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“
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
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.’”
Column contents © Deb Bosworth. All rights reserved.
Being a farmgirl is not
about where you live,
but how you live.
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.
Column contents © Rebekah Teal. All rights reserved.
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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.
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~ John Muir
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.”
Column contents © Cathi Belcher. All rights reserved.
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Wherever you go, no matter the weather, always bring your own sunshine.
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~ Anthony J. D’Angelo
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.
Column contents © Dori Troutman. All rights reserved.
Shery Jespersen
Previous Ranch Farmgirl,
Oct 2009 – Nov 2013Wyoming 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.
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.”
Column contents © Mary Murray. All rights reserved.
Farmgirl
is a condition
of the heart.
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!
Column contents © Alexandra Wilson. All rights reserved.
Libbie Zenger
Previous Rural Farmgirl,
June 2010 – Jan 2012Libbie’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.
René Groom
Previous Rural Farmgirl,
April 2009 – May 2010René 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.
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”.
Column contents © Nicole Christensen. All rights reserved.
Paula Spencer
Previous Suburban Farmgirl,
October 2009 – October 2010Paula 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.
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Archives
Today is THE Day
Today is THE day I shall FINALLY…
I’m building quite a list for this day.
I felt a sense of autumn this morning, just a brief whiff. It is still hot as blazes here, but this morning there it was: an ever-so-brief cool breeze. It visited only for a moment, but long enough to make me a promise: fall is right around the corner.
We have had hot and humid weather for months now. “I’m melting, I’m melting….” Just like the wicked witch. Do you know that I had to switch to water-proof mascara just because of the humidity in this area this summer? Brutal.
And my summer gardening endeavors, as I’ve already lamented, were disappointing.






Oh Rebekah!
I am totally bonkers just from reading your article. My last garden was three years ago. My son and i were standing in the garden talking. We both happened to gaze down at the same time. To my horror and to my son’s amazement, the slinking reptile could have cared less about our emotions. He just slithered politely around us, and went on with his snakely pursuits. Oh, just thinking about it puts chilly bumps on my chilly bumps!
I am very proud of you for taking this giant step today. I just hope that you have someone around keeping an eye on you …….. just in case!
My prayers are with you this morning, and i can’t wait to read your next post (hopefully not from a sanitorium!)
Thanks for the post (i think!)
Snakes – means transformation – your ready for a big change – It’s a terrific sign
I finally made my dad’s hot pepper sauce from the beautiful red anaheim and jalapeno peppers in my garden. I picked and cooked them yesterday, let them cool overnight and this morning made the sauce. I’ve been planning to do this for several years and ironically, today was THE DAY! It was even easier than I’d anticipated thanks to the Squeezo I wheedled out of my mom.
I grew the peppers from seed and have been waiting all summer for them to turn red. Happily, I have enough greenish red ones out there to make one more batch as soon as they fully ripen.
Today we celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary. We looked at how we thought and believed when we married and how we see things now…my, oh my. We see this day as the day that we are choosing each other again…more than ever.
Your garden sounds lovely, I think a snake also represents a healthy garden! I live in Auatralia, a place full of snakes. Everyone has a garden of some variety here and we do bump into them too. I asked my first aide course instructor how many people actually get bitten in the country each year, he said maybe a few and usually they are snake handlers. Maybe you could visit a reptile zoo and touch one.
I too have tackled an ok let’s do it job! Our whole yard needed cutting back. I now have three brush piles as big as cows to haul away or burn. Underneath I found a grapevine crying for space and some lemon grass which I replanted elsewhere. I also woman handled a noxious vine the size of my arm!
Enjoy your autumn planting and tilling. 🙂
Today I found out for sure that I will FINALLY be moving back to the country, after being a city dweller for 25 years. I am so looking forward to the trees, and the quiet, and the creek, and just walking aimlessly on the property and not encountering another single soul. Yes, I too don’t care for snakes. The bugs where I will be living are horrendous. But gosh it will so be worth living back on the family land, being able to plant whatever size garden i like, and maybe even having some farm animals. I have visions of a chicken coop, a milking cow for my old barn, and maybe finally I can get another cat (long story). So today, my soul feels like it can take a deep breath and knows that I will have my freedom once again.
I’m on tomorow already because it will be Sept. 1 and the weatherman says we’ll have some cool weather tomorrow. I will finally start working on my fall quilt table runners and and finish up a couple of small garden things.Ho,ho, who am I kidding finally is such a forboding word. Especially for a procrastinator.
Hi Rebecca,I have been melting like the wicked witch all summer too,it has been a strange year here weather wize,I fear an early fall and I still have so much work to get done.This morning it is raining so hard I got soaked head to toe,we needed the rain,around here all of the farmers hay is burning up.I have been overwelmed with work,and all of my fun projects have been put on the back burner,so starting today I am makeing a list when I get off of the computer of all of my top priorities.One is just to finish all the projects that I have started before I start any new ones.As for snakes,we had rattle snakes out at the farm when I was a kid we had rattlesnake round ups just like they do in Texas only I am in Mo.Daddy would cut the tails off and line them up on the kitchen counter to admire,and momma Hallie would throw a screamin hissy fit,and they would still be there a couple of weeks before she could talk him out of moveing them.I was scared to go into the kitchen at night coz I was afraid the darn things would come alive.We went to church 3 times a week and that preacher would preach hell fire and brimstone,and I was so scared,I thought that coz I admired boys that I was gonna for sure go to hell,and the cyotes would howl,and the lightnin would strike,and I just knew I was gonna go to hell,and that them snakes were all gonna come alive and eat me in the night just coz I lusted after boys.I actually ran over a rattler going fast down a hill once,it was streched out sun bathin,and I could,nt go home coz it was coiled,so I had to ride my bike all the way to the hay feild where daddy was working.He carried a pistol on the tractor so I rode the tractor with him back to the house,and he called my uncle freddy and they got a few men with gunny sacks and raided their dens.To this day I am terrorized of rattlers.We have not seen any for a while,but,daddy won,t kill a black snake,we tease him and say they are his pets.But,daddy says he has seen them fight,and kill a rattler.Sorry my comment is so long but but,I will write about it on my blog sometime soon,love ya,carol Branum Lamar Mo. themofarmersdaughter.blogspot.com
I am so proud of you Rebekah! I love snakes! They are very honest souls – no hidden agenda. They are on earth to grow and procreate and they pretty much keep to that unless they are threatened. Your post has set me to thinking – wondering what it is exactly that I’ve been waiting to do that it’s time to start. Loving that you are a city girl successfully living as a farmgirl, maybe that’s my challenge. I’ve been thinking that I "can’t" do that. Hmmm
Tractor Supply sells snake repellant and I am told it does not kill anything but repells as they do not like the smell. Good luck
SNAKES!!! I have the heeby jeebies now…eek. Brings back memories of one of the farm crew having a week stay at the hospital with an arm the size of a thigh after a copperhead bite. Be careful and good luck with the garden:)
My tomatoes went crazy. We had such a dismal start. Between our garden and my mother’s, mom canned 117 quarts of tomatoes. Yeah!! But no green beans, corn and very little peppers and cukes. The zuccs were okay and tasty but the gourds went nuts. We’ll have plenty of birdhouses to share come spring. Lucky for us only a couple of snake sitings. I too have a snake dance. It can be and has been performed in the car when one is spotted dead or alive on the road. I don’t try to run over them, that gives me the creeps. I, too don’t wish them dead but do not wish for them to be nearby. My day to finally do something since the heat let up was yesterday. I had weeds 10ft. tall. Just for fun I yelled timber when I cut them down. Might as well have a good time when you can, even when you’re working hard. Happy Fall Clean UP to all.
We just finished our basement and I found a small rat snake hiding underneath on of those inflatable mattresses. After I got through screaming for my husband..he never hears me call him from the basement, but he did this time he picked it up and carried it out to the woods. Yep.. I’m looking at storm doors now…seem’s he slipped underneath the door because the jam has a small opening.
En esto algo es. Los muchas gracias por la ayuda en esta pregunta.