“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” ~ Oprah Winfrey
My goals for 2018
Goal #1 – Write Like No One is Reading.
“Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and only thing you have to offer.” ~ Barbara Kingsolver
Goal #2 – Slow Down
It’s been a tough week. First the heat, and then the poison ivy. But the past two days it has cooled down considerably {upper 60’s!} and although nothing seems to help with the poison ivy itch, are moods are better and working outside has become fun again. Have I mentioned I’m looking forward to winter? 😉
Goal #3 – Shop Small
This week I found 6 blue stoneware mugs, a little bundle of Indian corn and 2 baskets {perfect for holding potatoes at the vegetable stand!}. I LOVE our little town recycle center, you just never know what you are going to find.
Goal # 4 – Have a Designated Meal Prep Day
So far we haven’t been able to pull this one off.
Goal #5 – Install a Vegetable Garden Done!
Although things in the main garden are winding down, we have a still have a few things like basil, chard, beets, onions, and zucchini growing. I did start some cabbage and spinach seedlings under lights a few weeks ago and they should be ready to transplant out this week.
Goal #6 – Clear Land for a Chicken Coop and Future Raised Garden Bed Area
We got our first egg!!! Thanks to Miss Hilda, we found an egg in the nesting box 2 days ago. But haven’t seen another since. My bet is we are only a few more weeks away until all the girls stay laying. 🙂 🙂 🙂
Goal #7 – Grow 500 Pounds of Vegetables
At the last weigh in we were up to 309 pounds of homegrown produce. Hopefully we can get a few more pounds added to that total when we harvest the squash and potatoes this fall. Also, I have no idea what this squash is. Any ideas?
Goal #8 – Hook 100 Rugs
I only have 18 more rugs to hook before I can check this goal off my list! This week I completed a set of sunflowers and two mini crow pillows and continued to work on another flower basket rug that I will turn into a pillow when I’m finished. I haven’t been able to dedicated much time to hooking the past few weeks, but I should have a few items ready for my next Etsy Shop update on September 15th.
In the past, winter has been when I seem to get the majority of my hooking done, and I’m hoping with the long winters here in the Northeast this winter I’ll be able to get more projects completed than I have in the past. Only time will tell, but I am already on the lookout for a rocking chair to place by the wood stove so I can hook next to it.
Goal #9 – Make a Set of Dolls
I’ll work on a set this winter.
Goal #10 – Make a Sampler, Frame it and Hang it on the Wall Done!
Goal #11 – Visit 22 Bakeries
The HH and I didn’t get a chance to check out a new bakery {Harvey’s} but The Girl and I did make it to one of our favorites instead. Boulangerie Bakery in Kennebunk, Maine has delicious baked goods and their croissants are nice and flaky.
Goal #12 – Start a Collection
Since we’ve been here, Lucy has found at least a half dozen well loved toys left by the previous owner’s dog in the backyard. Last night while I was pulling weeds under the cherry tree, she found this sweet little bear. Everyday is little like a treasure hunt around here, you just never know what you are going to find.
Some finds {like dog toys, garden pots, stepping stones, flowers} are welcoming, and others {ticks, poison ivy, wild turkeys sitting on your cucumbers} not so much. But living in the woods sure does keep things interesting, that’s for sure.
Goal #13 – Read {or listen to} 26 Books
I didn’t read anything new this week. But, after seeing some late last night on Instagram about Author Susan Branch, I now I want to see if I can request the following books from our little library:
A Fine Romance, The Fairy Tale Girl and then Martha’s Vineyard, Isle of Dreams. Have you read any of these?
Goal #14 – Try 12 New Canning Recipes
My little canning cupboard…. It’s filling up! Hopefully I can get some more tomato sauce and applesauce canned this week. So far this year I’ve canned:
- Apple Cider Butter
- Tomato Sauce
- Carrot Cake Jam
- Spiced Peach {Crazy good!!!}
- Blueberry Jam {without the mint}
- Pickled Beets {without the funky spices}
- Cherry Almond Jam {freakin’ AWESOME}
- Susan’s Lilac Blossom Jelly
Goal #15 – Secret {for now} Holiday Project
I had a GREAT week working on my secret holiday project! I was able to try out a few new colors {HINT!} and finally found the PERFECT blue/grey I’ve been searching for.I’m hoping to be able to show you what I’ve been working on soon.
How about YOU? Did you set any goals for 2018? How are they coming along?
~Mavis
Read About My 2018 Goals HERE.
paula says
Yes, I love Susan Branch’s books. They are filled with wonderful stories, recipes, and her drawings. You should check out her blog. It’s magical! She often travels to England. She is obsessed with Beatrix Potter. Last year, she took a tour group to England and visited Beatrix Potter’s farm. The tour was open to the public to sign up. So cool!
Em says
The recycling center is a great idea!
Will you be selling extra eggs at your stand?
What a sweet dog toy. Your property has been pre-loved!
Great job, Mavis!
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes! As soon as we have enough to share.
Mim says
Mavis, hang in there! 41 degrees here this morning and our first fire in the wood stove! Can’t tell you how exciting it is. (And weird — Wednesday was in the high 80s and we were dying. Today, turtleneck and warm pants, socks and a fleece vest. Go figure.)
Highs in the 50s tomorrow — fall is here!
Mim says
P.S. referring to Vermont in the message above re. temps and fall arrival
Dawn M Ramirez says
You should try to get some jewelweed soap or salve for the poison ivy rash, see if that helps.
Darby says
Hello! Sorry to hear about the poison ivy!! I get it frequently at the lake-even though I don’t touch it, my dog must! Then he transfers it to me or to our house. I bought the ‘Mean Green’ scrub on Amazon and it’s sooo much cheaper than Zanfel!!! I scrub my skin every night to prevent poison ivy. In the last three years I’ve managed (finger crossed) to drastically decrease my outbreaks. I also wipe my dog with baby wipes and then wash my hands right away too. I have had severe outbreaks in the past that made me nearly lose my mind.
Sue says
Wild guess, are you learning pottery? Loving this New England adventure your on. Since I live in the South it’s like reading another chapter in a book, I love the difference of the PNW verses New England way of gardening.
Kimmy says
I laughed out loud at “wild turkeys sitting on your cucumbers”. I have neither cucumbers nor turkeys, would be fun to have both.
Deb says
I have followed/stalked Susan Branch since I saw her artwork and recipes in Country Living magazine. She has several cookbooks as well as her recent books that you mentioned. She lives on Martha’s Vineyard so she is local (New England).
Pj says
New holiday surprise guess… Toll Painting.
Pam B. says
I enjoyed reading the Susan Branch books that you showed and she is working on another one about her latest trip. I have most of her cookbooks and her blog is great too. Another author you might enjoy is Gladys Tabor. She wrote about life in Connecticut and her Stillmeadow farm.
Lil F says
I too think you are attempting pottery
Connie says
I thought you might have a loom..
Peg says
Susan Branch is awesome! Looking forward to her next book
Lea says
You’ve had a busy week, Mavis! And I’m so sorry you’re poison ivy has had you so miserable. My Great Auntie made some sort of “magic” completely homemade soap that does wonders on it but I have zero idea of what the actual ingredients are. I have no recipe and we’ve all been hording the last bits as it really works as no one knows what’s in it.
That mystery squash sort of looks like butternut but not really. Hrmmm…I’d be interested in finding out what it is too!
Can’t wait to hear about your secret project!
Lea
Indio says
Jewel weed soap works well on poison ivy.
Lolly says
Pine tar soap does well, too!
bobbi says
You got an egg!! You mean, they don’t just keep laying? lol. I am waiting for my first egg from my girls. So exciting!!
Oh how I wish I could afford one of your rugs! The Halloween are my fav’s! So cute! I am so excited for your nice weather too. We’ll have to wait weeks still for anything close to that, but oh well. Thanks for sharing!
Mavis Butterfield says
We got a second one today! Same color though so so far we just have one laying.
Julie says
Zanfel is the only thing that brought me relief from poison even. Ever. You can find it at most drug stores if you need it immediately.
Pam Karpa says
Hey Mavis,
I am also guessing pottery wheel and kiln as your secret project….I know from personal experience it has a pretty steep learning curve. The black dresses early on would make good cover for the flying clay and blue grey is a wonderful color for pottery glaze. Congrats on first egg….worth waiting for! You could always leave some pots of orange daylillies at the recycle center. We are in NC with a hurricane aiming for us and all I can think of is it might be worth it if it would cool this place off !!
Lynn from NC Outer Banks says
Hi Pam. I’m in the Outer Banks and have family in Wilmington, so watching the weather nervously. Certainly no stranger to hurricanes, but have never had a predicted cat 4 at landfall heading our way. Where are you located? The heat has been brutal, which has led to such warm ocean water temperatures. Certainly the models aren’t looking good for NC. 🙁
Mavis Butterfield says
I tried the pottery wheel once in high school and that was enough for me. I wish I had the talent for it though. I keep telling The Girl she should take a class because I know it would be something she’d be good at.
Brenda says
I watched a show on PBS that made me think of you. A Few Good Pie Places. Most of them were on the east coast. One of them was even a road side stand that 2 ladies started after they lost their jobs in the recession. It’s from 2015 so not sure if they are all still open, but might be some fun date days road-tripping with the hh.
Diane says
Thanks Brenda, I just looked it up online and am watching it now. Mavis, you’ll probably want to visit these bakeries! My mouth is especially watering for the blueberry pies!!
Patty P says
It looks like a birdhouse gourd. 🙂 I’ve always wanted to grow those, but never have! The heat irritates poison ivy…so now with cooler temps it should help. My son had it this summer and it took about two weeks to run its course.
Lynn from NC Outer Banks says
Hi Mavis. Not sure if you’ve already tried calamine lotion and/or oatmeal baths for the itch from the poison ivy. (Works for itchy chicken pox!)
I guess the recycle place functions like a Freecycle spot? Everyone drops off their castoffs, free for the taking? If so, Pam’s idea is a good one for a way to re-home your unwanted day lilies.
Can’t wait for the reveal re: your secret project…inquiring minds want to know.
Have a good week.
Candice C. says
Hey Mavis, purchase bentonite clay. It is great for poison ivy. relieves the itch immediately and clears it up quickly. Google search to find where to purchase in your area. I bought mine from Amazon..a couple years ago. Bought it in big tubes but it also comes in a tub that you have to mix a portion up with water to use. I took the lazy way and a bit more costly way of already prepared because the person I was purchasing it for was my someday to be son-in-law and well, he was a guy, at university and didn’t think he would use it if there was an extra step like mixing with water. But, he was covered with poison ivy and sure enough it worked well. Purchased a couple for my household at the time as well. Now pull out poison ivy wearing playtex type gloves (they have sleeves!) and then wash with soap and water using a rough wash cloth after pulling if it somehow rubbed against my skin. I learned it is the friction of the cloth against the skin that washes it away. Works even hours later after exposure..at least on me.
Staci W says
Hi Mavis! I hope by now you’ve had some relief from the poison ivy.
Congrats on the egg, too! If you have more than one of the same breed of chicken, you may have more than one laying, we have 4 breeds and several of each, so I’m never quite sure who’s laying and when. We’re going to get our coop ready for shorter and cooler days here soon, too. We’ve found that a light with a timer is critical to extend the laying period. And blocking the cold wind from their entrances helps some, too. With the trees you have around, that might not be too much of an issue. But your coop is a beauty!!
I wish we had a recycle center with those sorts of goodies around here. We often set things at the end of our driveway for folks to help themselves to. Works pretty well, all sorts of things that we have no use for get carried away. As we always say “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” I have been known to crawl into the large dumpsters at our county landfill for awesome items (Little Tykes picnic table, 5 ft tall iron bird cage, perfectly good plywood,…) Apparently that is frowned upon, they posted signs prohibiting climbing in the bins. Oh well.
Enjoy the cooler temps!
Jenn says
I’m so sorry to hear about your poison ivy! The only thing that helps me is a trip to the doctor for a steroid shot followed by a course of prednisone. If it starts off as one patch and then spreads to other areas days and weeks after, steroids is needed.
I now wash with Dawn dish soap and let sit on my arms, hands for 5 minutes in a thick paste and so far this summer I’ve been ok. I’ve also used the Zanfel and that works wonders if you catch it right away! Hope you find some relief soon; the cooler weather should help!
Nancy says
Yes! Please read Susan Branch. Her books are beautiful and unique. You will like!