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Well, I guess it had to happen. It Is COLD in Wyoming. The warm looking sunlight of late afternoon is NOT warm unless you’re inside. But, there is plenty to be grateful for as I get ready for Thanksgiving. I have a dandy little space heater. C’mon in and take a look at what I’m going to use it for.
First things first. I opened the door for a bit to run the heater out to my new ‘playhouse’. When I returned, two of my Buckeye hens had made their way into the house (through the open door), and back to my office door. So, as sweet as they are, I shooed them out and got back to work on this article. The space heater is running and when I’m done here, my ‘playhouse’ should be warm enough to work bare-handed in.
I’ve been dreaming about a ‘cabin in a can’ for a couple of years. My farmgirl pal, Jennie, gifted me with a copy of “Sisters On The Fly”. That only made matters worse … or maybe better?? I scoured the internet for information about old trailers, saved photos etc.
ANYway, my other farmgirl pal, Michele, told me about a vintage camping trailer in a nearby town in July. It sat there … cuter than the dickens, apparently waiting for me while I hemmed & hawwed over the decision. I finally went to look at it a couple days ago … and well, NOW I OWN IT!!! For the curious: The cost of my 1958 Leino was $1,500 + $95 for title & plate.
I’m still pinching myself. I can’t believe I actually have a 50s era trailer. I considered newer ones, but, only the old ones gave me the warm fuzzies. Real wood interior details and iron … they quit making them thataway. I figured that a golden oldie would be out of my reach money-wise, and additionally, I’d probably never find one that needed next to no handyman skills. Sigh. My husband is just too darn busy to commit to a renovation project. Furthermore, my handyman skill set is a VERY short list. But, the good Lord saw fit to make just such a find available! I was so stinkin’ excited that I couldn’t sleep the night I brought ‘her’ home. Yesterday, I was buzzing around the house unearthing all kinds of things to furnish it with and make it fit for the road. Yeeee-Gads, my entire house looked like a badger had been digging out a new home here. Oh, but it was fun. I’ve been collecting things in the hope that onnne day, I’d find a trailer … things like vintage scotch plaid coolers & thermos bottles. Here is what I have to work with (below photo). Got any suggestions? What insider tips might some of you camper owners have for me? In the past, I’ve been a ‘tent & horse’ camper.
I’ve had the decor theme all mapped out in my daydreams. Campy cottage … vintage outdoorsy … cozy, woodsy and fun. When I get ‘her’ all tricked out, I’ll take ‘after’ photos to share with ya.
Then too, quilts and plenty of blankets for farmgirl pals to wrap up in while we’re setting by the campfire in the evening. We’ve got a plan: Anita will haul the horses, I’ll have my camper in tow, and Lisa & Jennie also have new camp trailers. Problem: now I have to wait allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll winter for phase II of the dream … actually going camping! I also wanted to mention that my camper is going to serve as a guest cabin because we’re short on quarters for company.
Ok, so, I’ve ordered the buffalo check spread (love checks & plaid) and the above quilt for beds. Some of my spare enamelware is going to the camper. I bought a lighted, faux branch for ambient lighting, a colorful checkered banner for inside & out. I made long pillows out of seed sacks & king pillows for the space behind the mattress and ‘creature comforts’. Then, there are the needful practicalities … workin’ on that list also. What is the hurry, you might ask? Well, the farmgirls are having a progressive Christmas party this year (on the 10th). We all love to decorate for the holidays and we thought this would be a fun way to see everyone’s holiday home. Each farmgirl will serve up an edible goodie and a small gift … then, we’ll be off to the next stop – five in all. I want to have the camper ready for that!
My back-packing and sleeping on the ground days are over. Achey hips and arthritic feet won’t let me take myself very far into the wilderness anymore. I’ve missed it so much, but I tired of feeling cheated. So, I found a way around it. Have camper (and horses), will travel … in vintage style.
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” ~ John Muir
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Ok, more about my farmgirl pals. Those of you who follow MaryJane’s farmgirl bloggers [and my blog] become familiar with our farmgirl friends. But, for those of you that may be new to my blog, I’d like to introduce you to my gal-pals who are fellow farmgirls (some of whom are sisterhood members). We have what we call the ‘core’ group and when we get together, there are also a few fringe farmgirls that join us from time to time for our monthly get-togethers (like my sister, Beth, long silver hair). The core group: Michele (long dark hair), Jennie (blonde pageboy hair), Lisa (short dark hair), Anita (short blonde hair) and myself (short silver hair). Here we are below at past goings-on.
Last week, Michele hosted our November get-together. She served us a mexican meal and then we made little sheep from clay and wool (from Anita’s ewes). Anita’s tiny sheep are now bedded down next to a ‘barn’ birdhouse that Michele built. Everyone’s little bleaters have their own personality. I managed to herd them onto a cupboard shelf for a group photo …
If you subscribe to MaryJanesFarm magazine, then you might have recognized Michele in the “Collections” article in the current issue. {I took the photos.} Her home is welcoming, comfy, roomy and filled to the brim with country ‘junktiques’, handmade goodies and primitive folk art. Below is a small sampler of the photos in the article. I have to mention also that this issue is jam-packed with goodies … I mean spilling over the sides with inspiring images, recipes and articles!!! I’ve poured over it several times now. I absolutely ADORE the piece about Suzanne Taylor. I’m betting if you’re a quilter, your favorite article might be the piece on quilts?
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Moving right along … Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Our family is going to gather at my sister’s home. Her beau and his mother will join us for the first time. I’m going to take a baked, stuffed pumpkin and relish tray goodies … assorted pickles that I made, fresh veggies, dip etc. One of the canned items I’ll take is my Jewel Chutney. It is colorful, tangy-sweet & spicey, and soooo good with any kind of roast meat. Thought some of you might like the recipe.
Shery’s Jewel Chutney – makes 6 pints
4 large mangoes, 12 apples, 1/2 C Craisins, 1/2 C dried currants, 3 1/2 C cider vinegar, 3 T mustard seeds, 2 red bell peppers (thinly sliced), 2 T pickling salt, 3 1/2 C sugar, 4 tsp candied ginger, 4 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground gloves, 1/4 tsp ground allspice, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper.
Peel and ‘chunk up’ mangoes and apples. Heat vinegar, sugar until it thickens a little. Add rest of ingredients (except ginger). Simmer until the chutney is thickened and sauce is reduced. Add ginger for about the last 5 minutes. Spoon into pint jars and process for 10 minutes.
What does your Thanksgiving meal look like? Are you trying a new dish this year? Stuffed pumpkin is a new addition for me. They’re so savory and very easy to make. Our family feast is very predictable … turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, candied yams, broccoli & cheese sauce, cranberry relish, fruit salad, veggie/relish tray, corn pudding, pumpkin pie & whipped cream. The thing I miss is my grandmother’s creamed corn. She dried sweet corn and later soaked & cooked it, adding cream and butter. The corn was a dark caramel color – so rich and sweet. What is your favorite of the day? I have to say, oddly enough, gravy. Without it, my plate would not be complete.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It is all about the word ‘enjoy’. No commercialism, far fewer social complexities … just A-grade quality time with family & friends. Long ago, the pilgrims had a very rough go of things and yet they knelt together, and with somber sincerity they offered grateful praise to our Lord.
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I hope your Thanksgiving “horn of plenty” is full of the most important blessings … health, safety, family, friends, contentment. May you eat much, laugh much, enjoy the feast of human goodness, and, from a heart at peace … offer up a thank-you prayer to our Lord. ~ Shery
P.S. Thank you to my fellow farmgirl blogger, Debbie (the beach farmgirl), for teaching me this: I can comment right back at ya when I ‘approve’ comments. Duhhh. ;o) Two farmgirl heads are better’n one! Thanks Deb!
I am so ENVIOUS of your new trailer! She still looks so pristine and wonderful, she must’ve been cared for with love…I had a thought of having one parked out back for my craft room. I have so much stuff here in the house that I need another room! Trouble is, usually I only have time to do my crafting in the winter and it is also cold here in Washington state.
I made my first chutney last summer with a recipe that I got from Deb! It was tasty!! When you speak of processing for 10 minutes, do you use a pressure canner or do you do a water bath? YUMMMMMOOO. As for your beautiful sheep, where did you get the heads?
Thanks so much for your warm and wonderful blog!
Jan
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Hi Jan :o), I just use the water-bath method (my grandma’s old one). In answer to your question about the sheep heads…we used the store-bought ‘sculpey’ kind of clay that you mold by hand and then bake. None of us had ever played with clay before. We made the body and heads out of clay. –My trailer is not perfect, after all it is 52 years old. However, it IS in very good shape. There have been a few leaks over the year, but they were fixed and there have been no new ones. I knew that in owning an old trailer that I would have to be mindful of careful maintenance. With a new one, not so much. The trade off is that my old girl is getting cuter by the minute. I spent the better part of yesterday puttering in it. I love it and she’ll be a dandy guest cabin too. Thank you for the kind words. Shery
Since I lived in an older 27′ motorhome and traveled the country for several years, my first recommendation is to join the Tin Can Tourists: http://www.tincantourists.com/ You’ll receive lots of decorating (and maintenance) ideas and meet some terrific people who are devoted to preserving the past. Congratulations!
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Adrienne, Thanks a lot for the web site. Shery
Shery, you never cease to amaze me how you touch my soul!! If I didn’t know better I’d think we are one n the same – the only difference is you get to do what I only still dream of – SO thank YOU for sharing, showing, so eloquently. Can hardly wait to see, hear more from you, especially about the ‘new’ everything ‘cabin’. I wish you and all the Farm Girls a very Happy Thanksgiving!!
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Joan, You and all the other commenting farmgirls touch MY soul. You say the nicest things, kind things, affirming things, soulfood things. Please know that this little job-o-mine as a farmgirl blogger has been one of the best things to happen to me. Turning 50 was a tough one for me. I spent too much time looking back. Menopause, injuring my knee (then surgery), feeling older in earnest kinda dampened my spirits and creative spirit. My friend, Lisa, intro’d me to MaryJanesFarm magazine and on that very day, I felt a spark within. A few months later when I landed a job with MJF, that really helped me turn the corner. Please know that every one of you sweet farmgirls who have taken the time to leave comments, well, you changed my life, really. You are the ‘fire in my belly’. MaryJane is my mid-life role model and I will be forever in debt to Lisa for opening a window and letting fresh air back in my life. Shery
Lucky, lucky you! I love your little camper and would love to have one someday. The idea of "glamping" just seems like so much fun. Right now we’re renovating a house for when we retire, so everything else kind of has to take a back seat. But, maybe some day. I love the pictures of Michele’s collections also. That’s where I want to live =D. Our Thanksgiving will be traditional at church where we serve a meal for the community and those members who don’t want to cook for just one or two people. Thanks for your wonderful blog.
Karin
Farmgirl #2708
I loved reading about your new "cabin"!! What a darling idea!!
We have sold our home in the suburbs and heading (in December) to 47 acres in the country! So excited I can hardly stand it! Can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store and nearly beside myself to once again have Christmas in the country!
I am grateful for your use of warm colors and homey stuff! Just beautiful!
Shery, As usual after reading your post I’m sitting here in awe with a big ole’ grin on my face, shaking my head in amazement at you and your talent for making a farmgirls heart go pitter patter every darned time you put the pen to paper and point that camera of yours!THANK YOU! I am just over the moon for you about your new " play house " and I can hardly wait to see how you purty her up! I’m with ya on the latest issue of MJF. I can’t get enough of it ( but that’s normal for every issue isn’t it? ) And, I loved seeing your images and reading about Michelle’s’ collections and seeing the photos of your farmgirl pals..The fun and friendship you share shines through in your images!
Can I just give you all a virtual hug right here?!
I love everything about Thanksgiving and what it stands for…with lots of GRAVY ON TOP FOR ME TOO PLEASE!
Shery, thank you for all you share in this space (and in MJF) throughout the year. " YOU ARE THE STUFF OF DREAMS " I have Mary Jane to thank for that quote, and if fits you to a T!
May your gravy boat over flow-eth with more blessings than you can count!
Love AND A BIG HUG!
your beachy farmgirl sista!
Deb
PS… I’ll be looking for YOUR reply RIGHT HERE! Ha!
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Right back atchya, sista!!!!!!! You’re the berries … and full of beans too ;o) Your blog is way better than ‘Calgon, Take Me Away.’ SOMEday you’re gonna see me on your doorstep begging for tour of your cottage and surroundings. Now that I know someone in such a place, I have the HUNGER fer real. Oh, maybe I should wait for an invite. Until then, here’z a cyber (((((hug)))))) Shery
Your article made me teary eyed! Thanksgiving is all about giving thanks with our families and friends! We are traditional with the food, my girls bring parts of it to help out. We have 3 tables full of people, mostly family, but it varies from year to year on friends who come. My favorite is the pecan pie — it is a tradition from my family and we have to have it!
Wow, Love your new little camper. Great ideas for decorating, thanks. We have camped in Wyoming every year for over 40 years plus lived in the Big Horn Basin for awhile. This year we have a new to us used camper and all the new features make us need to conserve on the battery since we "dry camp". Well we used candles in the evening inside but since they do not give off enough light making it hard to play cards I just came up with another idea after seeing your pictures. The Christmas solar light strings might work well inside also as lighting. I can put the solar panel in the window and have lights at night without attacting so many bugs on the windows and still be able to play cards. Since we are now empty nesters this will also be romatic. Just wanted to pass on this idea for inside lighting.
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Margaret, Solar light strings???!!! COOL, will have to check them out. Google search, hmmm? Yep, one of the trips I want to take next summer will be to the Big Horns. It is a 3 hour drive for us. The rest would be easy little one day or overnight trips in the surrounding Black Hills area…lots of options all around us and anywhere from 45 minutes to a little over a hour away. No more thinking that ‘someday I’ll get back into camp mode’. Shery
What great fun! We don’t find treasures like your new playhouse around here much anymore! Can’t wait to see all your decorating on it! Have fun! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
OH Shery,,,, I am doing the ‘Happy Dance’ for you!
and your new~old glamp~trailer! Now you are one of us !lol!
Oh the things, the fun, the creativity…. you’ll be busy!
There is a vintage ‘yellow/brown’ scotch-plaid set of picinic ware,,,thermos, metal basket etc… several of my gal pals have pieces from that collection, the brand name escapes me tho.
How cool, and if you go to facebook, check out Juli Thorson’s ‘Girl Camp’ (& she has a camping blog)as well as the SOTF sites.
I will try to put together a list of trailer sites that might be of interest to you to give you ideas of what other gals have done w/their vintage trailers.
Irene Rawling’s book "Sisters on the Fly" is great…. and brag moment…Juli & I and some of our gal-pals from our annual FarmChick camp out are in it.
Again, so happy for you…. now, "Happy Trails to you".
hugz
gracie
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Thanks Gracie!!! Oh goody, more sites to pour over. You’re in SOTF??? What page??? Thus far, I have two (lg & sml) red plaid Thermos bottles and a matching plaid cooler. A matching 4 gallon ice chest is soon to arrive. ACK, accessorizing ‘her’ is gonna cost more than the trailer ;o) But, I’m used to that…having horses is the same deal. Buying the horse is the least expensive part of the whole equation! Ok, back to goodies…I’ve got half a dozen vintage tableclothes, a wooden ironing board (for buffet set-up), red-handled sliverware etc etc. I’m a woman obsessed!!!!!! I remember well when dad brought home a LOG playhouse when I was a wee lassie. Same deal, I spent hours ‘nesting’. Mom saved many canned goods cans for our pretend pantry. I tried many times to sleep in it at night … buuuut, being afraid of the dark always made me chicken out. Ya know, preserving the ‘child at heart’ within is so important. Making our own fun is something we should never outgrow. Being a’scared of the dark, well, I ain’t afraid of no haints now. Shery
Hi Shery, What a great xmas gift to yourself, I am jelous, and it looks like it is in mint condition and the price was fabulous, lucky you! Have a nice Thanksgiving and Xmas! Happy Trails to you !Looked like you didn’t have much snow yet? carol
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Hi Carol, No measurable snow yet… and that suits me to a T. But, the COLD is here and tomorrow it is only suppose to reach a high of 10..?????!!!!!!! ICK. Yes, you have a great holiday too. I’ll be doing the backstroke in gravy! Shery
I have been wanting to join your blog for awhile, and the awesome camper prompted me….can you believe the stove is yellow and white…how precious is that. I am a rancher type person in Texas…my husband and I manage a Quarter Horse Ranch in central Texas, 5300 acres of paradise (if it rains) love your blog, thank God for Mary Jane….(also my mom’s name) Would love to find a camper like yours…some day.
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Oh Amy, thank you for the kind compliment (following this blog). Glad to have you. Or, as my Arkansas grandma use to say, "I’m just suh proud to have you’ns." A ranch in a MUCH warmer climate sounds perfect right about now. I agree, isn’t that cutest little stove?…and the fridgey-icebox matches it. I gotta come up wit a name for ‘her’. Hmmmm. Shery
WOW, Shery, I am so excited for you and your new trailer. I just love those old models. I have pics of ours when I was a little girl and we used to camp on the beach at Galveston. Of course the grownups slept inside the camper, all of us kids slept under a tarp in the sand. HA! I know you are going to have a blast decorating. And you see, the Lord had a better plan when you missed out on that last one at the auction.
Have a Blessed Thanksgiving and Happy Glamping.
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Hi Vivian, I think you’re absolutely spot-on. While the other trailer at the auction was much less $$, it needed extensive cleaning, plus the cushions were shot — packrats & mice Oh My — soooo stinky-filthy-ICKY. The whole thing would have also needed re-wiring due to possible rodent damage. It would have ended up costing much more due to the expense of renovation work. The clean up on this one: half an hour of tidy & wipe…and I really didn’t need to do that. The seller kept it very clean. Way better deal. Happy-grateful I am. Shery
My husband just bought me a 1963 Lil’ Ceasar canned ham trailer this summer for our 34th anniversary. I love her!!!! Her name is "Alice" and we pull her with a white Dodge Ram named "Bud". I have two decorative themes. One that is retro for when my kids borrow her…It is kind of Dick and Jane…for the grandsons…and since I have decorated using fabrics which I put up with pressure rods and velcro I can take that down and put up my "glamping" decor which is brown and tourquoise silks and chandeliers…such fun…my husband is a good sport. Since he is 6’2" he does have to stoop over a bit when he is in it..thank you so much for sharing your life with us…I feel a real kindredness with you…I wish you many, many blessings and much joy…diane
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Oh Diane, do you have a blog where curious folks like me could see photos of your darlin little Alice?? She sounds so cute. One thing I am going to have done in my trailer: reupholster the seat cushions…from turquoise to cherry RED. Shery
I love your new trailer. It really seems to be in good shape. My husband is restoring a ’53 Terry in our barn right now. We are hoping to stay true to the vintage interior but I am going to red and white rather than green and gold. Please keep your readers posted on your progress. It’s cold in the mountains of NC now too so work is sometimes limited. Enjoy !
Oh Shery,,, you are so smitten! lol!
Now you have trailer love, soon it will be trailer lust! Everytime you see a vintage trailer you will want to see the inside,you’ll want that pillow, this light etc,,you’ll scan for more deco ideas…..it can be addicting! lol! and yes, the cost of the trailer is the cheapest part of being the owner of a vintage trailer.
I have my SOTF book in my Scotty which is parked in the barn across the road for the Winter, so I don’t remember what page I am on, but, it is in the lower bottom right corner, I am pointing to the flag I have above my trailer. I co-host the SOTF Farm Chicks camp out in Spokane and there is a group shot of us as well…again, can’t remember what page. If I recall, that was the year that MaryJane camped with us and then joined up with SOTF.
I currently have 3 trailers, ’59 Aljo in full tear down restoration, a ’63 Serro Scotty and a ’64 FleetCraft… and I am always on the look for another one….. see, I told ya, it’s addiciting!
Now go have fun, & remember,,, ‘spray paint is your friend!’…lol!
hugz
gracie
Wow Shery! Did you find a GEM!! I am so excited for you!!! Our family has a new-to-us modern camper, not too big, that I adore. You will have so much fun with yours! We have used ours primarily as a place to stay during Hereford shows, it is our home away from home. Last year we took it to Kansas City (from VA.) for the Junior National show. I have never been so grateful for our little house on wheels. It was 115 degrees, 95 degrees at night- we LOVED OUR A/C!!!
Enjoy decorating it and dreaming about your future fun this winter- spring will be here soon enough!
Happy Thanksgiving, I am thankful for you and all the MJF farmgirls!
Hi there! We are headed from Pennsylvania to Wyoming this winter. My husband leaves in two weeks while I close up shop here.
We’ve sold the farm animals and are planning to rent for a year or so while we look for our perfect Wyoming Ranch. It is so exciting, I can’t believe it is real!
I’ve enjoyed your post immensely, and look forward to more ‘real life experience’ of ranch life in Wyoming soon.
Best wishes and a happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
Rejena
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Rejena, Happy hunting! Welcome to the Cowboy State! Some folks stuck in PC mania oddly and happily wrinkle their nose at ‘cowboys’ (and our state) …and direct the cowboy label as an insult. Those of us who understand the real meaning of the label wear it proudly. I hope you find just the right spot here in God’s country. Yippee-Ki-Yi-Ay. Shery
Well, this Cowgirl just found this Wonderful Book on her weekly outing. I never knew there was so many others like me. Now I know i am cloned.Lol. Looking and reading all, is so over whelming. I know now i have sisters out there. I want to thank you for coming out with the magazine for us to have and cherish. I had a farm until my late husband passed with cancer,and they took almost everything i owned. But i put my Big girl pants on and here I am years later. I cannot take the farm girl, or cowgirl, out of me.Thanks to you all for this blessing.I want to know more on how to make the clay sheep, with the wool.I so do love them. Heres a big Yea Haw to you all.Brenda
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Hi Brenda,
So glad you joined us!! OhMyYes, there are gobs of us out there in the big yonder. MaryJane provided a ‘place’ for us to meet, even if not face to face.
Ok, the sheep. Well, we just molded them by hand. Mmmmm, trial and error :o) When we were happy with the way they looked, we backed them for about 15 minutes. Mixed results. Some of them cracked. But, those that survived looked good and we then painted faces…or not; then wrapped and hot-glued the wool onto them…as needed. Vwah-la, they were done. Shery
Love your trailer! My sister and I have seen some Sisters on the Fly at the annual Country Living fair in Columbus, Ohio and each trailer is unique but very farmgirl chic. Can’t wait to see pictures of yours when it is fully decorated. As always, your photos are stunning. Also, about your recipe – yum but I am assuming it is 10 minutes in a water bath? Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
Thank you, Ann. Yep, 10 minutes will do it. Shery
So, I’m glad I am not the only one still trying to learn computer stuff! Heck! I’m still writing on the back of my hand and calling it my "backberry". Haha
Thanksgiving floats around our family nowa days. This year my step daughter Jackie is hosting for the first time. She will do fine. We will miss the "creamed grapes" though…as that was one of my Mom’s things. We had a huge family back then and Mom was always looking for one more dish to put on the table. One year it was Creamed Grapes…cream cheese and sugar int he blender over halved grapes…worked. And I absolutely love the next day sandwich! Enjoy, Shery, I love your pictures and blog…now I’m looking for a trailer!
Oh Shery how wonderful. I have a board on my pinterest account that I have pinned all the wonderful vintage campers I have came across. I drool over that board. Now your camper has been pinned. Love it. How much fun you are going to have. I dream of parking mine in some of the Michigan campgrounds and dragging my grands along for the ride. And when no grands are available I want to drag my sewing machine and just set and sew to my hearts content, away from all the things at home that seem to say do this first. I might even invite the hubs along once in a while. Dreaming…..My favorite part of the meal would be mashed potatoes and dressing side by side covered with gravy. And a warm piece of apple pie with ice cream at the end. I could skip everything else and have turkey sandwiches later and be very content. Your little lambs are precious.
I just love the colours in your post-pics… they make me want to snuggle-up by the fire and sew my quilt… and that is what I am going to do! Your posts are just lovely. I am a great fan of MaryJane and her friends and followers… you are all such a rich source of inspiration and a breath of fresh air! May God bless you all x