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I know that we are still in the dead of winter here in Tennessee but once the days start getting a little longer, I feel like it’s time for a tea party! And tea parties with little girls are the best! Have you given a tea party for the little (or big) girls in your life lately? If not… it’s time and I’ll help you!
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I know that we are still in the dead of winter here in Tennessee but once the days start getting a little longer, I feel like it’s time for a tea party! And tea parties with little girls are the best! Have you given a tea party for the little (or big) girls in your life lately? If not… it’s time and I’ll help you!
Binky Thorsson says: Hello Dori,
I use to put a tea party on every year the day after Thanksgiving, because a lot of people had that day off. I have a lot of friends in the teaching field, so they couldn’t come during the week, and it was hard to give up their weekends to come for tea.
I did all the work, and told them to wear their favorite vintage or just wear black, (classy, but didn’t take away from the other outfits) and they loved seeing what people were wearing.
Thanks for sharing your tea party. Just love it, and setting the girls up to a life time of loving tea parties and going to tea!!!
Cyndie Gray says: A tea party with little girls is always such a treat
Ramona Puckett says: Oh my goodness! How cute everything looks and the girls are adorable! I have grandsons so we don’t do the tea party but I do have girlfriends who would love a tea party, thank you for the pictures and the ideas!
Tea parties are my favorite thing to do❣️❣️❣️ Once I had one for my granddaughter when she was 6. We had gowns from goodwill. Hats. Jewelry. High heels. They had a blast❣️ I’m having a small Tea on Feb 26…I’ll try to send pics
Nicki says: Aw, Dori! Everything turned out so pretty! It is giving me some last-minute inspiration for the Valentine-making get together that my daughter (17) is having at our house with her friends!
Nicki @nicolecontent on IG
Sandy says: Adorable! My grandchildren are all boys, they would not appreciate a tea party!
Jill says: I love that you were honest about the hard things!! So often, we think that we should be able to do all things effortlessly, if we have the directions. 🙂
Love the purses!!! And, you decided to make them the night before. I can’t wait to read your tutorial.
Joan says: Yes!!! My annual Tea Party is coming up soon, thanks for the great ideas for decorating and serving, hopefully I will have the time to do the lovelies. My ‘girls’ are all over the age of 50 but I am sure they will love the purses, will be extra happy to get MaryJanesFarm magazine. Yay I am so excited!!!! Thanks again for your blog and always look forward to your next. I’m still quilting and the thimble is super great. God bless.
Sue says: What fun! Thank you for the delightful and inspiring post!
Sandi King says: I never had a tea party growing up and my brother’s wife would would serve me tea when I visited with them and it was always nice. Not a party but hot steeped tea in pretty cups from a pretty teapot. I now collect pretty tea pots or unusual ones. I don’t have any grand-girls to enjoy a tea party with. I love reading your blogs.
OOOOOooo such a pretty and inviting party!! Thanks for sharing it. What kind of tea did you serve? (Your cupcakes looked “divoon”) Maybe sometime you’d like to try my Zen Bear Honey Tea – possibly “Radiant Rose” or “Blue Moon” (blueberry, lavender, maca, nettle, red clover and red raspberry leaf) for an afternoon treat. Just let me know. Cheers, Lisa
maureen bruner says: How Fun and Beautiful! What a joy to be able to have such a sweet “girls day”!
Marilyn says: What a lovely tea party. Everything is beautiful. Thank You for sharing. I look forward to seeing more of the pictures from the tea party.
HAPPY ST. VALENTINE’S DAY
Marilyn
Deb Bosworth says: You sure pulled out all the stops for this adorable ladies tea party… Loved it from top to bottom… Those little grand girlies of yours are just the cutest and so lucky to have you for a Grammy! Happy ( almost ) growing season! I’m planting sweat peas this weekend… Wish me luck! I bet you’re itching to get out and plant too!
Farmgirl hugs!
Deb
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I love cooking with cast iron. I grew up watching both of my Grandmothers and my own Momma cook with it. As a matter of fact I’ve already told my Momma that I would like to have her cast iron and my grandmother’s cast iron willed to me! Because is there anything better than 75 year old perfectly seasoned cast iron cookware?! Smile! My daughter has watched me cook with it all her life and now I love seeing her love and care for her cast iron just as much as I do mine.
MS Barb says: I still cook w/ cast iron–someone gave me a skillet b/c she didn’t know what to do w/ it!
ann says: Thank you so much for the memories! Your post is wonderful and you inspired me to order MJ’s book! I do love cast iron cookware and (almost) would give my eye teeth to have Mama’s square cast iron pan. It had 3 sections: one for bacon and two for eggs! At least that is how we used it growing up It’s the one thing I have yet to find in sorting through her treasures. It would be helpful, too, although I feel sure I can find it out there in the “ether” somewhere, if we had a “here’s how to restore without ruining them” manual for cast iron cookware. There’s an antique store near-by, one of those with all the different booths, that is totally cool and lots of fun to browse. I think I’ll go look there for another square pan. Who knows, maybe they will have exactly what I want! Thank you again, Dori! 🙂
Wayve Dennison says: The Lodge company still makes square iron skillets, but I’ve never seen a divided one. Good luck in your search.
Diann says: Like you, I watched my mother and grandmothers cook with iron. However, it led me to a collection passion many years later. I collect cauldrons, great and small. I have small ones that would hold an ounce of gold from the gold rush days to 50/60 quart cauldrons that would feed an army or boil a load of wash. Of coarse, I also have in between camp pots and pans. I love them and use many of them. The extra large cauldrons have been used to feed hungry ranch crowds during the summer. Makes great ham and beans!
Laura says: I remember watching my father using his cast-iron skillet to cook his self-caught fish. He was so happy and proud!
Nicki says: Hi, Dori! I received a set of cast iron pans that I’m sorry to say, I haven’t even used yet! There are so many yummy recipes in this cookbook; I’d love to win one! Being a lover of Mexican food, I’d make the tortillas first!
Susan says: I don’t have any cast iron cookware yet, but after looking at what you have made I’m ready to go buy some!
Angela Rife says: Every Christmas Eve we have a tradition where I make gumbo. I cook this in a cast iron Dutch oven.
Cheryl says: Cast Iron caught my eyes! I love them and got my moms when she went to nursing home! I cook with it all the time. It can be put in the oven and even on a camp fire out doors. They are easy to clean and seasoned with oil after cleaning. A metal spatula can be used without damaging the skillet. They will last for ever! Cannot have too many!
Krista says: Oh my gosh! That S’more recipe sounds so good right now. And those chicken fajitas. I wish they were on the menu for tonight. I was gifted this book for Christmas and I’m so excited to try some of these recipes. Currently our cast iron is buried in some boxes in our storage room. We have plans to start sorting through this room soon and once I find my cast iron we are making some of these recipes! You are so lucky to be willed some of the best gifts. Before you know it you will own every single kind. I’ll have to drop some hints to my husband about investing in some more cast iron!
Deb Fischer #1058 says: Oops, I forgot to say I have at least 10 different pieces of Cast Iron that I have collected over our 43 years of marriage. I cook with them Everyday and would not use any other pan.
Rebecca M. says: I don’t think I COULD cook without cast iron. My mother cooked with it the whole time I was growing up so I learned to love it at a young age. It’s the only way to make cornbread! When I got married a little over 44 years ago, one of my gifts wasa set of 3 cast iron skillets and I still have them. They’re perfectly seasoned and get used often. I’ve also accumulated several from family and friends. I have Griswold and Lodge and love cast iron cooking. Mary Jane’s cookbook sounds perfect.
l bryant says: I finally learned how to cook with cast iron. My husband and 5 children have also learned the secret of non stick, baking, oven tested, used on the grill cast iron.
I have even learned how to bake a cake on the grill during the summer in cast iron to avoid heating my house!!!!
Connie says: My husband gave me my first iron skillet in 1968. My Mom and Grandma cooked with iron skillets. I loved it and had to have more, so a few months later, I got 4 more (different sizes) a grill, a griddle, and a dutch oven. I LOVE them and cook in nothing else. Just something about food coming out of one of those skillets that makes it taste better! My granddaughters use mine when they are here and they are all getting one when my time on earth is done. 🙂
winnie jackson says: I love cast iron! I have a frying pan and a cast iron casserole dish that I bake my home made breads in. Nothing beats cast iron. I would to win this offer. Like everyone we all remember our family members cooking with cast iron and even on a wood stove. Bread is just wonderful in a cast iron dish. I hope others will be inspired to invest in cast iron. I am lucky that my pans are very old and treated with oil. thank you for letting us all have a memory to share with others. Winnie 🙂
Vickie says: Owning four cast iron skillets of various sizes, they are often my favorite in my kitchen. No other pan works for ‘real’ cornbread! And an apple pie made in one is unbelievable! So many uses! I would love, love, love to have the new cookbook.
Cyndie Gray says: I love this post!!! My comment about cast iron cookware is remembering my dad using the big cast iron skillet whenever he cooked!! Love that memory. When he passed away my second daughter said the one thing she would like to have was grampa’s cast iron skillet. She received it & uses it several times a week!! I may have to order this cookbook for her 😉 thanks much Dori!!!
deb rowley says: I have various sizes of cast iron skillets, a small lidded cast iron saucepan and a cast iron dutch oven. I love them but don’t use them often enough. I mainly use my 10″ skillet for baking flat breads and tortillas.
Sunnie says: NIce book, it is pretty!! I use my cast iron all the time, the light weight one daily!
Tammy R Hastings says: I love cast iron cooking. I have my grandma’s skillet. Use it everyday.
Donna Collins says: Dori, I’m just starting to use my cast iron skillet and so far, I love it! The recipes in Mary Jane’s cookbook sound delicious!
Karla Gratehouse says: My mamaw always cooked with skillets. I can remember as a girl standing in the kitchen (brick floors) looking up at her as she was at the stove. My all time favorites were her cornbread and biscuits! Any, YES, those old skillets being passed down through the generations is AWESOME! Blessings!
Brenda N. says: I learned to cook using a cast iron skillet. I had to buy one of my own when I moved out! It is still used several times a week in my house, even all these years later. So much better than those awful teflon pans!
Judy says: Dori – I enjoy your stories so much – they bring back so many memories. I have a collection of cast iron that has been gathered over the years from family members. There is nothing like fried chicken from a cast iron skillet or like Rebecca says, corn bread!
Mary G. says: I love, love, love my Lodge cast iron! I use my 8″ skillet every morning to cook up a healthy breakfast for my parents and brother. Our 12″ skillet gets heavy use for dinner most nights (burgers, salmon, or steak on cast iron are wayyyy better than grilled or cooked on a different pan, in my opinion). I can’t imagine trying to cook without it!
Brisja says: I have a few cast iron skillets and one cast iron corn stick pan that had belonged to family. Each time I use them, I think about that person cooking and feel like they are with me again.
Susanne says: My friends comment frequently that they use cast iron pans to cook their meals and I would love to try and learn new things. Using Mary Jane’s cookbook would be a wonderful way to experience the pleasures of cast iron cooking.
Gail says: My first cast iron cookware was 43 years ago. My dear sweet sister in law gave me 3 fry pans of different sizes for our wedding to hang on the wall for decoration. They never made it to the walls. I have used them almost daily since.
Gail
Marilyn H. says: I have been using cast iron for 47 years, since my husband and I were married. Old cast iron is the best and I have a lot of it which we have collected through the years. My favorite piece is a Griswold Heart and Star Waffle Iron with the high base. Oh my, does it make the best waffles! I definitely am going to try Mary Jane’s Skillet S’Mores for my granddaughters!
Wendy Pitts says: I love cast iron but, unfortunately I can’t use it as much as I used to because now I have a flat cook top.
Tanya Weiss says: I love my cast iron but certainly don’t use it as often as I would like. Thanks for this great giveaway!
Patti Hurlburt says: I moved back to the country in the Midwest after 30+ years in the city in the Southwest. The best thing is now having a gas stove after all those years using electric. Cast iron has become a part of my life again. I use it for everything from stove top to oven. So looking forward to Mary Jane’s new cookbook.
Deb Fischer #1058 says: I love your blog Dori, always so refreshing to read. Thank you.
I would love a copy of Mary Janes new Cast Iron Cookbook as I would love to gift it to a friend. I have a Beautiful Autographed Copy and I love it. It stays on my island so I remember to use it.
The biscuits are the best and now I will need to make the S’Mores, Dori got my mouth watering.
Thank you Mary Jane and Dori for the perfect giveaway!
Sarah says: I love my cast iron dutch oven and my cast iron skillet. I’m currently looking at expanding my collection, as in the size of cast iron cookware I have since I’m adding my fifth baby this summer! A family of seven (5 kids + 2 adults) definitely need larger pans to cook in!
Denise says: I cook on my wood stove all winter long and only use cast iron pots!! Not only do they cook your meals wonderfully but they also add a shot of iron to all your meals!! Would love a cookbook!!!!
Nanette Boots says: I used to dislike (hate) cooking with cast iron because of the care required to keep it “seasoned”. Well…. I only have 4 different sizes cast iron frying pans and a dutch oven, and find they cook food so much better. Hash browns, bacon on the grill, fish, bread dressing on the grill are just some of the foods I’ve used them for. Oh, yeah, and using them consistently in the kitchen will build up your upper arm strength too. Haha.
Elizabeth P says: I have one cast iron skillet, and am still learning how to use it with many recipes. Hoping your cookbook will help me learn!!!
Deanna M. says: Do people really cook with anything other than cast iron? LOL I use it daily and it makes the best steaks ever!!
judy poppell says: I love a blackberry cobbler made in a cast iron Dutch oven, the way my grandmother made them.
Rosalyn Schultze says: I was so happy to learn that cast iron works perfectly on an induction cooktop and have used my cast iron with great success. I have a large pot with cover that I use for making stew or pot roast. It never fails to provide even browning and slow cooking. I also have a grill which is used for burgers. Couldn’t do without my cast iron and would love Mary Jane’s cookbook to learn more uses for my collection.
Sara Upchurch says: I own 4 sizes of cast iron frying pans. The 6 inch one was my Mothers. She would patiently stand and fry cornbread cakes for us. Her great grandchildren loved her cornbread. They also loved chicken tenders fried in the 12 inch pan I bought when got married 61 years ago. I have cooked thousands of tenders.
My Father in Law gave me a 9 inch when we got married. He said “Every bride needs a cast iron frying pan”. He was such a sweet man.
My 10 inch is the one I use for oven cornbread. Yum
My son loves and uses cast iron also. I gave him the 3 inch square pan that belonged to my Mother because he really liked the uniqueness of it.
Debbe says: OMG the serendipity of life! I was just on Amazon lookong at cast griddle to use on my stove. I would love her book. My grandma was an enamel pan queen and pressure cooker gal but I have always wanted to know how to use them. Imagine something that could last 100 years! Dutch baby with my homemade lemon blueberry jellie!!! Yummers!
Holly Hyer says: I have got to get some cast iron pans and your cookbook! We have done Dutch oven cooking for years. We have cooked for family and catered for up to 450 people. I have never used any type of cast iron other than the Dutch oven. I can’t wait to order your cookbook and give cast iron a try. My father cooked with it i was growing up over the campfire. I can still remember those fresh caught fish sizzling over the campfire with my family gathered around. Add to the to Do list today… order a cookbook and find some cast iron pans. (If I am lucky, my dad’s old pans are in a box under the stairs!)
Nancy Couden says: Love cast iron cookware. Over the years I have heard about other cookware and tried it. Still have my cast iron–the others are long gone. People are afraid of cast iron because they are not sure how to clean it–but so easy. Rinse it while warm and use the Lodge brush for stubborn sticky spots and you are done for next use. And food has a wonderful taste that you get from nothing else–especially stews, soups and meats.
Sue says: I told myself I did not need another cookbook–and then I saw this cast iron cookbook and knew I needed another cookbook! It looks like a book that would be used a lot!
Lyndy says: Hi, Dori! I have 2 cast iron skillets and would love to win the cookbook. Thanks for the opportunity ♡
Donna Kozak says: I use my cast iron pan (my mother’s!) to make the most delicious frittatas with fresh eggs from my sweet chickens – there is nothing better.
Kristen Bateman says: I want to do more cast iron cooking but I feel like I have a lot to learn first. Not only cooking but cleaning and caring for the cast iron.
jinx taylor says: I remember my mother’s cast iron pan; it was a little deeper than most and it followed her to every home and eventually ended up at her beach cottage where it was used for fish and shrimp and fried chicken and hush puppies. I have it now, 63 years later and it’s still going strong. I also have a quite a few more pieces that I buy whenever I see them unappreciated at sales and thrifts and find pleasure in bringing them back to their former glory and reseasoning them for use. It has only been in the past 2 years that I have started cooking with them again ( building up my wrists and arms ) and between the oven and stove top they are a constant. Your cookbook looks wonderful and I saw the flat cast iron pan pictured … I use mine for pancakes , but wonder now if you use yours for tortillas? Hope I win so I can try some new recipes and ideas in my cast iron !
Robin Reichardt says: I need to get some of the small skillets for cooking in small batches–no more kids at home!!
Janet says: I have just a few pieces. One small skillet we use to prep our tortillas for soft-shell tacos.
I’ve had it for 40 years now…love the silky smoothness of its seasoned insides!
Linda Petersen says: Thank you for another wonderful post! I have a couple of cast iron skillets that need cleaning & re–seasoning. I found them @ the thrift store & remembered MaryJane saying they are worth picking up & making them our own. This post has me so excited to get busy! Can’t wait to get my book, one way or another❤!
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My post today is about gifts. As most of you know that follow my posts here, I try to gift home-made as often as I possibly can. I really believe in giving from the heart, and for me that usually means making something! Unfortunately sometimes that also means that I don’t gift to as many people as I would like. However I’ve also noticed that even the very simplest of home-made gifts are treasured.
Krista says: I have definitely jumped on the home made gifts train. This year I have been working hard to make many of my gifts home made, but sadly I haven’t been able to do as much as I would like do to time restrictions. My goal for next year is to step it up and make many more things home made and plan a little better for the crazy busy time of the holiday season. Your home made items are beautiful and a huge inspiration to me. I hope to learn more sewing in the future so I can make some similar projects. I will join you for the new resolution for next year.
Kim Rice says: As usual I enjoy every blog you write and every creative idea you share!
Merry Christmas to you and your whole family Dori!
Keep those blogs a comin’!
Carol says: I, too, make it a point to make something every Christmas that is homemade. I have been doing this for decades and I often have friends say how much fun it is to put out all of the things I have made them over the years. I love getting homemade gifts too and you have a lot of great ideas on your list. Isn’t Pinterest a great place to get inspired? Merry Christmas, Dori, to you and yours!
Kate says: Thank you for the inspiration! This year, starting in January, I plan to make many gifts. It is something I used to do, but have been off track. This will be a good boost to Santa’s Workshop.
Marlene Capelle says: Really cute ideas. I’m almost done making this year’s gifts but I’m running out of time. What else is new, right?
Joan says: Wonderful, super ideas!! I too do the hand made gifting. One year I did purchased and welll, politely it was suggested that hand made items were expected. So that let me know what would be best BUT I was running out of really nice ideas until you posted and now next year will be started the first of the year. Again thank you so much for sharing your special ideas. God bless Merry Christmas.
Marilyn says: Thank You for these suggestions. I will try to start making gifts for next Christmas. Wishing you and yours a Blessed Christmas and a Happy,Healthy 2018.
Marilyn
Marvene says: Oh Dori — to be so talented, a gift from God. My mother did a lot of sewing and nearly all our gifts under the tree at Christmas were homemade, BUT, much as I loved her, she couldn’t hold a candlestick to your talents. God bless you more, sweet Dori . . .
Marvene
Alexandra Wilson says: Dori! This post is fantastic. You are very talented! I’ve been a little down on myself for not getting started with making gifts much earlier this season. I think I’ll get a couple of cuddly flannel blankets done for the girls and some hot cocoa kits for some close friends and family. Oh! I did give out some home made maple nut granola for some “Friendsgiving” favors. That was fun and the kids could easily help. Hopefully this summer we can get some fun woodworking projects completed. We will have to refer back to your doll bunkbed–so cute! Maybe I can get some of your stationary packs and tags completed, too. Thanks for the inspiration! Happy Holidays!
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For those of you that have been following along with me here you probably know that I am a Spring and Summertime girl! And every September when people around me are talking about how excited they are about the coming of Fall and how they love everything about Fall, I just choose to keep my mouth shut. Because really, who wouldn’t LOVE Fall??? But I do not. And the only reason I do not love it, is because it means that my beloved Summer is over. And Winter is right around the corner. So I go into Fall sort of kicking and screaming.
ann says: Thank you for such a beautiful writing! I absolutely ADORE Fall and Winter! Not that I don’t love Spring and Summer also, but Fall and Winter are my time of year. Crisp fresh air and brilliant sunshine, or cold and wet rainy, misty days — it does not matter. I love Rainy Days — soft and quiet or hard and stormy — either one is okay with me. But I seriously enjoyed your writing and photos and felt a sense of peace and comfort as I read. Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Ramona Puckett says: I get the winter blues, also, so I will be more upbeat about the coming season changes! I live out in the country and it’s really beautiful out here. Thank you for sharing this! And I love your photographs!
Sandra says: Love the gratitude in your post. Honoring the seasons is something i started to embrace with our cold Minnesota winters.
I love going to bed early in the winter and getting lost in sweaters and lots of layers. Lastly, the lack of bugs!
Kim Rice says: Oh my goodness! The things I’ve learned about you!! Coffee not tea, sunshine not so much clouds and you are a second generation author!! Who knew!? Thank you for sharing all this wisdom and wonder!!
Laura says: Thank you, Dori, for bringing to mind some of the wonders of Autumn and Winter. I retired Jan.1, 2016, but due to a small house fire, it has taken most of 2017 to finally experience the joys of being home. I still feel guilty when my husband goes out to work, but with all the cooking and reading I am doing, he is seeing how joyful I am.
I look forward to sewing again (and hubby looks forward to me using up some of the material I bought over the years).
Thank you again for sharing!
Laura
Carol says: Dori … What a great post and I love the term “Days of Grace”. The older I get the more I truly understand that everything in life is about how you react to it. I love the seasons we experience here in central Pennsylvania but I hate the lack of color in the world throughout the winter. I am an amateur photographer and I really have search for photos during this season of rest. I do love to sew and have longs days to work on projects. Thanks for reminding us to enjoy the peace and quiet of the winter! Carol
I hate winter time but you are right that it is truly a time for rest from farm work. I like your idea of sitting on the porch with a quilt as that is one of the things that I miss. This summer the mosquitos were so bad I did not get to sit out much. Hopefully, next summer. Until then I will read and work on my quilts, the same as you.
Krista says: I am not a huge fan of the cold weather we get in Utah, but I do enjoy Fall and winter. I’m thinking it mainly has to do with all the holidays, activities, and time I spend with my family at this time of year. My husband works on his family’s farm after his job and during the summer hours I don’t see much of him, but once fall and winter hit he is home more and we can finally spend more time together as a family. In the end I really enjoy the company and memories I get from fall and winter. I’m hoping this season will be much easier on you and it can soon grow on you!
Joan says: Dori, I could have written this myself! You and I are kindred spirits. Thank you so much for sharing you thoughts on this. Now I don’t feel like such an odd duck! P.S. I love what you write keep it up. Blessed fall and winter.
Just loved your adventure to find the joys of autumn. I could see myself sitting on your porch, cup in hand and quilt on my lap. My favorite book? Walden by Henry David Thoreau. He is the reason this city born girl gave it up to be a small town girl.
Irene says: Dori, I never liked the fall when my kids were growing up. It meant the start of school and I missed having them around. Now I love the fall and winter. They are beautiful seasons. The crisp air and some snow. One of my favorite books is The Key Is Love by Marie Osmond. It’s a heartwarming story.
Binky Thorsson says: Thanks for sharing Dori. I’m a quilter and have too much to do outside in spring and summer, that I treasure the fall and winter to be able to quilt more. I also love the savory cold month recipes. Hard to make those foods in the hot months. I always love to see, and hear what you and your family are up to. I have two Authors for you. Being a quilter – Persian Pickle Club, by Sandra Dallas. The second loving history – is Nancy Turner, These is My Words!
Sandi King says: Dori, I don’t have a favorite book but I do read a lot. I also look at a lot of pictures of homes that are in the process or have been remodeled as we are still waiting on ours to be started on, the reason being—money. Soon I hope, soon it will begin. But I love fall with all the beautiful fall colors, the leaves on the ground (compost) and the last of the pesky bugs. I am hoping for a cold and long enough cold winter to get rid of some of the summer pests that we have. They are getting so bad it is hard to be outside to enjoy the summer. I love the photographs and your story. The walk in the woods and the trails are my favorite thing to do also in the Fall. I love to bundle up with hat, scarf, gloves and coat and breathe in the crisp cold air of an autumn walk in the evening. It is invigorating and to top it off with a cup of hot chocolate upon arriving back at the house. I also love winter and the snow that covers everything and makes it look so pretty and clean; at least until it is trampled by footprints and ridden on by snowmobiles and ski’s. There is a reason for every season and I try to enjoy every one of them. Happy Fall to you.
Joan says: Love your finding ‘Grace’ in the season change. I’m kind of ‘take what comes’ type of person, enjoying each season and new project. Yes I do like cleaning house, windows not so much. Your new quilt looks very intriguing, might you share the name of it. I’m still doing all the antique pieces that were left to me but something new would be great fun. Thanks so much for your uplifting spirit. God bless.
Linda says: Have you ever used those little potpourri heaters to keep your favorite beverage warm? They’re safe, plentiful and cheap! I have one in the kitchen and one by my reading/craft/tv chair. In-line switch and “on” light make them convenient! Oh, and you can also use them to heat potpourri! Great year round.
Many of the things you posted are part of why I love fall and winter. Quilting, reading, baking, doing the things my busy summer wouldn’t allow. As to books, I am a classic literature freak so I am working through some Shakespeare and I will probably bring out my Jane Austen (again) because she is like an old friend. ❤️ So here’s to falling leaves and warm cups in our hands ☺️
Marilyn says: I love Autumn and Winter. I feel the same way about Spring and Summer the way you feel about Fall and Winter. I like when it is cold and dark early so you can be cozy and curled up with a good book. I enjoy going back and rereading some of my favorite books from my youth. The “Honey Bunch”series,”The Bobbsey Twins”, all the Lucy Maud Montgomery series,”Little Women” etc.
Marilyn
martha cook says: I love all these older series and just found “Five Little Peppers at School” to round out my Little Peppers collection. Also just ordered 3 paperback Judy Bolton mysteries. Applewood Books is re-issuing the series, but in paperback. I had not yet read Secret Quest, Whispered Watchword, and the new one begun by Margaret Sutton but finished by two friends “The Strange Likeness” that has not been available until now. I have 2/3 of the Judy Bolton series in original printing but the the ones I am missing are scarce and expensive, so paperback is a fun way to go. Wonderful books – they restore my mental peace!
Nancy Hawks says: I really enjoy reading about your life on the ranch. You seem to share the same hobbies and interests that I have and I look forward to reading about your life. I too love the writing of Jenna Woginrich. She has written several really good books about her life on her farm and her day to day life as a woman, alone running a small farm. She also has a blog called Cold Antler Farm that you might enjoy. I read it everyday and have been doing so for several years. She is an excellent writer. I look forward to reading about your life and all of the things that go on on your ranch Dori. You, too are an excellent writer.
TeddyIrene says: Hi
You made me fell much better about the rain and cloudy weather ahead. Thank you
Jodie says: Oh Dori, I hear ya! These dark days are hard. I started working at trying to appreciate the dark days of winter last year. It’d help if society let us hibernate like bears. Ha! But, I’m learning that some time spent in my rocker in the evening, allowing for some guilt free knit or crochet time, does my soul some good. Books! My favorites are “Destiny of the Republic” by Candice Millard and “Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown. Both based on true stories and very interesting reads with real history tidbits woven into the story. I hope you get a chance to read them. Enjoy these days of grace, sister.
Grace says: What a great post! I love all the seasons, but with an attitude like you just wrote about, your spring will be here before you know it! Sounds like a wonderful winter just around the corner!! Enjoy!!
Bonnie ellis says: I love the fall colors and warming days. But when it gets cold (and it can get to 40 below zero here) I begin to get the blues. Luckily the holidays keep us busy. But January brings the reality that there are months of cold and snow yet. Quilts and crafts to the rescue! Quilting is perfect for winter. Cooking warming meals and sitting by the fire. Yes, they are the days of grace, for all of us. Thanks for pointing that out. Happy winter!
Rhoda Tuckey says: Thank you so much for the encouragement to enjoy all seasons. God Bless You. Truly we must enjoy the Days of Grace that God in His infinite goodness bestows on us!
Bonnie B says: I love the term “Days of Grace”. I’ve always loved fall, not winter so much, but appreciate the beauty of that first snow., and the holidays. I like to cozy up with a good book or making presents for Christmas and quilt. It’s so much better since retiring as I don’t have to go out if I don’t want to! I tend to stock up so there is no need to venture out.
Some books that I like to re-read are by Gladys Taber. I think you would like her writing. They seem so calm and nurturing. I also like Susan Branch. She writes as though she is just talking to you and the illustrations are wonderful. She has many great cookbooks out also. Love her.
Deb Bosworth says: Hi Dori! I so love this posting from you. Even though we had 4 seasons in Nevada, I never really let myself sink into winter until we moved to New England. You must embrace it for what it is, or fly south. Which is what many folks from here do. I often wonder if that’s why so many writers are from New England? I’ve come to truly love winter in New England. I nest like crazy every fall and anticipate my list of things I’ll do inside over the long cold winter. It looks as if you’ve got lots of fun things planned! All wonderful ways to pass the time until the season turns the corner. I’m starting my day with a poem or two from Mary Oliver. And I’m in a big purging mood this season. I’ve filled up my explorer twice so far with books I don’t need, and more ” stuff”. The master bedroom and bath are getting a cosmetic makeover with paint and new bath towels too. But first, one wedding and I must dig the rest of the dahlia tubers. Then I can fall into winter happily and start making my seed list for next season! 🙂 I’ve stocked the pantry with baking goods, and cleaning supplies so I don’t have to go out as often too! I think I’m almost ready. Happy Thanksgiving, Dori! hugs from your farmgirl sister! Deb
Debra Hoek says: Love your blog. I feel the same way about fall leading into winter. Summer is my favorite season. And while Fall is a beautiful season, especially here in Michigan, I know winter is just around the corner. As I live with Fibromyagia Syndrome I dread the added pain that the cold and dampness bring. Changing one’s paradigm is not always an easy thing, but it is often a good thing. I need to find a way to appreciate it also. While reading is a favorite pass time of mine, there isn’t much time in my life to enjoy it. I work 50+ hours a week and care for my mom age 99. While I am a country girl at heart, my mom is all city girl. So I enjoy reading about your life style and look forward to one day retiring to the country.
What a beautiful post! I love winter. That is to say, I hate hot weather. I can always put on more clothes, but can only take off so much without scaring someone to death. I also like to live by my natural clock, which is nothing like the hours we keep in the summer. I must admit that I become pretty worthless in winter, despite my vows to get a lot done while we are not growing crops. You inspire me to live up to my resolution to Practice Pretty, which is a joke, as I don’t have a decorative bone in my body. But, since function is beauty on my planet, if I will actually clear and organize some spots, they will be pretty to me. Thank you for reminding me of things (other than hibernation) to appreciate in winter.
Laura says: Martha Cook,
Did you read the Edgar Eager (Half Magic, etc.) and/or Danny Dunn books? They were 2 of my favorites. Oh, and The Pushcart War!
Laura Staley
.
Hello Farmgirl Friends!
.
Back in March my husband had this great idea that he would order some Mallard ducks for our grand-girls. You can watch the little video below on the day we brought them home from the post office!
Susan Dutka says: Dori,
We had the exact same duck experience when we got ducklings for our kids 30 years ago! Later, we found that if we let them get to “teenager” stage, but not yet flying, they were more prone to stay at the pond when we took them down. That first bunch remained yard birds for years, though they would visit the pond by day.
Lovely memories!
Susan
Dori Troutman says: Hi Susan,
We actually were wondering if that is what we did wrong. IF we ever get ducklings again that is what we’ll do!!! Thank you for sharing your duck experience!
– Dori –
Renee Pontious says: Oh Dori!!!! With so much sadness this morning, this little story is just what I needed!!! So heart warming!!! Thanks!! ❤️
Dori Troutman says: Dear Renee,
I always try to focus on the happy things in my life and these duckies are definitely one of those things! Love you big, Renee.
Hugs,
– Dori –
Marlene Capelle says: Happy Birthday and thanks for the very funny story.
Dori Troutman says: Marlene,
Thank you so much!
– Dori –
Wendy says: Happy Birthday Dori!
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Wendy!
– Dori –
Krista says: I think it’s adorable that your little duckies preferred their kiddie pool over the pond! It’s so funny how animals find things they like and stick with them just like us. Your floating duck house turned out so cute and hopefully your next set of ducks will decide to occupy it! In the mean time I bet the other animals enjoy it. Happy Birthday Dori! Enjoy your time with your family!
Dori Troutman says: Krista,
Animals ARE so human-like in so many ways! I love that about them!
Thank you for the birthday wishes!
– Dori –
Irene says: Happy Birthday Dori!!
Irene
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Irene!!
– Dori –
Nanette Boots says: Oh, Dori. That was a fun read. I always wanted to raise ducks, geese, etc. for my children to experience a bit of farm life. Sadly, we sold our rural home before I got around to doing it.
Will the ducks stay the winter or fly south? Thanks for the post.
Dori Troutman says: Nanette,
We’ve been wanting to raise ducklings for years too and I’m so thankful my husband took the plunge! 🙂 And now that they love their life on my hilltop, I love having them around to talk to so much!
We think the ducks will stay here for the winter. We are going to build them a little house (right now they just enjoy total free rein of the farm!) and at least they will have a warm spot to get to if they need it.
– Dori –
Bonnie B says: Happy Birthday, Dori!
Loved your duck story and the picture of your parents sitting on your porch enjoying your beautiful view. Enjoy their visit!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Bonnie,
Yes.. I love seeing my parents enjoying our porch. Sadly they leave this week. 🙁
Thank you for the birthday greetings!
– Dori –
Pamela Coughlin says: This is such a happy and fun duck story! Thank you for sharing it! Pam
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Pam!
– Dori –
Sandy says: So cute! Happy birthday, have a wonderful day. Our twin daughters 38th birthday is tomorrow! I didn’t think any of us would survive those baby years, but we did!
We have three Pekin ducks- they march around the house each morning like it’s Jericho until someone comes out- hopefully with kitchen scraps to share. I love our country life!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Gretchen,
I have a friend that has the Pekin ducks and she tells me the same duck stories that we experience! They are all so beautiful aren’t they?
Yes… I love our country life too. It is the best.
– Dori –
maureen bruner says: oh Dori, what a lovely post. Happy Birthday and enjoy your loved ones and critters! Cheers!
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Maureen!
– Dori –
Joan says: Such a great story!! I love all the experiences y’all give your grand-girls and us too. Happy belated Birthday and so happy your parents came for a visit. God bless.
Dori Troutman says: Dear Joan,
We are just so lucky to have our grand-girls close enough to be able to enjoy life experiences with them. I can’t imagine life without them.
Thank you for the birthday greetings!
– Dori –
Marilyn says: Those ducks are adorable. They sure are independent. Wishing you a day of happiness and a year of blessings. Your granddaughters are beautiful.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DORI
Marilyn
Dori Troutman says: Marilyn,
Yes… those ducks are precious and of course my darling grand-girls are beyond precious! 🙂
Thank you for the birthday greetings!
– Dori –
Ann says: Cute story! Very enjoyable.
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Ann!
– Dori –
Dena says: Dori, what a great, fun story – thank you for sharing 🙂 !!!
A Farmgirl at heart,
Dena
Dori Troutman says: Thank you so much Dena!
– Dori –
P.S. Farmgirls at heart are the BEST kind of farm girls!!!
Sandi King says: Dori, I agree with all the previous comments – a wonderful and fun story and a Happy Birthday with your parents visiting and sitting on the porch. I am so envious and so happy for all of you. Your porches are amazing and so welcoming.
Dori Troutman says: Dear Sandi,
Thank you so much. I love having my parents here. I only wish we could talk them into moving to Tennessee. Our farm preferably!
– Dori –
Susan a says: Love the duck house.,,very clever . you may not see ducks go in it but the crane at least has a landing place ,,,nice. Ducks like soft place to nestle …. .like grass…put some turf on the toof…and inside the tiny house….its the only way they will go near it. I dont know if painting it green would help..but anything unnatural is not going to attract them..lts not normal for them to seek shelter from the rain. .,ducks love water, not dry wood,
.
Hello Farmgirl friends,
Hasn’t this weather been crazy the last month? We are in Tennessee and felt some of the effects of both hurricanes and I can only imagine what it must be like for those of you that were right in the thick of it. My thoughts have gone your way continually.
Vickie says: Great giveaway – thanks, thanks, thanks!
Laurel Pries says: I sooo love your idea with the simple little pin cushions. They are truly little “cuties”. I have a small collection of pin cushions, but my favorite by far came from my little sister when she was a child. I am 12 years her senior and she stayed with us after we were married. The pin cushion is crocheted (my passion) and has been with me about 50 years!!!
Mindy Witczak Hensel says: I love how colorful and inviting your sewing room is! I want to sit down and sew with you
Susan says: Hi Dori,
I love this pinnie idea! My favorite pincushion is the one my mother had when I was a child. She is not a sewer, so I have no idea where it came from! It was a beautiful brocade material, very fancy, and I used it for a floor cushion for my fanciest Barbie doll when I played Barbies. I haven’t thought about that for years; thank you for helping me to bring it to mind.
Hope you enjoy fall!
Susan
Marlene Capelle says: What a great idea to have a jar full of pinnies so that when guests arrive (particularly as holidays are coming up) I could gift them a pin cushion that they get to pick out of the jar themselves. It would be like kids getting to pick a toy out of a box at a store or restaurant or somewhere. I’m going to get started on my jar immediately. Thanks
Krista says: How cute are your pinnies! They all turned out super adorable! I only have one pin cushion and it’s very tiny. I made it when I was very little at a girls camp. They were teaching us some basic sewing skills and had us make a little pin cushion. It’s maybe the size of a half lemon but only a quarter inch thick. I still use it to this day and even though I see all the major flaws I’m proud of what I made.
When I was doing a quick glance through the new magazine I seen your article. I haven’t read it yet but I’m super excited to read about how it went. The girls quilts look fabulous! Great job.
Nicki says: I hardly ever use pincushions , but I think of them as adorable mini-pillows! My issue of MJF arrived the other day…I will look for your article!
Kim Rice says: Well my goodness this is so sweet of you to give away both a “pinnie a la Dori” and a copy of the magazine???!!! Your a doll!!!
Marcie says: Hi Dori,
My new husband’s family had a tradition of spending Christmas Day together at the parents home with their three sons and all their families. It was always a great event with lots of celebrating and lots of food and gifts, leaving everyone so totally blessed. This was unlike anything I had ever seen.
One of the things my new mother-in-law gave each of her daughters-in-law was a pin cushion. I wasn’t into sewing at the time but was years later. The tiny pin cushion was a beautiful oriental design which I have always treasured and used all these years. I still have it 35 years later. It is/was as unique as my dear mother-in-law, whom I also treasured. What a simple, yet thoughtful gift. Over the years the gifts she gave were always useful things that one needs in everyday life. With that philosophy, I learned to pattern my life toward making life better and useful for myself and toward others.
Diann says: Many years ago, my Mother made patchwork pin cushions for all the church bazaars and at Christmas they were always red and green. When she pieced the cushion top, she would let me have one to play with…it was a guilt for the doll house! I still, fifty plus years later have a bunch of those cushions that were not put together. I don’t believe I’ll be giving these away though. Happy sewing always.
when I first saw the great photo of pin cushions I thought hooray! now I know of gifts to
make possibly for friends for the holidays. We all have some kind of pins in the home that need to be in safe places, safety, straight, etc. So put them into a attractive cushion.
I love yours!!! I sure hope to win them to put throughout my home for safe keeping of all kinds of needles, pins, etc. What a great sewer you are!!! Winnie
Carol says: I love your pinnies! I love pin cushions anyway and I think I have one in every room of my house, except the bathrooms! I love the idea of making a pinnie-a-day! Fun, fun, fun!
So stinkin cute!! I love these. I am starting my winter quilting project entitled ‘Three French Hens. ‘
I am a beginning quilter and love, love, love fabric, textures and colors!!
Carol says: A gal can never have too many pin cushions. As a matter of fact, one for each room would be ideal.
I love yours!!
Nanette Boots says: They are very cute Dori. My favorite pin cushion is made with sheep’s wool from my brother’s farm. My sister carded it and made an apple pin cushion for each sister and Mom. I also have the one I made in Bible school as a child. It’s green felt with yarn lacing and has a cat’s face on it! I’ve used it for 40+ years.
Thanks for being so generous and talented!
Dorothy Sparks says: I have a couple of pin cushions from my Mom and Grandmother. I love yours and would love to win one.
Rosemary Deiss says: Thanks for the chance.
s matos says: My favorite pin cushion is one my daughter made while learning about carding wool. The girls clumped some finished wool into little balls put them in the dryer to felt them. When we took hers out & cut it in half inside was a little pink heart. Now I have a treasure to remember her little girl self as she is now a 23 year old college grad working with autistic little ones.
There is no such thing as too many pincushions. I have one in the sewing room, one in the living room by my comfy chair, one next to the bed, one in my mother’s sewing box that she left to me, and a portable one in my purse for when I go take care of my dad weekly and for those pesky sudden repairs when out and about. They are all full of pins and needles and always being used. Probably the only place I don’t need one is in the bathroom. I love to collect them. They look wonderful in that big jar! My favorite pincushion is a simple unbleached muslin tomato I made with freshly sheared wool from a shearing demonstration I saw while I was visiting an Australiana pioneer village in Wilberforce.
Bonnie B says: Adorable! All your pinnies are unique and charming. I always love the fabrics you use. I’ve noticed in previous blogs some lovely ones. And now I see reminants of them in your pinnies. I have made a few overtime. A couple of my favorites are a sunflower made from wool which is glued to a holder that can be clamped to something. I have it clamped to a basket handle. The basket, of course, holds sewing materials! The other one is a small hen. It sits beside my sewing machine. I would love to have a couple of yours and of course, will check MJ magazine for the article about you and the quilt camp. That was such a wonderful idea. I’m so glad it went well for all involved.
Carrie says: My first Pinnie was given to me by my mom.
It was my 12th Christmas & a wonderful Christmas gift! Everything she made was made with love & hard work. She was self taught… the oldest girl on her family’s farm & she had 12 siblings to love!
Mary Rauch says: You have captured my imagination with this “Pinnie-A-Day” project!
I stopped what I was doing and wrote down the first 6 ideas that popped into my brain! … and the possibility of receiving a free subscription is very enticing.
Your brain must stay full-to-overflowing with artistic thoughts!…Your children are so lucky to have a mom that will never be boring, and will probably spur them to be constantly exploring what is around the next corner for them to discover!
Thanks!
Gail says: Ok I’ll ask.
What do you use for stuffing your pinnies?
joy says: The pin cushions are so cute. I find them to be very useful around the house.
Judy says: Hi Dori – Love your pin cushions. I make chicken pinnies and give as gifts. Another of my favorites is one I bought in China Town in San Francisco. Thank you.
Cheryl Bell says: I remember my mothers and my grand mothers red tomatoe pin cushions. I use to play with them while they were sewing I would take all the pins out and then push them all back in over and over ( I guess I found joy in little things.)
Vickie says: Pin cushions remind me of gentler times – good memories!
Beth says: I love pincushions and your pinnies are just adorable. I have made a couple of pincushions, but they not nearly as cute as yours. I so look forward to your e-mails, and would love to get one of your darling pinnies as well as your magazine. You are an amazing lady and so fun to hear from. You give me so many great ideas. Thanks!!!!!
Donna Kozak says: Well, I think it’s time to get rid of my red apple pincushion with the pull-out measuring tape which I’ve had for at least 50 years !! Yours are just too sweet !
Having my great grandma’s sewing items like her pin cushion helps me feel more connected to her. She passed when I was four, but left behind a beautiful legacy of handiwork for us to use and celebrate her beautiful skills.
Kelly Mercuri says: Gosh! These are so stinkin’ precious! Love the idea! I have been making hand felted pin cushions and giving them away as gifts here and there. They are really cute too! And I agree with Carol here, you can never have too many pin cushions! I have one by my sewing machine and another by my serger and another in my English Piecing basket and another with my embroidery stash and another with my cross stitching stash and on it goes! It’s raining pincushions and I love it!
Marilyn says: Pin cushions are so handy and useful. Your pin cushions are so pretty and vibrant. I remember making a pin cushion in elementary school. We have some pincushions in our sewing boxes. They are great tools to have when sewing. Happy for you that your quilting camp was a huge success. That picture you have posted tells it all, every one had fun.
Marilyn
Deb Fischer says: Pinnie! What a cute name for sweet little pin cushion. I collect pin cushions and have been collecting vintage ones for sometime but have never seen one or should I say found a Pinnie. They will look so pretty on my old sewing machine with my oldies but goodies if I win! Thank you Dori for the give away.
Happy Fall!
Erin says: The pin cushions are very interesting. I remember my grandmother having one that was red and looked like an apple. I however do not have a pin cushion, I use my window curtain. I can walk into any room and there is a pin handy.
Mary Rauch says: What SIZE are these Pinnies, and what are they STUFFED with?
Rosemary says: What a fun contest! I, too, consider sewing my special down time.
Dee Loewen says: Made me think of the “tomato” pin cushion my mother used..
Sharon Elaine says: My mother made most of our clothes growing up. I had a beautiful “Jackie Kennedy style” prom gown she made without a pattern. I can’t think of sewing without honoring her. She quietly and peacefully passed a week ago today at 95 yrs. I’m not sure I can sew right now but will try the pinnies soon. They are so sweet.
Rhonda Rhodus says: The pin cushions that were in my house growing up were usually the ones that looked like tomatoes! Ha! My favorite one I use now is a hugh circle with little Japanese people around it as if they are holding the circle up. Thanks for the pinnie ideas!
Joan says: Read the article, well actually, I sat back and let myself be right there. Oh what a grand time and everyone did a fabulous quilt. You are a wonder. Love the ‘pinkies’, I have at least 10, most of them are from my great grandma, grandma and Aunt. Making these lovelies is going to be my next project. Thanks for the incentive. God bless
Janeen Breyman says: I already have the plan to set up my sewing machine prior to the holidays. I have the idea of sewing small ornaments made out of burlap then stuffed. How easy would it be to include some pin cushions? Yours are so cute!
I love your pinnies. I am a novice/beginner quilter and I think I will make some of this adorable pin cushions. What do you fill them with?, sand or what.
Marian Schiefke
4180 Filipana Road
Ladysmith, B.C.
Canada
V9G 1G2
Linda says: I love pin cushions (pinnies) – all sizes and shapes, vintage and new. I’d never heard them called pinnies, though. LOL! I’d love to win one of your pinnies to go in my collection.
Jo Gill says: What a fun giveaway! Thanks.
Michelle says: Thank you so much for this awesome giveaway! I love the idea of pinnies, they are so cute and a fun and great way to use up small scraps. I own a couple of pincushions, but none of them are special, just colorful and fun.
Jodie says: I inherited a heart shaped pinnie when my gram passed. She handmade and used it as long as I can remember. It’s red material with white flowers on front and white material on the back. I still have a few of the pins on it that she had placed on the pinnie. Yours are quite darling and the colors are so happy!
Judy from Maine says: I’ve already purchased the issue. When I saw Quilt camp on the cover I just knew it had to be you and I wanted to read all about it. I love your pinnies…what a challenge, one a day! Lots of fun I’m sure. Thanks for all your inspiration.
lori gottula says: I can see Mom’s pinnie, but the details are fuzzy. It is red or yellow, no red. There is no doubt in my mind that it was and still is full of needles and pins. I must have a look next time I am home!
.
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We have had such a gorgeous summer of rain, humidity, and beautiful days. Along with that comes so many flowers that my daughter and I feel like we’ve been working around the clock to keep them harvested, the flower stand stocked, as well as the garden weeded and mowed. We’ve been harvesting sunflowers that are 8 feet tall and our shoulders are just killing us! BUT… that’s not what this blog post is about this month. It’s about CORN!
Maxine says: We froze green beans on Tuesday and sweet corn on Wednesday. I had my youngest -not so young daughter helping on both days. In fact she did nearly all the work by herself except the husking and then the bagging as I wanted her to learn the process.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Max!
How much corn did you freeze? We had 14 dozen and it went really quickly with all of us helping…. I think I need another 14 dozen at least. But not sure we’ll have time to go get it. Your green beans looked really good on IG. I was wishing we had had a good green bean crop. Do you prefer freezing them over canning?
Hugs,
– Dori –
Cyndie Gray says: Yum yum I am going to have to try that recipe!! What a fun day with your sweet grands
Dori Troutman says: Hi dear Cyndie!
You’ll have to let me know what you think of the chowder!
Hugs,
– Dori –
Allen Smith says: Aw shucks!!! Wish I was there!!! 🙂
Dori Troutman says: Hi Al,
Aw shucks! (You’re way too funny, dear brother of mine!)
Wish you had been here too!
– Dori –
Joan Hendrix says: Now that’s a beautiful freezer. Good job all!
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Joan!!!
– Dori –
bonnie ellis says: Fresh corn is so good. I’m going to try the recipe, it looks delicious. You’re so lucky to have your grand-girls close to help. I enjoy your posts!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Bonnie!
Can’t wait to hear if you love the chowder!
Oh my goodness… having my grand girls nearby is such a miracle for me.
– Dori –
Dorothy Sparks says: Some of my fondest memories are putting up corn and green beans with my Mom, Grandmother & Aunts. I am so thankful for those lessons learned. My granddaughter will be letting me help her with her green beans this year. We have contests on who can snap to most. I know your grands will have wonderful memories of these days later.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Dorothy,
Oh such wonderful memories. I hope my grand girls have memories like yours when they are older. It is my hearts desire… one of the reasons I love teaching them things like canning and sewing.
And how special that now you have time with your grown granddaughter snapping beans. SO awesome.
– Dori –
Marilyn says: Thank you for the recipe. I an sympathize with you concerning he raccoons and cows. We have problems with squirrels, they rip up our bulbs and eat them. It is so frustrating to plant the flower bulbs and only to have them chewed up and destroyed. You are so right concerning The Amish. They are such wonderful people. Your granddaughters are beautiful. They are getting so big,quite the young ladies. thank you for sharing this post.
Marilyn
Dori Troutman says: Hi Marilyn,,
You’ll love the recipe!!!
Oh my word… squirrels can be SO frustrating. 🙁
– Dori –
Krista says: My garden is very small and produces enough for my family, but not enough to save any. This year we planted zucchini and I have had quite a few zucchini already, but we have used them up in recipes. I’m thinking the next few I get I will freeze to save for winter. One day we will have a place where we can grow more. When that time comes I will save more food. Thanks for the recipe it sounds delicious. This will be a must try for our family!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Krista!
Sometimes it’s nice to have a small garden that produces just what you need. You don’t get overwhelmed with tons of produce that way. I froze some zucchini this summer too. How do you freeze yours? I just grated mine and froze it in freezer bags. I can use it in muffins and loafs that way.
Don’t forget to make the chowder and let me know!
– Dori –
Krista says: In the past I have sliced or blended them and froze them. The sliced I use for side dishes and meals, where I use the blended ones for bread and cooking. I’m not sure yet how I want to save them this year. Maybe I will try grating them.
maureen bruner says: Awesome tip about the bundt cake pan! We’ve made pickles, salsa, and rhubarb jam. (I have a rhubarb plant that just keeps on giving.) Can’t wait to try your Chowder…..YUM!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Maureen,
Using that bundt pan for the corn is nothing short of amazing! Saves on clean up too. Oh how I wish I could grow rhubarb here. I so totally love it. Rhubarb pie, rhubarb jam…. oh yummy.
– Dori –
It might be cool enough on your hilltop to grow rhubarb. If you do, I call first dibs on any extra. My Grand-Aunt Sarah Louise grew such wonderful rhubarb in Ohio!
Jutta says: I’ve been freezing raspberries and strawberries from the garden we planted last year. Deer are a real problem for us so we put a high fence all around but left the gate off the ground a foot. I’ve been watching the grapes ripen looking forward to them any time now. Then last week we picked up some chickens, well they made short work of the grapes even though most were hard and green. So next we’ll be dropping our gate so those girls (chickens) will have to share. 🙂 Our friends down the road run a corn farm but the season is only now beginning for us up here. You’ve given me some good ideas that I can use when it’s our turn to put up the corn. Also thanks for sharing such a yummy looking recipe.
Dori Troutman says: Jutta,
Raspberries and strawberries in the freezer are so good through the winter aren’t they? My grand girls picked wild blackberries around the farm and we froze a gallon of those. What do you do with your grapes? Do you can them?
– Dori –
Donna Kozak says: How wonderful to do all this all outside ! Just finished making apricot jam in my hot kitchen but now will treat myself to a nice cool swim in my pool – would love to have that soup for dinner but too tired and hot today !
Dori Troutman says: Hi Donna,
Canning outside is just a dream compared to in the house. The best thing about it being able to clean up the mess with the garden hose! Ha Ha!
A cool swim in the pool sounds wonderful!
– Dori –
Beth says: I pressure can anything possible, to save on freezer space. Your corn on the cob is beautiful! Thanks for the recipe, I’ll be trying that as soon as the weather cools.
Dori Troutman says: Beth,
I pressure can things too, but I’ve never canned corn. How does that come out? I’ll have to try it sometime I guess. We have a couple big freezers because we harvest our own meat, so I usually have room for corn!
– Dori –
Gloria Smith says: Thanks for sharing your day with us. I always enjoy reading about your adventures!. Just yesterday my husband and I were discussing the best way to preserve corn for the winter. A local farmer has been selling wonderful corn the past couple of weeks and I hate for it to end. We do not have a vacuum seal system. I guess we’ll have to get one!
Dori Troutman says: Gloria,
You can freeze the corn in gallon size ziplock freezer bags. It will work just fine. They don’t last as long in the freezer; but they would last through the winter.
– Dori –
Sandi King says: Dori, I have never tried chowder of any kind, but as I read your recipe through, it made me think I may try yours. It sounds and looks so delicious. I am only afraid the corn will hurt me as I have diverticulitis according to my doctor. I didn’t know I had it but I would get a pain in my side when I ate certain things. But I am sure my family and friends would love it so I may fix it anyway and try a small amount. As for canning and freezing, I haven’t been able to do those for myself, but I helped a friend of mine do hers. She canned pickles (lots of cucumbers in her garden), and green beans. I was hoping she would can some tomato juice with all her tomatoes and maybe I can talk her into it before they are all gone. We also love fried green tomatoes and will make some soon.
I love your freezer (I want an upright) and I have a small chest type that I always have to dig through or empty to find what I am looking for. We do have a vacuum sealer though. I love your blogs and MaryJane’s Farm magazine and read it from cover to cover whenever I get one in the mail. I think you and the other bloggers are wonderful for sharing your stories and you family lives with the rest of us. Until the next time.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Sandi,
An upright freezer is the only way to go in my book. I do have a small chest freezer too but the only thing I use it for is all the one pound ground beef packages from the beef that we harvest every year. It is so much easier to keep an upright organized. Super easy actually.
Thanks for always reading and commenting!
– Dori –
Marlene Capelle says: We stopped and got fresh corn on the cob on the way to our cabin this weekend. Your recipe for chowder looks like a perfect thing to have tonight. Thanks.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Marlene,
I hope you tried the chowder and loved it!
– Dori –
Joan says: Dori, you never cease to amaze me. Being reared by my grandparents and aunt, on the farm that my grandparents moved to in 1910 and raised 9of their own children and counting me 5 others. Yes we all learned by them and enjoyed it. Seeing your grand girls with you brings tears to my eyes remembering my experience, thank you for doing this and all the other projects you teach them. It’s just my sister and I now, so our ‘putt’ up’ is much less, we froze 4 more quarts of corn today, total of 12 for the summer. Thanks for sharing, really does this old gals heart good. God bless.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Joan,
Thank you for writing. I never had much opportunity to learn from my grandparents as they didn’t live that close to us; so it is important to me to have as much time with my grand-girls as I can. I’m so thankful that we have the opportunity to be close to them… both physically and emotionally!
How nice your and your sister have each other and can put corn up together.
– Dori –
Gail says: I plant squash & pumpkins with my corn. (Around the perimeter of my garden.)No more coons. They do not like the pickie vines.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Gail,
Oh this is marvelous! I can’t wait to tell my husband! Thank you!
– Dori –
Nicole Christensen says: Hi Dori, (I love your covered porch, by the way). I could almost taste that sweet corn! What I love best about this post is the memories you are making with your grand girls. So sweet. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole (Suburban Farmgirl)
Dori Troutman says: Hi Nicole,
Thank you so much. I do hope that there will be amazing memories for my grand-girls. They mean the world to me.
Hugs to you dear friend,
– Dori –
elaine says: We call it “doing corn”!! I need to do corn this summer because my supply from 2 years ago is all gone! I love fresh frozen corn to serve for company meals. Corn of this quality and flavor cannot be purchased! Soooo Good!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Elaine,
Oh I love that… “doing corn”!!!
And yes, it sure doesn’t taste like this from the grocery store!
– Dori –
.
.
We have had such a gorgeous summer of rain, humidity, and beautiful days. Along with that comes so many flowers that my daughter and I feel like we’ve been working around the clock to keep them harvested, the flower stand stocked, as well as the garden weeded and mowed. We’ve been harvesting sunflowers that are 8 feet tall and our shoulders are just killing us! BUT… that’s not what this blog post is about this month. It’s about CORN!
Maxine says: We froze green beans on Tuesday and sweet corn on Wednesday. I had my youngest -not so young daughter helping on both days. In fact she did nearly all the work by herself except the husking and then the bagging as I wanted her to learn the process.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Max!
How much corn did you freeze? We had 14 dozen and it went really quickly with all of us helping…. I think I need another 14 dozen at least. But not sure we’ll have time to go get it. Your green beans looked really good on IG. I was wishing we had had a good green bean crop. Do you prefer freezing them over canning?
Hugs,
– Dori –
Cyndie Gray says: Yum yum I am going to have to try that recipe!! What a fun day with your sweet grands
Dori Troutman says: Hi dear Cyndie!
You’ll have to let me know what you think of the chowder!
Hugs,
– Dori –
Allen Smith says: Aw shucks!!! Wish I was there!!! 🙂
Dori Troutman says: Hi Al,
Aw shucks! (You’re way too funny, dear brother of mine!)
Wish you had been here too!
– Dori –
Joan Hendrix says: Now that’s a beautiful freezer. Good job all!
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Joan!!!
– Dori –
bonnie ellis says: Fresh corn is so good. I’m going to try the recipe, it looks delicious. You’re so lucky to have your grand-girls close to help. I enjoy your posts!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Bonnie!
Can’t wait to hear if you love the chowder!
Oh my goodness… having my grand girls nearby is such a miracle for me.
– Dori –
Dorothy Sparks says: Some of my fondest memories are putting up corn and green beans with my Mom, Grandmother & Aunts. I am so thankful for those lessons learned. My granddaughter will be letting me help her with her green beans this year. We have contests on who can snap to most. I know your grands will have wonderful memories of these days later.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Dorothy,
Oh such wonderful memories. I hope my grand girls have memories like yours when they are older. It is my hearts desire… one of the reasons I love teaching them things like canning and sewing.
And how special that now you have time with your grown granddaughter snapping beans. SO awesome.
– Dori –
Marilyn says: Thank you for the recipe. I an sympathize with you concerning he raccoons and cows. We have problems with squirrels, they rip up our bulbs and eat them. It is so frustrating to plant the flower bulbs and only to have them chewed up and destroyed. You are so right concerning The Amish. They are such wonderful people. Your granddaughters are beautiful. They are getting so big,quite the young ladies. thank you for sharing this post.
Marilyn
Dori Troutman says: Hi Marilyn,,
You’ll love the recipe!!!
Oh my word… squirrels can be SO frustrating. 🙁
– Dori –
Krista says: My garden is very small and produces enough for my family, but not enough to save any. This year we planted zucchini and I have had quite a few zucchini already, but we have used them up in recipes. I’m thinking the next few I get I will freeze to save for winter. One day we will have a place where we can grow more. When that time comes I will save more food. Thanks for the recipe it sounds delicious. This will be a must try for our family!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Krista!
Sometimes it’s nice to have a small garden that produces just what you need. You don’t get overwhelmed with tons of produce that way. I froze some zucchini this summer too. How do you freeze yours? I just grated mine and froze it in freezer bags. I can use it in muffins and loafs that way.
Don’t forget to make the chowder and let me know!
– Dori –
Krista says: In the past I have sliced or blended them and froze them. The sliced I use for side dishes and meals, where I use the blended ones for bread and cooking. I’m not sure yet how I want to save them this year. Maybe I will try grating them.
maureen bruner says: Awesome tip about the bundt cake pan! We’ve made pickles, salsa, and rhubarb jam. (I have a rhubarb plant that just keeps on giving.) Can’t wait to try your Chowder…..YUM!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Maureen,
Using that bundt pan for the corn is nothing short of amazing! Saves on clean up too. Oh how I wish I could grow rhubarb here. I so totally love it. Rhubarb pie, rhubarb jam…. oh yummy.
– Dori –
It might be cool enough on your hilltop to grow rhubarb. If you do, I call first dibs on any extra. My Grand-Aunt Sarah Louise grew such wonderful rhubarb in Ohio!
Jutta says: I’ve been freezing raspberries and strawberries from the garden we planted last year. Deer are a real problem for us so we put a high fence all around but left the gate off the ground a foot. I’ve been watching the grapes ripen looking forward to them any time now. Then last week we picked up some chickens, well they made short work of the grapes even though most were hard and green. So next we’ll be dropping our gate so those girls (chickens) will have to share. 🙂 Our friends down the road run a corn farm but the season is only now beginning for us up here. You’ve given me some good ideas that I can use when it’s our turn to put up the corn. Also thanks for sharing such a yummy looking recipe.
Dori Troutman says: Jutta,
Raspberries and strawberries in the freezer are so good through the winter aren’t they? My grand girls picked wild blackberries around the farm and we froze a gallon of those. What do you do with your grapes? Do you can them?
– Dori –
Donna Kozak says: How wonderful to do all this all outside ! Just finished making apricot jam in my hot kitchen but now will treat myself to a nice cool swim in my pool – would love to have that soup for dinner but too tired and hot today !
Dori Troutman says: Hi Donna,
Canning outside is just a dream compared to in the house. The best thing about it being able to clean up the mess with the garden hose! Ha Ha!
A cool swim in the pool sounds wonderful!
– Dori –
Beth says: I pressure can anything possible, to save on freezer space. Your corn on the cob is beautiful! Thanks for the recipe, I’ll be trying that as soon as the weather cools.
Dori Troutman says: Beth,
I pressure can things too, but I’ve never canned corn. How does that come out? I’ll have to try it sometime I guess. We have a couple big freezers because we harvest our own meat, so I usually have room for corn!
– Dori –
Gloria Smith says: Thanks for sharing your day with us. I always enjoy reading about your adventures!. Just yesterday my husband and I were discussing the best way to preserve corn for the winter. A local farmer has been selling wonderful corn the past couple of weeks and I hate for it to end. We do not have a vacuum seal system. I guess we’ll have to get one!
Dori Troutman says: Gloria,
You can freeze the corn in gallon size ziplock freezer bags. It will work just fine. They don’t last as long in the freezer; but they would last through the winter.
– Dori –
Sandi King says: Dori, I have never tried chowder of any kind, but as I read your recipe through, it made me think I may try yours. It sounds and looks so delicious. I am only afraid the corn will hurt me as I have diverticulitis according to my doctor. I didn’t know I had it but I would get a pain in my side when I ate certain things. But I am sure my family and friends would love it so I may fix it anyway and try a small amount. As for canning and freezing, I haven’t been able to do those for myself, but I helped a friend of mine do hers. She canned pickles (lots of cucumbers in her garden), and green beans. I was hoping she would can some tomato juice with all her tomatoes and maybe I can talk her into it before they are all gone. We also love fried green tomatoes and will make some soon.
I love your freezer (I want an upright) and I have a small chest type that I always have to dig through or empty to find what I am looking for. We do have a vacuum sealer though. I love your blogs and MaryJane’s Farm magazine and read it from cover to cover whenever I get one in the mail. I think you and the other bloggers are wonderful for sharing your stories and you family lives with the rest of us. Until the next time.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Sandi,
An upright freezer is the only way to go in my book. I do have a small chest freezer too but the only thing I use it for is all the one pound ground beef packages from the beef that we harvest every year. It is so much easier to keep an upright organized. Super easy actually.
Thanks for always reading and commenting!
– Dori –
Marlene Capelle says: We stopped and got fresh corn on the cob on the way to our cabin this weekend. Your recipe for chowder looks like a perfect thing to have tonight. Thanks.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Marlene,
I hope you tried the chowder and loved it!
– Dori –
Joan says: Dori, you never cease to amaze me. Being reared by my grandparents and aunt, on the farm that my grandparents moved to in 1910 and raised 9of their own children and counting me 5 others. Yes we all learned by them and enjoyed it. Seeing your grand girls with you brings tears to my eyes remembering my experience, thank you for doing this and all the other projects you teach them. It’s just my sister and I now, so our ‘putt’ up’ is much less, we froze 4 more quarts of corn today, total of 12 for the summer. Thanks for sharing, really does this old gals heart good. God bless.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Joan,
Thank you for writing. I never had much opportunity to learn from my grandparents as they didn’t live that close to us; so it is important to me to have as much time with my grand-girls as I can. I’m so thankful that we have the opportunity to be close to them… both physically and emotionally!
How nice your and your sister have each other and can put corn up together.
– Dori –
Gail says: I plant squash & pumpkins with my corn. (Around the perimeter of my garden.)No more coons. They do not like the pickie vines.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Gail,
Oh this is marvelous! I can’t wait to tell my husband! Thank you!
– Dori –
Nicole Christensen says: Hi Dori, (I love your covered porch, by the way). I could almost taste that sweet corn! What I love best about this post is the memories you are making with your grand girls. So sweet. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole (Suburban Farmgirl)
Dori Troutman says: Hi Nicole,
Thank you so much. I do hope that there will be amazing memories for my grand-girls. They mean the world to me.
Hugs to you dear friend,
– Dori –
elaine says: We call it “doing corn”!! I need to do corn this summer because my supply from 2 years ago is all gone! I love fresh frozen corn to serve for company meals. Corn of this quality and flavor cannot be purchased! Soooo Good!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Elaine,
Oh I love that… “doing corn”!!!
And yes, it sure doesn’t taste like this from the grocery store!
– Dori –
.
.
Happy Summer farmgirl friends!!
.
I am ridiculously crazy about salsa. I do not prize myself on being any kind of a salsa connoisseur, I just know that I love it.
Sounds like a delicious idea, but I won’t be making salsa unless I buy some tomatoes as we have had no luck with ours this year.
maryann says: Dori
I like your recipe, I too love to eat salsa all summer long. I love tomatoes and this is how my big garden started. I found something that makes chopping a lot easier and I found it because I love to make soups in winter and this saves time- I think it’s called the “Vidalia chopper”, it makes large and small chunks, all uniform and makes salsa and soups (onion, celery, carrots) easier and time saving. Thanks for recipe.
calle says: Do you have high winds I your area?
We have tried a camping stove but getting the temps high enough can take a long time.
I want to use my pressure canners also out of doors.
We do not have central AC and it has been around 105/109 some days at 5:30 pm.
Looks good and with a glass of homemade lemonade it is perfect.
Joan Price says: Great recipe!!!! and oh my your flowers are beautiful!! Nothing much happening in my area, late freezes and now been getting some storms so garden will need a while and the flowers will have to be next year. Thanks for sharing your lovlies. God bless.
Krista says: I love homemade fresh salsa. I never make batches big enough to can (because I eat it all) but I’m hoping this year I will have enough tomatoes so I can. I am not a big fan of spicy so I add sugar to make it sweet! On Wednesday I made a small batch of mango salsa and it turned out delicious. Looking forward to when my tomatoes are ready to be made into salsa. Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Susan Lazarou says: Love salsa and won’t forget my first time i made it…i turned the mix by hand and couldn’t feel a thing for three days….the heat from the halapenos took away my migraine but my hands couldn’t feel a thing for days. Remind people to wear gloves when you cut and handke the peppersdp for the salsa, because the halapeno pepper are hot.,,.and you don’t have need to use mire than four for the recipe.
Susan Lazarou says: Love salsa and won’t forget my first time i made it…i turned the mix by hand and couldn’t feel a thing for three days….the heat from the halapenos took away my migraine but my hands couldn’t feel a thing for days. Remind people to wear gloves when you cut and handke the peppers for the salsa, because the halapeno pepper are hot.,,.and you don’t have need to use more than four for the recipe.
I did what you said and therefore, salsa in jars all over the cabinet counters. Thank you! it was fun and my kids in San Antonio can’t wait for me to visit and bring them homemade salsa from my garden. It was fun and easy also. Thanks again.
Ellen Gerard says: Hello Dori, I wanted to tell you how good your salsa recipe is! The only problem is – we ate it all☺ lol. Am going to have to make more soon and double the recipe! Hope your summer is going good! Thanks for the great recipe. Looking forward to your next post☺ Ellen
is a certified farmgirl at heart. She’s happily married to her beach bum Yankee husband of 20 years. She went from career gal to being a creative homeschooling mom for two of her biggest blessings and hasn’t looked back since. Debbie left her lifelong home in the high desert of Northern Nevada 10 years ago and washed up on the shore of America’s hometown, Plymouth, MA, where she and her family are now firmly planted. They spend part of each summer in a tiny, off–grid beach cottage named “The Sea Horse.”
“I found a piece of my farmgirl heart when I discovered MaryJanesFarm. Suddenly, everything I loved just made more sense! I enjoy unwinding at the beach, writing, gardening, and turning yard-sale furniture into ‘Painted Ladies’ I’m passionate about living a creative life and encouraging others to ‘make each day their masterpiece.’”
is a “MaryJane Farmgirl” who lives in a large metropolitan area. She is a lawyer who has worked in both criminal defense and prosecution. She has been a judge, a business woman and a stay-at-home mom. In addition to her law degree, she has a Masters of Theological Studies.
“Mustering up the courage to do the things you dream about,” she says, “is the essence of being a MaryJane Farmgirl.” Learning to live more organically and closer to nature is Rebekah’s current pursuit. She finds strength and encouragement through MaryJane’s writings, life, and products. And MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection provides her a wealth of knowledge from true-blue farmgirls.
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.
“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”
Dori Troutman is the daughter of second generation cattle ranchers in New Mexico. She grew up working and playing on the ranch that her grandparents homesteaded in 1928. That ranch, with the old adobe home, is still in the family today. Dori and her husband always yearned for a ranch of their own. That dream came true when they retired to the beautiful green rolling hills of Tennessee. Truly a cattleman’s paradise!
Dori loves all things farmgirl and actually has known no other life but that. She loves to cook, craft, garden, and help with any and all things on their cattle farm.
describes herself as a goat charmer, chicken whisperer, bee maven, and farmers’ market baker renovating an 1864 farmhouse on an Ohio farm. With a degree in Design, Mary says small-town auctions and country road barn sales "always make my heart skip a beat thinking about what I could create or design out of what I’ve seen.”
Rooted in the countryside, she likes simple things and old ways … gardening, preserving the harvest, cooking, baking, and all things home. While you might find her selling baked goods from the farm’s milkhouse, teaching herself to play the fiddle, or sprucing up a vintage camper named Maizy, you will always find her in an apron!
Mary says, “I’m happiest with the simple country pleasures … an old farmhouse, too many animals, a crackling fire, books to read, and the sound of laughter … these make life just perfect.”
is a budding rural farmgirl living in Palmer, the agricultural seat of Alaska. Alex is a graduate student at Alaska Pacific University pursuing an M.S. in Outdoor and Environmental Education. She lives and works on the university’s 700 acre environmental education center, Spring Creek Farm. When Alex has time outside of school, she loves to rock climb, repurpose found objects, cross-country ski on the hay fields, travel, practice yoga, and cook with new-fangled ingredients.
Alex grew up near the Twin Cities and went to college in Madison, Wisconsin—both places where perfectly painted barns and rolling green farmland are just a short drive away. After college, she taught at a rural middle school in South Korea where she biked past verdant rice paddies and old women selling home-grown produce from sidewalk stoops. She was introduced to MaryJanesFarm after returning, and found in it what she’d been searching for—a group of incredible women living their lives in ways that benefit their families, their communities, and the greater environment. What an amazing group of farmgirls to be a part of!
Suburban Farmgirl Nicole Christensen calls herself a “vintage enthusiast”. Born and raised in Texas, she has lived most of her life in the picturesque New England suburbs of Connecticut, just a stone’s throw from New York State. An Advanced Master Gardener, she has gardened since childhood, in several states and across numerous planting zones. In addition, she teaches knitting classes, loves to preserve, and raises backyard chickens.
Married over thirty years to her Danish-born sweetheart, Nicole has worked in various fields, been a world-traveler, an entrepreneur and a homemaker, but considers being mom to her now-adult daughter her greatest accomplishment. Loving all things creative, Nicole considers her life’s motto to be “Bloom where you are planted”.
Hello Dori,
I use to put a tea party on every year the day after Thanksgiving, because a lot of people had that day off. I have a lot of friends in the teaching field, so they couldn’t come during the week, and it was hard to give up their weekends to come for tea.
I did all the work, and told them to wear their favorite vintage or just wear black, (classy, but didn’t take away from the other outfits) and they loved seeing what people were wearing.
Thanks for sharing your tea party. Just love it, and setting the girls up to a life time of loving tea parties and going to tea!!!
A tea party with little girls is always such a treat
Oh my goodness! How cute everything looks and the girls are adorable! I have grandsons so we don’t do the tea party but I do have girlfriends who would love a tea party, thank you for the pictures and the ideas!
Tea parties are my favorite thing to do❣️❣️❣️ Once I had one for my granddaughter when she was 6. We had gowns from goodwill. Hats. Jewelry. High heels. They had a blast❣️ I’m having a small Tea on Feb 26…I’ll try to send pics
Aw, Dori! Everything turned out so pretty! It is giving me some last-minute inspiration for the Valentine-making get together that my daughter (17) is having at our house with her friends!
Nicki @nicolecontent on IG
Adorable! My grandchildren are all boys, they would not appreciate a tea party!
I love that you were honest about the hard things!! So often, we think that we should be able to do all things effortlessly, if we have the directions. 🙂
Love the purses!!! And, you decided to make them the night before. I can’t wait to read your tutorial.
Yes!!! My annual Tea Party is coming up soon, thanks for the great ideas for decorating and serving, hopefully I will have the time to do the lovelies. My ‘girls’ are all over the age of 50 but I am sure they will love the purses, will be extra happy to get MaryJanesFarm magazine. Yay I am so excited!!!! Thanks again for your blog and always look forward to your next. I’m still quilting and the thimble is super great. God bless.
What fun! Thank you for the delightful and inspiring post!
I never had a tea party growing up and my brother’s wife would would serve me tea when I visited with them and it was always nice. Not a party but hot steeped tea in pretty cups from a pretty teapot. I now collect pretty tea pots or unusual ones. I don’t have any grand-girls to enjoy a tea party with. I love reading your blogs.
OOOOOooo such a pretty and inviting party!! Thanks for sharing it. What kind of tea did you serve? (Your cupcakes looked “divoon”) Maybe sometime you’d like to try my Zen Bear Honey Tea – possibly “Radiant Rose” or “Blue Moon” (blueberry, lavender, maca, nettle, red clover and red raspberry leaf) for an afternoon treat. Just let me know. Cheers, Lisa
How Fun and Beautiful! What a joy to be able to have such a sweet “girls day”!
What a lovely tea party. Everything is beautiful. Thank You for sharing. I look forward to seeing more of the pictures from the tea party.
HAPPY ST. VALENTINE’S DAY
Marilyn
You sure pulled out all the stops for this adorable ladies tea party… Loved it from top to bottom… Those little grand girlies of yours are just the cutest and so lucky to have you for a Grammy! Happy ( almost ) growing season! I’m planting sweat peas this weekend… Wish me luck! I bet you’re itching to get out and plant too!
Farmgirl hugs!
Deb