This afternoon, Allen and Lizzie, my almost 15 year old twins, set off to hike 10 miles. The plan was to hike through the woods to the river and back. They had been gone half an hour when a storm arrived with thunder. I called them and we planned to meet at the river.

Lizzie was only half-soaked, Allen was fully soaked...since he fell in. They hiked through marsh, streams, and woods. The rain was a light, steady rain.

Today was a good trial run...they learned to take more water and trail mix next time.

I like Allen's compass...but I'm thankful for their GPS and cell phones!

On Saturday, we made our way to the amish farmer's market in Charlotte Hall. Last week I discovered a supply of goat cheese...but could only buy $20 worth. This week I came prepared with $100!

We saw this huge goose. This picture doesn't show how big he is...but I sure was glad he was in a cage!We've been wanting to test ourselves to see if we are allergic to duck egg...so we set off with vague directions to a duck farm way off the beaten path.

We enjoyed the country ride.

We could see the farm in the distance...but lost heart when the road turned to mud.

Sarah showed me how to put the camera on road-level for a more impressive picture. I just wasn't brave enough in my minivan.

On our way out, we passed this farm with some muscovies running around. The amish man sold me two eggs for $1. He does not sell duck eggs. He has a contract with a man from Washington DC for all his full-grown muscovies. The man butchers them. Oh well.

At least we got our duck eggs!

We have been enjoying our goat cheese. Especially at $5/lb!

We've been enjoying blue cheese dressing again...on our organic lettuce grown by local mennonites. All we need now are cucumbers and grape tomatoes from our garden.

I haven't tried the hot cheese yet. Looks like cayenne peppers.

The cheddar is my favorite.

And a creamy, havarti-type cheese. I'm hoping they eventually have a mozzarella.

No...we haven't tested the duck eggs yet. Too chicken. (Us, not the eggs.)

I finally came up with a recipe to mimic the fish tacos that we loved in San Diego. Just corn tortillas, pan-fried fish (perch), homemade picco de gallo, and lettuce (not in the picture).

I was able to find cute white bolero sweaters for 4 of my daughters at the Ross store. They enjoy wearing these over their dresses. Lizzie and Anna sewed their dresses this past week.

I love their smiles.

Ruthie has been enjoying making homemade boxes. She printed them out from this free online website. She printed one of them onto cardstock for a printed inside.

Yesterday we saw our first snake of the season on the road. They are late coming out this year because of the cold weather. Speaking of snakes...Allen and Lizzie saw a 2-ft rat snake, a deer, and 3 ticks on their hike. Spring is here!

We enjoyed our one warm day (85 degrees!) and look forward to more. We need to get out in the garden. Seems like there's too much to do.

Enjoy your spring. Thank you for your emails...it's nice talking with all of you. Many blessings ~ Kathie