Creative Living Archives | Page 4 of 5

A Newbie’s List of RV Must Haves

RV Must Haves - Although space is pretty limited in any RV including my travel trailer, there are a few things that I am putting on my RV must haves list.

Two months seems like forever, yet no time at all when there is so much to do. My tentative goal for hitting the trail is September 21st — two months from today! I have some pet sitting commitments through September 19th then, after that, there is nothing to keep me from starting the adventure. My biggest chore before heading out is, of course, downsizing and getting rid of the majority of my stuff. I know what a monumental task this can be. I sold, donated and gave to friends so much of my stuff when I moved here four years ago. How can I still have so much? I still have boxes in my garage that haven’t been unpacked! I keep thinking, if I get…

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Am I Too Old to Start Traveling the Country in an RV?

As I sit here on my birthday, looking at my new to me travel trailer sitting in my driveway, I wonder if I have lost my mind. What was I thinking? Am I too old to do this? Am I too old to start traveling the country in an RV? I am a firm believer in the adage that you are only as old as you feel. Although my body is slowing down a little, it is still in pretty good shape. I really have a hard time with the number assigned to my years because I definitely don’t feel old! My mind still wants to do all those things I dreamed about in my younger days that never came to be, including traveling the…

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Gold Country Cowgirl is Hitting the Trail!

As much as I have enjoyed learning the ropes of living in Gold Country, this Gold Country Cowgirl will be hitting the trail soon. Will I take up a life of living full time on the road in a travel trailer? Read about my life-changing decision.

Although I’ve been trying to stay active on social media, I’ve been pretty quiet on the blog lately. Maybe you noticed. I made a life-changing decision a couple of months ago and it has kind of consumed me since. It all started when my friend, Kelly, who I moved here to Gold Country to be near, told me she and her family were planning to move to Tennessee. I wasn’t invited to join them but I probably would not have chosen to do that even if I had been. So, it really got me thinking. Would I want to stay here if she moved? I have quite a few friends here, some wonderful pet sitting clients and I have cultivated some great business relationships through…

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Why I Missed the 2nd Anniversary of the Blog

March 7th was the 2nd anniversary of the Gold Country Cowgirl blog. I had intended to do a special post and a giveaway for the blog anniversary but between a three-day trip to Southern California, having company, lots of wine events, being sick twice and an especially busy couple of weeks of pet sitting, that special day came and went with hardly a thought. In fact, I haven’t written a blog post since the end of February. When I sat down and made a list of all the things I’d done over the past four to five weeks (and that list didn’t include several personal events), I wasn’t surprised that I haven’t gotten much written and that I’m sick! The good thing is that several of the…

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Birth of a Blog — or Four: Finding My Blogging Passion

One year ago today I published my first post on Gold Country Cowgirl. I was not new to blogging. It just took a while to find my blogging passion.

One year ago today I published my first post on Gold Country Cowgirl. Although that was my first post on this blog, I was not new to blogging. It took me a while to find my blogging passion but I think I finally made it. One of my biggest passions is horses. I’ve owned horses for quite a few years and have done a lot of trail riding and camping. I decided I wanted to document and share these experiences so I launched my Horse Buzz A-Z website in August of 2012. Of all the blogs I’ve written for, I think I enjoyed writing these destination travel guide posts most and would still be writing them except that horseback riding is a lot different here than in…

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Most Viewed Posts of 2016

A look back at 2016 and my most viewed posts of the year. There were a few surprises and some things I knew would be there.

It’s the beginning of a new year and I’ve been reflecting on the blog, looking back at old posts and setting some goals for 2017. Even though the blog hasn’t been in operation for a full year yet (my first post was published on March 7th), I thought you might be interested in knowing what my most viewed posts have been since then. 5 Most Viewed Posts of 2016 I was a little surprised that my Kodiak Canvas Truck Tent Review (September) came in fifth. This post gets most of its traffic from search engines and Pinterest. I like that a nuts and bolts review is doing so well. My most popular recipe for the year was 5-minute Microwave Fudge (December) which came in fourth. This post got a lot…

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Women Traveling Alone — Are You One of Them?

I marvel at the brave women traveling alone in foreighn countries. These days, I'm more interested in exploring what my local region has to offer.

As a single, female, 60 something, baby boomer, and with the state of the world, I’m no longer comfortable with the idea of overseas travel, especially as a woman traveling alone. Perhaps some of you feel the same way. I read lots of travel blogs, mostly written by young millennials. Some are women traveling alone in remote places and I marvel at their bravery and sense of adventure. I’m OK with traveling alone in the US. In fact, this past spring I took a 10-day road trip, with just my cat for company, to a pet blogging conference in Phoenix. I stopped in Orange County in both directions and had a great time in spite of planned meetups with friends not working out. In January, I’ll…

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Sutter Creek Chili Cook-off & Car Show

The Saucy Sisters had stiff competition at the 2016 Great Sutter Creek Chili Cook-off and Car Show. Do you think we won again this year?

I love that there are so many local fairs and festivals in Gold Country. My October pick was the Great Sutter Creek Chili Cook-off and Car Show. This annual event is always held on the second Saturday in October so you might want to mark your calendar now for October 8, 2017! This event is so much fun and is family friendly. Main Street is shut down for the day. One end is filled with booths of competitors in the chili and salsa competition. At the other end of the street, you can lay eyes on more than 100 classic cars and hot rods. I’m not much into cars but I did have a few favorites. In between the two, you’ll find some other fun…

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Ferrari Originals – More Than Lampwork

Ferrari Originals specializes in components for jewelry designers, collectors and bead lovers, but also creates one-of-a-kind and custom pieces.

Gold Country Handmade This new series on the blog will feature talented artists and artisans from all over Gold Country. I plan to bring you a diverse sampling of the talent here. I am excited to introduce my friend Pam Ferrari and Ferrari Originals as my first featured artisan. Ferrari Originals Pam Ferrari is the artist behind Ferrari Originals. Pam began making lampwork glass beads in December of 2001 because she couldn’t find beads that she really liked. Since then, she has added fused glass, patina on copper, painting on copper overlaid with resin, and enameling to her repertoire. She specializes in making components for jewelry designers, collectors and bead lovers but she also sells beautiful one-of-a-kind pieces and can make you a custom piece. Lampwork Glass…

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Lumberjack Day in West Point, CA

Lumberjack Day, held the first Saturday in October, is a day-long celebration of the history and traditions of the logging industry in Calaveras County.

You never know what you are going to run into when you are traveling around Gold Country. Yesterday I was on my way to a pet sitting client when I saw a sign I remembered seeing a few times in the past week or so. It was for Lumberjack Day in West Point on October 1st, and it just so happened it was October 1st. I thought to myself that maybe I would stop and check it out on my way home from my client’s house. On my way home, as I was approaching West Point, I was debating in my head if I would stop or not. I had a lot to do at home so maybe I would just pass. Well, the universe…

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