Month: May 2017

My Farmtastic Life - Bathing Suit Season Wear the Bathing Suit
Lessons & Thoughts From the Farm

Wear the Bathing Suit

My Farmtastic Life2 Comments

Summer is upon us, and it is now the official start of bathing suit season. Yes, I know, women (and some men) all around the world are heaving a collective sigh of dread. But truly it doesn’t have to be that bad.

What do I mean?  Of course squeezing yourself into Lycra and spandex is bad. Of course trying to figure out high cut, low cut, two piece, one piece, straps or no straps is bad. Even the bravest of souls can have their ego crushed in a dressing room trying on bathing suits.

You know what I mean. We ladies are famous for trying on suits with skirts hoping for a little ego relief only to feel like a hippo in a tutu from Fantasia. We try the shorts, the tankinis, and any other ini we think can hide a roll, a layer, a bump, or a bulge.

But here’s the truth, it really doesn’t matter. We all have different bodies, and that’s okay. Now listen, I’m going to be honest with you. I’m what some call a curvy girl, as least that is the nice new marketing term for a plus size gal these days. Not going to lie, I kind of  dig the new term. But my point is that this love-your-body thing is not something that has ever come easily to me. I’ve spent years apologizing for my body and having some crazy unrealistic expectations for it. Bless my heart.

My Farmtastic Life - Bathing Suit Season
Bathing suit season is here, lord help us all. But what if instead of dread we found joy?

But seriously, just take a  moment to  stop and think about all your body does for you – it fights to keep you healthy, it carries you around on two legs, it has eyes and ears to see and hear and take in this amazing world around us.

And I know for some of us, our bodies feel like something we are battling or trying to tame, but give yourself and your body a break. Work with your amazing body – no matter its limitations and imperfections.

As the temperatures rise and the glistening waters of summer beckon, so many of us are busy worrying about how we look doing summer activities or trying to cover ourselves in giant t-shirts that we miss what is right in front of us. There is a whole season of joy and fun and movement to be had.

Imagine your summer if you spent it experiencing some out-in-the-sunshine joy moments instead of sitting on the sidelines. Whether you’re skipping rocks and splashing with your kiddos in your local rivers and lakes, hiking the trails with friends at a beautiful state park,  jumping in the waves at a dreamy beach, or swimming in the community pool for a family day out, there are adventures to be had.

So dear friends, I’m here to tell you, just put on the bathing suit. Don’t miss out on another summer. Don’t fret about someone taking a photo of you because you don’t look perfect. None of us do. We’re one big bunch of perfectly imperfect people, but we are oh so capable of feeling and sharing deep down joy.

When you look back on this summer, I hope you remember the moments of joy, the friends and the family, and the amazing ways in which your body carried you through. Because 10 years from now, I can promise you that you will not be looking back thinking about your bathing suit, but about your memories. So go make memories!

P.S. – A version of this post was published in The Glen Rose Reporter.  This farmgirl is delighted to serve as a community columnist.

Critter Stories · Farmtastic Stories

Skunked!

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My Farmtastic Life - Maybelle the dog gets skunked
Maybelle after one of her multiple baths from her skunk adventure. Doesn’t she look thrilled? Bless her little heart!

Farm life can be idyllic, and it can also be downright nuts.  This week definitely fell into the latter category.  After the high of getting to bring our mustang Smokey home after 20 days in the horsey hospital (more to come on that adventure), Cowboy and I were exhausted and decided to head to bed a little early.

Nightly chores under way, we were so close to crawling under the covers that I could just hear sleep calling us.  Last chore – let the pooches out for their nightly visit with mother nature before we all snuggled up in bed.

As I stood in the kitchen, Cowboy said, “Hey come here, something is odd.  There is all this fog in the air.”

I took one step toward the front door and yelled, “Skunk! Oh my gosh, Maybelle’s been skunked.”

Why did Cowboy not recognize this right away? Well because, bless his heart, he had the amazing timing of missing the only other episode we’ve had on the farm.  And because it literally just happened, the smell was strange and strong, but it took a few minutes to set in with that ewe-we-just-passed-a-skunk-on-the-road smell we all know and love.

Well in the less than two minutes of this exchange, Maybelle, in all of her glory, dashed in the house before we could stop her, flew up onto the sofa with the flare of a pole vaulter, and began rubbing herself up and down all the cushions in a desperate attempt to rid the  skunk smell.  All. Over. Every. Inch. Of. The. Sofa!

Oh my good gravy what a mess.  It was a three-ring circus  as we rushed to get all the dogs back outside and began doing the oh so fun job of sniffing them all to see who else made friends with Pepe Le Pew. Lucky for us, it appeared to just be Maybelle.

All of the sudden I became a drill sergeant and the orders started flying.  Take the cover off the sofa and get it in the washing machine NOW.  Open the windows. Light a candle.  Find that homemade de-skunk concoction on the Internet.

Thank goodness Cowboy is a patient man, and when I ratchet it up a notch or 20 that man just calms down and goes into action.

In less than 10 minutes we had mixed up the peroxide-baking soda-dish soap mix and were slathering it all over Maybelle.   Let’s just hope Google satellites were not taking nighttime farm pics, as Cowboy I were out on the front porch in our jammies, hose going, latex gloves on, and sniffing and washing dogs.  At one point, Cowboy even put Maybelle in the pool for a quick swim. Anything to make that smell go away.

In an effort to gain some modicum of relief, Cowboy opened the doors from one end of the house to the other and used fans to move air through the house.  Great idea, and it actually worked.

However, we have inside cats.  That left us parked outside the doors yelling, “Hey. Stop.  Not outside.” Cats, as I’m sure you can imagine, are not great listeners.  Cowboy had to hustle after Rhino the cat on more than one occasion.  Some choice words may have been said, but hey at this point who’s counting?

On the plus side, it wasn’t raining or cold and the stars were beautiful.  Trust me, there’s always a silver lining.

After much washing, mopping, and breath holding, we finally made it to bed.  And yes, princess skunks-a-lot insisted on snuggling me.  So I wrapped her in towels and held her and my breath. Yes, I’m a sucker.

After far too little shut eye, we work up at 2 a.m. (yes, 2 a.m.) to find the inside cats had knocked the screens out of the windows and were having a play date in the yard. Yes, the same yard where we had just hours earlier found a skunk.  Oh for the love of all things holy, I said a quick prayer that they had not found Mr. Le Pew’s cousin.  Good news on that front, they were just escapees – normal smelling escapees.

Grabbing flashlights, Cowboy and I sprang into action and played 22-cat pick-up in the yard. (Okay, it was only two, but seriously at this point we were darn near delirious.)  As soon as I got my hands on Shadow, the instigator, she promptly vomited, as evidently on her grand adventure she chose to eat dandelions.  Seriously?  She couldn’t at least use her time to track down a mouse or two?

And again, back to bed we went.  Dear lord, would this night ever end?

Well we are several days out now.  Maybelle has been to the vet to get all caught up on shots and to be checked out.  She needed eye drops as she took a direct spray to the face.  Sadly, our sofa did not make it, may it rest in peace.  So a new sofa is on its way to the farm, along with a new collar for Maybelle.  We’ve tried multiple solutions and slowly she is smelling less like a skunk, however she’s still far from smelling like roses.

The worst part? I’m quite sure if that little pup sees a skunk again, she’ll be right back out there on the chase thinking she’s found another friend.  On that note, for the foreseeable future, Cowboy will be doing skunk patrol prior to our nighttime chores.  Gosh, I love that man!