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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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6 Ways to Meet New People

To meet new people, you have to get up and get out of your comfort zone. You have to make an effort to connect. Here are methods I've tried to meet people.

Have you moved to a new area and don’t know anyone? Maybe you’ve lived there a while and still have just not met anyone. I know how that goes. I lived in my condo in Southern California for over 13 years and knew only a couple of my neighbors. Or perhaps you have started a new hobby or other pastime and want to meet like-minded people. How do you meet new people? Meeting new people can be hard, especially if you are shy and introverted like me. As I was thinking about this post, I realized that all of my best friends, even my significant others, have always been the outgoing type. They dominate the conversation and everyone remembers them. I am the friend who came…

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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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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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Lavender Crafts and Camaraderie

Jan, our gracious hostess for the July meeting of our Saucy Sisters cooking group, has a beautiful home with lots of lavender beds. She orchestrated a Day of Lavender for us that included lavender crafts and some lavender infused food. When we arrived, Jan had tea, coffee and scrumptious lavender scones waiting for us. While we enjoyed our refreshments, Jan explained the craft we were going to make — lavender wands. The finished product she showed us looked and smelled amazing. Making Our Lavender Wands We had been told via email to bring pruning shears to the meeting. Once we were finished with our coffee and scones, we headed out into the gardens with our shears to cut lavender for our wands — 11 stems. You can use more…

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Anje Olmstead Collage Artist

Local artist Anje Olmstead brought her collage art class to a lunch meeting of our Saucy Sisters cooking group. Learn more about Anje Olmstead and her art.

Every month I am amazed at how creative the hostesses of the Saucy Sister’s cooking group are with the monthly meeting activities. At one meeting, we made two kinds of liqueur and everyone got to take home a bottle of each. One time we made fudge and had lots of samples to take home. We have made recipes from around the world and even had an elegant tea party. Last month, we made lavender wands then cooked pizza in an outdoor oven. I hear sourdough is in our future. Anje Olmstead, Fine Artist We are very lucky to have so many talented women in our group including local artist Anje Olmstead. Anje and her husband have lived in Pioneer for five years. Her husband, Dennis, wanted to move from the Fair Oaks/Sacramento…

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Tea Party with My Saucy Sisters

A tea party is a great way to gather together friends for an afternoon of conversation and good food. Learn some tea party etiquette including the proper way to eat scones.

Did you serve afternoon tea to your imaginary friends when you were a child? Although I was more of an outdoorsy kid who played with plastic horses and cowboys, I’m sure I must have had a tea party or two. But tea parties aren’t just for kids. It is a wonderful way to gather together friends for an afternoon of conversation and good food. Saucy Sisters Springtime Tea Party Every month, the Saucy Sisters, the cooking group of the Mother Lode Newcomers, get together for some sort of culinary adventure. Usually we cook at someone’s house with everyone participating in the preparation, cooking and clean up. The hostess chooses a theme and menu and does all the advance work, like shopping. Often, members team up to…

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