Go On A Solo Adventure.
A solo adventure to Fair Isle. I don’t think I could have picked a more unique and cozy spot to spend a few weeks. I’m already dreaming of going back.
Things I miss: The quietness of the island. The cottage. Sheep everywhere. One stop shopping. The views.
Things I don’t miss: Low ceilings. 🙂
Take An Adult Education Class Done
The Girl and I took a 3 day British Baking Classics course at King Arthur Flour in Norwich, Vermont and had a good time.
Re-creating the sticky toffee pudding recipe is on my to-do list for this week.
Revisit An Old Friend.
This goal is a bit of a play on words, but I’m working on it!
Send 52 Cards To 52 Different People. {12 of 52 mailed so far}
I mailed off card #12 yesterday {along with a little gift}. I don’t normally send cards so thinking of a reason to send a card is actually a little harder than I thought it would be.
Make 12 Totally British Recipes In The AGA.
While I didn’t make any authentic British recipes in the AGA this past week, we FINALLY both agreed on something to hang on the kitchen wall. {All its components should arrive in the next few days.}
If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time then you already know that we aren’t ones to hang things on the walls so this is a really big deal!
Also, the fact that my husband came up with the idea made it all the better.
Set Aside 200 Items For A Yard Sale {I’ve set aside 9 of 200 items so far}
I only set aside 1 item this past week; an Irish cookbook I paid a quarter for a year or two ago from the library and with good reason, all three of the recipes I’ve tried in it so far and been just okay… nothing special.
Earn $1,493.04 {Last Year’s Grocery Expenses} Selling Totally Random Things Online
Sold so far:
- 1 Box of “Native Organically Harvested Maine Driftwood” for $89.95
- 1 Box of 12 Heart Shaped Rocks for 24.95
- 1 box of 6 Heart Shaped Rocks for $22.95
- 1 box of 2 Folgers Coffee Cans for $29.95
- Set of 3 Brim Coffee Cans for $39.95
*Money earned selling random stuff so far $207.75
* At the end of the year I will deduct all the shipping/supply/selling fees from the grand total.
Go On a Staycation/Craftcation With The Girl
Still no idea where yet.
Turn The Craft Room Into a Proper Studio Space
I am still working my way through dyeing the hundreds upon hundreds of yards of wool I currently have on the shelves in the craft room so that I can concentrate on working in the garden this summer rather than be inside dyeing wool.
My plan is to have a good inventory of hand dyed wool, patterns and kits on hand by April 30th so that when orders come in all I have to do is pack them up and ship them out.
If all goes well and I meet my April 30th deadline… We’ll pull everything out of the craft room {racks, furniture, etc.} and start pulling up the carpet and get the space painted before having the new flooring installed.
It seems like a lot of my goals this year are on a very distinct timeline… Which is sort of a pain but I know everything will come together in the end.
Changes I plan on making to the space:
- Rip out the old gross carpet and replace it with pine floors
- Fresh paint
- A proper light fixture
- New serger
- New work table
- A sitting area with a spot to hook
Hook 100 Rugs {38 of 100 done so far}
I just finished another good sized rug for my next Etsy shop update in early May. I’m hoping to have hooked at least 50 rugs by the end of April and so far I’m on a good pace.
Create 15 New Rug Hooking Patterns 10 of 15 completed so far}
New patterns I’ve added to my Etsy shop in 2023:
- Fair Isle Sheep
- Olde Hares
- Antique Hearts and Flowers
- Fat Cat with Easter Eggs
- Fat Cat with Shamrocks
- Fat Cat with Hearts
- Horse and Hearts
- Valentine Kitties
- Little Chicken
- Hit and Miss Flower Basket
Grow 1,000 Pounds of Vegetables In The Commune Sized Garden
The seedlings are underway! We’ve still got snow on the ground here in Mid-Coast Maine but it’s melting… So gardening season is just around the corner.
Empty The Canning Cupboard / Fill The Canning Cupboard
Making progress!
Make $500 Selling Plants, Flowers or Vegetables
It’s still too cold to grow anything yet but here’s a photo I snapped of Tom protecting his lady friends I took the other day.
Seriously, who needs tv when you have windows and live on the coast of Maine?
Buy 12 Handmade Items {From 12 Different Artists} 2 down, 10 to go
So far this year I have bought from Rachel of Barkland Croft and had my friend Zoë turn all my fabric squares into 2 quilts for me. I love supporting crafty people who love what they do!
Update Every Single Recipe On The Blog To A Printable Format
This past week I updated The Copy Cat Kentucky Fried Chicken Coleslaw recipe post with new pictures.
26 Official Date Days With My Handsome Husband {4 down, 22 to go}
Yesterday for date day we drove two hours inland to New Vineyard, Maine to visit Schanz Family Maple and have a look around at their sugar house set up.
I’ll tell you more about it soon as I took lots of photos and even brought some maple syrup back for a giveaway. 🙂
- Date #1 Thomaston Cafe for lunch. It was lovely.
- Date #2 Rising Tide Co-Op
- Date #3 Oysterhead Pizza
- Date #4 Oysterhead Pizza
- Date #5 Schanz Family Maple
How about YOU? How are you coming along with your goals for this year?
Have a great day everyone,
~Mavis
J in OH-IO says
I can’t wait to read your blog every day and thank you for taking us along on all your adventures!
Sue S. says
Ditto, ditto, and more ditto. I consider it a success if I manage to clean bathrooms and vacuum over the weekend.
Daughter keeps me running from one activity to another, week-long and weekends. I so admire your stamina and achievements Mavis. I just counted 6 completed hooked projects that need the backs finished.
Love the hooking part but not the finishing part.
Mavis Butterfield says
I don’t know anyone who LOVES finishing rugs. Hooking is the best part. 🙂
Mavis Butterfield says
That’s very kind J.
Jenn says
What is you painted words on your bigger pieces of driftwood (Maine or Summer or Beach, ect.). I bet people would buy those items too!
Jenn
Diana near Atlanta says
If it would stop raining here long enough, I might get a few of my projects done, sigh.
One completed this week was getting the torn meniscus on my knee repaired. I might actually be able to get some work done now.
I had unexpected out of town visitors the day after the surgery, so a couple of my projects got done early, lol. Amazing how that works.
Mel says
I’m waiting for my husband to move one more piece of furniture, and I need to put up a few more wall decals, but other than that, our playroom goal is complete. Our baby is finally sleeping slightly longer stretches at night (knock on wood), so I might turn my attention next to baby proofing and trying to find things to cook that don’t contain the 8 allergens we’re currently supposed to avoid.
J in OH-IO says
Mel, you continue to amaze me in all you do- just like Mavis! Glad to hear your baby is sleeping more now. My two girls didn’t sleep more than 2 hours it seems for the whole first year… I was a walking zombie, but it was all worth it. 🙂 Good luck with the foods and allergies – hope it gets better! Take care!
PS. – I enjoy hearing about everyone’s goals and how you all keep it real! Have a great week!
Mel says
Thanks, J! Good to know others have survived the zombie stage. We’re actually only just now getting two hour stretches of sleep, but after a few months of 20-30 minute wakeup intervals, it’s still progress! He’s also finally starting to be able to do part of his naps in the crib. Up until now, I have literally had to hold him for every nap (long story, but we think some undetected allergy discomfort contributed).
Brianna says
Mel, I am sorry you have to go through this all. It will go by like a blur and before you know it you are chasing a toddler. I spent last week carefully combing over my son’s medical records (looking for something particular) and I realized all of the reactions to allergens and sensitivities he had/has. I forgot how much as an infant and toddler he struggled with fevers, rashes, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. and all the foods we had to to avoid and not eat and now he has to be aware. It does annoy me when the notes say, “reassured mom….” because obviously they had no idea how hard it was to deal with an infant who constantly reacted to something one week and another thing the next week. He is 8 now, but still a lot of food sensitivities and allergies and now I struggle with not being able to control his exposures as much (School, friends, etc) and worry about adverse reactions still. Some of his allergens he was diagnosed with and we avoided as an infant he ‘outgrew’ and can tolerate them a bit, but I am still very cautious with those. It kills my budget now too because he is a normal active kid, but can only have certain brands of items (based on ingredients/allergen info) and they are way more expensive than a regular brand. I hate it and I wish some of those companies would make those items a bit cheaper rather than taking all of us allergy parents to the cleaners so our kid can enjoy a package of basic fruit snacks or granola bar like any other kid.
Mel says
Thanks, Brianna! Things are difficult now because they have us avoiding all the top allergens until they can test, and it takes two months to get an appointment with the allergist. So, I’m hoping it’s just the 3 allergies we know about and not all 8 common ones.
I hear you on the cost though. We had to replace all our staples, and throw out so much.
SueD says
Love your Mason-Cash bowls. I have them in the other colour range they made. My OH surprised me with the pie-fox they made.
We have several goals for this year, that have to follow a precise order. Should be great when it’s all done, but getting all sorted and started is time-consuming.
tia in boise says
Some of my goals:
*I restarted my morning stretches and core work in the past week and plan to continue once school starts up again tomorrow. It’s such a nice way to start the day!
*I told my students I had a goal of 35 miles over break–5 miles a day with 2 days off. Well, I didn’t get a day off, but I did get 35 in!
*One goal is to have more friend dates–one a month–and I have rocked that goal this month! art class with one friend, free teacher zoo night with another, shopping with a different friend, a walk with another, and lunch with 2 other friends.
*I’m trying to “bless someone” once a week–I was ahead of my weeks there for a while–I finally got in to give blood on Friday. It only took one hour (most of that was because they were running behind), and was pretty painless. (Just some skin pinching where the needle kind of pulled at it.) It took less than 7 minutes to draw a pint. I was concerned that I wouldn’t have enough hemoglobin (iron) or be hydrated enough–so I worked on that for a couple days beforehand–and I was great on both. I’ll definitely be doing it again. BTW: did you know that we, on average, have 10 pints of blood in our bodies? A little crazy to think of losing 1/10 of that!
*Another of my goals is to participate in the Polar Bear Challenge on January 1–icy lake plunge, with proceeds going to Make a Wish Foundation. (It was a goal last year that I forgot about until too late), so I’m working on this goal by creating more accountability and telling as many people as possible–and warning them that I will be hitting them up for donations in December!
J in OH-IO says
tia in boise- Thank you for donating blood! Way to go! 🙂
sandyf says
My corgi boy had TPLO surgery (torn ACL w bionic parts) So we are in home mode with 24×7 watch over the little guy. I am a nervous Mum.
But I did knot two more practice Fair Isle hats, preparing for my real Fair Isle knit hat kit that I ordered from Jamison Smith Shetland Islands. I want to take my time and get it perfect. The yarn is so thin, I am not used to size 1-2 needles.
Practice and patience is the phrase for the week.
Cheers all
Mavis Butterfield says
Here’s to a speedy recovery! And best of luck with the Fair Isle knitting, you have more patience than I do. 🙂
Margaret Còwan says
No more painting or finishing house projects from last year
Update please !