My Big List of Things I’m Going to Do in 2021 – Week 29 of 52

Stay Healthy! 

Fresh air, it does a body good! This week out on the water we spotted 2 seals. On land we had 14 baby turkeys {and their parents} stroll across our back yard. Also, a mama wood chuck and her 4 babies have taken up residence down by the fire pit, a blue heron stayed for a while on our dock and a deer came to visit one foggy morning. 

I tell ya, some days it’s like living in a wildlife park here.

Weigh What I Weighed When We Got Married  {128 pounds}

Weigh-ins are the first Sunday of each month.

• My July 4th weigh in was 129.0
• My June 6th weigh in was 129.6
• My May 2nd weigh in was 131.0
• My April 18th weigh in was 129.9 {after 18 days of being on the low iodine diet}
• My April 4th weigh in was 133.4 
• My March 7th weigh in was 135.6
• My February 7th weigh in was 137.3
• My January 3rd weigh in was 140.7

Keep My Husband Busy 

Apparently some water got into the console on the boat during the last monster rain storm and was making the engine go up and down on it’s own {not a good thing}. But luckily my maintenance man was able to take it apart and fix the problem. Having a guy around who knows how to fix things… it’s awesome. 

The HH’s Honey Do List {so far} for 2021 

• Build a new set of stairs down to the water. The old set… it’s not exactly useable.
• Build a firepit near the edge of the property. {DONE!}
• Build a picnic table near the birch trees for summer lunches {Done!}
• Build 4 or 6 garden boxes for his little lady {we did raised beds this year instead}}
• Build a boatload of birdhouses for the {soon to be} bird sanctuary 
• Create a garden path/walkway for the front garden {DONE!}
• Remodel the bathroom in the hallway {DONE!}
• Install some sort of driveway border
• Install a workspace for me in the basement for dying wool
• Install a fence in the front for Lucy {DONE!}
• Build a set of 3 bookshelves in the dining room for me {DONE!}
• Install a trailer hitch on the car {DONE!}

The HH finally decided on a wood chipper, so that’s good, only it might take a few weeks to get here so in the mean time he’s been busy playing with his latest tool, a cordless hacksaw. 

We’ve been working on clearing all the overgrown brush along the property and the cordless hacksaw has been a HUGE help! It’s light enough that even I can use it and so far, I’ve collected about 4 wheelbarrows full of small logs and kindling for the woodstove.  

Things We’d Like to Buy

• A dinghy 
• Archery Set {every camp should have archery!} 
• Kitchen table and chairs 
• Sideboard 
• Bench for the entryway 
• A full size washer and dryer set {the house came with a small stackable w/d set} 
• Deck chairs and a patio table set {Going the picnic table route instead}
• A set of 4 Adirondack chairs for the fire pit area  {I LOVE these chairs!}
• BBQ {He bought a Blackstone Griddle instead!}
• 2 More Kayaks

 

Unplug As Much As Possible {but still keep the blog, FB and Instagram}

I have been off of Facebook for about 24 days now and I don’t miss it one bit. I’ve also been able to get a lot more {book} reading done lately… hmmm I wonder if there is a connection there. 😉 

Unplugging is cool…. 

• Goodbye Facebook
• Goodbye Amazon Prime {Done!} $119 a year
• Goodbye Hulu {Done!} $54.99 a month *
• Goodbye Netflix {Done!} $7.99 a month
• Goodbye PicMonkey {Done!} $50 a year
• Goodbye keeping my cell phone in my back pocket and checking it constantly {so far so good}
• Limit time online to 3 hours a day {for writing, working, and Etsy} 

* Hulu is actually now $64.99 a month for the live tv version {live sports, live news}. You can get it for $5.99 a month but all that does is play tv shows and old movies {with ads}.

Try 24 New Recipes {and remember to link them here} {17 down, 7 to go!}

Last week I shared the my recipe for banoffee pie. You should try it. 🙂 

New recipes I’ve made this year:

• Banoffee Pie
• Chicken Salad with Costco Canned Chicken
• Classic Strawberry Jam Recipe
• Lobster Mac and Cheese Recipe
• Rhubarb Pineapple Pie
• Creamy Scalloped Potatoes with Ham
• Chicken and Green Bean Casserole 
• Chocolate Chip Sea Salt Cookies
• Lemon Meringue Pie
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Apples
• White Beans and Ham
• Colcannon
• Tuna Wiggle 
• Grilled Steak Tips with Garlic Butter
• Seville Orange Marmalade
• Jalapeno Cheddar No Knead Dutch Oven Bread
• Hearty Cheeseburger Soup
• Meatballs and Brown Gravy

 

Read {or Listen to} 12 New Books about Maine {or written by Maine Authors}

I only have about 10 pages left to go with Here On The Island by Charles Pratt and I think once I’m done, I’ll have to take the mail boat over to the island and check it out myself. 🙂 

Books about Maine {or written by Maine authors} I’ve read this year:

1. Christina Olson Her World Beyond the Canvas
2. Andrew Wyeth: A Secret Life
3. Finding Freedom
4. Maine’s Favorite Birds
5. At First Light: Two Centuries of Maine Artists, Their Homes and Studios
6. Bernard Langlais at the Colby College Museum of Art
7. The 3,000 Mile Garden
8. Becoming Teddy Roosevelt 

Audiobooks I’ve listened to {or attempted to listen to} this year: 

• The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah {I give it a 10/10}
• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig {I’d give it a 7/10}
• Wintering by Katherine May {Hit the return button after 7 minutes}

Get 24 Stories Off My Phone and onto the Blog  ** SEE NEW GOAL BELOW **

Try Everything That Head Tide Oven Offers This Summer

Head Tide Oven is located in the small town of Damariscotta, Maine and is only open a few months out of the year… so I will have to be super diligent if I’m going to try everything before the bakery closes shop at the end of summer. 🙂

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think I may need to take a week off from buying pies.

When we picked up our treats from Head Tide Oven this week, we immediately split the slice of chocolate cake and had a slice of the cherry pie as soon as we got back home. They were both so good, I had two more slices of pie that day. FOR A TOTAL OF THREE SLICES OF PIE, and a half of slice of chocolate cake in less than 10 hours and by the next morning I was STILL in a food coma. 

Oh my word… talk about too much of a good thing. 

The pie is gone now {I polished off the last slice yesterday} but I think I might need a little break. 🙂 

Items I’ve Tried From Head Tide Oven in Damariscotta, Maine this summer:

• Dark Rye Sourdough Bread
• Light Rye Sourdough Bread
• Sourdough Kalamata Olive Bread
• Sourdough Bread 
• Flat Sourdough Bread
• Baguette 
• Ginger Cookie x2
• Swedish Cookie
• Almond Bar 
• Anise Sesame Biscotti
• Pan Forte x2
• Chocolate Cake with a chocolate ganache 
• Lemon Thyme Pie x2
• Blueberry Pie
• Cherry Pie
• Cherry Rhubarb Pie

Get the Photos on My Phone Down to Less Than 1,000 {started the year with 2863 photos}

Currently at 1882 photos {the lowest it’s been all year!}. 

Clean Out My Closet

Working on it.

My House Projects For This Year

I wasn’t planning on painting the house this year, but hey, I’m about 30% done with the job and we both agree that a white is a much better house color than old man beige. I should be able to get started on the garage by mid-week. 

• Figure out new window treatments for the back of the house
• Come up with a game plan for the kitchen remodel {for 2022} 
• Paint the family room walls and trim {DONE!}
• Paint the entryway trim and doors {DONE!}
• Paint the dining room walls and trim {DONE!}
• Paint the master bedroom walls and trim {DONE!}
• Paint the barn and add a new fixture 
• Paint the hallway bathroom {DONE!}

My List of Garden Projects For This Year I want to Accomplish

Yesterday’s harvest: 1 quart sugar snap peas, a few cherry tomatoes, 2 bundles of cilantro, 1 bundle of chives and some green onions. Zucchini and peppers can’t be too far behind, right? 

Still left on the list:

• Install a simple flower bed border in front of the house {Done}
• Star a lasagna garden
• Install a boatload of birdhouses/feeders in the side yard {re-thinking this one}
• Transplant evergreen saplings to the side of property for a privacy border {fall project}
• Clean up and prune the area that faces the road
• Install a vegetable garden {Done}
• Install a sunflower patch {decided for a row along the side of the barn instead}
• Plant 2,500 flower bulbs in the fall {Why 2,500? It seemed like a good number to start with}

Reach 10,000 Sales on Etsy {as of this morning I’ve made 7884 sales on Etsy}. Only 2157 to go! 

I’ve started up hooking again in my spare time and currently have a nice stack of rugs and other treasures. I’m aiming for August 20th for a listing date if I can get enough pieces done in time. 

Create 12 New Rug Hooking Patterns or Kits {5 down 7 to go}

I am kind of slacking in the new pattern department, but I suspect once fall, and the cooler weather rolls in I’ll be back in the studio coming up with new designs. Being creative, there’s sort of a relaxed flow about it and I don’t try and rush it. 

New Rug Hooking Kits I’ve Created This Year:

• Cape Cod 1829 New England Whale and Sailboat
• Nantucket Whale
• 1820 Flower Basket
• Bunny Love
• Old Mr. Squirrel

Create 12 New Ornaments for 2021

This past week I added a few Crazy Chicken Lady ornaments {and acorns and horses} to my Etsy shop. 

2021 Ornaments I’ve Made So Far

• #1  Ladybug Heart 
• #2 Strawberry
• #3 Mr. Turkey
• #4 Whale Tails
• #5 Bee Skep
• #6 Loon
• #7 Simple White Cross
• #8 Miniature Candy Canes
• #9 Miniature Red Mittens
• #10 Sgraffito Owl
• #11 Penguin 

2021 Garlands I’ve Made So Far

• #1 Heart Garlands
• #2 Bunny Garlands
• #3 Strawberry Garlands
• #4 Whale Tail Garlands

Discover 12 Made in Maine Products and Share Them on the Blog

Part of me feels like I am slacking a little with this goal, but the other part of me knows I’m holding back a wee bit because I plan on doing a few “Maine” giveaways later this year and don’t want to spoil the surprise. 🙂 

Made in Maine Products I’ve Discovered in 2021:

• Hearth and Harrow Tea Towels in Rockport, Maine
• Royal Rose Syrups in Newcastle, Maine
• Ash Cove Pottery in Harpswell, Maine
• Uncas Farms Pure Maple Syrup

Visit 6 Lighthouses in Maine

2 down, 4 to go! 

Lighthouse adventures have been put on hold until the fall {when tourist season is over} and that’s fine by me. 🙂 

Lighthouses We’ve Visited So Far This Year:

• West Quoddy Lighthouse in Lubec, Maine
• Pemaquid Point Lighthouse in Bristol, Maine

Lighthouses I’ve Been to in Maine Before 2021:

• Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse
• Marshall Point Lighthouse
• Portland Head Light

Other places in Maine We’ve Been to This Year Are:

• The Farnsworth Art Museum 
• Owls Head General Store
• Hedgerow Market in Martinsville, Maine
• Longfellow’s Greenhouses and Nursery in Manchester, Maine
• Fresh Off The Farm in Rockport, Maine
• Wasses Hot Dogs in Rockland, Maine
• Langlais Sculpture Preserve – Cushing, Maine
• McLoons Lobster Shack

So that’s it. That’s my progress report for this past week. How about YOU? Did you make any goals for 2021? Have you checked any of them off your list yet? 

Have a great one, 

~Mavis