I’m calling you out!!!! On a roll … call, here’s where you can read about the amazing accomplishments of Sisters who earn Merit Badges. “Hear YE!”
The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,571 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—9,327 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 …
To help my sweetie-pie neighbor, Piper, earn her Beginner Level Garden Gate/Get Buggy Merit Badge, I devised a sneaky plan.
Well, maybe it wasn’t sneaky, but it sure was clever (if I do say so myself … and I do).
You see, like a lot of little ones—especially the female ones—Piper wasn’t overly fond of insects. Maybe it was their spindly little legs; maybe it was their ability to appear when they’re least wanted; maybe it’s because her brother, Joey, likes to toss them on her head … well, whatever the reason, I was bound and determined to change Piper’s outlook on all things buggy.
photo by Dominik Stodulski via Wikimedia Commons
We started with a scavenger hunt (the ones we can’t find in our area, we simply looked up online). That’s right, a scavenger hunt of the bug variety! No little kiddo can resist a scavenger hunt. Golly, I can’t resist one either, actually … which explains why I was up in an oak tree chasing a fuzzy caterpillar earlier this afternoon.
MBA Jane’s Buggy Hunt
A. Ladybug
B. Bumblebee
C. Dung beetle
D. Silkworm
E. Cochineal
F. Blowflies
G. Honeybee
H. Fruit flies
Next, we matched the bugs to their helpful qualities:
1. Let’s hear it for pollinators!
2. Eats … um, poop. Well, somebody’s gotta do it, right?!
3. This guy helps scientists in the laboratory with genetics and biology, though they don’t make white lab coats small enough for him.
4. Can you say ‘honey,’ and ‘beeswax?’
5. We appreciate these bugaboos for producing red dye for clothing, lipstick, and food. Although we really only appreciate the cloth part … ugh for the other two!
6. Eats aphids. Better them than us!
7. Makes silk for cloth. Gotta love a set of decadent silk pillowcases on a hot summer’s night. Thanks, buggies.
8. Doctors use these handy bugs—that are members of the maggot family—to help stop infections. Wow!
At the end of our little hunt and educational bonding time, Piper and I felt like real entomologists. We had a brand-new love and gratitude for the tiniest members of the animal kingdom (although we couldn’t find a good reason for the existence of cockroaches or mosquitoes, no matter how hard we tried).
And we barely jumped at all when Joey flicked a few Daddy Long Legs at us.
photo by James Petts via Wikimedia Commons
*Answers to Jane and Piper’s Entomology Hunt
A/6
B/1
C/2
D/7
E/5
F/8
G/4
H/3
Winnie Nielsen says: I got 5 correct, which is better than I thought it would be. Looks like I need to spend more time learning about these everyday insects!
Karlyne says: Blowflies are used by doctors to stop infection? Now that’s something I had no idea of!
feeling buggy, got em all right-yayay-used to have a gorgeous antique woven coverlet that was cochineal dyed- wonderful magenta kind of color
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Marcia Neigebauer!!!
Marcia Neigebauer (marcian12, #5947) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning a Beginner, Intermediate & Expert Level Entrepreneurial Spirit Merit Badge!
“I dreamed of owning a Bed and Breakfast. My dream came to being in 2013. I worked on marketing the Inn and have so many guests looking for rooms, that I than dreamed of buying the house next door to add rooms. I have found some financing in place for the short term. I am working on my expenses and marketing our Inn.
On Tuesday, July 14, we will be able to purchase the home next door and will need to work very fast to have rooms ready at the end of the month. I am very excited about the rooms we are already booking into the new addition. Our website is DelanoInn.com. We are also adding an apartment over the garage on the property next door.”
Winnie Nielsen says: Marica, your B&B is fabulous!! Wow, what a beautiful and historic place you have pulled together. Congratulations on getting your dream to become a successful reality too! I am sure it has been a lot of hard work coordinating all the aspects of running a business. I am delighted that you have bookings coming in and I wish you all the best with adding the home next door to the mix. If I ever get up to your area, I will be sure to book a room and visit. It all looks so cozy and welcoming!
The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,487 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—9,234 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 Garden Gate/Rootin’ Tootin’ Intermediate Level Merit Badge, I was excited to learn more about new my newfound buddies, the unassuming and oh-so-humble root vegetable. Not just learn more, but eat more, too (sorry, friends).
First of all, I planted my own: one super-neato thing about growing your own is how easy it is. Sign me up for that, since my green thumb tends to be more on the dingy grey side (but I’m learning). I decided to try beets and radishes because they don’t mind cold temperatures and they grow super-fast. I’m all about instant gratification, okay? Don’t judge.
Both are perfectly content to grow in my area and environment, so make sure you know what’s happy and native to your area before you pick your own. It’s never the most fabulous idea to force and transplant something that doesn’t belong, right? But don’t let those parameters stop you or give you pause; after all, even if carrots seem to be your best bet, did you know there are purple and yellow and even black varieties? Gorgeous and munch worthy, to say the least.
My radishes were ready—seed to picking—in as little as 20 days. I told you I was all about the instant gratification, didn’t I?
Here’s what I did with my radishes and beets:
Roasted Radish “Chips”
Thinly slice radishes and toss with olive oil. Spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Roast at 375°F for about 20 minutes (time will vary, based on how thin the slices are and how your oven cooks), flipping once or twice. Five minutes before finished, toss with Parmesan cheese and bake until golden.
Flavor variations: use pink Himalayan salt and fresh dill instead of garlic salt and Parm. Or try a sweet and savory combo, like tossing with honey and cinnamon!
Radish Pickle Salad (Cuz everything is better in pickle form, am I right?)
Arrange thinly sliced radishes in your prettiest bowl. Toss with apple cider vinegar (any vinegar will work, but balsamic might turn your red and white radishes an odd shade of brown), a swirl of olive oil, 1-2 t salt (depending on your taste), one fresh garlic clove, finely chopped, and either a swirl of honey or a sprinkle of sugar. Add fresh herbs if you have them. Allow to marinate in the fridge for an hour or so to really develop the yummy flavors.
Sautéed Beets
Wash and peel beets with a vegetable peeler (bonus: it’s not just for carrots anymore). Sauté over medium heat in equal amounts of olive oil and butter until softened. Toss with salt and pepper. You can also add in the chopped tops—the greens—and splash a bit of apple cider vinegar in at the end. Delish!
Roasted Beets
Wash and peel beets. Either slice or dice, depending which shape floats your beet boat. Spread on a well-greased cookie sheet and toss with salt and pepper, lemon zest, and olive oil. Roast at 400°F until crispy around the edges and soft in the middle. About five minutes before finishing the baking process, remove from oven and add in a grated hard cheese, like Parmesan or aged Gouda. Toss, and finish roasting.
Another idea for your root vegetables if your taste buds are skeptical: add them in wherever you use potatoes. Try it next time you’re making mashed potatoes: skip half the taters and add in parsnips or beets or celery root instead. See what your mouth thinks then. Me thinks it will be happy indeed.
Winnie Nielsen says: I am all about beets anyway (except pickled ’cause this Farmgirl is not a vinegar fan) you make them. We also have a radish down here that is about the size of a beet but is beautifully ringed inside. Do you have them out West? They are so sweet and crunchy in salads and just beautiful with their reddish rings against the greens of a salad.
Roasted root vegetables are one of our favorites anytime of year. I love to mix them all up for color too. Easy peasy, as MBA would say, and always relish!~!
Karlyne says: Oh, dear. This brought back such memories of my mother. She would put turnips in the stew and I would think they were taters and… Well, she would’ve smacked me for throwing up at the table, but I came close a time or two. Raw? Yes. Cooked? No, no, no, a thousand times NO!
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Miranda Strickland!!!
Miranda Strickland (#3535) has received a certificate of achievement in Make it Easy for earning a Beginner, Intermediate, and Expert Level Grease Chicks Merit Badge!
“Well, I am actually applying for all three levels at once. It started with me doing a tuneup with my husband and my mentor on my OLD truck (’04 Trailblazer) as well as the oil change.
But, Memorial Day was a bad day for folks in my area. Several people lost their homes or businesses, or had damage. Others of us lost our vehicles. I was blessed, however, and a family friend traded me my Trailblazer (severe water damage and all) for a 1974 Chevy C10 pickup. Now, most would not call it a fair trade, but it really was. The truck is awesome!
I have been keeping an eye on fluid levels and gas mileage (which is how we figured out the carburetor needed a rebuild) and changed out a headlight, tail light lens, assisted in pulling spark plugs and, as I have an oil leak at the moment, I have been keeping an eye on my oil levels and refilling as needed. (New gaskets will be another project.)
Once I got it, we discovered I had a few more problems than originally anticipated. This included the Master Cylinder (which had been replaced less than a month prior to my taking the truck) blowing out. We pulled the cap off and found the front chamber empty. We pulled the back wheels off to check the brakes, but they were clean. My husband had me put the wheels back on (I’d never used an impact driver before … it was fun!) and my mentor (the shop foreman at the shop where we got the truck) inspected the front brakes and all the connections. We determined that the system likely had not been bled properly before, and so the master cylinder blew, which meant getting a new one installed. I did not get to assist in that, but they walked me through the steps and even let me fill the old master cylinder with fluid to see if it was leaking. It wasn’t after that, but it also wasn’t working. I also sat in as they installed the new Morosa valve covers and the gasket material.
My third “expert” level project (plugs, brakes/wheels) was last Sunday at the shop, assisting my mentor with rebuilding the Quadrajet carburetor. I did the cleaning, part of tearing it down, part of reinstalling and listening/watching carefully as he explained everything that was wrong with it. He seemed very impressed with how much I understood!
The truck still needs a lot of work. New gaskets, all new wiring, new battery cables, new hood, new mirrors, etc. It’s not truly finished, but these old vehicles are not cake walks.
I learned with my previous vehicle, however, that NO vehicle is a cake walk. Let me tell you, being 5’4″ and trying to pull plugs from an Inline 6 is NOT an easy task.
I have discovered that I am actually pretty good at mechanic work and have been in school to be a motorcycle tech for a little over a year. With the experience I have gained over the past month and a half, I have decided to start looking for a job in the field!”
Winnie Nielsen says: Wow, Miranda, what a great learning quest you have been on! It is fantastic that it has lead you to more schooling and now the possibilities of employment too. Congratulations on all of your hard work and I hope you are able to find work in your new field of expertise. I just have one question? Will you be the only tech all aproned up MaryJanesFarm style?
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Katie Wright!!!
Katie Wright (#5600) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning an Intermediate & Expert Level Blogging Merit Badge!
“I started my blog on 11/23/2013, but went slowly at learning things from a book called Blogging For Dummies. I posted on Country Katie and Daisy Mae at that date and have continued to do so with topics about glamping, gardening, knitting, and more. I have added my blog to GirlGab.com some time ago.
I have learned a little at a time, and just recently have started adding color and also pictures. I have learned to change profile photos and some other things. This seems to be something that I will enjoy for a long time, including reading others’ blogs. I look at knitting, quilting, gardening, and travel blogs, also.
I learned how to add my profile picture and then how to change pictures. Now I also am able to add pictures at the beginning or end of the blog. I also have published more than 10 blogs, as I have been doing this since the end of 2013, but this is the first time I have applied for the badge, as it just takes a while to get things going with a blog, at least for me. I have visited others’ blogs and they have done the same with mine. I do not have a big following, but I believe that in time, and if I learn to add some more decor and “class” to my simple blog, it will be looked at more.
I believe my blogging is doing fine. I know I could be on more often and respond to others’ blogs, maybe ask questions at the end of my posts so people may respond, and maybe list more topics. I enjoy telling things about gardening, knitting, glamping, and my sweet Daisy Mae Foxhound. As your blogging section states, it takes time to build a following. Actually, I am not so concerned about a large following, as I am enjoying it for the writing experience.”
Winnie Nielsen says: So happy to meet you Katie! Congratulations on learning how to blog as I know it is more complicated than it looks. I just checked on GirlGab and found your site and will make sure that I follow along with your journeys as a retired Farmgirl. Love your sweet pup Daisy Mae!
Winnie Nielsen says: I love zinnias in the summer. Their bright colors feel friendly and happy to me.
Winnie Nielsen says: I like how the animal water troughs provide an interesting color contrast to the bright flower colors. The troughs make great above ground mini garden spaces too.
The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,487 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—9,234 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 Farm Kitchen/Get It Together Intermediate Level Merit Badge, I got to start with one of my favorite things to do:
Making a list.
I heart lists. Sometimes I make lists about making lists. Or about how much I love lists, numerically or alphabetically.
photo by Adam Diaz via Wikimedia Commons
I sense your confusion and raised eyebrows from here. Let me explain:
Etc, etc. You get the drift.
Anyway, I love lists because I love order and peace and the sense of accomplishing something, and also because I really have a thing for bullet points. They rock my world, chickadees.
So, my list today was how to have a working kitchen. At first glance, when I read that title, I pictured some sort of robotic, maid-and-butler-occupied, steampunk kinda thing, but I was making things more complicated than they needed to be (control your surprise). A working kitchen, my girls, is …
Well, I suppose it’s a bit different for every woman, isn’t it? For example, my friend, Midge, has triplets. Her working kitchen is likely going to include easy-to-clean, wipe-down-able, child-height, types of things. My gramma, Barbie? Her working kitchen would include a high-quality blender for Daiquiri Night when her girlfriends come over for Bunco, and the oven is only for decoration (she has a crush on the pizza delivery man).
photo by Bradross63 via Wikimedia Commons
For myself, now, a working kitchen is going to include some real key items, and they aren’t necessarily the same key items I would have included a mere few years ago. I am a changed woman, you see … and I no longer have a need for a microwaveable egg cooker, a touchless paper-towel dispenser, a hot-dog scorer, an automatic pancake maker, a corn kerneler, and a few other things that make ya go, whaaa?
Oh, and possibly three different makes of salad spinners.
Ahem. How embarrassing.
Anyway, I sent all my priceless artifacts weird inventions to my local thrift shop and got busy making my Dream Working Kitchen List.
MBA Jane’s Must-haves for a Working Kitchen:
photo by g2boojum via Wikimedia Commons
I’m sure the foodies out there agree with me. It’s just the bare necessities, really!
Winnie Nielsen says: Hahaha, that food ladle takes the cake!! Seriously, I am totally with you on having a functioning kitchen. first of all, I have very limited counter and storage space so that eliminates all of those quirky gadgets. I remember watching an Emeril Lagasse cooking show once and he said, if you want to cook well, you have to start with proper equipment. Sharp knives, proper cookware,and fresh high quality food are not negotiable for a delicious outcome. Over the years, I haves learned the hard way and continue to remember his clues about being a good cook. To your list of a proper kitchen, I would add at least one Le Creuset lidded casserole or baking dish, your Mama’s cast iron frying pans if you can get them, and high quality cookware that cooks evenly on the stove top. It makes such a difference in whether foods cook evenly, burn or scorch on the bottom, and clean up easily every time. In our poorer years with young children, I had a lot of family cast offs in pots and pans. Finally, I started buying quality ware and what a difference it made. And then watching Emeril cook each week locked me into focusing on slowly replacing my cast off stuff with quality. I am not finished yet, but almost there.
You know what messes me up now? Those Williams-Sonoma catalogues like the one that just came! It had their new Le Creuset Apple bakeware dish with a perfect apple pie in it. Instant LOVE:D!!! With a price tag of $165 (the WS current sale), it is still out of reach. But….those new spatulas with the apple graphic on them and nice wooden handles for a mere $12.95……..I just might have to settle for that. Do those crazy irrational must haves ever mess-up MBA Jane ??? Inquiring minds want to know!
Karlyne says: Oh, that last item! I neeeeed it, too!
Winnie Nielsen says: Karlyne, it makes me happy to know there is another Farmgirl Apple Enthusiast out there like me!
Karlyne says: I’d settle for the apple spatulas, too, though….
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Terry Steinmetz!!!
Terry Steinmetz (teryouth54, #3600) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Intermediate & Expert Level Disconnect to Reconnect Merit Badge!
“My girlfriend, Mindy, and I set up our glampers at a campsite that I built. We stayed out there for the weekend. We left everything behind and just enjoyed the outdoors. We sat by a fire every chance we could get. Played games. Looked at the stars, cooked over the campfire. It was just nice to be there without anything to distract us.
We felt so relaxed, got to share ourselves more, and came back so-o-o refreshed. Looking forward to doing this again in September.
I decided I needed a few days away after the hectic garden and canning season. So I packed up what I needed and went out to my glamper at my campsite on the back of our 40. I brought 2 books, a magazine, and some knitting. Ahh! I looked forward to just me, myself, and I—alone and peaceful. I spent 3 days and 2 nights, enjoying every minute.
I read both of my books and my magazine, took naps when I wanted, and did some knitting on a scarf as a gift for my son for Christmas. I was so happy to have a heater in my glamper, as the temps dropped into the 40s with cold winds out of the north! I cooked most of my meals by the fire, except for the last meal of homemade chicken noodle soup. It was wonderful to just be totally by myself and do some self-indulgence! I loved the experience, even the cold weather.”
Nancy Coughlin says: You are one lucky woman. Congratulations on your following through on your plans!
Winnie Nielsen says: Nancy, you created a little paradise with your glamour and camp area! It sounds like a perfect solution to creating a space where you and friends can gather to disconnect and just spend time doing those things that renew your spirit and energy. I also love the welcome sign that you made too. Enjoy your little refuge and thanks for sharing photos. The smiles say it all!!
Karlyne says: What a great idea, Terry; we don’t have to go to the ends of the earth to reconnect!
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.
August means flowers galore!