Beauty in ordinary objects can be easily overlooked. You can’t see subtleties from a galloping horse; you have to take up the reins and slow your soul down.
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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”.
Thank you, Shery, for your wise words this morning. It is my day off from work and your words reminded me of a field trip in the country that I have wanted to do for quite some time and had forgotten about. Today is the day!! Thank you so much and God Bless.
I love nature. I love rocks, their color textures. I love watching turd rollers, lady bugs. You find a lot of enjoyment if you stop and see, really see the fine things around you. Even in the city you can find small things of wonder.
WOW, I have only recently started receiving all the blogs and find myself so appreciating all the sharing. We live on 21 acres and are currently in a yurt with an outdoor bath house, outdoor kitchen and a composting toilet. We gather around the fire each morning for breakfast, the crew and my husband and I and again at lunch and once more for supper. I always find myself marveling at the simplest of things. Morning dew, fire heat, hummingbirds, flowers…and yet due to our city life, where we are the owners of 6 restaurants (all use the produce we grow on the farm), so many people ask me "do you like living this simply?" … I notice I NEVER ask myself that question, instead I find myself often asking, "what was it that sent us all indoors?" Thanks for putting beautiful words to such dear things in life. I am starting to save the hair from my brush TODAY! Gratefully, Terces
Hi Sherry,Don’t you feel sorry for people that haven’t figured this all out yet? I do. I have been extremely blessed to of had parents that taught me all about nature, and a grandmother who put wild lettuce on her ham sandwiches, and made us sassafras tea to drink. Our home was filled with a library of books about nature, books on trees, mushrooms, birds etc. .We also received magazines like Rodale’s Organic Gardening, Mother Earth News and National Geographic. We still refer to our library after 50 years. I have a lot to be thankful for. Thank you for your blog, have a great day blessed be. Carol Branum, Lamar MO. themofarmersdaughter@blogspot.com
You are so right about this and good to remind us! One thing I love about getting out of the ‘burbs is seeing the SKY, which (along with a good beach) is my favorite, endlessly changing thing to look at.
Shery, I can picture you out on the plains, riding easily along with a knowing smile on your face; saying hello to nature. What a wonderful thought. I don’t have a horse now but I travel the paths by foot and you’re right, I am a child, the child that is inside us all. I love to watch earthworms wriggling in the fresh earth. I see eagles and hawks everyday and thank God for his autograph. Thanks for reminding all of us to really "see".
Bonnie
I appreciate the words of wisdom. I love nature, especially in the mountains. My family and I are nature lovers and relationship lovers, the things that last. Have a blessed day.
How true your words are! I am a seer…as is my mother, mother in law, my husband and our two home schooled children. Beauty is everywhere! How is it that so many folks have stopped seeing? It is those of us who see and appreciate that must bring this to light for others…I’m a high desert girl (transplanted in America’s home town) and I love seeing the rustic western photo’s on your blog…I can smell the sage if I look long enough! Thanks for shining bright from the Ranch!
Debbie
This is such a beautiful gift that was given to you be your grandfather, this is one of the reasons we make it a point to include our family in almost everything.
I really have enjoyed reading your blog! I hope that you have a very Blessed Holiday Season.
-Amy
Beautiful photos, such beautiful photos. The red combo (holidayish) and the all white-ish of the winter pony, faded window, barbed wire and lamb. It is always a good time to become small again, to pay attention, but this time of year more than any other.
I so enjoy your posts! They make me miss my ‘cowgirl’ days of riding and feeling the wind in my hair. I look forward to more of your posts and wish you many blessings this holiday season.
Thanks for sharing the memories of your grandfather. It brought to mind my father. I was a urban girl all my life. But Daddy would come home and tell of the things he found or saw that day. Such as a pond hidden in the middle of the city (small city). I remember I was walking to High School one day and down along the creek were herons, walking along the creek bed. Here it was first thing in the morning and I could hardly wait to tell Dad. When he got home from work I told him of my find. He was excited for me. Seeing and sharing has been a part of my life for ever. Thank you Dad for starting me on this adventure. And thank you for stirring this memory.
Happy Holidays, Laurel