Even though there are patches of ice and snow on the ground and even though there’s still an occasional forecast for snow, spring is trying its hardest to arrive. If you pay attention, there are certain telltale signs that can’t be ignored:
You can hear birds in the morning – as a kid when I walked to the bus stop in the morning, birds singing was the definitive sign that winter was behind us. It’s one of those things that all of the sudden hits you, you’re walking along, minding your own business and then you realize – hey, I hear birds! (the coo of a mourning dove always brings me back to early spring mornings)
It’s maple syrup season in New Hampshire – in a few weeks we have an unofficial state holiday called Maple Sugaring weekend. The state publishes a map of participating sugar houses and you crawl all over the state to each sugar house tasting various samples of freshly boiled syrup and things like maple popcorn, cotton candy and maple-infused hot dogs (which are surprisingly good.) Sure you get a sugar high (I learned early on to pack protein and non-sweet snacks for the kids) but my goodness, it is so worth it. On that weekend we end up buying enough syrup to last until the following year’s Maple Sugaring weekend.
Haywards has opened – We have some outstanding ice cream stands in New Hampshire – Haywards in Nashua being one of them. The magnificent example of their craft below is called the “Appalachian Trail.” It’s espresso ice cream with Heath Bar bits and a fudge swirl throughout. Believe it or not, the one pictured (which I ate for lunch) is a size “small.”
Yes, I know, because of Lyme Disease I’m supposed to stay away from dairy and yes, because I have lactose intolerance I knew I was going to be paying a price (and I did) but sometimes a person has to do what a person has to do and in this case, it was the best way I knew to celebrate that after a long, cold winter – spring is finally on its way to New Hampshire.
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Wendy Thomas writes about the lessons learned while raising children and chickens in New Hampshire. Contact her at [email protected]
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