It’s been over a month since the horrific tragedy in Newtown, CT. All of us here are asked frequently “How are you doing?” I can’t speak for how the families of the victims are; they remain in my daily thoughts and prayers. The rest of us are healing, as a whole, with the help and love of so many from around the world.
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”.
Thank you, Nicole, for sharing this update on how things are from someone who is actually living it, every day. Your perspective is helpful to me . . helps me know more about the reality and how to pray!
Our phone chat the other evening was also such a blessing! I’m so glad you called and we were able to "meet" over the phone. I appreciated, so much, what you shared with me then because, again, it helps me have a "reality" understanding.
I’m sooooo grateful to see the acts of kindness and caring!
Thank you, again! Hope to talk with you again, soon!
Hugs!
CJ
CJ, it was great fun "meeting" you on the phone. I still hope that we get to meet in person someday! You are always such an inspiration, and someone who really radiates kindness! Hugs from Connecticut, my Colorado friend! – Nicole
Hi Nicole,
What a wonderful perspective to point out to Audrey. Yes it was one evil person who changed everything for Newtown, but when we stop and look around us there are MANY beautiful people all around us with arms open wide, just waiting to love and comfort us.
I too, like CJ, was thrilled to get to "meet" you over the phone, and look forward to definitely meeting you in person one day soon! We are not that far away!
As always I really enjoyed this blog post, as it does indeed help those of us on the outside looking in understand how your community is healing, step by step, day by day. It warms my heart to see the goodness our fellow Americans are capable of.
Blessings to you and your community!
Farmgirl Hugs,
Laurie
Laurie, I thought of you and all your kindness, too, when writing this. I can’t wait to meet up soon! Big hugs, Nicole
Dear Nicole, As usual your post was great. I have been uplifted by the incredible outpouring of support for Newtown from all over the world. I wanted to tell you about the 26 candles everyone lit on Christmas Eve. That was begun by the daughter of my cousin, John Dee,of Bethel. Ashley posted the plan on Facebook and it spread like wildfire. The reason I wanted to tell you about her is that I am so proud of her efforts, and to let you know that those candles were burning nationwide that night. Newtown was wrapped in a huge hug from all over the country, and even though the candles are gone, the sentiment remains. Love to Ct. From Va., Meredith
Oh Meredith! How exciting…thank you for telling me this!! Your cousin’s daughter Ashley should be very proud of her efforts; it was a beautiful, wonderful idea and it was so peaceful and moving. Big hugs back to you in VA, and to Ashley. -Nicole
My mentor once said, "The best revenge is massive success." I believe the best tonic to cure a tragic event is to figuratively and literally reach out to comfort those who suffer so they realize they are never alone. Newtown and its citizens will always be in our hearts and their (your) survival is a message to us all. Bless you.
Beautifully said, Adrienne! Thank you! -Nicole
Nicole: I have your whole town in my heart and pray for you daily. Isn’t it great what LOVE can do. It’s the only thing that can overcome evil. God Bless.
Thank you Bonnie, hugs to you! -Nicole
Thank You for sharing what I am sure is such a tough time for all of you in Newtown. Your blog post made me smile and brought tears to my eyes at the same time. I am glad that the bits of kindness are continuing. I will continue to pray for those lost, and those left behind. Keep strong.
Sharon (a farmgirl wannabe)
Thank you Sharon! -Nicole
Thanks- for taking time to help us all understand. It is kind of you to share. My kids have been members of Sunbury Halter and Saddle 4H club for many years, Nici has been president for the past year and they wanted to make snowflakes to decorate the new school. The advisor heard that they had more than enough, so now they will be sending them to a local nursing home instead. We do community service projects every month of the year to help our kids understand paying it forward. How nice of you to share with us, how very small the world becomes sometimes. Thanks, Cheri
Hi Cheri, I heard that they had so many snowflakes, but that the school in Monroe that they are using looked so beautiful for those kids. I bet the nursing home will appreciate them, too. I used to volunteer at a nursing home in my early twenties, and it was something I will never forget. Thanks for sharing, Cheri. -Nicole
Nicole, I’m wishing right now I had words to express my feelings as I read your words full of wisdom, grace and kindness. The best I can do is say, "Thank you for sharing this today." God bless you, your family, friends and community. Keep looking at those seed catalogs…HOPE calms our souls…..Raynita
Oh, Raynita, thank you for your kind, sweet comment. – Nicole
I still pray everyday for you and your community’s continued healing.Hugs to all from someone who wishes she could do so much more for you and your community.I am glad other beautiful people continue to help you on this difficult journey.Blessings to all
Sue
Sue, thank you. Prayers are powerful! -Nicole
All of this and you still managed to knit that hat for my niece’s new baby on the way? I’m looking at that hat in a whole new way. Hope, healing and new life to you.
Patty
Oh Patty, you made me laugh! Thank you for being so patient with me during our farmgirl swap…I couldn’t believe halfway through the hat I had made the silliest mistake and had to start over! Not like me, at all! But I have to say, knitting is one of the most therapeutic activities I can think of, and always tell my knitting students that knitting is "my yoga". Knitting that hat definitely gave me something else to focus on. Big hugs to you! -Nicole
Hi Nicole, Wow you have been strong through this all. You are amazing. Thank you once again for your message-Be Kind! Sad that it has taken a tragedy for people to pull together, let us all remember we should be kind to one another. hugs to you and Audrey, hope to see you soon.
P.S. I am convinced Bonnie is a person in a furry dog suit.
Hugs and prayers for all the families affected by this tragedy.
Thank you, Barb! It was so great to see you and your sweet daughter and we hope to see you again soon.
As for Bonnie, I agree. She thinks so, too. 🙂 Big hugs, Nicole
Excellent writing,Nicole! Love, Mother
Thanks Mom! Hugs! Nicole
Thank You so much Nicole. Thank you for sharing. It is good to know that there are so many good people out there. Our farm is open to disadvantaged youth and children that have been abused and we try to share that there is good in the world but when young their world seems small. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Karin! -Nicole
Hi, i have read and will definitely bookmark your site, just wanted to say i liked this article.
Very nicely written, Nicole. It must represent the sentiments of every Newtowner.