And the WINNER is:
Lisa B!!!
who said October 14, 2013 at 11:51 am:
And he indeed looks happy too. Would love to win this featured piece.Watch for an email from the farm, Lisa B.
Congratulations. You are the owner of a signature Magnolia Pearl Beautiful Wear.
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Debbie Platt!!!
Debbie Platt (GardenGirl50, #5353) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner & Intermediate Level Gaining Ground Merit Badge!
“As a Master Gardener I have learned lots about composting. I have been to Sonoma Compost twice to learn about composting. Sonoma Compost is a wonderful program operated by our county waste management. They turn everyone’s green waste (curb pick-up) into OMRI listed organic compost.
After I became a Master Gardener (in 2011), my husband and I built a permanent composting system. It has three sections that are about 3x3x4. We have about an acre and a half of gardens and trees. So we have lots of materials for me to compost. I have a little chipper so I can shred up what I prune from my garden. I add all my vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, egg shells, and I shred paper, newspaper, light weight cardboard and add that. I have chickens so I have chicken manure to add. I get a full wheelbarrow about three times a year to put back in my gardens.
It has been great to have the 3 bin composting system. It is a lot easier to manage. I love that I rarely if ever have to buy compost. With my homemade compost I know what is in it.”
“I think, at a child’s birth, if a mother could ask a fairy godmother to endow
it with the most useful gift, that gift should be curiosity.”
-Eleanor Roosevelt
Now that you’ve read my book, Glamping with MaryJane, you need to find a fabulous place to get your campin’ glam on, right?
We’re back for our 15th and final day of where to glamp in 2013, or well, 2014.
In some parts of the country,
where we’re already getting a taste of the season’s first snow …
Photo courtesy of George Tuli via Wikimedia Commons
we’re bidding adieu to the glamping season until next spring.
Photo courtesy of Besopha via Wikimedia Commons
But in the heartland, there’s still time to sneak in one last trip
(or, heck, maybe TWO if you’re a glamper with gusto!),
and I have the perfect destination:
Hoot Owl Hill.
Sounds like a hoot, doesn’t it?
Well, gather up a gaggle of girlfriends and head on out to the golden hill country of Paola, Kansas, because Hoot Owl Hill is gussied up and ready for glampers.
Photo courtesy of Hoot Owl Hill
“Imagine arriving at your campsite under the stars, entering your spacious bell tent set up with a comfy bed complete with linens and cozy quilts, a couple of chairs, some soft lighting enhancing the beautiful color of the tent,” invite Hoot Owl hosts Brenda and Steve Wrischnik. “Someone has already built a fire for you, and per your request, prepared a delicious garden-fresh meal. You spend the night under the stars, surrounded by the sounds of nature.”
Photo courtesy of Hoot Owl Hill
While you’re “on the hill,” you can also sign-up for a variety of classes that run throughout the year, including yoga, cooking, gardening, and crafting. Coming up in November, the folks at Hoot Owl Hill are offering The Heart Intelligence Code with Cheryl Wilken (November 10) and Papa Hoot’s Special Cracker Cooking Class (November 16).
While we’re on the subject of board games
(if you’re scratching your head, visit my recent Farming Game entry to catch up),
Classic Monopoly fans may—or may not—enjoy this twist on tradition:
That’s right: Commonopoly.
While countless Monopoly spin-offs have flooded the market in recent years, none is quite like this one.
Not only is it basically a DIY game (check out playing instructions on the Big Hope website), but it also scraps the whole notion of monopolization altogether.
But, wasn’t that the point?
Not anymore.
“Commonopoly demands that players brainstorm alternative economic systems through activities placed around the board,” explains Sydney Brownstone of Co.Exist. “The players move counter clockwise, as per the instructions, and subsequent creative acts are to be documented in booklets later distributed to the public. Much of the game focuses on coming up with ideas for public spaces, as well as sharing home remedies for common ailments.”
Bringing social consciousness into a game built on power play?
I’m game!
Buy props used in MaryJane’s books and magazine!
5% of profits will benefit www.firstbook.org, a non-profit that provides new books to children from low-income families throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Here’s how:
MaryJane will post a photo and a description of a prop and its cost along with a few details as to its condition here: https://shop.maryjanesfarm.org/MaryJanesCurations. It’s a playful way to be the new owner of a little bit of farm herstory.
