Ever since I was a little girl, the appearance of maple sugar buckets tapped into the trees by the side of the road has provided me with the first whisper that Spring was almost upon us. As a child, I can remember scouring our property with my mother on a mission to find at least one sugar maple so we could join in on the tapping fun. Sadly, with every maple thoroughly inspected, we determined that there were none available to us. However, that memory has stuck with me, along with the desire to some day get in on the maple sugaring action!
There is nothing I would have loved more than to have been able to tap a tree as one of my novel experiences this year. However, recognizing that this particular failure guarantees that some novel experiences will remain for me to conquer post challenge year, I settled on the next best thing: Maine Maple Sunday! So this morning, my husband charted our course and off we went in search of maple sugar novelty!
Our first stop was the Irish Maple Sugar House, where Liam, my constant novelty seeking companion, tried his first ever maple ice cream sundae.
We followed this with my first tour of a maple sugar house, where we learned about the process of making maple syrup and other maple goods.
Liam was both enthralled and a little freaked out by all of the steam.
After purchasing some maple syrup, we headed off to our next destination, the Thurston and Peters Maple Sugar House.
While I had already fulfilled my novelty quotient by attending Maine Maple Sunday, and touring a sugar house, it was here that I hit the novelty jackpot!
Yes, folks.... Your eyes do not deceive you! That is maple sugar cotton candy in those bags! Now, I do have history with your typical, technicolored cotton candy. It is a little known fact that I was a designated cotton candy maker at one of my first-ever jobs! However, this was entirely, without question, a novel culinary experience! I quickly handed over my $3.00 and grabbed us a bag of maple sugar goodness! And it was a hit!
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| Liam sampling my maple sugar goodness! |
In conclusion, while I did not fulfill my dream of tapping a tree, (yet!), today epitomized several of the things that I love about having new experiences. Not only did this day allow for mindful moments of savoring tasty treats, but it also fulfilled my love for learning about new things. But best of all, I was able to experience this with my family and know that this shared novel experience created memories, fun, and learning for not only myself but also for my big and little loved ones. Novelty seeking really can be a family affair!
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