Spring? Is that you?

OK, so last weekend was a nice tease of spring up here in Vermont. We had sunshine, and (relatively) warm temperatures too. On Saturday things were slow to warm up though..we actually attempted to go birding, which we haven't had a chance to do since our February trip to Florida, so we packed up Aiden for a stroll along the Colchester Railroad Causeway. There were lots of good ducks and geese (Hooded and Common Mergansers, Ring-necked Ducks, Mallards, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, American Wigeon and Canada Geese) but MAN! The wind was COLD! It had to be about a 15 to 20 degree wind chill coming off of the iced-over section of Lake Champlain, and we had to create a "boy in the bubble" using some plastic stroller attachment that we had no idea how to use. Aiden could stand it only about a half hour, so we had to call it quits early. That's what we get for going birding at 9AM in March in Vermont.




The afternoon was much nicer- it warmed up until it was mild enough to sit outside on the porch without a winter jacket and have the first margarita of the season. Plus we grilled dinner outside twice and did yardwork all day Sunday! Amazing! We decided that the first time in the spring that you eat charcoal grilled food after having none all winter is as close to heaven as you can get. (the margaritas probably had something to do with that decision too...)

Yay! Uncle Dan!

There is nothing more exciting to a small boy than when his crazy Uncle Dan comes to visit. Not only are you sure to get tickled and bounced and all riled up, Uncle Dan lets you do things that Mommy and Daddy won't! Like suck on sweatshirt strings...

And have your first rum drink...

...just kidding!


Uncle Dan sure was fun though... we went to lots of sugarhouses, out for a carribbean lunch with cousin Allison, and then for a walk on Burlington's waterfront. Aiden even got his FIRST TOOTH in honor of Uncle Dan's visit! (this is a long-suffering tooth, which had singlehandedly produced a several 50-gallon drums of drool before its celebrated arrival)...

The craziest thing about crazy Uncle Dan though, is that he thinks he can convert said small boy into a Yankees fan!!! Ha! Take a look at the photos below - do you think Aiden looks happier as a sox fan or a yankees fan? GO SOX!!!

Maple Open House Weekend

This weekend was the Maple Open House Weekend in Vermont, where sugarmakers open their operations to the public to gawk at the boiling and taste some sweet maple treats. Andy's brother Dan was up for the weekend to join the festivities, along with some of our old neighbors from Mass. We all visited three sugarhouses in Huntington and one in Ferrisburg, and got completely sweet-ed out with samples of newly made syrup, maple cream donuts, maple coffee, maple cotton-candy, and sugar-on-snow.

For those who don't know, sugar-on-snow is a tooth-extracting concoction of maple syrup heated up to candy heat and then poured on snow so that it sets into a sweeter than you can stand taffy. You eat it with a dill pickle because otherwise you might go into a diabetic coma. We learned something very interesting with the sugar-on-snow this year. Our little fussa-man, who clamps his mouth shut at sweet mushed peaches, pears, apples, and basically any "solid" baby food, was eyeing and reaching for my dill pickle. After a few minutes I relented, waiting for the shocked look on his face as he realized that a) it was food and b) completely sour. He LOVED it! Of course. Should I try pureed olives or kim-chee instead of peaches?!

Of course, we also had our own sugaring work to do back at Timber Hill, so we had to head in from the sugar tour and get to work emptying sap buckets and boiling our own syrup. The new evaporator works great, much to Dad's relief. After our work was done we had a wonderful fajita dinner (thanks mom) with more SWEET pound cake for dessert (thanks Cheryl). I think I'm with Aiden- where are the dill pickles?

Nothin' Much

I wish i had some exciting news to post but there really hasn't been much going on here besides work and baby-care. It did snow another two feet last weekend, and was exactly minus fifteen degrees on the first day of spring, setting a record for the coldest start to the season in Vermont history. Not exactly cheery news, but.... we're optimistic that everything will thaw out soon. Today is warm and drippy, mud season is just around the corner!!!



Did you ever notice how once people have kids all you ever get is pictures of their kids? That is because they have no other lives to speak of.



Aiden is battling Ear Infection Numero 3, which means force-feeding antibiotics, which means digestive turmoil, which means several poopy-blow-outs a day, which means endless laundry, which means... well, you get the picture. He's so cute though.






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I Hate Solid Food!

Aiden is going to have some sweet potatoes....

Here goes....

Why do I need these again?

Anti-oxidants? Beta-carotene?

I'm sure I'll survive without those.

Oh, gaak...disgusting!

I think I'm going to vomit.

What Sugaring Looks Like to Timber...

Timber's view of sugaring, since dogs can't see in color...
We have been busy the last few weekends getting the trees tapped... the sled that dad created is working, as long as there is enough (not too wet) snow.




























Andy is having fun with the snowmobile...

And Aiden is asleep as soon as he hits the cold air. But luckily he doesn't mind sleeping wherever we can plop him down.
Still haven't collected enough sap that Mom and Dad have started boiling, but we'll keep you posted...