This has been our first real taste of spring - temperature was in high 40s most of the day and even now is 45, long after the sun disappeared. This morning was beautiful with bright sunshine and no wind - must have been a great day for town meetings and for sap to run. All the ice we've had in the past week has softened and I was able to clear it all off the deck easily. The roads are mushy and there's some mud showing up, but of course underneath the slimy wet mud, the roads are still solidly frozen. That will take a while to loosen up.

Yesterday was a pretty good day, too. Tangeni went skiing at Burke with her Uncle Bob and they had a great day. She has been taking lessons with others from Waterford School, so she was right at home. Uncle Bob is always looking for a ski buddy, and said she was great company. I suspect they will do this more often now. They took a time-out for a selfie. They look like a couple of pros to me. Her dad told me last night he might have to update his ski equipment and get out there again. He hasn't skied for years - and he really loved it (and was very good at it!) when he was about Tangeni's age.

Their dad loved to ski, but because of his emphysema, he was unable to go with them.  I remember getting all three outfitted and going with them to the rope tow in Lyndonville. It was no time at all before they were way ahead of me on the slopes. When they were a little older, they began taking the bus to Burke every Saturday. Sometimes they missed the bus and I'd have to either take them up to the mountain or go and get them - but those years just flew by. Now, Bob is the only one of the three that skis. Bill and Jamie gave it up years ago, as did I. Once I was a single parent, I realized I couldn't afford any broken bones (and probably couldn't afford the added cost of ski equipment and tickets), so I gave up downhill in favor of cross-country skiing or snowshoeing. Times change.