My Big List of Things I’m Going to Do in 2021 – Week 17 of 52

Stay Healthy! 

Miss Puggle Love and I checked the shore just about everyday this past week and the most exciting thing we found were a couple of bait bags. Hopefully once more boaters get on the water we’ll get some more buoys. 

I think I’ve figured out a way to upcycle the bait bags though, but I’ll wait until Mrs. HB gets here in May to test out my project. 

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 current to-do list! 

He picked up all the stones for the firepit yesterday so any day now we should have a firepit Yee-Haw! Then, it’s on to building some picnic benches. 

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 {DONE!}
• Install a trailer hitch on the car {DONE!}

We are loving our new dining room set and Lucy is loving the rug. We bought the same one we have in the living room {and that we had at our last place}. The rug is made from jute and old denim and super sturdy and I just LOVE the assortment of blues in it. 

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. 

Unplugging is pretty easy here, especially when the scenery is constantly changing.  Last night there was a commercial clam boat out in the cove {the third time we’ve seen on out there this spring!}. I told Mrs. HB she needs to bring her muck boots when she comes so we can go clamming. 

I mean, if there’s a clam boat out there… there must be clams out front, right? 

• 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:

• 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}

The HH popped by the library again this past week and came home with another stack of books for my Maine bookshelf. I’ve already read The Hungry Ocean, so I think I’ll read Marriage and Other Act of Charity next since a few of you have recommended the book. 

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
5. Becoming Teddy Roosevelt 

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}

This is why I have so many photos on my phone. 

Currently at 1993 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

My current {and all consuming} house project is getting someone to come out and put our floating dock back in the water {and attach it to the ramp}. I told the HH we are one YouTube video away from doing it ourselves. I mean seriously… how hard can it be? Wait for high tide, slip dock into the water, hook it up to the chains, lower the ramp onto the dock, click it into place. 

• 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 :

Two days ago we had a little snow. 

Yesterday the HH mowed our field. The weather is nuts here in Maine, that’s for sure. 

Originally I was planning on planting a ton of wildflower seeds in the field and turning it into a little bird sanctuary with oodles of birdhouses and feeders. But then by chance yesterday, the FedEx guy stopped by to drop off a package and was talking about all the black flies on his route and how it’s a good thing we mowed that field because it really cuts down on the flies.

And then I was like… YOU MEAN a field will attract black flies!!!???

And then I had flash backs to where we lived 2 houses ago and was like… Oh man, I don’t think I could handle that again. So maybe my birdfeeder/wildflower area will have to be moved to somewhere else. 

Still left on the list:

• Install a simple flower bed border in front of the house {Done}
• 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
• 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 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 7089 sales on Etsy}. It was another BUSY WEEK! 

Only 2,911 to go! 

This past week I added a bunch of new bundles of wool  to my Etsy shop and added a new bee skep ornament. 

Create 12 New Rug Hooking Patterns or Kits

I think I just need about 5 more hours and this baby will be done!

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 new Bee Skep ornament to my Etsy shop this morning. 

2021 Ornaments I’ve Made So Far

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

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

I found a cool new “Made in Maine” product and I’ll be sharing it on the blog this week. 

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