by Susan | Dec 8, 2024 | Bird Patterns, Odds and Ends, Projects
A few years ago, I turned my Joyful Owl into a tree topper that now sports a jaunty red scarf. This gray-colored owl looked sweet on past trees, but not this year’s Christmas tree, which has a more natural white, green, and brown theme. What to do? In October, I...
by Susan | Dec 2, 2024 | Felt Patterns, Other Patterns
This little mushroom is a departure from my normal designs. I was inspired by some mushroom Christmas ornaments I spotted while shopping last weekend with Hannah. It made the perfect project for Sunday afternoon football watching. Enjoy! Download the free pattern...
by Susan | Dec 1, 2024 | Christmas, Felt Patterns
This year, I welcome December with a new Snowman design. I used some tiny birch twigs for arms and various size buttons for the eyes and buttons. Mix up the colors as you wish. This makes a nice Christmas tree ornament or present decoration. Download the free pattern...
by Susan | Nov 30, 2024 | Backyard Birds, Family, On My Mind
Thanksgiving dawned wet and dreary in Downeast Maine. It was a quiet day filled with baking and birdwatching from the sofa. This Thanksgiving was particularly poignant for me because it was also Mom’s birthday—the second one we’ve spent without her. She...
by Susan | Nov 18, 2024 | Critter Patterns, Dogs, Felt Patterns
Melville, the mini dachshund, was the first dog that Paul and I welcomed into our new family shortly after we married. Also known as “Bud” or “Little Buckeroo,” he was as loveable as he was a challenge. The spots on my wall-to-wall carpet in that old house were a...
by Susan | Oct 27, 2024 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Owl and Raptor Patterns
Visiting Dad in Pennsylvania presents an opportunity for shopping–or, more accurately, window shopping–every day. I think there may be more stores per square mile in his town than in the entire state of Maine. I spied a snowy owl on a floral pick in the Christmas...
by Susan | Oct 21, 2024 | Christmas
Here’s a short video of the assembly of my felt Downest Thunder Farm felt Christmas Tree. Download the free pattern or the kit for purchase...
by Susan | Oct 14, 2024 | Christmas, Felt Patterns
This Felt Petal Christmas Tree idea has been sitting in my “someday” file for years. I found some craft cones from my mom’s stash of supplies, so I began experimenting with various petal sizes and gluing methods before I settled on this final...
by Susan | Oct 11, 2024 | Out and About in Maine
The northern hemisphere has been experiencing a period of high solar activity for the past few days. As we’ve had cloudy skies and rain, I didn’t think much about going out to try to see them like I did in May. Only after seeing a friend’s pictures...
by Susan | Sep 22, 2024 | On My Mind
The long days filled with sunshine have flown by, leaving me wondering where the summer has gone. In some ways, I feel the summer has passed me by, busy with work and life, but visiting my photos reminds me of the wonderful moments had. A June visit with Dad. My...
by Susan | Sep 6, 2024 | Out and About in Maine
At our house, this seems to be the year of the pumpkin. Hannah has had fun tending to her tiny pumpkin patch this summer and has begun harvesting. Orange ones. Big ones and little. Gray ones and warty ones. Her wish for this month included a visit to a pumpkin patch....
by Susan | Aug 26, 2024 | On the Farm
It is a foggy, damp, overcast day here in Maine. Snuggled up on the porch under a blanket with Murphee, I heard a scary commotion from Doodle Duck in the pond. I tossed the blanket aside and hopped up, ready to do battle. It was not her normal quacking; this was a...
by Susan | Aug 23, 2024 | Birds and Wildlife, Out and About in Maine
This morning, Hannah and I visited with our friend, Christina, who runs a Monarch Hatchery. On our first visit to Kvetina Hatchery, she was set up in a couple of tents. This year, she upgraded her setup with a little cabin–one side dedicated to caterpillars and the...
by Susan | Aug 5, 2024 | Hannah, On My Mind
Hannah spends much of the summer in Brunswick for work. She’s made it home a time or two, but I wouldn’t say I like the idea of her spending her birthday alone. She has to work on her birthday (a Monday this year) so I made the trip to Brunswick for the...
by Susan | Aug 2, 2024 | Give-a-ways, On the Farm
On this first day of my staycation, I wandered the yard in my PJs, enjoying my coffee and just being. A “plop” and then a “buzzing” sound startled me. Looking about, I finally spied this dragonfly who landed in my thankfully tepid coffee....
by Susan | Jul 24, 2024 | On the Farm
I’m not a wonderful gardener, but I’ve made a bit of effort to have a few annuals, perrenials, and wildflowers around the house. Yet my favorite blossoms this time of year as the lavender is fading are the oregano and marjoram blossoms. And I have a LOT of...
by Susan | Jul 22, 2024 | On My Mind
Each summer, Women for Healthy Rural Living (WHRL) holds a dual auction–a raffle (which runs in person July 26-27) and an online silent auction (running now through July 28th). The fun thing about the online silent auction is many smaller items can be shipped so you...
by Susan | Jul 11, 2024 | On the Farm
One of the things I love about living in the Maine woods is that we see (and hear) lots of wildlife. You’ve seen my bird and deer photos, but here’s a recap of some of our nocturnal visitors over the years. Missing is a Moose (Paul didn’t snap a...
by Susan | Jun 16, 2024 | On the Farm
One of the most cherished gifts I’ve received from my mom are the tiny lilac transplants from her garden. They bring such joy when they bloom each June. Mom planted these Dwarf Korean Lilacs around a tree in her front yard. As they began to spread, she dug up...
by Susan | Jun 11, 2024 | Backyard Birds, On the Farm
Last year, when I was feeling particularly low and searching for a bit of joy, I splurged on a Bird Buddy. It’s a bird feeder with a solar-powered camera that captures backyard visitors. When it arrived, Paul reconfigure a pole for this little feeder. I went...
