You’ve Got Mail

“I just found your website and I can’t wait to scour it with a fine tooth comb! I started renovating a 1972 Frolic last spring and I am planning to finish up the work this spring. Still trying to get to the bottom of a bathroom leak before I button the inside work up and move to the outside. Can’t wait to paint her pink and white. Thought you might want a sneak peak of my work, so I’ve included a few photos of my renovation.

I’ve also included a link to photos I took of all the vintage campers at the Tin Can Tourists Vintage Camper Show that was in the Finger Lakes last fall. Great inspiration! Looking forward to celebrating International Glamping Weekend with the rest of the girls!”

Eileen
The Joy of Caking

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Thanks for the e-mail, Eileen, and for your photos below. They are fantastic. Let the countdown to International Glamping Weekend begin!

Here are some before and after pictures of Eileen’s Pink Paradise:

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Relaxation Merit Badge

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 4,690 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—6,500 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

For this week’s Make It Easy/Relaxation Merit Badge, I thought I had it made in the shade. That’s right, girls, how hard can it be to relax?! I mean, seriously, this badge was in the bag, so to speak.

I was blindsided however, by the sneaky difficulty of relaxing. The insidious lurking feeling that I must be doing something. The niggling notion that I couldn’t turn my brain off.

I first realized how hard this was going to be on me when I found myself with my Blackberry in hand, scheduling my five-minute period of relaxation.

Um, grammar isn’t my strong suit, but isn’t that some sort of oxymoron, or something? Like a jumbo shrimp, or all-natural artificial flavor, or “a little bit pregnant,” or specifically vague?

Sighing at how in over my noggin I was, I scheduled my five minutes of relaxation right after my Hot Yoga class, but before my appointment at the The Doggy Beauty Parlor. Ms Twinkles is overdue for a grooming and a toenail clipping. I swear, that dog takes tap dancing to a whole new height on my hardwood floors at 3 a.m.  My Pomeranian thinks she’s Gene Kelly.

I found myself looking forward all day to my appointment with Relaxation. That’s right, I thought of Relaxation as a person I was meeting. Perhaps a long lost girlfriend, or a grandmotherly type, or a tanned cabana boy … ahem. Back to the badge at hand!

After Hot Yoga, I kinda wished I’d scheduled a few minutes to die properly. I had sweated away buckets, which sadly, in the world of physical fitness, meant I probably worked off half a blueberry muffin (sans butter). But, no matter! I had time to shower off, and then I found a perfect spot to meet with my elusive and mysterious Relaxation.

Evidently, Relaxation is not a punctual guy. I laid down in my favorite recliner and waited for him to arrive. Would he be soothing and gentle? Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound? Have a pencil thin mustache? My mind whirled. My thoughts swirled.

I. Could. Not. Find. The. Off. Switch. To. My. Brain.

ARGH! Stop thinking, Jane! I told myself, fiercely. Just relax! Relax! RELAX RIGHT NOW!

This badge was going to take longer than five minutes. This whole process was new to a get up and go kinda girl. I was lost. I decided to research a bit on the benefits of relaxation and the health hazards of stress. Turns out, the smartest, most successful, and happiest people in the world know the importance of little things like:

  • saying “No” occasionally
  • not over-committing
  • getting a full night’s sleep (No, not just on the weekends! Every night!)
  • recognizing what stresses you out and eliminating it
  • surrounding yourself with your definition of beauty

Huh! Who knew, right? I always figured the most successful people were the ones running around like chickens with their heads cut off, having a million and one things to do, and people to hire to do it! Maybe after I redefine what relaxation means to me, I can redefine what success means to me …

Whoa. Getting deep here. Suddenly, I felt a weight off my chest. I felt lighter. More energized. Less stressed. Could it be *gulp* that I did it?! I calmed down, and (dare I say it?) relaxed?

And I didn’t even have to schedule it this time.

Self-sufficiency

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 4,690 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—6,500 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

Now that I’ve cultivated my green thumb with my ever-so-lovely herb garden, it was time to dry some herbs and package them as gifts for this beginner-level Self-Sufficiency Badge. There’s nothing better than a DIY gift, I always say, and these were going to be fabulous.

My marjoram and thyme and basil were pretty much out of control. Those babies were over-running my kitchen windowsill. They were like weeds, only much more fragrant and tasty. They grew at a phenomenal rate, kinda like the plant in Little Shop of Horrors, only they hadn’t eaten anyone (yet).

My parsley was a little peaked, I must confess, and my cilantro was hit and miss. I also had a couple of different kinds of oregano, a rosemary tree (that I may or may not have to decorate), and a gorgeous batch of velvety sage, not to mention some beautiful dill that had me craving pickles every time I walked by.

I’m telling you what, girls, if you want your home to smell like a Williams-Sonoma store or a Yankee Candle shop, then get thee to a seed store, posthaste! My kitchen always smells amazing, if I do say so myself (and I do).

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You’ve Got Mail!

“We love your magazine, it’s refreshing after a day of mud and manure at the barn, followed by laundry and dishes (sometimes mud and manure too) at the house.

We have 30-acres in West Virginia, complete with geese, ducks, chickens, cattle, and an occasional lamb or turkey. These are our girls washing their now-grown bottle baby, ‘Rocky,’ before the county fair. They, and my son are truly country kids.

This was our daughter’s first showmanship class. Hope you can use these pics somewhere.”

Kelly

photo-of-the-day

Build It Green Merit Badge

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 4,690 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—6,500 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

For this week’s Beginner Level Make It Easy/Build It Green Merit Badge, I’m going green in my decorating. At first, yes, I may or may not have thought that meant a green theme, as in the color green, as in sage, pea soup, lime, forest, emerald, etc. But I quickly wrapped my brain around what it really meant: responsible, earth friendly, no regrets, kind of green. I knew that!

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Hear Ye!

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Marsha Gulick!

Marsha (Osagegypsy, #2988) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an expert Level Horse Dreams badge!

“In 2005 I bought four Gypsy Horses with the savings my father left me. He always wanted to give me a horse, so I knew this was a good investment for me. I researched the Gypsy Breed, sometimes called Vanners or Cobs; and where it originated in the UK. I joined a forum and learned SO much from the folks I met there. After researching and buying Gypsy Horses, the REAL learning started. I read books, The Soul of a Horse, Foaling books and magazines.

We now own 10 horses and have raised and sold a number of them.

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Nellie Will-Do, Part II

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 4,690 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—6,500 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

In Part I of this beginner level Stitching and Crafting Nellie Will-do Badge, I gathered all my supplies for my “What Not to Sit Upon” upholstery makeover. Then I got hungry and took a break. Now, we’re ready to roll. Staple gun in hand, I’m all business.

Speaking of the staple gun, that thing is a beast! My thumbs will be sore for weeks, I do believe. (My texting is really going to suffer. I may have to *gasp!* call someone! Like, with my voice. I’m not sure I remember how to do that. Why, I haven’t held a phone to my ear in, like, forever.) Also, it’s quite loud—the gun, I mean. When I finally got it to fire correctly, I screamed and ducked and nearly ran for cover. Of course, I’ve been watching too many crime dramas, so I may have thought for a moment I was in the middle of a drive-by.

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Hear Ye!

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Krystle Townsend!

Krystle Townsend (countrymommy85, #2595) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning an expert level Going Green badge!

“I’ve been making my own soaps now for just over a year now. We use homemade cleaners for the house also. We strictly use a clothesline and drying rack in the summer and use the drying rack in the winter and use the dryer only when necessary. If we re-paint we will ONLY use non-toxic paint. We removed all the carpet from our house and have tile and hardwood floors now! I’ve helped my family (more than the required 10 hours) be self sufficient and green clean! I’ve offered my books and materials to help even further.

It has been a slow process but one well worth it. After removing the carpet, I was shocked to see how much dirt and nastiness was hiding underneath!!! So glad that germ and gas trap is gone. It is neat to see how much healthier and peaceful your house becomes without chemical cleaners. It almost seems they are a stimulant of some sort. Nothing like putting on clean clothes in the morning and being able to smell the sunshine on them.”


Nellie Will-Do, Part I

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 4,690 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—6,500 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Wondering who I am? I’m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my former life

This is a beginner level Stitching and Crafting Merit Badge that made my living room smile. Hello dolly!, did my living room need a makeover, stat. The problem? My furniture all had good bones (after all, it’s been handed down for generations, mostly from the original Dream House), but the upholstery was …

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