I love....

I love living by a wetland.  Walking the dog this morning was a relaxing experience, as I watched the mallard ducks stick their heads straight down in the water on the pond so that all you see are funny little rears sticking up into the air and waggling duck feet.  I love the cacophony of honks that geese make when they're flying north, the way light comes through white pine needles and cones against a gray sky, and the bright trills of red-wing blackbirds, having returned recently from places south.  Even though it's gray outside, it's still an early-spring treasure of a day.

I have been working intermittently on April Cottage.  The floor is done in the kitchen.  I first started with 1" square tiles cut from the flat parts of egg cartons.  I glued them down with tacky glue.

Here they are all in place.

 Then I sealed the whole thing with three coats of matte Mod Podge.  Do not attempt to grout a floor without sealing it first!  I nearly forgot to seal it and it didn't go well.  Then I sealed it and it worked great!

Next, I used spackling compound, which  I tinted light gray, to grout the floor.  I applied it with my fingers and wiped off the excess with a damp paper towel and buffed it with a dry one.  The room is now ready for the baseboards and wainscot.