic and homemade friendly? Do tell. Share!

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Terry Steinmetz!!!

Terry Steinmetz (Farmgirl Sister #3600) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning a Beginner & Intermediate Level Glamping Merit Badge!

“I started out by finding all sorts of things for glamping in my home. I found a basket to put some tea things into for traveling, doilies, and a small table. Then I went to an auction, where I purchased more doilies, a tea kettle, and dishes. Then I went on the Pack-n-Trail as the nurse with our wranglers from Bible camp for a week of “roughing it” in a tent. While there, I decorated for comfort! I posted on the Farmgirl Connection some info and pictures.

I read Glamping with MaryJane as soon as my copy came! What are dreams made of? Glampers & glamping! I invited my grandgirls to an overnight stay in my glamper parked on the back part of our property. We dressed up, had a tea party, blew bubbles, went for a nature walk, and enjoyed the day and night! I made cucumber sandwiches, carrots & celery sticks with berries & chocolate cake for dessert. Our tea was Arnold Palmer tea—half iced tea with half lemonade. I gave them each a recipe card to take home to Indiana.

The tea party was a great success. We all love to dress up & have some fun. The grandgirls even dressed their dolls & brought them to the party. I loved to watch their eyes as they checked out the whole thing. Their love of the outdoors is refreshing for me to watch in them! We spent the night in the glamper, with a thunderstorm. The youngest one is 5 and all she asked was “Is it safe to be in here, Moosey?” When I told her “yes,” she promptly rolled to her other side & went back to sleep until the morning. I am so glad that I could share my love of glamping with the girls. They still talk about it with me. I really have always loved to camp. Adding the glamp to camping is an added luxury that is fun & great!”

Terry, I love the fabric you chose for your curtains! MaryJane

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Megan McIntyre!!!

Megan McIntyre (#5220) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning a Beginner, Intermediate & Expert Level Blogging Merit Badge! Great job on knocking out all three levels, Megan!

Beginner Level

-Read Blogging for Bliss: Crafting Your Own Online Journal: A Guide for Crafters, Artists & Creatives of all Kinds by Tara Frey – Check!

-Choose your topic. Pick something you are passionate about. Check! Ramblings and Creations: coop to craft. hive to home.

Intermediate Level

-Start your blog. Find a blogging host that works for you, or host your own. Started Sunday September 9, 2012.

-Pick out a name, and publish your first post. Odds & Hens (after an exhaustive week of word play), next blog idea “Ravenous Me”…

-Don’t forget to add your blog to MaryJanesFarm’s GirlGab.com. Done! 

Expert Level

-Learn how to add pictures and customize your blog. Complete nearly every post! My most recent customization is the Book Review Library

-Publish at least 10 posts along with photos. Now up to more than 170 posts and several photo galleries

-Network! Create a blogging circle by visiting other blogs, writing comments, and leaving your blog’s address so they can visit you, also. Remember, building a blog and finding readers takes time. Be patient and have fun. Started, but will never complete! I also attended a local blogger’s summer camp so I didn’t get so lost in the virtual nature of blogging.

I have loved the experience of blogging. Learning about myself, being a better person, tapping into my skills and entertaining people. I plan to keep on blogging and gaining followers and traffic. Where this will take me? Nobody knows, but if this became a bigger part of my life than it already is, that is ok with me! I keep reading articles about SEO and other blog management topics. Have employed some of them and seen results. My first guest blog opportunity is coming up in the next several months.”

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,558 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,822 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Garden Gate/Horse Dreams Intermediate Level Merit Badge, I delved into and researched one of my favorite animals: horses.

I must admit, my knowledge of horses didn’t run deep up to this particular point. Oh, I could categorize them, all right:

Pinkie Pie

Rainbow Dash

Applejack

Fluttershy

Twilight Twinkle

Rosedust

Sea Shimmer

etc.

But  … turns out there are more to horses than the oh-so-majestic My Little Pony. Hey, gotta cut this farmgirl newbie some slack: I spent half my life in a toy store, you know.

Anyway, I lugged home a stack of library books the size of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, each and every one regaling the merits of equestrians and their noble steeds. To earn my Intermediate Level Badge, I only had to pick one.

Just one.

But that’s like picking your favorite child! (Which I totally was, right, Mom?)

I had to narrow down my choices, but how? While I was pondering over the intimidating list of my new four-legged friends, I dribbled a small bit of yellow mustard from my pita sandwich on the image of a golden Palomino, effectively highlighting it, you could say. I took it as a sign.

The Palomino would be the source of all my horse knowledge from here on out. I polished off my pita, took a napkin to the mustard-hued page, and began to learn about everyone’s favorite blonde, the grand and splendid and delightfully pretty Palomino.

Incidentally, Applejack, I do believe, was a Palomino. She was a good friend; remind me to ring her up soon. She’ll be impressed with all my Palomino facts.

Like:

No one knows for sure how old the Palomino color is, or where it originated from, but it’s mostly believed Queen Isabella of Spain is responsible for bringing them to America since they were her personal favorites. Thanks, Izzy!

Pegasus, the winged horse from Greek mythology, was a Palomino.

So was Mr. Ed (of course, of course).

So was Mr. Rogers’ horse, Trigger (and Trigger, Jr.).

In order to be registered on the Palomino Horse Breeders of America list, your Palomino must be as close as possible to the “color of a newly minted U.S. coin” and have a white or silver mane and tail. No brunettes or strawberry blondes, I’m afraid.

A Palomino is not a breed, it’s a color. Palominos can be many different breeds, actually: American Quarter Horses, Arabians, Morgans, Missouri Fox Trotters, Thoroughbreds, Tennessee Walking Horses, Morabs, Quarabs, Paint Horses, and even some solid-colored Appaloosas (that one surprised me, I confess). Applejack was a Hasbro. Haha! Get it?

Sorry. Back to research.

I fell in love with the adorable and spunky Palomino.

This badge did nothing for the little girl inside me who really, really, REALLY wants a pony.

I can see me now … hair blowing in the breeze as I ride through the meadow on the back of my Palomino … I shall name her Buttercup.

We’ll find one another someday. You can’t stop destiny. In the meantime, I’ll see if I can find Applejack’s phone number.

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,558 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,822 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Each Other/Farmgirl Gratitude Intermediate Level Merit Badge, I threw myself (with reckless abandon, I might add) into the Thanksgiving spirit. No, not the mashed potato and cranberry sauce spirit (though I do throw myself into those with—you guessed it—reckless abandon) but the real Thanksgiving spirit.

Giving thanks.

In real, tangible ways, too, not just in passing. I settled down with another few chapters of the book, The Book of Awesome, which is required reading for this badge. And before you ask, no, it’s not my autobiography.

*tee hee

Anyway, after I closed the book with an ever-so-satisfying thump (Am I the only one who loves the final thump of a most excellent book? Yes? Hello? Anyone?), I pulled out my stationery set, the monogrammed one with the matchy-matchy envelopes, and my favorite set of colored pencils, markers, crayons, Sharpies, pastels, and fine-point pens. What? So I go a little crazy on Black Friday at the office supply store … if that’s wrong, I don’t want to be right.

Another part of earning this badge was to write a letter to someone in a service industry in my town. I nibbled on my #2 pencil as I thought about who to send my thank you letter to. I usually left muffins and goodies for the mail person and the garbage man the week of Christmas, and just the other day, I brought a latte to my favorite nurse at my local doctor’s office, so I thought I’d better spread the goodwill around, you know? Who hadn’t I thought of?

And then I had it! The fire station. Under-appreciated and overworked, I just knew they’d love a little pick-me-up in the form of a well-penned letter from Yours Truly. They’d probably thumb-tack it up on their bulletin board and read it lovingly every time they passed by on their way to jump down the fire pole and save humanity. I was getting warm fuzzies just thinking about it.

Dear Sirs and Madams of the Fire Department,

Thank you, brave ladies and gentlemen, for the tireless and brave work you do to keep my little town safe. Day in and day out, you put your life on the line (and keep a fantastically shiny truck, to boot). I always rest assured that every blaze is under control when you’re around. My heartfelt appreciation and thanks for getting through the wildfire season, and also for coming to the aid of my elderly neighbor when I thought she had fallen to her death, even though it turned out she was only doing yoga in her front yard (sorry about that).

Also, on a personal note, thank you for responding so speedily that time I sort of, accidentally, very nearly burned down half the town. I am always very careful to remove my potholder collection from the stovetop now, and I only light scented candles on very special occasions and with witnesses who can remind me to blow them out.

Stay safe out there!

Sincerely,

Jane.

Now to decide whether to address it to Mr. January or Mr. April …

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Daizy Bailes!!!

Daizy Bailes (#1093) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning a Beginner Level Recycling Merit Badge!

“I am in a rural area, so I take my recycling when I have to go to town for other reasons. My drop-off location for papers, plastic, and cardboard is about 45 miles away, so I have a bunch when I go. I have to send my glass to another city that my sister visits. Metal cans go to the local recycling center that takes only metal. I send aluminum cans to a bin that the animal shelter collects and sells for expenses like dog and cat food and vet supplies.

I try to repurpose all my glass jars with lids. They make great gift containers. I try to repurpose my papers and cardboard for fire starters in the fall and winter and for vegetable garden paths with mulch on top. Metal coffee cans with plastic lids hold kitchen & craft & bathroom items … also dog treats.”

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,518 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,653 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Farm Kitchen/Pay it Forward Merit Badge, Level Two, I was excited to keep on keeping on with my own personal vendetta against hunger! Maybe I can’t change the world, but I can sure change a day in someone’s life, so that was my plan. Baby steps, girls, baby steps.

I got my bossy pants on (pinstriped, wide legged, look aMAYzing with heels) and set out. My plan for helping my corner of the planet and for earning my Intermediate Level Badge was simple: Collect as many canned goods as my little arms, boxes, reusable shopping totes, and car could carry, and donate to the same dear food bank I donated my handful of change to the other day (when I was earning Level One). Now the goal was to collect at least 50 items, but I just knew I could blow that number out of the water. I mean, let’s get real here, ladies, I could probably find almost that much in my own pantry (well, there was a sale on pineapple a couple months back … sometimes I get concerned that I won’t have the ingredients to make an emergency homemade, midnight Hawaiian flatbread pizza, you know? No? You don’t have homemade, midnight Hawaiian flatbread pizza emergencies? Huh. Curiouser and curiouser).

So, I parted ways with 12 cans of diced pineapple (reserving a couple for said emergencies) and went on a little manhunt.  A canhunt, actually.

HAHA! Get it? CANhunt? I know, I know! Wipe the tears of mirth away, my friends, and keep reading.

Naturally, I tried to let a few pals know I was coming (so as not to become a Canned Foods Mafia or something) and I was pleasantly surprised to see them getting into the swing of things, too. We were really in the spirit.

The farmgirl spirit.

In fact, they wanted to come with me in my collection rounds, but my seats were full of a case of water chestnuts, a flat of French sliced green beans, lots of soup, some unopened jars of spices, tons of bags of pasta, a box of Turkey jerky, a dozen home-canned jars of peaches, and the bumper crop of my neighbor’s zucchini.

Yeah, I’d say 50 items was going to be a piece of cake.

Everyone I met was happy to give something, even if it was just a tin of tuna or a carton of powdered milk. At Midge’s house, she was in the shower, and since the kids know me, they let me in and were only too happy to donate all the vegetables they could find! Sweet kids. Very generous, I thought.

I rounded out my afternoon of nonperishable food hoarding and drove the booty to the food bank. Together with the volunteers, we unloaded my car (which was sagging under all that weight!) and made the cook very, very happy.

Turns out HE has homemade, midnight, Hawaiian flatbread pizza emergencies all the time.

I knew I wasn’t the only one.

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Sharon Demers!!!

Sharon Demers (Calicogirl, #5392) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level Backyard Farmer Merit Badge!

“A friend that raises La Mancha Goats taught me how to milk. It is not as easy as it may appear. I know it is alot of hard work and I can only imagine how much milking it take to milk a cow.

My husband and I started raising hogs this past July. We did alot of research through the internet and books and finally decided on a breed we would like to raise. We chose Large Black Hogs originally from Cornwall, England. This breed is considered critically endangered. We chose the Large Blacks because of the critical rating but also because of their docile temperament, great mothering skills and their dark color. We live at a higher elevation and were concerned about sunburn.

We LOVE raising hogs and I never knew how much fun they would be! Endeavour is our boar and his girl is Trudy. We plan on breeding to keep the breed going but also for meat. Just today after feeding them I asked who wanted to cuddle and Endeavour came over and started rubbing his face against me 🙂 (The photo is from an earlier cuddle time.)”

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,518 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,653 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Stitching and Crafting/Cross Stitch Level Two Merit Badge, you may think I’m preoccupied with autumn going into winter.

And you’d be right.

Sewing is the best when done in the autumn, with a mug of something warm, a blanket over your cold toes, your pet of choice snoozing next to you, and the fall lineup of your favorite shows just starting. Autumn is when I get all my best crafting done, winter is when I reap the benefits, and spring and summer are when I attempt to get my lazy patootie off the ol’ couch.

I may have to cross-stitch that mantra on something.

One of the best things about cross-stitching is it that gives you the excuse to really go nutty in the embroidery-floss aisle at the craft store. Those twisty loops of rainbow thread are almost better than a fresh box of crayons. And that, my dears, is saying something, ‘cuz there ain’t nothing better than a fresh box of crayons—am I right?

You know I am.

Add to my floss addiction (No, dear dentist of mine, the other kind. Don’t get too happy with me; I still only floss after eating corn on the cob and five minutes before my check-up.) the addition of a coupon and a fun, little box for organizing my new collection, and I was a golden girl. I don’t think there’s a time commitment requirement for this particular badge, but if there was, I would have fulfilled it just lovingly arranging and rearranging my embroidery flosses. They were as happy as clams at high tide in there, and I beamed every time I opened my box.

But seriously. Time to get cracking. And stitching.

I educated myself on the fabrics of cross-stitch: Aida or Evenweave. Or as I like to call ‘em, Sunday fabric.

‘Cuz it’s holy.

Get it? Holey?

Just a little cross-stitch humor there. Ahem.

Now, Aida and Evenweave come in various sizes, depending on how many stitches per inch you’d like. I know, I know, we’re sneaking some math in here. Badges are sly like that: You never know what you’ll end up learning.

Not being one to ever overestimate myself (ha!), I went with the most common and standard of the cross-stitching fabrics: a 14-holes-per-inch Aida.

What are you making, Jane, you might well inquire at this point? Well, I’m glad you asked. I’m making a Christmas stocking.

What? I like to get a jump on the holidays.

Also, my old stocking got a little too close to the roaring fire I was roasting chestnuts on last year. (It’s okay, it was too small, anyway. Santa knows I’ve been VERY good this year, and I’m expecting some serious loot. I mean, look at all these Merit Badges I’ve been earning all year. He has to be pretty proud, and I’m sure that will reflect in the amount of dark chocolate in my new stocking on Christmas morning.)

Of course, I had to choose my most Christmas-y of colors out of my floss collection, and I spent a merry afternoon cross-stitching.

The only drawback is putting my new creation away until Christmas Eve.

Suddenly, I’m in the mood for chestnuts.