Hello Farmgirls, I hope this find you all well and settling into 2016 with kindness to yourselves and celebration of your accomplishments! I am proud to say that I have taken up an activity that I didn’t even know I wanted to learn.
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Debbie Bosworth
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.’”
Rebekah Teal
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.
Cathi Belcher
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
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.
Mary Murray
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.”
Alexandra Wilson
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!
Nicole Christensen
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”.
Good morning Alex!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AVA!!! 🙂
Oh my goodness, those little girls are so beautiful. Nothing like a precious new baby and sweet little “big” sister to make life complete.
I learned the basics of knitting a number of years ago and just never could seem to enjoy it. The counting really got to me! 🙂 Last year I determined to learn to crochet. I basically kind of taught myself (YouTube is the best!) and designed my own dishcloth. (I wrote a post about it here: http://www.farmgirlbloggers.com/8165). So now, I use only my 100% cotton crocheted dish cloths because I love them so much. I have made hundreds I’m pretty, sure as they make the best quick gifts… a few of them tied up with string is a big hit! 🙂 My pattern is attached in that blog post above, you’ll have to try them. But beware. They are super, super addicting! So fun and simple to make.
I’m so glad your Mom is still there. I was hoping! I got to stay with my daughter for six weeks when her first was born. That is some of the best memories of my life. Luckily when she had her second we had moved here to the South, so I’ve seen that little munchkin almost every day of her life (and she’s four)!
Bug hugs… so glad you’re doing well!
– Dori –
P.S. I love the jelly fish. I must buy that book!
What a fun project to crochet the jellyfish! I learned to crochet from my grandmother. She taught me the basics, then I jumped into many self-taught projects through the years. I look back and have to laugh at all of the odd crochet gifts I gave my mother when I first began. I particularly remember a “vest” that crossed over and really looked more like guerrilla warfare ammo belts. Mercy. She was always gracious with me. :^)
Your daughters are precious!
We’ve had more than our usual share of earthquakes in Oklahoma in the last year. I think that with tornadoes, we should be exempt from earthquakes.
Your girls are gorgeous, Alex. I love your cute sea creatures you’ve crocheted. I’m sure all the kiddos that got them as party favours would’ve loved them. I haven’t crocheted in years but your inspiring me to give a go again. I’m also a very slow knitter, as In I take years to finish anything and not very good at it either, but I do try from time to time. I so love that knitting circles are coming back again – slowing down, connecting and creating all at the same time – definitely a plus in fast paced world. Scary about the earthquake! So glad you guys are all okay. Take care and enjoy the savouring in life 🙂
Denise
Australia
I have, after 30 years of saying “I’m not creative”, decided that this is just simply untrue! So I am forming an Art and Soul community for folks to get together and create together. Through your blog, I give thanks to you for another affirmation, Alex, that this is such a worthy thing to be doing. I love your jelly fish, and hope the kid’lins all loved them!
Dori, I will be taking your pattern to the first meeting, and hope there is someone there that I can call upon to help if I need it.
I love the jellyfish. I learned to knit and crochet the basics when I was 10 or so, but never really did much with it until lately. I prefer crochet; it seems to require less concentration, at least for me. I enjoy knitting too, but always end up holding my left hand knitting needle awkwardly. Real knitters would probably cringe if they saw me. I did knit a very pretty (if I do say so myself) Georgia afghan after finding the pattern in a book I was reading. It took me a few tries to get it started, but once I did, it was a very fun project.
Your daughters are precious.
I did learn to knit in Junior High School. I do intend to learn crochet.. Enjoyed the article. Your girls are beautiful.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AVA
Marilyn
I did learn to knit in Junior High School. I do intend to learn crochet.. Enjoyed the article. Your girls are beautiful.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AVA
Marilyn
Ahh, now you have to join Ravelry.com for all the fun patterns and community. I taught myself to knit right after my daughter was born, and have loved being able to make my kid’s toys and clothes. My daughter loved it so much she learned to spin. Now if we could only get our own sheep…
Oh my heavens! Your baby’s cheeks are adorable. How precious.
I am actually learning how to crochet right now. I am working on getting my beginner level crochet merit badge. There is something so relaxing and enjoyable about crocheting. I haven’t completed a project yet but I am hoping to here shortly. I want to make some different things as well. Those jelly fish of yours are so cute and would be a cute toy for my little boy. Thank you for inspiring me to branch out and crochet something other than scarfs, washcloths and blankets! Enjoy your new hobby.
You are going to Love, Love, Love your new crafts of either Crocheting or Knitting. I too love crocheting more and have just basic skills for knitting. This year I have taken on a Prayer Shawl Ministry at my church in Fishkill, New York. I hope to have a lot of ladies in my church and community come to sit and create beautiful shawls that we can share with ours to bring them Hope, Strength, Happiness or just a HUG! Which I think of shawls to be if you make them big enough. Maybe you might consider this as a project sometime. Your daughters are beautiful and all the best of luck with the new addition. Now get back to that yarn and hook and start creating! It is truly a relaxing hobby. I will have to look up that pattern for the jellyfish – it came out great! See you are inspiring me!
Enjoy your new hobby! Diane
I have a granddaughter that knits and crochets anything she puts her mind to without using patterns. In October 2010 on a visit to see her, she suggested we write a book. Pencil and paper and quiet spot, the concept of my now PUBLISHED book came to be. A SIMPLE STITCH, A COMMON THREAD is the story of small town living, a yarn shop owner with a knitting grout, her great-grandparents old homestead still in tact, and an uplifting chain of events that happen throughout the fall into the holidays. The blog subject and conversation made me think of all of you, as I wish I actually had a shop named A SIMPLE STITCH,
Wow! I will have to check out the book. And I love that concept for a shop. Thanks for writing!
Your jellyfish look great! If you’re interested in more crocheting in your area, look up Ididachain Crochet Guild (I think we are on facebook). We meet in alternate months in Wasilla and Anchorage.
I will! Thanks for the connection.
I have crocheted preactically all of my life. My most recent obsession is making enormous chunky rugs out of old sheets torn into strips. I even wrote a blog post about it with pictures and instructions! http://momilies.susabelle.com/?p=809
I’ve never taken to knitting, but I LOVE to crochet! I think I like having my hands more involved with the yarn; knitting feels more remote, transferring stitches from stick to stick. ;-p I don’t have the issues of even tension with crochet that I do knitting either. And what’s up with those knitting patterns that call for four or more needles going at one time?? LOL! I need simple. ;-p So glad you didn’t sustain injury or damage from that quake!
I “made” my grandmother teach me to knit when I was 9 because I had a part in a school play where I was supposed to sit in a rocking chair and knit…so she gave me a skein of horrid yellow yarn, a set of wood knitting needles and I knit and unraveled that skein of yarn all through play practice and the “real thing”. My teacher said “you didn’t have to know how to knit. You could have pretended.” My reply was “Oh, yes I did have to learn”…but I never made anything more exotic than hats and scarves…later, when my oldest son was a baby, I had a neighbor who made fabulous crocheted things. She taught me to crochet. And still, I’ve only made hats and scarves and rugs and little bags, other than the year I used fabric and made “Soft pottery” bowls…for some reason or other! (I love experimenting with “stuff”…) – My oldest granddaughter can crochet. I taught her when she was little. She now makes all sorts of things, including granny square blankets for her GOATS. (She is 25 and owns a herd of dairy goats). She has made a lot of fingerless gloves and scarf sets and sold them, too. Yarn is just FUN to play with. Lately, I’ve been using up all sorts of odd yarn weaving little bags (think cell phones!) on a frame loom I made from a set of canvas stretchers and a LOT of little brads!
Keep on playing! And teach your girls how to play with yarn, too!!
Goat blankets! Love it.
Well, I typed in a whole paragraph, hit “post comment” and it told me I already sent a comment and deleted me. My grandmother taught me to knit and a neighbor taught me to crochet. Usually, when I asked grandmother how to do things, she said “you can read, look it up” but I was only 9 when I told her I needed to know how to knit. I never have really liked knitting but crocheting is fun. So is weaving. Yarn is addictive!! Teach your girls how to knit and crochet, too. They’ll have fun, as well.
My grandmother tried to teach me how to crochet but I am very left handed and she is not. 🙂 I decided to take lessons when I was diagnosed with RA as I thought it would be good therapy for my hands and heart. My first project was a prayer shawl for my sister-in-law who was going through chemo. I have been told that I knit left handed and backwards but it works for me and I love it. Yes yarn like fabric can be a bit addictive and I love the getting together to knit up with friends. I hope to learn crochet someday.
Glad you are okay from the earthquake and blessings on your beautiful family.
Sandy in Nevada