by Susan | Feb 24, 2024 | On My Mind
Hannah has been spending time on Petfinder, dreaming of a day when she can have her own pup. She texted me a picture of a pup, and I looked but wasn’t inspired. Yet I dared to linger on Petfinder and scrolled to peek at the other pups. (Dangerous, I know!) And...
by Susan | Feb 9, 2024 | Birds and Wildlife, Out and About in Maine
Hannah and I had an afternoon wander to shake off the craziness of my first week back in the office following my two-week visit with Dad in Pennsylvania. With temperature lows below freezing and daytime temps near 40, the river ice is beginning to melt. Lots of...
by Susan | Jan 30, 2024 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Perching Bird Patterns
The Brown-headed Cowbird is a fascinating songbird; they lay their eggs in the nests of other birds and let the other mamas do all the work. I’ve occasionally spotted them at our feeder and the edge of the woods. He’s on my list today because I happened to...
by Susan | Jan 28, 2024 | Out and About
It’s not as easy here in Pennsylvania as it is at home in Maine to stop in the middle of the road to capture a great view. This is the Susquehanna River on a foggy afternoon.
by Susan | Jan 26, 2024 | Bird Patterns, Felt Patterns, Perching Bird Patterns
The European Starling is a beautiful bird with glossy black feathers and a yellow beak. It’s a challenge to create a shiny feathered bird from felt. I designed this Starling while in Pennsylvania, spending time with Dad. This means that I’m not in the...
by Susan | Jan 16, 2024 | Shop
It’s been a hot minute since I added any new felt kits to the Shop. This weekend, I added four – the Black-billed Magpie, Red-headed Woodpecker, and Belted Kingfisher- older designs I’ve reworked and improved for these new kits. The Gray Fox first...
by Susan | Jan 15, 2024 | Out and About in Maine
Two storms hit coastal Maine this week. Each brought unprecedented high water that devastated our coastline. This picture shows the river at the base of our road, almost cresting the bridge and road at high tide. We watched the news and heard the stories from friends...
by Susan | Jan 12, 2024 | Shop
I’m taking some time away, so I’ll be closing the shop for a few weeks. Orders placed by Thursday, January 18th, will ship before I leave! https://www.downeastthunderfarm.com/shop/
by Susan | Dec 26, 2023 | On My Mind
It was a quiet and peaceful Christmas Day at Downeast Thunder Farm – which was good as I’m still feeling a bit out of sorts. There was a bit of fun when Paul and I realized that we gifted each other the very same electronic tire gauge/inflator gadget...
by Susan | Dec 24, 2023 | Family, On My Mind
This Christmas Eve, I find myself struggling to feel the Christmas spirit. I have the next week off from work (mostly). The tree is up and decorated with happy lights. We’ve delivered gifts to friends and family. Hannah and I have a loose plan for tasty treats...
by Susan | Dec 11, 2023 | Christmas
This weekend, I brought my beloved joyful owl pattern to life in a new way! A Downeast Thunder Farm Christmas pattern book has an ornament-size full-bodied Joyful Owl sporting a Santa hat. I made some of the felt owls this weekend with a bit of a twist. Instead of a...
by Susan | Dec 4, 2023 | On the Farm
I felt a bit like a little kid on this first snow day of the season. Paul grumbles. Hannah waffles about working from home or heading into the office. And I’m out at first light filling feeders, snapping photos, and watching the snow fall. I spent much of last...
by Susan | Dec 2, 2023 | Hannah, On My Mind
WHRL’s Winter Festival launched today. I have so much fun planning my contributions for this event each year – I love seeing people’s reactions to my creations. This year seeing how Hannah’s contributions are received is even more delightful....
by Susan | Nov 29, 2023 | Odds and Ends, Projects
Oh, it’s my favorite time of the year! WHRL’s Winter Festival & Auction is just around the corner. I’ve felt time-poor this season leading up to the event, but I’ve got new designs and some old favorites for auction entries. I love Charley...
by Susan | Nov 19, 2023 | Backyard Birds, On the Farm
I’ve been home for a week, but yesterday was the first day I had a moment for myself. A gloomy but mild morning, I parked on the porch beneath a blanket with my book, coffee, and camera. A band of blue jays descended upon my freshly filled feeder. They dodged in...
by Susan | Nov 7, 2023 | Christmas, Critter Patterns, Dogs, Felt Patterns
Spending the week with Dad, I dabbled with this Scottish Terrier design. It’s a fun, quick sew. I opted to make him using plaid Christmas ribbon for his coat. I put tape on the back of the ribbon to keep the edges from fraying. Since I didn’t have my felt...
by Susan | Nov 2, 2023 | Out and About in Maine
I spotted this lone Heron wading in the shallows of our tiny little spit of riverfront. Discomfited with my presence, she took off across the river, sailing past the late autumn vista.
by Susan | Oct 29, 2023 | Family, On My Mind
Mom loved hospital gift shops. Well, gift shops of any sort, but she said hospital gift shops carried unusual things. On the last day of Hannah’s February visit, the month before Mom passed, we made our rounds to not one but three different hospital gift shops....
by Susan | Oct 24, 2023 | Out and About in Maine
The first below-freezing morning of the fall dawned with sea smoke rising from the river. And in town over Narraguagus Bay. I’ve finally had to accept it’s time to tuck away my summer shoes. There’s no denying the calendar.
by Susan | Oct 10, 2023 | Haiku, Out and About in Maine, Writing
The view at the end of my road on the way to work this morning. I was so taken with this moment that I had to stop and snap the picture. morning sun’s soft rays calm river beneath the mist moments with nature
