Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Ginger Dawn Harman!!!
Ginger Dawn Harman (#6451) has received a certificate of achievement in Make it Easy for earning a Beginner Level Let’s Get Physical Merit Badge!
“In January, I spoke with my doctors and received the approval to exercise at our local Health and Wellness Center associated with our hospital. I have been battling a left bundle branch block and pulmonary issues. After several tests and a couple of different inhalers, my health has stabilized. So, time to increase my physical fitness. For starters, I have set the goal to visit the gym four days a week. I also did the physical assessment and will do another one in three months. This will also be given to my internal medicine doctor. For weight loss, I have set the goal for 10 pounds. It is best for me to go slow and steady so I do not get discouraged. As for eating, let’s face it, I eat too much and eat terrible food.
Nevertheless, I am making it a goal to purchase more local and organic items. Oh, and eat less of it. I am really proud of the progress that I have made in my first month. I have lost four pounds and have tried several different classes such as Tai Chi, Water Aerobics, Interval Weight Training, and the machines on the main gym floor. I am a fan of the elliptical and recumbent bike. My favorite class is Water Aerobics, but today, I decided to step it up and do Aqua Boot Camp. Oh Lordy, my arms and calves are still feeling it. This was a good lesson to not jump into the harder classes when I am not ready.
I feel very fortunate that I am able to attend the Health and Wellness Center and look forward to my next doctor’s visit with my results. Even if you set a small goal, with 250 steps an hour, that is a start. To be honest, I take my health for granted, even though it is not perfect. Many would be more than happy to walk, swim, or ride a bike. When I get discouraged, I imagine that those who are not able to do these things sorta step into my body and go for it. I imagine their joy and happiness. This snaps me real quick out of my negative mood. I feel that sometimes, our biggest challenge is ourselves. Anyways, I am glad that I am taking the time to take care of my health and I encourage all to do the same.”
While I’ve never heard of an active volcano in Yosemite National Park, for a few days each February, you can catch a glimpse of a lava-like flow at Yosemite’s Horsetail Fall.
Horsetail Fall is spectacular enough on most winter or early spring days, when the seasonal waterfall makes a more than 2,000-foot drop down the east side of El Capitan. But on certain days in mid-February, the sun sets at a particular angle that illuminates the waterfall for a few minutes in stunning reds, oranges, and yellows, and turning it into something called a “firefall,” when you’d swear you were witnessing a river of hot lava flowing down the sheer cliff face. Hundreds of visitors come each year with cameras in hand, hoping to catch the perfect shot.
photo by Steve Corey via Flickr.com
A couple of weeks ago while looking out my office window, I noticed a similar phenomenon when a patch of sunlight hit a bend in the lane to my farm. I fantasized that if I were to stand in that gorgeous patch of glowing light, I would somehow be transported to other-worldly realms.
Thank you for dropping by my Raising Jane Journal to participate in my giveaways! We’ve chosen a winner for this giveaway already (click here for details), but don’t be afraid to leave a comment anyway. I love reading them. And stay tuned for more great MaryJanesFarm giveaways.
For a chance to win this pretty faux-lemon wreath, tell me in the comments below what you most look forward to when you sit down with an issue of MaryJanesFarm. I’ll toss your name into a hat and draw a lucky winner sometime mid-April.
You’ll find out how to grow lemon and lime trees indoors, as well as get lots of ideas for lemon-themed décor, in the Apr/May issue of MaryJanesFarm. Stay tuned for more magazine-related giveaways. If you’re not yet a subscriber to my magazine, MaryJanesFarm, subscribe here for $19.95/year.
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.
