summer of 2026

I’m not gonna lie: this summer has been the opposite of relaxing for me.

But I’ve had an abundance of work opportunities and pet-sitting jobs, which I’m so grateful for. Because of the multiple-week jobs, I was able to save enough money that I shouldn’t have to worry about paying car insurance and taxes next year 🎉

As a small business owner who’s never had a traditional job, it’s always an extra big sigh of relief when I confirm that my work is continuing to financially sustain me.

But as someone who can happily go months (literally) without seeing people (aside from the people who live in my house, of course), it’s taken a lot of energy to have my schedule full of meet-ups with other people.

With a slow-healing back injury (more on that in a later post), and a full schedule, it seems like most of my summer has flown by in a blur of movement and low-key pressure (what pet-sitter hasn’t had a few stress dreams about forgetting to feed someone’s pets!?).

the black-eyed Susans have spread so much this year, so the front meadow is finally starting to turn into a flower-filled meadow, instead of just grasses. We also have goldenrod and wild bergamot blooming in it at the moment, and sneezeweed will follow soon

I know what a privilege it is to say this, but I’m craving a clear calendar page, and the quiet winter days ahead!

But I’m certainly not taking the rest of the summer for granted. I’ve gone on a few hikes lately where I consciously chose to leave me camera behind, and simply enjoyed the warm summer sun (and the singing hermit thrushes).

I’ve been taking time to catch up on some projects, start new ones, and have prioritized reading again (I’m currently re-reading some childhood classics).

the room décor that I treated myself to this year; when I saw the Tiffany-style turtle lamp that Taylor’s girlfriend has, I knew I had to have one too, so I tracked one down on eBay!

Aside from the constant running around in my own personal life, there’s also been a lot of work still being done at home this summer. The native wildlife habitat work (which I mentioned in this post, and this post) has continued, and more progress has been made than we ever would’ve expected in a 6-month span.

I’ve shared most of the big projects that I’ve completed on my YouTube page already, but although I’m quite late with it, I’ve always planned to share them on my blog as well.

while clearing out the old chicken pen, we discovered that we have a whole grove of native dogwood shrubs (bottom right); we were excited to see them bloom and produce berries

For the past year or two I’ve found a lot of enjoyment in creating short-form video content (if anyone has known me for more than a decade, then you likely already know that I’ve always loved creating video content), but personally, I feel like my blog is a more permanent and sustainable way for me to share what I love (even if it does lay dormant for periods of time).

Mom made us some rhubarb crisp using the rhubarb that a neighbor let me harvest from their garden during a pet-sitting job

Let’s face it, YouTube is still a form of social media (and you know how I feel about social media); something that runs on algorithms, engagement, and interactions (too often negative interactions). There’s a reason that I’ve always kept this blog as my safe space, and have never allowed comments!

So while I still enjoy the creative form of making aesthetically-pleasing videos (and will likely continue to do so), I’d really love to catch up on things on my blog ✨

we’ve let a lot of the backyard grow up into meadow areas, but keep our walking paths mowed

Although the activity on here ebbs and flows, my creativity has not faltered this year. I have so many ideas, and sometimes I just have to simply jot them into a notes app so that I can stop thinking about them while I work on what’s already on my plate.

Not to mention the fact that I’m also currently drowning in monarch caterpillars!

my foster children 🐛❤

You may remember that I raised monarch butterflies for the first time last year. Using our small milkweed patch (that was, at the time, being strangled by poison ivy, multiflora rose, and bittersweet) I raised and released a total of 35 monarchs.

Earlier this spring we cleared out that same patch of milkweed (before the milkweed popped up), which was one of the most horrendous and despicable jobs to date. A thick and knotted mass of bittersweet, knotweed, multiflora rose, and poison ivy (which, despite taking every precaution, ended up giving us rashes all over our bodies), it felt like an impossible task.

our cedar tree is currently covered in beautiful berries

But not only did that give the current milkweed room to grow and thrive, it also helped it to spread into a patch multiple times larger than it was last year.

It’s now, of course, called the monarch garden, and we’ve also added some different kinds of native milkweed plants to it, like butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), and whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata). It’s already been a huge success, and the egg-laying monarchs have been plentiful 🦋

I’ve collection over 100 eggs and caterpillars, with more still appearing.

on the way to one of my evening pet-sitting visits I stumbled upon the roosting spot of a couple of blue herons; Riley Mae and I went back a couple nights to get photos and videos of the giant birds at sunset

At the time of this post, I’ve released a total of 91 butterflies; 42 girls and 49 boys.

I want to do a full post on this year’s monarch experience once the summer is over, but for now, just know that I am continuing to repopulate ~~the world’s~~ Connecticut’s monarch population.

The biggest release day I’ve had so far was August 12^th, when I released a total of 13 butterflies!