Yesterday, we decided that with the gorgeous temperatures forecasted for today, we were going to take the kids a few hours north-west to the Genesee Country Museum's Maple Festival. After talking with his brother, Dan found out that they were also planning to go. Mom and Dad Loucks decided to join us as well and we all met around 10:30 this morning.
We walked around for about an hour, checking out some of the historical buildings and staff in old-fashioned clothing making bread, getting a taste of "hot chocolate" the way it was made 200 years ago and the kids all got a chance to carry a piece of firewood each.
The crowds were small, even with the 70+ temperatures, and there was plenty of space for the kids to run around together.
We also had a nature hike to see the ways that maple syrup has been made over the last 300 years. The five-year-olds, Aiden, Emma and Seth, were our leaders throughout the walk.
Before the walk through the woods, we stopped back at the welcome center to have a pancake and sausage lunch with real maple syrup. Aiden probably ate more than he should have and was ready for a nap after lunch. But once we started walking, he got his energy back.
Cora was happy for extra people to carry her through the woods and Uncle Jake even gave her her a ride on his shoulders. She is very much in a "let me do it!" stage, but she still loves to be carried as much as possible.
The kids got to see how to tap a tree,
and even got to try tapping the tree themselves.
There were a few more chances to see how things were done in the past.
Even with no snow, we got a taste of "wax on snow" - boiled down maple syrup that was poured over (in this case) bags of ice. Yum!
We toured a few more of the open buildings after our sugaring walk in the woods and headed home around 4pm. It was a wonderful day spent with family!
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