Maple Sugaring

This year we are trying our hand at maple sugaring. We received all of the spickets, buckets and instruction from Sam's Dad and Sarah, as a very nice Christmas gift.

As you can see, these photos were taken back in February, as these are our first shots of this adventure. We have been making maple syrup ever since. Here the bucket is hanging on a spicket that has been drilled into the tree. Clear maple sap pours out in the the bucket.

Sam, drilling into one of the trees

While out back, the girls discovered some good stuff to climb on.

Boiling down the maple sugar.

It takes a whole day of boiling to cook it down to the consistency of maple syrup.

The very first batch of syrup. As you can see, it takes ALOT of maple sap to make syrup. You boil off 90% of the water, and the last 10% is a super sweet sugary delight!

Of course we needed to make some waffles to sample with. Delicious!

Full of Love

Hope your Valentine's Day was full of love...

Last week, our house was a flurry of Valentine's crafts and activities.

Lily creating valentines for the ones that she loves


Some of her sweetest cards

With 24 classmates, I thought that the novelty of homemade cards would wear off after a while. But, Charlotte loved every minute of it.

My favorite Valentine that Charlotte made. It is a picture of clothes hanging in her closet. Can you see the hangers? I would have kept this if I could. It is just so... Charlotte.

Some other favorites

We made some window pane cookies to go along with the lovely cards.

This year, I was set to have the girls buy pre-made valentines. The thought of making nearly 40 cards between the two, just seemed like too much. But then Lily started them all on her own, and Charlotte reminded me of how special homemade gifts are. So, really, how could I resist. Once again, I am glad that I listened to them. It was fun and they loved creating for others. Just the perfect valentine for a mama~kind and thoughtful kids.

Daisy's

This year, Charlotte became a Daisy Girl Scout, and it has been really great for her. The meetings are filled with art and crafts, nature, and friends. Really, what activity suits Charlotte better? Oh, and the cookies, well, everyone likes the cookies.

On a snowy Saturday, Charlotte and I headed out, to collect her troop's cookie order.

It was very well run. We arrived at the site, and there was a tractor trailer filled with boxes, and people to unload them.

So very many cookies. Hundreds of boxes!

Charlotte and a friend from her troop load up the car. What cookie fun!

cream of asparagus soup

We have been cooking our way through the Moosewood Cookbook, lately. Of course, Lily likes to help.

For this soup, which happened to be delicious, Lily cut the tips off of 2 lbs of asparagus.

The whole time she was cutting, she kept on saying. "This is great Mama, isn't this so fun?" I think that she was happy to get her hands on those kitchen shears.

Giant Tree

While out in Western MA, we needed to stop by and visit this tree. It dates back to the Civil War, and is gigantic!

It was magnificent!

butterfly place

A couple of weeks ago, we all needed a little break from these long, cold winter days. We needed something warm and tropical.

No...we didn't go to a Caribbean Island. We went to the next best thing~The Butterfly Place. Oh, it was warm, and felt bright, and did I mention that it was warm? Really, it was heaven.

We all agreed that these flowers must be Trufflas from the book The Lorax, by Dr. Suess.

Look at those pink cheeks. It was downright balmy in there.

Nana and Lily
















Charlotte got to hold a butterfly.

gingerbread sing-a-long

The day before Christmas vacation, Lily was suppose to have a special sing-a-long at her school. It was canceled due to snow, and Lily was totally bummed. When her teachers rescheduled it, she couldn't wait~ a night time event at school is so exciting! Singing with her classmates

building a gingerbread house

crafting a lovely gingerbread girl