August Shorebirds
Winding down a Monday with a late afternoon beach walk with only the shorebirds and the rhythm of the waves to keep us company. Seagull. Sandpiper. Sandpiper. Plovers in flight. Plover. Plover.
Unexpected Opportunities
As a parent, I've oddly been missing that back-to-school vibe. For the first time since 2004, I haven't participated in the shopping and gear-up for another school year. The rhythm is off now that Hannah's a college grad. After returning from...
A Day At Milbridge Commons
This past week was challenging in a way that leaves you exhausted at the end. Every task a struggle, simple things were all but. One small example was my race to Bangor to have my car serviced on Friday - a 1:45 minute drive one way. Halfway home...
Felt Lobster Buoy Ornament
After creating my wooden buoy garland and my Maine Lobster Buoy Adirondack chairs, creating a felt buoy pattern was a no-brainer. Enjoy! Note: If you are reading this post via e-mail, click the "Continue Reading"...
A Buoy Frame of Mind: Maine Lobster Buoy Garland
Since working on the Maine Lobster Buoy Adirondack chairs for WHRL's Chair-ity Auction, I've been in a buoy frame of mind. I started thinking about a buoy-themed tree for WHRL's Christmas Tree Festival. I rummaged through Paul's scrap wood pile a...
A Day at Gillette Stadium
Yesterday was a wonderfully exciting and rewarding day. The tale starts back in April. I work at Women for Healthy Rural Living one day a week. I've been involved with WHRL since 2005 in one form or another - volunteer, board president, and now...
It’s a girl!
Just as I was lamenting that Christina had 58 Monarch butterfly releases to my zero - this girl emerged from her chrysalis. We enjoyed her for a few moments before she flew away. They grow up and leave home so fast. More to come! Note - if you're...
Kvetina Monarch Hatchery
My friend, Christina Gantz of Kvetina Wildscaping, has taken the concept of raising Monarchs to a new level. She first told me about her plans for a Monarch nursery over the winter. Today, Hannah and I drove over to her hatchery to take a look. It...
22 Trips Around the Sun
It's hard to believe that I've had this wonderful girl in my life for 22 years. Although the weather was gloomy, we still celebrated with our traditional lobster dinner - margaritas, 1.5-pound lobsters, cheesy potatoes, cheddar bay biscuits, and a...
A Magical Evening
The beach was calling our names tonight. Hannah and I rushed through dinner and headed over to Roque Bluffs. The sand and waves have a way of smoothing rough edges. We paused along the way to watch this heron who took exception to our presence. A...
Maine Lobster Buoy Chairs
In the last few years, Women for Healthy Rural Living - or WHRL (formerly Women's Health Resource Library) has had a summer auction. Two years ago, I created my Navigating Maine Coffee Table for the event. Last year, we decided to have local...
Scarborough Marsh
I've longed to visit Scarborough Marsh, enamored by the pictures others have shared online. Hannah was up for the adventure, so we had a short mother/daughter vacation this July. On a Wednesday, we meandered our way along US Route 1 to Freeport,...
The Singing Red-eyed Vireo
The Green-eyed Vireo is another songster in my woods I've discovered through song identification apps. I haven't been able to find a good olive green in felt - the color called for on this bird. I dabbled with some wool fabric for the back and...
A Wander at Old Farm Point
This week my work travels took me to Lubec. I stopped at Old Farm Point to enjoy my brown bag lunch. This is a new park that recently opened and is part of the larger Cobscook Shores park system. A mown path leads you along the edges of a large...
In The Garden Today
Today was the quintessential perfect Maine summer day. It was a lazy day for me. Coffee on the porch, lawn mowing, puttering in the yard and garden. My happiest discovery is that Ms. Monarch, who was here earlier in the week did her job. I...
The Whistling Black-throated Green Warbler
The Black-throated Green Warbler is another songster that I've detected in my backyard via song. Another bird I've yet to spot, but whose song I hear with gusto lately. This July 4 weekend is chilly and rainy - after days of 90s weather - the...
Wild Geese on the River
For the first time in 15 months, I'm back on the road traveling again for work. It's fun to be driving through rural Maine, audible story on the radio, camera by my side just in case. Yet today was a tight schedule, so there wasn't time to admire...
Milkweed in Bloom
This is the view out my kitchen window. It was full of orange butterflies this morning. I was excited as I haven't seen the Monarchs since my first sighting earlier in the month. I abandoned my coffee in favor of a camera and headed outdoors. I...
Vintage Oak Sideboard
Do you know those Honey-do items that languish on the to-do list? This one has been languishing for about 15 years. In part because there have been so many projects on the list and in part because I didn't nag. Years ago, I refinished this old...
Look Who’s Singing in My Backyard
Last week I shared my discovery of the Song Sleuth app for identifying birds by their song. I've had more fun playing with this tool, learning about the less obvious birds in my backyard. A reader mentioned that they use the Merlin app for this....
The Downeast Thunder Farm Ovenbird
Since exploring who is singing in my backyard, I've discovered that the most common song I hear is that of the Ovenbird - a Wood Warbler. I've never seen one - apparently, they keep to the woods but their song is loud and clear. My challenge with...
Some Days
Some days are just out of kilter. From the moment you wake, you feel out of sync with the world. Or something frustrating happens that derails the rest of your day. When this happens, my girlfriends blame it on Mercury in retrograde (apparently,...
Cutler Harbor in the Fog
I joined Hannah this afternoon on an impromptu outing to capture some video for a project she's doing at work. As we drove east, the patchy sun we'd enjoyed all day turned to fog. We stopped in Cutler Harbor, where I snapped this image of boats...
Hummingbird Moth Visitor – Video
While watering my hanging flower pots this evening, this little Clearwing Moth - aka Hummingbird Moth came to visit. With the lilacs all but faded, there's not much in my garden to feast on until the lavender blooms - except for my hanging baskets....
Who’s Singing in Your Backyard?
You likely know by now that I'm an avid, total novice, backyard bird watcher. I've discovered this morning that there are birds singing in my backyard I've never seen before. I'm often focused on the birds at my feeders (which have been put up for...
