smiling on the hills

James and I went cross-country skiing on Saturday with Diana and Greg. They are staying in Maine for the month, and we met halfway at a little farm called Smiling Hill just south of Portland. It had rained the night before so I wasn't expecting great conditions, and indeed some parts were kind of puddley, like there was a layer of yellow water below a top crust of ice. But besides that, it was super fun! It was a good workout, but with just enough sliding to get a skating feeling on the flat parts. We were totally sore by the end of it, and just a little banged up from falling at the bottom of all the downhill parts. (It's practically impossible to stop on x-country skis.) But we had a great time - it was sunny and bright, and all the open space of the farm was so refreshing. The added bonus was that it's also a dairy farm, and while we didn't see any cows, we were in heaven browsing through their little market store, with fresh milk in flavors like blueberry and chocolate, artisan cheeses like camembert and cheddar, and delicious varieties of fudge. I almost want to go back just for some more blueberry milk! What a great state Maine is.