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Once the little chucklets discover our deck…
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It’s a constant source of entertainment.
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They love hanging out…
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And playing hide and seek under the grill cover.
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They really are sweet.
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And if they’re playing on my deck…
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They’re not eating my flowers.
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That’s a win win.
❤️
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The husband and I drove out to Harpswell recently to have dinner at Dolphin Marina.
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It’s a beautiful spot.
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And well off the beaten path.
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A working marina.
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With a nice restaurant at its tip.
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One disappointing summer sangria in…
( I told the bartender it was tasteless, he told me a lot of people were saying that. Then for heavens sake, why are you serving it!)
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My crab cakes were fab.
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Husband went with a cup of lobster bisque which was rich, heavenly and crammed with lobster.
It was also served in a coffee cup and cost $28. Gulp.
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The fog was rolling in…
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Which made for an eerie light.
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The watermelon mint spritz? Much better.
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My pan seared Parmesan haddock was lovely.
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As was my husband’s lobster pasta.
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Too full for dessert after enjoying the homemade blueberry muffins that come with every meal…
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We headed home.
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Enjoying the views along the way.
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Our purple Japanese Iris were in bloom recently…
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And they put on such a lovely show I have to share.
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I’m not a fan of the larger Bearded Iris…
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But these smaller beauties always make me smile.
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They’ve spread naturally and take up half the garden bed now.
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If only their bloom would last longer.
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😊
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Our little chucklets really love the back deck.
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And when I hear them scrambling across it I have to sit back and watch.
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It’s like their private playground.
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Tag, hide and seek…
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The grill cover is fun to duck under.
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The railings?
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A perfect back yard viewing platform.
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Did I mention Lord Dudley Mountcatten enjoys watching them too?
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Even when he has to duck under a blind to do it.
🤣
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My real life friends are very helpful. Knowing I’ve been looking for coffee and end tables, one of them sent me this…
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And while I’m sure His Lordship would love it?
No.
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This is a church I pass every now and then while running errands.
They have a sense of humor.
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Or try to…
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Now that’s what I call a backyard rainbow.
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This is what $150 worth of handmade gourmet candy looks like. We thought it would be a nice way to say thank you to the nursing and surgical staff for being so kind to an antsy (and sometimes unintentionally violent) patient.
*Note- I wanted to give them a healthy and attractive Edible Arrangement filled with fruit… but the damn stores have closed up shop and left the state of Maine.
Boo to that.
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Once or twice a day I hear scampering.
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And when I do?
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I know where to look.
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Out back on our deck where the chucklets are having fun.
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They run across it, they chase each other…
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But they really like the railings.
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In and out.
Out and in.
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It’s a veritable woodchuck amusement park.
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It’s bad enough I have to battle baby woodchucks stripping my flower gardens bare.
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They’re adorable, but it’s very hard to make them stop nibbling.
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I heard shredding Irish Spring around the plants helps, so I’m all in.
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My other problem this year?
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A mouse.
Who beheaded all my lovely marigolds and dragged the blooms under our shed.
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I didn’t even have a chance to photograph the pretty alternating yellow and orange combination before all I was left with was this…
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Because as soon as the mouse ripped off all the blooms?
The chucks ate 3/4’s of the leaves.
But I fixed them.
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I planted a row of taller crown daisies and no one likes those.
😉
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I haven’t written a front porch progress report lately because we had a good bit of rain and a few days of serious yard work that stalled construction temporarily.
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But the husband is back at it… deciding that old warped middle frame board he tried so hard to save needed to be replaced after all.
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New boards …
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New braces…
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He’s making his way down the line.
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And started playing with the new composite decking .
I’m calling it progress.
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Along with all our other wild visitors we have raccoons, but since they arrive at night I’m rarely able to photograph them.
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Until the other evening when a pair showed up before sunset.
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They really are characters.
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Such expressive faces…
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And those dexterous little paws!
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These little fatties shimmy right up the center pole, knock the suet cages to the ground then empty them at their leisure. Those paws can open anything.
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I was hoping they’d do it while I was filming but no such luck. Seeing their big butts hanging upside down eating the orioles grape jelly is a riot.
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😊
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There’s always one little chucklet that sticks close to mom.
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It might be the runt…
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It might just realize she knows where to find food.
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Either way, momma has a shadow.
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A little mini me chuck.
❤️
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River's world..... 