Spring has sprung and so have I … into action, that is. We’re not dormant in the winter, but ranch activity moves into high gear beginning with calving time. Then, there are all the other activities (and fun things) we’ve been waiting to get back into when the weather permits you to once again spend as many daylight hours OUTSIDE. Finally, that time is here …
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Just yesterday, Anita (farmgirl pal – below), suggested we better get to making some Summer 2013 glamping plans. I agreed … we need to visit with the other “glampfire girls” about dates & places. We’ve got our sights set on location #1 for a June road trip. Hmmmmm, where else???
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MaryKay says: Just read the article GlampFire Girls and loved it. It brought back many happy memories of my childhood. My folks owned a Shasta years ago.
Teresita Williams says: Awesome! I wish I was a mouse tagging along in your camper:)
Well heck…. Wild at Heart Farmgirls just got back from their little glampout but I must say YOU Glampfire Gals are AMAZING! Such cool little rigs and fixed up just the way I like ’em!
Sure wish you all were closer to us! We’d have the best time!
Can’t wait:) I long for a campfire dinner and some laughs with friends:). See y’all soon!
I have been playing & tidying up in both of my lil vtg. trailers,,, accompanied by my little Peekaboo kitty…
My 1st Glamping trip is May 30-June 2… there will be 44 of us Glamperette Divas,,, hitting the trails(HWY) for a fun 4 days of Glamping, Glampfires and Shopping till we are dropping! lol!
This will be our 5th year camping for the annual Farm Chick Show at the Spokane Fairgrounds…
Wagons HO and Happy Trails….. to you all!
Jan says: We are still trying to get ready for a vintage trailer rally in Roslyn, WA, the middle of June. This will be our first and I still have to get my curtains completed. It seems that the search for decorative items was more fun than the actual curtain making….
Jan says: Oh, sounds like so much fun!! I don’t have a camper yet, the old ones are hard to come by here.
Happy glamping!!
Now I’m homesick. You Wyoming glamper gals sure do know how to tramp in style. I was just out fussing in my Airstream and getting itchy also. Happy trails to all of you.
Debbie says: Hey there Shery! Well, if I was out with my sisters in the west I’d surely pack an over night bag and be a tag a long on your glamp outs. I’ve not found my little shasta glamper as of yet.. It rains A LOT here in New England and I’m concerned my little tin can just might rust before I could get her out on the open road. However, I recently discovered Shepherds Huts in my English Garden Magazine and fell in love…The idea is similar…but meant more for parking in the yard…
Our little beach cottage is our destination of choice when the weather turns nice.. but I personally love the idea of my own little escape in the back yard!
I know you girls will have a hay hoe time! Enjoy!
Deb
Brenda says: Enjoyed your article…I’m ready to go Glamping! Bessie’s Back-pack is too.
BarbB says: By Hill country, are you meaning TEXAS Hill country??? I’m loving your plans-hubby not onboard with my dream. just retired to Georgetown,TX.
Carry on ladies, wish I could go…
JoAnn Groth says: I love your Cabin in Can! Where did you get the lettering or was it hand painted on? JoAnn
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Hi Joann, The letters are decals, made by a gal here in town that has a decal machine. All you have to do is download the font style and you can make letters & silhouette images. I was going to hand-paint the letters in a log style, but when I heard about the decals…well, it was a no-brainer. They are not expensive to buy and it would have taken me a couple of days to paint the letters. Thank you! Shery
As the old saying goes, “If it isn’t one thing, its another.” The cliche isn’t associated with positive “things” either. Trials and tribulation is as much a part of the human experience as breathing. And so it has been for us this calving season. Winter-like weather has cost us about 25 calves thus far. But, in the midst of wearying problems, you sometimes lift your eyes and help arrives via the hearts & hands of caring friends.
So it was one day last week …
Judy says: What a lovely story of Amazing Grace. It is truly gratifying when you can help a little one along. We raise sheep and have had an opportunity or two to help them out. Amazing Grace is lovely in every way. Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.
bonnie ellis says: Shery: What a heartwarming story everyone. Grace is truly adorable. It was nice to meet Beth too. Shery,you have very special friends.
Minnesota is full of snow too. We all need sunshine and warm weather. It’s May, er, I think it is. Think warm.
Marion says: I love what you all did for this baby and her name is so perfect. I’m looking forward to watching her grow.
Sukochi Lee says: I guess Grace will suck your fingers too, as a baby calf once did mine. She is, indeed, a beautiful bovine.
Joan says: My my oh the memories of the farm/ranch life you have brought back to me. What a beauty she is – isn’t it something how some of them are so beautiful. We had snow/freezing on May 1st but it is mostly gone now and we are to get warmer soon. Looking forward to the popping up of the bulbs and being able to get outside. Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience. God Bless
This is an absolutely wonderful story! I can so identify with all your actions and feelings. Very similar here only with goats… I too lost about 25 kids when it didn’t get above freezing…terrible. BUT then you have those with births and the kids help to lessen the blow a bit. You put into words so perfectly how it feels to be a "farmgirl"! All the best to you and Amazing Grace!!!
Amazing Grace, Oh how sweet the sound
And the face! Love this happy ending. Since I grew up in farm country in Indiana I have a completely different picture when it comes to cows. My grandfather was a dairy farmer, I have probably said this before, but there was no open range just fenced in pasture areas. Spring has finally came to Michigan also. Just last week we got up to snow one morning. And the rain and floods in the Grand Rapids area were something else. We live about an hour north of there and our ponds are overflowing. But we will be glad of it this summer because one of the ponds waters our vegetable garden. I am ready for the warm weather and for the green grass. The hens have been out of the run and enjoying the yard and following me around which makes me smile. Your chair looks very inviting and a wonderful place to put your feet up at the end of the day with a good book or magazine.
Donna says: My heart loves reading your post! I so miss my country home and 60 goats, my horse and chickens. I love the name Amazing Grace!!!! Thank you for shareing. Helps me wait just a little longer for home.
Donna
Rhonda Sjolund Smith says: Truly loved this story! What a wonderful outcome. I’m so sad that you lost some of these previous babies. Hopefully Spring is here to stay! Best wishes to you as you progress through your calving season.
Lacey says: Amazing is LIFE, and we are so lucky to be reminded of this once a year during those magical months of calving!! We have also seen a few nice days up here just north of the border, enough though that an unfortunate grass fire broke out and burned 15, 000 acres of native prairie land, luckily no one was hurt and no homes were destroyed, Grasslands National Park will have an interesting summer as the animals return to the land and begin to rebuild their homes. Anyway I thought you might like to read about it if you haven’t already, as I remembered reading one of your posts last summer about the horrible fires!! Take Care, best of luck with the remainder of your calving season!!
Lacey
Linda says: Oh my goodness what a survival story. Amazing Grace is a beautiful little girl – and yes, as all good country girls know – cows can be beautiful. So good to hear Momma decided she made a bad decision and was willing to take her baby back for a fresh start. Looking forward to stories of this Amazing Grace.
I always love love your incredible posts and this one takes the cake! Love that amazing little Gracie!
Victoria says: I’m teared up once again. Golly Shery! I always know your post are gonna be a tear jerker! Whether it’s for joy or sorrow, you get right to the heart of this ol’ farmgirl. I’ve raised many calves on the bottle. When they thrive, it’s so joyful and when they didn’t, oh my…don’t even want to think about it. I felt like I was right there with you gals, helping that baby stay in this world of ours. Thank you for another wonderful story from Wyo.
Terry Fansler says: Shery,
You can not imagine how your stories touch me so deeply. Amazing Grace is amazing and Ribbon is adorable! You tell the stories of your life with such love and compassion. You inspire me in so many ways. I live in South Carolina on an island. Spring is a bit different here but we wait it for it with anticipation. Our winters are very mild but Spring still represents new beginnings in our garden and in our wildlife. The newborn deer are now emerging and they are adorable. I want to hug them. My favorite part of Spring is May when the Loggerhead sea turtles return to our beaches to nest. I am very involved in the Seabrook Island Turtle Patrol and walk the beaches daily looking for new nests. When July comes, the nests start hatching and I head the inventory team collecting data on the hatched nests. Our little hatchlings are adorable – you can hold them in the palm of your hand. Someday they will weigh as much as 300 pounds! We have a dolphin pod which lives in our shore waters. Their babies are now appearing too! It is wonderful here and this island and its way of life is my passion. I look forward to more of your posts. Thank you so much for sharing them! Terry Fansler – Seabrook Island, SC
Katie M. says: This story was oh so familiar! Here in Mn we have had rain rain and more rain. The mud was up to the cows bellies and was stickier then ever! While changing fences my husband and I can upon a calf stuck in the mud. I mean STUCK!! After pushing and tugging and shoving we finally got him out. Got him dried off and fed and settled in for the night. Back to the fence and wouldn’t you know a Mamma was caught kicking her twin baby off the teat. Another rescue and back to that dang fence! "Muddy Waters" baby is back with the herd and the orphan baby is still being fed and coddled. ( For now at least).Never a dull moment on the farm and always way too much work!
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”.
I’m new to your blog and must tell you how much I enjoyed this post. I live in the country surrounded by pines and oaks, and your way of life is fascinating to me. In deep southeast Texas, sometimes we have way too much rain. I wish I could send it to you. Thanks for sharing your life with us.
Thanks for the vicarious high plains journey while I had MY morning cup of brew. I could almost smell the sage. It’s a smell I miss. I grew up in sage country but there isn’t any where I live now. Whenever I’m on the road and start to see sage again, I stop the car and darn near roll in it. I want my hands, my clothes, everything to smell like sage. Lucky you!
Ah, I so look forward to your postings!! and this one is right up there on special. Love to see your wonderful ‘rusty’s’ and how pretty you plant them. I too use all the rose moss I can get – old childhood memory. So glad you are so far along in the growing. Yea for the rain, green is great. Again thanks for sharing your space. God Bless
Shery … As usual, another great post. First of all, I’m so happy that you finally got some rain and have some green around you again. What a relief! Secondly, I love all the old, rusty stuff you have around. Thanks for sharing all the beautiful photos and stories about life in your part of the world. I’m also glad that you are bonding with Ribbon and beginning to feel more confident riding. Ahhh … the lessons we learn at this age! Carol from Pennsylvania
What a great post. I too live on some open plains but our mountains are much closer, Half Dome in Yosemite Natl. Park being part of the scenery. Alas, our green has disappeared and we are looking at another year of little rain. It isn’t the first and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Thanks again for the "refreshing" photos.
Shery, I love reading about your Wyoming life. We raise cattle in Missouri, but it is much different than what you experience. And I just recently regained my courage on a horse – or at least I’m working on it. I’ve had a few bad experiences and a broken elbow, and last weekend, I too used the Lord’s prayer to calm me down and get back in the groove. We were on a trail ride, and half way through I could finally feel myself calm down. Thanks for sharing!
🙂
Ahhh! Spring! It was here…then snow, now close to 90 degrees! New Hampshire (northern NH) is very much like your weather and growing season. Short. Planted beans this morning. And zucs and cucs. Small space but God always gives me a place to plant. And, I watered the tomatoes in my jammies this morning! Thanks, Shery, I do so love reading your life here.
Hi Shery, Another great post and wonderful pictures. You always brighten up my day. 🙂
I can sure identify with the confidence thing. My left knee has been bad for quite some time and now my right hip is giving me a lot of pain and making it very difficult to climb stairs and even walk some days. So working with my two horses and riding now I find myself having some confidence issues too. Thank the Lord that I have a good relationship with both of them. My mare, who is half arab with some fire, seems to knows when I am not feeling the best and becomes a really good girl. 🙂
Looking forward to your next post.
Happy Spring!!