Oh, the glorious sound of water dripping everywhere! This winter has been intensely long and hard. The first 40 degree day that we could get out and walk, the kids threw their jackets on the porch and ran up and down the sidewalk jumping in slushy puddles in their rainboots until they were soaked to the skin. They saw a bit of muddy grass and began an interpretive swaying grass dance on the spot. And I let them because we were all feeling that way inside.
Brent decided this Spring's dad-schooling project would be tapping trees. Our one tiny tree was buried under five feet of snow, so we tapped trees at his parents' house instead (where they were only buried under four feet of snow.)
We made a field trip to a maple supply megastore in New Hampshire a few weeks ago for our buckets and spouts. The salesman encouraged us, "Good luck with your project!" while all the serious maple farmers around us were spending thousands of dollars on tubing and evaporators.
The buckets are up! The plastic ones are not nearly as charming as the old metal ones, but they served our purpose.
A good shot of the buckets in the snow. We only have a few tablespoons of sap so far. We think the trees may still be frozen from the snowpack. We've had gorgeous weather this week, but the roots are still cold.
A sign of hope! Here's to the sap rising and Spring on its way!
Of course, I can't leave you without a book suggestion. Brent introduced me to one of his childhood favorites when we got married and I have been eternally grateful. Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorenson is one of the most beautiful stories of a family's healing from the effects of war through their move to the country and interactions with neighboring farmers. A lovely book that should be read every Spring.
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