Just Ducky: Mallard Felt Oranament
A snowy Easter afternoon seemed like a good time to finish this little Mallard Duck felt ornament. Click here to download the pattern. Hope you have fun making him!
Silly Dilly – The Movie
Okay, it's a really short movie. Take a look at Dilly tending to her nest of chicken eggs. I know it's silly, but I'm fascinated by my first broody duck! http://youtu.be/AR9XlawD6pM Other Dilly Posts 27 March 2012: Rules to Being a Broody Duck 23...
Dilly the Duck Adopts Chicken Eggs
Dilly stopped laying as of yesterday and at the same time became very serious about sitting on her nest. Obsessively so. Over the weekend, I candled the duck eggs she had been sitting on. Sadly, they were not fertile. Since Dilly has stepped up her...
The Simple Things That Rock My World
It's been six years since my beautiful Cherry kitchen cabinets were installed. Since then, the bottoms have fallen out of the 36" wide drawers. Twice. The first time the company came out to inspect and sent replacement boxes. The second time, Paul...
Arrival of the Canada Goose Felt Pattern
The past couple of weeks, Canada Geese have been flying overhead returning north for the summer. I love to hear the honking sound as they fly by - there's something nostalgic about the sound. This little goose is a quick and easy ornament to make....
Birthday Snapshots
I couldn't help but admire Paul's creative use of recycled materials for birthday wrap. I especially appreciated the ribbon - it does finish things off, don't you think? Using my felt bird ornaments as models, Hannah drew for me a very special...
Ooey Gooey Awesome Nutella S’mores
The other week when we cooked down our sap into Maple syrup, Hannah took advantage of the wood fire and made S'mores. All day long. The other day, we were down to the last graham crackers and marshmallows with no chocolate left in the house. (A...
Rules to Being a Broody Duck
There are rules to being a successful broody duck. I'm not sure Dilly understands that. She starts out the day doing a really good job. She has a drink, some breakfast, goes for a dip in the mortar box and then heads back in to sit on her nest. By...
Cheery Goldfinch Felt Ornament
It's a little early for me to find a Goldfinch at the feeder, but I'm sure it won't be long with the warm days we've had lately. In the meantime, this felt Goldfinch adds a little sunny cheer to the landscape. Click here to download this free...
The Return of the Fox
I sit outside on a beautiful Spring day writing this post about The Return of the Fox. Our resident fox has visited three times this morning raising havoc with the chickens and ducks. So here I sit on the porch giving the ducks some supervised play...
Dilly the Broody Duck
Our sweet little Dilly Duck has developed quite the attitude. It took us the better part of a week to put together all of the pieces and realize that Dilly is feeling broody. Each day, after Paul collects the eggs, Dilly sits alone in the corner of...
Sugaring: From Sap to Syrup
Our morning began with the sunrise. Before that first cup of coffee we were outside setting a fire in our makeshift outdoor wood stove to boil down sap. It's been two weeks since we tapped 12 Maple trees. We collected 25 gallons of sap, filling...
Arrival of the Bluebird – Felt Ornament
This little Bluebird seems quite content perched on the feeder. Tucked in the woods like we are, it's a rare treat for us to have a Bluebird visit! You can download the pattern here. If you make this little Bluebird, comment to share a link to a...
A Rude Awakening
All the snow was gone and the smell of Spring was in the air. Then we woke up to this. The weather man totally missed this snow forecast - five inches of snow. Nobody seems particularly excited about it. Although snow does have a way of defining...
Sugaring: Collecting Sap
A week after tapping 12 trees we did our second round of sap collection. All together we've collected about 8+ gallons of sap - enough for about 12 ounces of syrup. The nights have been cold with daytime temps anywhere between 32 and 58. The coming...
A Rooster In My Garden Felt Ornament
I don't make a very good patient. I've been stuck home with bronchitis. In between naps, whining about being sick, and nagged about keeping my behind in bed, I worked on this little rooster. Inspired by our Bantam roosters, Pepper and Clover, you...
A Maple Sugar Moon
The March full moon is the Sugar Moon because it rises at the height of sugaring season. It’s reported that the sap flow increases during a full moon. I hope this is true because the weather simply has not cooperated with our sugaring efforts so...
Smiling Pancakes
May your pancake smile upon you this morning. This is what you get when you let Hannah cook pancakes!
Sugaring: Tapping Maple Trees
We have been planning our entry into the world of Maple Sugaring since we purchased a book on sugaring last fall at the Common Ground Fair. Intending to start small, we purchased a dozen stainless steel Maple taps, plastic tubing, and saved gallon...
Feathery Felt Barn Owl Ornament
This little barn owl is my favorite felt ornament yet. With individual feathers and buttons for eyes, I can imaging her perching on the barn rafters. If we had a barn. Click here to download the pattern. If you make this little owl, please comment...
Shadowy Self Portrait
Me, in my PJs and fleece, walking Hannah to the meet the school bus this morning.
Another Winter Sunset
Creamy Asparagus-Potato Soup
On Sunday, the wind was howling outside and all three of us were at various stages of "under the weather" with colds. It seemed like a good soup day. With potatoes beginning to sprout in the pantry and asparagus that had gone almost forgotten in...
What’s Wrong With This Picture?
It's February and we're in Downeast Maine. And this crazy little Viola? Yesterday it was t-shirt weather. Today it's bitter cold with winds howling through like a freight train. Yet signs of Spring are waging an impudent challenge to the calendar....
Armchair Birdwatcher
I’m an armchair birdwatcher. This winter, the only regular visitors to my birdfeeder have been Mourning Doves. I snapped these pictures this afternoon from the coziness of my kitchen. This is the real reason why I removed all the screens from the...
