Boots! Who doesn’t love ’em? Let’s hear about your favorite pair! What were they made for?
What, you want to see my favorite pair? Okay, be ready to be wowed.
Boots! Who doesn’t love ’em? Let’s hear about your favorite pair! What were they made for?
What, you want to see my favorite pair? Okay, be ready to be wowed.
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
”
~ Mark Twain
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.’”
Column contents © Deb Bosworth. All rights reserved.
Being a farmgirl is not
about where you live,
but how you live.
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.
Column contents © Rebekah Teal. All rights reserved.
“Keep close to Nature’s heart … and break clear away once in awhile to climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods, to wash your spirit clean.
”
~ John Muir
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.”
Column contents © Cathi Belcher. All rights reserved.
“Wherever you go, no matter the weather, always bring your own sunshine.
”
~ Anthony J. D’Angelo
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.
Column contents © Dori Troutman. All rights reserved.
Previous Ranch Farmgirl,
Oct 2009 – Nov 2013
Wyoming cattle rancher and outpost writer (rider), shares the “view from her saddle.” Shery is a leather and lace cowgirl-farmgirl who’s been horse-crazy all of her life. Her other interests include “junktiques,” arts and crafts, glamping, collecting antique china, and cultivating mirth.
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.”
Column contents © Mary Murray. All rights reserved.
Farmgirl
is a condition
of the heart.
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!
Column contents © Alexandra Wilson. All rights reserved.
Previous Rural Farmgirl,
June 2010 – Jan 2012
Libbie’s a small town farmgirl who lives in the high-desert Sevier Valley of Central Utah on a 140-year-old farm with her husband and two darling little farmboys—as well as 30 ewes; 60 new little lambs; a handful of rams; a lovely milk cow, Evelynn; an old horse, Doc; two dogs; a bunch o’ chickens; and two kitties.
Previous Rural Farmgirl,
April 2009 – May 2010
René lives in Washington state’s wine country. She grew up in the dry-land wheat fields of E. Washington, where learning to drive the family truck and tractors, and “snipe hunting,” were rites of passage. She has dirt under her nails and in her veins. In true farmgirl fashion, there is no place on Earth she would rather be than on the farm.
Farmgirl spirit can take root anywhere—dirt or no dirt.
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”.
Column contents © Nicole Christensen. All rights reserved.
Previous Suburban Farmgirl,
October 2009 – October 2010
Paula is a mom of four and a journalist who’s partial to writing about common sense and women’s interests. She’s lived in five great farm states (Michigan, Iowa, New York, Tennessee, and now North Carolina), though never on a farm. She’s nevertheless inordinately fond of heirloom tomatoes, fine stitching, early mornings, and making pies. And sock monkeys.
I just found out that I need new riding boots and I do love my Ariats’ ! Mine look like yours and I have found that they are so comfy. Farm girls love boots. I was sitting here thinking and I have like 10 pair. I do love your red plaid ones though.
Rebekah..as a life-long country girl I say we must have our boots, but I must object to you calling my fav. pair of Ariats ugly! 🙂 I love, love,love mine but beauty is always in the eye of the beholder. They are light and warm and just make my feet feel beautiful. Thanks for a light-hearted trip down the country road. Nancy Sinatra was singing in my head all the way! Deanna
I love how many boots you have and how they are all meant for something different! Your dancing boots are my favorite. I obviously have snow boots because of where we live but I only own one pair of nice cowboy boots. They are more of a fancy wannabe cowboy boot! They are sparkling silver with lace and chains. I love to wear them with my leggings and short skirts. They are so fun to wear and make me feel like I am playing dress up.
My favorite boots are my Doc Martens – they are white leather with flowers painted all over them – they are very comfortable for old arthritic feet..and I wear them everywhere and just love them – my friends not so sure !!!
I don’t understand women who have multiple pairs of shoes but I do understand multiple pairs of boots! I have quite a collection myself. My current favorite pair a tobacco colored leather pair of Frye square toe harness boots. They go with everything! I do adore boots with skirts, dresses or shorts. I wear boots with everything. In fact, there have been numerous times when my friends asked me if I was going to wear boots to their weddings. Of course I did. I am so glad that those buffalo plaid plastic boots I sent you are such a conversation starter. I know if I saw you wearing those that I would probably stop and take notice. Wear them in health and happiness.
Ha! Have to laugh! You know who I am on my Idaho farm and I were the same type of boots to clean my stalls and coop!! Got my two pair at Costco! Very comfy and practical when shoveling poop! Ha! I need to try those Ariats ! Got square toed cowboy boots to ride my horse but not so comfy! Lookin for comfort now! Great post! Toooo funny about your friend telling you ,you look ridiculous! I bet you looked DAMM CUTE !!! Oh well! Anyway! Going to hug and kiss my horses now!! Yeeeeehaaaaw !!!
Love your boot collection, Rebekah! Each one fits the bill for what they’ll do.
Now you have me thinking about my boot collection. Let’s see. Well, I have my favorite red cowboy boots that I got this winter. They are red, an off brand and I only paid 19.99 for them. I wear them constantly when I go out, with leggings and jeans. Even some of the New Englander’s love them! 😉 My next faves are my snow boots. They are clunky but fleece lined and I wear the to get the mail, shovel snow, and out to the coop and to take the dogs out, and to the grocery store if I’m feeling like just bummin’. I also have some cute little half-boots in black with a buckle and a low heal that I also love to wear with long sweaters and legging’s or jeans. And finally my polka dotted garden boots that I got at tractor supply. I don’t really own many pairs of shoes. I have boots, flip flops and sandals, but I guess that makes sense for a Beach Farmgirl! Fun post!!! I love all of your boots. You are one prepared farm owner now!
Hugs,
Deb
OH! I forgot all about my other two pairs of boots… I have brown leather cowboy boots with rhinestones on the toe and heals!!! And a sassy little suede half boot in aged tan leather with a big buckle on the side…Okay, I think that’s all of them!