Tapped Out

It’s our second year of backyard sugaring, and we put in all of our 20 taps this week. Our system is different this year, using smaller taps attached to tubes which connect to a bucket on the ground. It should help keep the sap clean instead of having to strain it so much before boiling like we did last time. The ratio of sap:syrup is 37:1, and we’re hoping for 1 gallon this year, but any amount is fine with us! The first time we did this, we got just enough syrup for one breakfast. As of this writing, we’ve collected 9 gallons, hoping to get lots more with this week’s cold weather followed by warm temps. It’s the contrast in temperatures that yields the most sap, cold to warm each night/day.

Tasting the water-like sap straight from the tree.

We honored Mardi Gras with Olin and Emmy, including some yummy King’s Cake and green/purple clothes.

One of our chickens died this week, the year-old brown aracauna that was nicknamed “Chipmunkey” due to her coloring. When I checked the coop in the morning, she was hunched down by the door, I figured she was laying in a weird spot, but that’s nothing new for them. Then while our friends were visiting, she was found dead in the same spot. We gathered around her, lit some candles, and blew them out with our good-bye’s, the fire symbolizing her life here with us, and the smoke standing for her spirit, now all around us. It was pretty matter-of-fact for all of the kids, not the same emotion as when Easy died. They were thrilled to be able to stare at a chicken that didn’t keep moving like our other ones do!

Now some scenes from everyday life. This one is playtime with the rats. We keep their cage in the upstairs bathroom and in the evenings, we close the door and let them play and explore the room. You can see the pot full of water and frozen peas that Declan set up for them, which they love to dunk for and eat. This one’s name is “Nighttime,” the friendliest and more adventurous of the three.