Registration is Open for MFU Women's Conference!

What do all of the following have in common?

• Cheesemaking
• Wine tasting
• Hot springs
• Yoga
• Photography
• Live Music
• Networking
• Goal setting
• Blogging
• Girl Time

These are all GUARANTEED  to happen at this year's Montana Farmers Union Women's Conference!

This is the third year of the Women's Conference and I am more excited about this one than ever! We have a really great agenda planned for everyone in attendance, beginning with the cheesemaking event on Friday evening, and it just keeps getting better through Sunday morning! There will also be a panel discussion about blogging and social media, which I was asked to participate on as a speaker. The conference is put on by Montana Farmers Union, of which I am a member, but I think we have a broad range of topics that could apply to anyone, whether they are in agriculture or not.  

I know several people who will be attending and/or helped in the planning of this conference, and it is going to be a blast! There are some seriously smart, dynamic, strong, beautiful, fun-loving, and funny women who will be there, and I'm also so, so excited to meet more people while there! 

Plus... HOT SPRINGS! Helllloooooooo! 

If you're interested in signing up, the cost for the ENTIRE WEEKEND is only $50! That includes lodging, meals, and conference seminars. And use of the hot springs. Once again... HOT SPRINGS, people! Are you sold yet? It's a smokin' deal, folks! 

You can register for the conference by clicking HERE!  The registration is, again, *only $50.00* and is going through active.com. But don't worry, it's not a boot camp or anything. Active.com just offered an easy platform to get registrations done completely online. There are only about ten rooms left, so sign up quickly if you're interested. If nothing else, you'll have a great time with some awesome, strong women! Hope to see some of you there!! Rural Women Rock, Ya'll!

COOL and Calendars!

With our involvement in Montana Farmers Union, and by extension, National Farmers Union, increasing over the past year, we have had the wonderful opportunity to meet many new people and to learn A LOT about how the organizations work for the farmers and ranchers they represent. This is especially true of our recent trip to Washington D.C.  One of the people we met was the Communications Director for National Farmers Union. He proposed working with us on an Op-Ed piece on the subject of COOL, or Country of Origin Labeling, with regards to meat. This was a great topic for us as ranchers, so we were happy to help.

Our collaborative effort was picked up by the Billings Gazette and ran in today's paper. You can also find the article and accompanying photo of me and Jeff at this online link to the article: http://billingsgazette.com/news/opinion/guest/guest-view-of-course-we-want-to-know-where-our/article_595e057e-2bb0-5721-ae4c-867325165924.html. Do any of my blog readers live in Billings? I am hopeful to receive a few hard copies of the paper, as we don't subscribe ourselves.

Another effort I personally have been involved with over the past year, is the Montana Farmers Union Women in Agriculture Calendar. The Education Director of Montana Farmers Union, and a photographer came out to our ranch last March and took some photos of me working with our herd during calving. Since then, they've had eleven other photo shoots with other Montana ag women, and I hear the calendars are coming together quite nicely! They are to be unveiled at the MFU Fall Convention coming up in a few weeks!!! Let me know in advance if you'd like to purchase a calendar. The proceeds from sales will go to fund women's education programs within Farmers Union.

Or, if you'd like to ATTEND THE MFU CONVENTION, CLICK HERE to be re-routed to their website and sign up.

Inspired in Fairmont

Yeah... So it's Wednesday and I'm just getting around to writing about how awesome my weekend was!  I could have just let it go, but it truly was an awesome weekend and I have lots I want to share about it.

Some of you may know that I'm becoming increasingly involved in Montana Farmers Union, thanks in large part to the Women's Conference they held last year, which I attended (Read about it by clicking HERE). That's what jump-started it all. The key to getting me interested in something is appealing to my passion for women's leadership, so that's how it all began with me and MFU. This lead to a two-year membership, which lead to me and Jeff participating in the FUE Leadership Couples experience this year (and here's where you can read about FUE, and on and on. Where will MFU take me next?

Last weekend, MFU took me to Fairmont, MT for this years Women's/Young Producers conference, which were held concurrently at Fairmont Hot Springs Resort. Jeff couldn't attend, so I brought along one of my best gal pals, Adria, instead. Don't they always say "Friends are the family you choose yourself?" So true. We had a great time meeting other women and young producers in agriculture, learning about leadership and communications, splashing in the hot springs, listening to REALLY GREAT MUSIC PERFORMANCES, planning an upcoming Women in Ag themed calendar (Soon you'll all be able to sing "My Angel is the Centerfold" and it'll be about ME! ha!), and I also learned a lot about how to be a better blogger. Lord knows I could use a lot of help in that department. (Step 1: Write more. Duh.)

My MFU community never fails to disappoint. I left the conference feeling refreshed and inspired, with my duel passions for women's leadership and Ag education re-ignited. I made a lot of great networking connects and made some new friends, too.

In an attempt to hopefully inspire all of you as well, here's just a few of the ideas and quotes I wrote in my notes from the weekend. What are your passions? What or who inspires you?

"We are a diminishing voice in a country that needs us more and more each day." - Zach Overstreet, referring to farmers and ranchers.

"I call it learnership, not leadership." Joe Boyle.

"The world we create is the world we want to live in, not just the world that makes us the most money." -Judd Jensen.

"In an ant colony, females do all the work. Males breed and die." - Sarah Calhoun

"I am not strong for a woman, I am strong and a woman." -Kate in Maine, via letter read by Sarah Calhoun

"You are responsible for your own happiness." -Joe Boyle

I can "invite people to my place" through my blog. (from my notes)

We are how we think. (from my notes)

"When tillage begins other arts follow." - Grant Wood, on a large mural in Parks Library at Iowa State University. This is where I went to school and grew up, in Ames, IA. I walked by that mural every time I went to the library in college, which was at least three times a week.  I saw this quote again somewhere in a presentation last weekend.

Do any of YOU have any phrases or quotes or inspirations to offer?

A snowy evening in Almost-Canada, Montana, where I live. 

Calling All Ag Women!

Remember that Women's Conference I attended late last fall?  Here's the post I did following that event: Women in Agriculture: Not a New Concept  Check that out if you want a refresher on what that conference was all about.  That conference was sort of the starting point for all this Farmers Union involvement Jeff and I now find ourselves in (yay!). 

I have been asked to be on a planning call for this year's upcoming Women's Conference being put on by Montana Farmers Union. So, I am looking for feedback from all my female friends in agriculture about what they would look for in a women's conference.  What would make the conference worth your while?  What would be enough to take you away from the hectic life you lead living and working in ag?

On our call, we will be discussing suggestions for improvement over last year, location, dates for the conference, conference theme, workshop ideas, potential speakers and social activities/evening entertainment.  I am also curious about what challenges we face as women in agriculture and what do we want to do about it?  How do we see the future unfolding? Is agriculture still a male-dominated world? How are women's roles changing? Are they changing?

I also want to add this little bit about Montana Farmers Union. MFU is a great organization that cares about family farms in Montana.  They don't exclusively serve large-scale producers, but embrace even the smallest CSA farmers, as well as anyone who supports agriculture as a viable lifestyle for others.  MFU is about taking care of people who care about food supply in Montana and beyond.  What that means for all of you, is that any of you who have any interest in agriculture at all can share your opinion on what a women's conference for women in agriculture should look like.  The more, the merrier!

The conference call is this upcoming Friday morning. If you have anything to suggest, please leave comments below, email me, call me, message on facebook, text, smoke signal, ESP... Ok just kidding. I haven't perfected my telepathy skills yet, so maybe just stick to the more traditional methods of communication! No idea or suggestion is too wild!  Be creative, be honest!  And.... GO!