The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,518 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,301 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Each Other/Languages/Culture Merit Badge (Level Two … you heard it here first!) I brushed off my American Sign Language skills. They had gotten slightly rusty from disuse, but since all I had learned earning my Beginning Level Badge was the Alphabet and how to count to 10, it didn’t take long to jog my memory.

I had recently connected with a girlfriend—a Sister, if you will—who was learning sign language too, so we decided to meet for coffee and earn the next level together.

Solidarity, sisters!

That’s where it’s at.

And if there’s a grande, full-fat mocha with a shot of caramel, a drizzle of hazelnut, whipped cream, and a scone involved, then that’s where I’m at!

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I am so very pleased to announce our Farmgirl Sister of the Year! Meet Karen Price. Karen has been a Sisterhood member for five straight years, but this is the first year she’s applied for Merit Badges because, as she puts it, “I recently changed my occupation to allow for more fun stuff.” Karen has gone after some of the more difficult badges—like Entrepreneurial Expert, Ink Slinger Expert, and Farmgirl Spirit Expert—that require extra effort and have a net positive affect on the world.

Karen spent 18 years as a Methodist Minister throughout Michigan before settling in Fenton, Michigan, two years ago. Read her wonderful blog here.

Karen and 10 other women comprise the Dandelion Farmgirl Chapter. They’ve been meeting once per month for the past four years. “We usually make or create something. We’re very hands on, things like ‘puttin’ up a swap’ or canning or crafting. For our last meeting, we made terrariums.” Karen says she loves a good swap and has been active in the swaps on our Farmgirl Connection chatroom.

We couldn’t help but fall even more in love with Karen when we found out she fought for a change to local ordinances in her hometown to allow for backyard chickens. You can read about it here. She showed up at the city council meeting in a chicken-embellished dress. Walking around the room, she pulled white plastic eggs from her chicken purse, asking those in attendance, “Have you hugged a chicken today?”

Successful in her attempt to change the law, her hens Cagney and Lacey are now members of her family. (Stay tuned for the Oct-Nov “Turning the Page” issue of MaryJanesFarm, where our Urban Homesteader will give you tips on how to change the zoning laws in your community.)

Let’s give Karen a loud and raucous round of clucking!!!!!!

I received this darlin’ little gift set from The Red Tractor Girl—Winnie Nielsen. When she was earning her Intermediate Knitting Merit Badge, she learned to knit on circular needles, and because of that, I now have the perfect Apple Pickin’ Season accessories for 2013!!!!

Winnie must have seen the battered apple I had in my purse when we met up for lunch recently. It’s the last thing I always toss in my purse before I walk out the door. What a clever idea—an apple cozy to keep my fresh-picked apples free of bruises and scrapes. And some apple pie spice mix for my next batch of breakfast quinoa. The hat is simply adorable and the perfect fit. I’m all set. Much love, Winnie! Thank you. Thank you.

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Amanda Schrack!!!

Amanda Schrack (#5269) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning a Beginner Level Buttoned Up Merit Badge!

“I have numerous button stashes around my house. Some were for making hair bows for my daughter, some were for sewing and some were for crafting. I finally put them all together into one button collection.

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The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,518 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,301 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Make It Easy/Relaxation Merit Badge, I was eager to tackle the Intermediate Level. Although with this badge, I suppose the phrase “tackle it” is a bit of a misnomer. I eased into the Intermediate Level, took some deep, cleansing breaths in the general direction of Level Two, and made my way there at the speed of snail.

And I’m off like a herd of turtles!

Okay, okay, I’m exaggerating. We all remember how easily Level One did NOT come to me. Who knew relaxing could be so difficult? I started with five minutes, working my way up to the coup de grace, 15 whole minutes of relaxing! Every day! For two weeks!

My mind was blown. This is tougher than it sounds. Don’t believe me? Try it. But start with the Beginning Level, my little chickadees. Ready for Level Two, you are not. Teach you, I will.

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The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,344 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,177 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

This week is very special. I have TWO Merit Badge Awardees of the week. And to top it off, they’re sisters! How cool is that? Siblings working together on Sisterhood Merit Badges.

I am pleased to announce that Lily and Alice Holland (Young Cultivators of Suzanne Holland #828) have earned a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning their Expert Level Icing on the Cake Merit Badge!

Lily: “With my sister and mom, I picked out a recipe to follow for the cake and icing. My sister and I agreed that we wanted to be sure and use lots of our own chicken eggs.

We drew up designs for our cakes and took a list of ingredients to the store. We purchased the ingredients that we needed and came home to begin baking.

My mom and sister and I used all of our fresh ingredients to make our yummy cakes. We mixed them together carefully in my mom’s big mixer. It is so much fun cooking in my mom’s kitchen.

The cakes turned out perfect. We will let them cool and then carefully cut the tops off for a nice fit. Now they are ready to decorate.

Mine was decorated different from my sister’s. I couldn’t wait to eat mine and I cut it straight away. I decorated it mostly with nuts and some dried fruit. I used the same yummy buttercream icing.

This is my favorite cake. I really like to cook. My mom lets us get in the kitchen and cook all the time. We just need to clean up after ourselves.”

Alice: “I worked with my mom and sister to decide on a cake recipe and what kind of fruits and nuts I wanted on my cake. We have chickens, so I knew I wanted to use a cake recipe that used lots of eggs. I found one that both my sister and I liked.

We made a list and went to the store to purchase the ingredients we did not have on hand.

Using our chickens’ eggs and only the freshest ingredients, my mom, sister, and I started making our cakes. It is a lot of fun baking in my mom’s kitchen. She has great equipment and plenty of room.

The cakes turned out perfect. Now we have to let them cool. Trim the tops, and then ice and decorate after letting them cool. We trimmed the tops so they would sit straight when stacked and then we began icing. We used a buttercream icing made with real butter. It was soooo good.

I decorated mine with my own design that I had drawn out. I used nuts and dried fruit. It was a really yummy cake and my family said they loved it.”

The Young Cultivator (kids 6-13) and Farmerette (teens 13-17) programs are free for kids to earn Merit Badges as long as they are mentored by a Farmgirl Sisterhood member. Go to our Merit Badge Website, or e-mail meritbadges@maryjanesfarm.org for more information.

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 5,344 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—7,177 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ

For this week’s Garden Gate/Bee Good to Your Mother Earth Merit Badge, I tackled the garden. Now, it’s not as though I’ve neglected the ol’ patch out back completely: I have a lovely collection of garden gnomes, stepping stones, and a fairy house made out of pine cones and twigs and moss that one of Midge’s triplets made for me. But as far as veggies and fruits? Well, let’s just say my thumb isn’t naturally green and leave it at that.

It’s more of a brown. Brings to mind a dying plant, actually.

But my agricultural prowess (or lack thereof) aside, my will was strong, and so was my hankering for all things cucumber-like. Pickles had gotten me through the winter, but I was really up for the crunch and snap of the real thing. And all my neighbors assured me that cukes were easy-peasy, lemon-squeasy to grow.

And after all, my herb garden was thriving in my kitchen! My confidence bolstered, I relocated a few gnomes to the porch (I’ve always liked men with beards … kind of an outdoorsy-man-lovin’ gal that I am) and got to work. I had bookmarked some helpful pages in “Montrose: Life in a Garden,” by Nancy Goodwin, and it sat beside me for moral support as I dug a neat little row. Well, it was supposed to be a neat little row, but it turned out I can’t hoe a straight line any better than I can cut one. Ah well. Don’t think the little cukes will mind. They’re a forgiving sort of veg, I hear. My sweet green babies tucked in for the night in no time at all, I thought I’d better rig a bit of fencing around them. Toile, my chicken, especially goes crackers for seeds and green bits poking out of the ground.

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Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Jacqueline Ferri!!!

Jacqueline Ferri (#1664) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning an Expert Level Knitting Merit Badge!

“I learned to knit when I was 9 from my mother. I made a simple scarf. Over the years, I did other needlecrafts. I didn’t pick up knitting again until 23 years later. After my third child was born, I took a continuing ed. class to refresh my knitting skills. The instructor had us make a cardigan. I joined a knitting guild, and here many of the members helped beginner knitters. From there, I just took off with new and varied knitting skills. Our guild provided workshops with renowned knitters, so we acquired interesting techniques. We went to Stitches, TKGA East Coast Conference, and a local knitting shop sponsored a “Ewephoric” Knitting Weekend. At these events, one breathes, sleeps, and eats knitting!!

I have learned the following techniques and have used them in various projects,.

Cables
Entrlelac
Drop stitches
Aran knitting
Short rowing
Intarsia
Tunisian knitting
Lace knitting

and many more.

I have covered clear Christmas ornaments with a lacy beaded net that I knitted. I’ve knitted a sampler afghan, a winter white throw with chevrons and bobbles. I’ve made a shawl, sweater, and purse by knitting them on the diagonal using Jane Elliott’s designs (Not Your Plain Jane). I’ve knitted and felted a fun evening bag accented with eyelash yarn and a beaded handle. I have made hats, scarves, mittens, sweaters, blankets, and much more! I taught all four of my children how to knit when they were young, Two of them made scarves recently. My friend and I taught two Brownie troops how to knit. During our guild meetings, I have assisted beginner knitters. Our guild knits for various charities. I’ve knitted preemie caps, Oxfam sweaters, squares for blankets for the Linus Project. Presently I have a few projects going. I am knitting an aran pullover, a pattern from Vogue Knitting. The pattern has lots of cables and twists! It’s fun to knit! I’m also knitting a Mary Maxim poncho with some cables.”