Category Archives: Miscellany

Whatever, whenever, wherever. For random strikes of inspiration.

If it weren't for those damn telephone poles...

Time to Refocus
May 29

So I fell off the blog wagon already. To be honest, I just really haven’t had anything that was worthy of sharing this past month. And to be real honest, no time. The month of May is insanity for parents with end of year activities, field trips, summer prep, yada yada yada. But to be fair to myself and you, I have been thinking a lot about it and what my intentions were when I wanted to start a blog, and what the reality of the amount of work and dedication it takes.

I guess the reality for me is that I love reading blogs about crafting a fooding and entertaining. Do I do those things that I read about? YES! And I’m pretty good at it, too. Do I have time to sit and blog about those things, too? Nope, it turns out. I also don’t necessarily have a particularly new or interesting point of view to offer on most of those topics, which kind of sucks to admit, but it’s true. I suppose what I’m getting at is that trying to do too much of too many things is 100% against what I was trying to do when I quit my job to become a full time Farm Girl last summer. So what exactly was I striving for, you ask?  This…

1. A simpler, less complicated and more humble life. To have more time to devote to taking care of my family and myself.

2. To foster a real connection to this amazing farm land that I am really privileged to be a part of.

3. To make my home a center of production, not consumption.

4. 1-3…with flair!

So out with the superficial stuff and in with the real stuff. Time to refocus.

I’ll be deleting some categories and adding new ones. I’ll be less worried about just throwing something out there for the sake of putting something up and more worried about putting up something that is useful and meaningful, with the heart of it being the journey to create the life I’ve been dreaming of.

Here goes…

If it weren't for those damn telephone poles...

If it weren’t for those damn telephone poles…

 

 

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Retro Table Restyle
April 18

So I really love old stuff. Jars, vases, trunks, dishes, folk art, so on and so forth. Oddly enough, though, don’t really like old furniture. At least not for my house.But when I came across this gem for $1 at a recent estate sale, I immediately saw the potential in it and knew it was exactly what I’d been looking for to go in our newly finished basement media room/bar.
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I’m sure your face was the same as Farmer’s when he saw it. I told him my vision. He was skeptical. So I really had something to prove.

I wanted the frame to match some of the metal work on the exposed beams we have so I chose the black enamel spray paint. And for some reason I already had 3 cans of ivory satin spray paint laying around so that’s what I landed on.
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I made sure to clean it up and wipe it down really well, because you know, sometimes old crap from yard sales sometimes has gross stuff on it. Like spider baby nurseries. Sick.

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On a well covered area on my back porch I turned it upside down and began spraying – make sure to stay several inches away and spray in evenly as I went around the frame making sure to get all the nooks and crannies. Unfortunately, with such a small area to spray, a lot of paint ended up floating away. That’s why I always make sure to spray standing up wind.

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While I was waiting for the bottom side of the frame to dry, I started on the table surfaces with the ivory satin. I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t thrilled with it. I’m not sure if it was the brand of paint or the satin finish, but it didn’t really cover all that easily and I had to use A LOT of paint to get it to cover evenly. Serious hand crampage occurred. It also took forever to dry.

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Once it completely dried I placed the trays back on the frame (I forgot to mention that they were not attached so that was super handy). It looked fabulous! But it was missing a little something. So I came up with a genious idea and headed down to my local craft store to have Darcy print me up some vinyl lettering.

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The font was perfect but just a spaced to far apart for what I had in mind so I cut out each letter individually so I could stick them on closer together.

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Having never used this stuff, I learned that it is awesomely easy as long as you have something to help keep the lettering straight. I was able to use the lip of the tray to line up the letters so they were perfectly straight.

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The lettering stuck very nicely to the surface with just a light rubbing.

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I had already done the #hello on the top tray just to make sure that the lettering stuck and that my lettering placement was going to be correct (before I took pics) so I was done!

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I’m kinda in love.

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Who would’ve thought I could have a table this cute for just $23? Here’s the cost break down:
Table $1
3 cans Spray Paint: $12
Custom Vinyl Lettering: $ 10

I hope this inspires you to get creative, too, because I for one can’t wait for the next one.

Mint Oil

Junior Mints and Other Minty Wonders of the World
March 12

I’m sure most people don’t open up their box of Junior Mints at the movie theater and wonder where that ridiculously gooey minty deliciousness comes from. And with Girl Scout Cookie Season in full swing, who is pondering the origins of that magically addictive cookie that could have only been born from a GS troop witch craft project, The Thin Mint. (Well played, witches, well played).

Well, that mint comes from our farm. Or at least some of it. Probably. Maybe. Farmer B grows peppermint on our eastern Oregon farm (amongst a few other crops including grass seed, wheat, oats & alfalfa) and is the producer of some of the country’s finest peppermint oil. It is used in internationally known brands of toothpaste (rhymes with Smolgate) and chewing gum (rhymes with Quigley’s). I am very proud.

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Photo Courtesy of Wild Flavors.

So besides being a crazy delicious addition to chocolate, as well as its use in breath freshening products, there are tons of really cool (pun intended) uses for peppermint oil in your day to day life that you probably never would have guessed.  Although there are dozens of uses and more being studied all the time, here are my top reasons why everyone should have a bottle of peppermint oil in their kitchen/bathroom:

1. Respiratory Benefits – Menthol is a compound derived from peppermint oil and is an active ingredient in the cold remedy Mentholatum. It has the ability to open your airways and act as a decongestant. If you’re not into store bought remedies that have undesirable ingredients, you can mix some peppermint oil with coconut oil and eucalyptus essential oil to make your own homemade vapor rub to help reduce the symptoms of colds, asthma and bronchitis. (My dirty little secret as a kid was that I would hide Mentholatum in my room just so I could smell it any time I wanted, sick or no. I still love that stuff and open it up for a quick whiff when I come across it in the medicine drawer.)  It may also help with allergy relief. Peppermint oil is highly effective at relaxing muscles in your nasal passages and can help clear out the muck and pollen during allergy season.

2. Digestive Aid – Peppermint oil can help with a multitude of tummy issues including nausea, heartburn, constipation, stomach aches or even IBS. Simply adding a drop of peppermint oil to water or tea, or rubbing 1-2 drops behind your ears, or even diffusing it can help to reduce nausea, heartburn & stomach aches. Adding a few drops to a carrier oil and rubbing it on your abdomen may also help with constipation and bloating. Taking it in pill form has shown to reduce symptoms by up to 50% in IBS patients.

3. Hair & Scalp Care –  Peppermint oil is used in many high quality hair care products because it can naturally thicken and nourish damaged hair. My absolute favoritest in the the world forever and always is Aveda’s Rosemary Mint (and don’t forget the conditioner and lotion). Obsessed with it. If you’re not down with paying $13.50 for a bottle of shampoo, just add some peppermint oil to your current shampoo hair loss and dandruff control, stimulate the scalp, energize your mind, and wake up!. It can also help with a sunburned scalp (the worst thing ever).  If your one who has a coconut oil hair care regimen, try adding some peppermint oil for some added benefits.  Because it is a powerful antiseptic, peppermint can also help get rid of lice.

4. Headache Cure -Peppermint oil has the ability to improve circulation and relax tense muscles. If you’re prone to headaches or migraines simply rub a small amount of oil on the forehead, temples and around the hair line for an excellent natural remedy. Using a flaxseed eye pillow infused with peppermint oil is also and excellent headache zapper.

5. Natural Energizer – Instead of a nasty energy drinks, take a few whiffs of peppermint. It will perk you up on long road trips, in school or any other time you need to focus. Peppermint oil may improve focus and concentration. I personally keep a small sprizter of peppermint and lavender oil (diffused in vodka and distilled water) in my car to keep me alert and to make my car smell not so much like kids & dogs. I also have my own special aromatherapy blend of citrus and peppermint that smell and dab on before my workouts.

6. Cooking – Use it in place of mint extract.  The flavor will be much better and because it doesn’t evaporate, it can withstand high cooking temperatures.  Because it is HIGHLY concentrated, start with 1/4 of what the recipe calls for of mint extract. You can always add more, but you certainly cannot take it away. I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. I used mint oil in my Julia Roberts Cookies (thin mint-oreo smash up) and Farmer B said they were the perfect amount of minty goodness.

7.  Household cleaning:  Peppermint oil is antibacterial and antifungal. Some studies suggest that it may be effective in killing up to 99% of human pathogens within 24 hours. That is really amazing to me, and a really good reason to be using it to clean your home. And it smells way better than those nasty cleaners filled with chemically fake fragrance. Try making your own all purpose cleaner here.

8. Sore Muscle Relief – Peppermint essential oil is a very effective natural painkiller and muscle relaxant. Besides helping with headaches it can be extremely helpful in soothing an aching back, sore muscles & tired feet.  Here is a good recipe for an achy muscle remedy. I personally add peppermint oil to my own blend of epsom salts and other essential oils for a relaxing and therapeutic bath soak.

So now that you know some really awesome ways that you can use peppermint oil in your home, now is the time to stock up. Now through the end of the month, I will be offering free shipping on my 1 Oz bottle of Mint Condition Pure Peppermint Oil. Your cost is just $8 for some of the worlds finest peppermint oil! Simply message me your email and I will invoice you via PayPal.  Local customers can pick some up right now at the Community Bank Valley Branch.  If you’re interested in more of my handmade, small batch bath and beauty products, locals can swing by Community Bank for a peek.  If you’re far away, keep an eye out on my Instagram feed @thismodernfarmgirl for occasional flash offerings until I get my retail website up and running! Cheers until next time!

Mint Oil

 

 

 

 

WTF? It’s been 4 months.
January 29

When I left my “real” job this past summer, I immediately had all these exciting plans for what I was going to do with all the extra time I just knew I was going to have. Besides spending more time on our family farm I was definitely going to be cooking gourmet meals and baking mouth watering desserts that would break Pinterest. I would be antiquing and lunching with friends and volunteering and after I was done doing that I was going to be sewing and crafting and arting whilst taking gorgeous photographs and blogging about it all 3 days a week! And it was all going to be amazing immediately. My sh#@ was gonna go viral. I was gonna have a thousand followers in just a few short weeks.  The reality? I made 3 blog posts, then….crickets. WTF was I thinking?

My problem is that I have always bitten off more than I can chew and boy did I get a whole mouthful this time. I get super psyched to do something, jump in head first,  then realize how much I didn’t plan for it. I don’t like to do things half ass, either, but I am seriously challenged when it comes to time management. I hate that about myself and it’s something I am working really hard to fix, because I HAVE to if I ever want to achieve the goals I have set for myself. My goal with this blog is to share with as many people as I can, the realsies of life on this super cool farm that I get to live on with my crazy husband and daughter (and not to mention the 25 chickens, 2 ducks, 2 dogs, 2 cats and a hedgehog).

Anyhooooo. So here I am four months after my last blog post and I am declaring publicly (to all six of you who may read this) that this is the official re-launch of the TMFG blog. I think I’ve got my shizzle together. I’ve got a plan, a written plan.  And a written schedule. It’s full and strict and it’s posted somewhere I have to look at it every day. The bulk of it is the boring real life stuff I failed to take into account before.  I won’t be blogging 3 days a week, just so you know. Let’s just go ahead and say once a week for now. I’m comfortable with that. I’ve got it scheduled for Thursdays so hopefully you’ve got a few minutes each week to check out what’s up on the farm front. And if you like, I would love for you to share. I’m hoping to hit 100 followers this year. Cheers!

P.S.  Meet Susie, the latest addition to our farm family. She takes up a lot of my time.

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