When people think of Maine, they probably don’t associate it with surfing. But here in Southern Maine, when the waves are hitting, the surfers are out. 

In droves.

Apparently a storm is headed this way. And if the surfing was pretty spectacular yesterday morning, I can only imagine how wicked it’s going to be this weekend. 

There was hardly anywhere to park yesterday.  We even spotted a few licence plates from Quebec!! Did they really drive down all this way to go surfing? 

How wild is that?

I’m a firm believer everyone needs a hobby. I’m just so glad that mine doesn’t involve sharks, cold water or wet suits.

Here’s hoping you have a great weekend. Whether it’s inside or out. 

If we’re going to get as much wind and rain as they saw we are though, you bet your pancakes I’ll be inside, on the couch, in my pj’s hooking all weekend.

~Mavis

OTHER

The post Surfs Up appeared first on One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Fall has arrived in full force and so has a nip in the air. 

Yesterday morning I heard the thermostat kick on for the first time since April and I was like here we go… Ready or not, the cold weather is on its way.

If you live in an area where the temperatures dip significantly and you rely on propane, natural gas or heating oil to keep warm, you’re probably like me and always looking for ways to save a little on heating expenses.

Even if they do seem trivial at times. Like leaving the oven door open after baking something. 

While I wouldn’t do this during the summer months with the a/c units on, I definitely pop the oven door open the rest of the year for that residual heat.

And it drives my husband a little bonkers. He thinks it’s silly. But hey, we paid for that heat!! Why wouldn’t I take advantage and use it?

So I have to ask, do you leave the oven door open after baking too? I know I can’t be the only one that does this. 

~Mavis

OTHER

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Have you tried Jobe’s fertilizer spikes? We planted a bunch of arborvitae trees this spring and the fence guy recommended them. 

He said both he and his neighbor both planted the same sized arborvitae trees at the same time. The neighbor used Jobe’s spikes and he didn’t and well, the neighbors trees are HUGE now compared to his. 

We grabbed a few packs a few months ago but forgot to use them. I wonder if it’s too late in the season to use them now. Maybe we should wait until spring? Anyone know for sure?

Glue guns now cost $30.

And the bean counters at Crest decided they could save a few pennies on multipacks of toothpaste by just throwing tubes of toothpaste into box rather than putting them into individual boxes {which of course make storing them easier.

Grumble grumble.

Ever wonder what it would have been like for a group of young women to share a flat in London in the mid 60’s? We came across this gem the other day and I thought it was pretty interesting. 

The tiny kitchen though, might just be the best part. Well that, and one of the girls using the phrase “crabby old trout”. I had to google it. But ya, it’s what you think it is. 

Jasper Hill Farm Willoughby cheese. We’re addicted!! We spotted it at Costco last month, tried it and went back for more. 

Luckily we found a few other types of Jasper Hill Farm cheese at Market Basket and have tried those too. They are all FANTASTIC!!! Have you tried it?

Do you have a favorite type or brand of cheese? Dubliner cheese still holds the #1 position for us, but these Jasper Hill Farm cheeses have been a nice treat.

Well that’s all I’ve got for today. Have a good one.

~Mavis

OTHER

The post Bits And Bobs – September 2026 appeared first on One Hundred Dollars a Month.

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Yesterday the electrician came by to take down the 10 million sets of track lighting over at Bird Cottage. It was EVERYWHERE!!! And so very outdated and clunky. 

I’m so glad it’s gone.

And heavy too!

Due to the depth of the ceiling, we wouldn’t do regular can lights. And a flush mount light in the middle of the room would have looked out of place because of the original wooden beams.

So our electrician recommended PowerAsia recessed slim down lights for the space.

We checked the reviews and they were great so we said sure, let’s do it!

I was really surprised at how little room there was between the drywall and the upper floor. 

Yikes! Good thing the electrician knows his stuff.

The blue line beneath all the track lighting was a bit of a surprise. Luckily though it’s just a chalk line and it cleans up pretty easily. 

The HH will have to patch the 10 millions holes in the ceiling left by the track lighting, but hey, the clunky lights are gone and holes can be patched so it’s all good.

It’s a good thing I didn’t waste my time painting the ceiling while the old lights are up because I would have just had to paint them all over again. 

And well, I guess I have my next painting project lined up. 

House projects. They never seem to end, do they.

~Mavis

OTHER

The post Goodbye Track Lighting… Hello Recessed Lights appeared first on One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Get Back To The Basics + Learning to Unplug

Talk about inspiring!! And their “stashes” of whatever supplies they use are sometimes pretty crazy too. 

Then again, most people would think I’m a hoarder of wool. Ha! But I’ve got plans.. For all of it. Or at least that’s what I have to keep telling my husband.

In The Kitchen

Back on the salad train. The way I see it, any day you can eat an avocado and bacon, is a good day.

Kitchen Goals For This Year

• Master the pear frangipane tart from Standard Baking Company. 
• Put my Weck jars to use. Working on it!!
• Use two bins of beans {Working on it}

Rug Hooking

I haven’t really had any extra time to hook anything new lately. Mostly I’ve been dying wool and wrapping packages. 

Hopefully with the weather starting to cool down a bit I’ll be inside more. I figure we’ve only got about 2-3 decent weeks left working outside. 

I’m planning on signing up for a 30 day trial of BritBox this winter. Last winter there was a deal, 30 days for $1.99. I missed out on it though. Hopefully I’ll remember this year.

Rug Hooking Goals For This Year

• Finish drawing out all my patterns, making kits, dyeing wool by March 31st. 
• Release 10 new rug hooking patterns/kits.  {4 down 6 to go}
• Hook 27 of the patterns from the “someday I’ll hook these” bin. {12 down 15 to go}

Go New Places – See New Things

The Rush concert in Boston!!! Can you believe it? This is turning out to be the year of concerts for us.

Okay, so maybe there’s only been two {Rush and John Mellencamp} but still. That’s two more than we’ve been to in the last 30 years combined.

All the bands we grew up listening to, those guys could retire at any moment. I told The HH if one of them is coming to town… We’ve got to go!

Travel Goals For This Year

• Travel someplace {internationally} that I’ve never been before.
• Travel somewhere in Maine {overnight} that I haven’t been before.

Places I’ve Been So Far This Year

• Boston {Birthday getaway}
• NYC {Girls getaway}
• John Mellencamp Concert + Stockbridge, MA

Walk And Stretch More

I’ve been finding quite a few treasures on my walks lately. The HH thinks it’s all junk but I’m having a good time. 

Sometimes he walks behind me and pretends not to know me because he’s embarrassed that I pick {FREE} stuff up. Whatever.

Walking/Stretching Goals For This Year

• Get into some sort of stretching routine
• Fast walk a 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon 

Garden

The leeks seem to be growing much faster now that the green bean plants are gone. Fingers crossed the temps stay above freezing for a few more weeks.

Garden Goals For This Year

• Rework the driveway and garden areas {DONE!}
• Go crazy and plant a ridiculous amount of flowers {DONE!}
• Step out of my comfort zone and plant some flowers I’ve never planted before {DONE!}

Paint

And last but not least, I started working on my Halloween buoys a few days ago.

So far I have twelve done {I need about 30}. I haven’t decided yet if I’m going to fill the entire front fence with just candy corn buoys, or if maybe I should add another design or two. 

Maybe stripes? Or orange lobsters? Spiders? I’m not sure. Usually we decorate for Halloween towards end of September, so I better get moving!

Is it really Monday already? 

~Mavis

Painting Goals For This Year

• The Van Gogh wall
• The gallery wall down stairs
• The captains wall in the hall
• Trim and walls 

OTHER

The post My Goals For 2026 – Week 38 of 52 appeared first on One Hundred Dollars a Month.

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