My Big List of Things I’m Going to Do in 2021 – Week 16 of 52

Stay Healthy! 

Well, I’d say I lost at least 4 pounds on that dumb low iodine diet I had to do for 18 days. Who knew eating clean and taking all the joy {cheese, dairy, processed foods, desserts, iodized salt} out of your life would help shed a few pounds? 

Oh well, I guess I’m that much closer to hitting my goal weight. But I’m pretty sure I gained at least a pound back already though after all the delicious food I ate yesterday. 😉 

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

Weigh-ins are the first Sunday of each month.

• 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 {a few days into the low iodine diet}
• 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 

His days of servitude might be over, but the HH kept busy this past week by dealing with furniture people, installing a tow hitch on the back of the wagon and mailing off all my packages while I was going to and from medical appointments and then in confinement last week. 

No worries though… I have a big list of stuff for him to do this week. 🙂 I bet he wishes it was winter already. Ha ha ha. 

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. {He’s handy, he’ll figure it out}
• Build a picnic table near the birch trees for summer lunches {NEXT on the list!}
• Build 4 or 6 garden boxes for his little lady
• Build a boatload of birdhouses for the {soon to be} bird sanctuary 
• 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
• Install a trailer hitch on the car

Hey! The new kitchen table and chairs and sideboard finally arrived!

Now I just need to find an old set of wooden oars for the right side of the sideboard and that space is done! I was going for a cool, calm and beachy theme, and I think I’m headed in the right direction. 

Things We’d Like to Buy

• A dinghy {ordered}
• 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 {I think we might go the picnic table route instead}
• A set of 4 Adirondack chairs for the fire pit area  {I LOVE these chairs!}
• BBQ {Sayonara smoker?}

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

My phone is still on silent mode. 🙂 Not having to be interrupted by the noise of a ringing phone or text messages is really pretty awesome. 

• 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} {10 down, 14 to go!}

New recipes I’ve made this year:

• 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}

This past week I read the latest issues of Maine Magazine and Maine Home Design. 

I am also still waiting my turn in queue for The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah. 

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

1. Christina Olson Her World Beyond the Canvas. 
2. At First Light: Two Centuries of Maine Artists, Their Homes and Studios
3. Bernard Langlais at the Colby College Museum of Art
4. The 3,000 Mile Garden

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

• 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

Stories I’ve Taken Off My Phone and onto The Blog:

• Ale House Inn – Portsmouth, New Hampshire
• Chicken Foot in the Pot Pie
• Pineland Farms in New Gloucester, Maine
• Sheepscot General Store and Farm in Whitefield, Maine

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

Currently at 2012 photos on my phone. 

Clean Out My Closet

I turned all the hangers around in my closet on January 1st and so far 70% of them are still backwards. C’mon summer!

My House Projects For This Year

I think my current house project is getting a bunch of wool dyed and getting the garden up and growing. All interior projects are currently on hold until those two things are done.

My distraction level is running at an all time high and I need to stay focused if I’m going to get everything done before tourist guest season here at Camp Butterfield. 🙂 

• 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
• Paint the barn and add a new fixture {okay, so the HH will be adding the fixture}
• Paint the hallway bathroom {DONE!}

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

This week it will be all about getting those hydrangeas in the garden and figuring out what we’re going to build the garden boxes out of. We have a busy week planned so while I don’t think the garden boxes will be installed this week, at least we can make a decision on what materials we’ll be using and go and get them. 

Still left on the list:

• Install a simple flower bed border in front of the house 
• Install a boatload of birdhouses/feeders in the side yard
• Transplant evergreen saplings to the side of property for a privacy border
• Clean up and prune the area that faces the road
• Install a vegetable garden {Working on it!}
• Install a sunflower patch
• Plant 2,500 flower bulbs {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 7007 sales on Etsy}. It was a BUSY WEEK! 

Only 2,993 to go! 

This past week I added a bunch of new bundles of wool  to my Etsy shop and added some new whale tail ornaments. 

Create 12 New Rug Hooking Patterns or Kits

If I could just find about 10 hours to SIT DOWN and finish this thing….

New Rug Hooking Kits I’ve Created This Year:

• 1820 Flower Basket
• Bunny Love
• Old Mr. Squirrel

Create 12 New Ornaments for 2021

On Friday I added a few whale tail ornaments to my Etsy shop and this week I’ll be working on a whale tail garland. 🙂

2021 Ornaments I’ve Made So Far

• #1  Ladybug Heart 
• #2 Strawberry
• #3 Mr. Turkey
• #4 Whale Tails

2021 Garlands I’ve Made So Far

• #1 Heart Garlands
• #2 Bunny Garlands
• #3 Strawberry Garlands

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

Made in Maine Products I’ve Discovered in 2021:

• 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! Maybe when Mrs. HB comes to visit we’ll go visit a new one. 🙂 

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:

• Owls Head General Store
• 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

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