Monthly Archives: June 2014

Hear Ye!

Posted on June 20, 2014 by maryjane

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Sarah Baker!!!

Sarah Baker (#5926) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Horse Dreams Merit Badge!

“I was helping my daughter earn her Young Cultivator badge in Horsin’ Around, so we drove around town looking at our neighbors’ horses. I love the sorrel-colored American Quarter Horses, but my daughter is partial to paints. I arranged for us to meet our neighbor’s horses and feed them carrots and grain.

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The horses were so greedy! LOL We loved getting to meet them up close. My daughter is determined to get a horse of her own and I would love to as well.”

photo-of-the-day

Posted on June 19, 2014 by maryjane

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tarantism

Posted on June 19, 2014 by maryjane

WARNING!

This post is not for those who are squeamish about …

Photo by Viki via Wikimedia Commons

See what I mean?

If you’re still with me, then you’re a trooper, but you’re probably also wondering why I decided to kick off today with a photo of a tarantula.

Let me give you an obnoxiously obscure hint:

What do tarantulas have in common with the picture below?

Photo by FlyGirl555 via Wikimedia Commons

Tarantulas … dancing … do you dare to hazard a guess?

The answer is a word of which I’d never heard:

Tarantism (TAR-uhn-tiz-uhm).

It refers, says Dictionary.com, to “a mania characterized by an uncontrollable impulse to dance, especially as prevalent in southern Italy from the 15th to the 17th century, popularly attributed to the bite of the tarantula.”

Okay, but …

This definition left me even more puzzled than before.

Upon further investigation, I found that the terms “tarantism” and “tarantula” both originated in the city of Taranto, Italy, a picturesque but purportedly polluted seaport where the bites of these spiders were once believed to cause wild spasms of frantic footloosery.

Why not?

Now you have an excuse the next time the desire to dance overcomes you.

“Tarantismo,” you can sigh in your best Italian accent. “Blame the spider!”

photo-of-the-day

Posted on June 18, 2014 by maryjane

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Art-o-mat FIND!!!!

Posted on June 18, 2014 by maryjane

Hi ya, MJ! Here’s the art I got from the Art-o-mat I found because of your post.

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Here’s my friend and me with the man who collects art-o-mats. He has two operational machines plus a mini one for his private collection of the little artworks along with bigger art (like the steer below).

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art-3

It was so much fun! Who knew? Well, I guess, you! Thanks again for helping me cope with the stuff of life.

Love, Karen
{Karen’s beloved husband is in treatment for cancer.}

Summer Crafting

Posted on June 18, 2014 by megan

Most days we get outside, now that school is out. Our days are full of picnics, long bike rides, day hikes on the ridge behind the farm, farm visits to help Nanny Jane milk the cows, and trips to the local swimming pool.

Yesterday, it poured rain. We, of course, welcomed the rain (we were behind on moisture), but for a 7-year-old and 5-year-old, this sounds like a good day to pick a fight with your sister. Ha, I had other plans!!

Photo May 19, 4 16 00 PM

I had the girls draw their favorite pictures with a water-erasable marker on a tea towel, reminding them to keep the designs simple. Then, using an embroidery hoop and a yarn needle threaded with embroidery floss, the three of us got busy. The yarn needle isn’t sharp—perfect for beginner hands. The tea towel works perfect because the cotton weave is loose and easy to stick the yarn needle through. It’s so fun to watch them concentrate and see the look of accomplishment on their faces after they’ve embroidered their entire scene.

Next up, they want to embroider their handprints and something written in their sweet little handwriting. These make great gifts too, a tea towel to treasure forever.

photo-of-the-day

Posted on June 17, 2014 by maryjane

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Proud New Tabitha Owner!

Posted on June 17, 2014 by maryjane

Here’s another proud new Tabitha owner who sent us photos of her maiden voyage. We said we’d be proud to share them. (Read on to find out where you can buy a Tabitha trailer too.)

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From now on when you see this on the road, you’ll know I had something to do with it:)

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Polka-dot décor and …

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bathroom door, and …

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double-boiler s’mores.

What more is there? You, too, can buy one here!

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photo-of-the-day

Posted on June 16, 2014 by maryjane

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Searching with Sleio

Posted on June 16, 2014 by maryjane

Giving back doesn’t get any easier than this:

Simply switch your search engine and donate to the charities of your choice.

Seriously?

It’s true.

Sleio is a nifty new search engine that donates 100% of its profits to good causes. Whether you’re passionate about children in need,

Photo by USAID Africa Bureau via Wikimedia Commons

wildlife,

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Photo by Ailuropoda via Wikimedia Commons

homeless pets,

Photo by Nathan R. Yergler via Wikimedia Commons

or safe drinking water,

Photo by U.S. Army Tech. Sgt. Mike Buytas via Wikimedia Commons

Sleio will make you feel good about surfing the net because it gives 100% of the profits from your searches (specifically, commissions earned from over 30,000 retail website affiliates) to your choice of 12 charity organizations.

“In other words, the money for each search you make, every link you click and/or product you buy through Sleio helps change the world,” the company says. “Simply use Sleio as your default search engine, choose your charity, and enjoy the Internet. Changing the world has never been easier!”

Get started at Sleio.com.

Monthly Archives: June 2014

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