Licking the last drops of maple syrup from her sample cup and skipping through every mud puddle at a local sugar house was the highlight of my daughter's spring so far this year.

Maple sugar season is one of the signs that warmer spring weather is really on its way; while cold nights and thawing days keep the sap flowing, snow gives way to lots of mud. Both the syrup and the mud offer children a day of messy fun.

Because Maine Maple Sunday falls on Easter this year (it's always the fourth Sunday in March), many sugar houses have opened their doors to the public to celebrate earlier, or later in some cases. We went to Snell's Family Farm with my children's 4-H group to enjoy the Maine tradition.

When we arrived, I was immediately struck by the clear bags hanging on the trees. I'd seen metal pails and tubing attached to the trees, but wasn't familiar with this method of collecting sap. While my husband and I hovered around the tree looking at the bags, one of the farm's staff offered us a taste of the clear sap. It tasted like sweet water, not at all like the final product. My 7-year-old didn't care much for the sap. She was after the sweet, thick syrup, "the real stuff." We headed to the sugar house for a sample and to learn about how it's produced.

Making maple syrup is labor-intensive. It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup. The kids in the sugar house, including mine, were fascinated with the equipment and the process of boiling the syrup - from the wood stove that heats the sap, to the filter to rid the hot syrup of its "sand" to the final bottling step.

Visiting the sugar house was just one of the attractions for my daughter at the farm. Like most farms that operate sugar houses, there were other activities for kids to enjoy. There was a "really cool tree with lots of big branches" that she and many other children enjoyed climbing and greenhouses to explore. And then of course there was the mud attraction. She skipped, jumped and waded her way through the thickest patches of the stuff - which was well above her ankle in her not-so-tall boots. She said she loved mud because it was "soft and squishy and fun!" I enjoyed listening to her logic and tried to shoo away thoughts of doing laundry.

If you've never been to a sugar house in the height of the season, take note: Wear boots and old clothes and bring your sense of humor. You'll be covered in mud before you know it, even if you carefully navigate your footing. There's always an errant child to offer a splash-by at any moment. But the sweet syrup and treats make up for the messy conditions. As most Mainers know, it's that good.

Even after the official Maine Maple Sunday events are over, there are still opportunities for the curious to learn about sugaring. I have visited several sugar houses in southern Maine in the past couple of years and a staff member at every farm has told me to stop by any time I see the steam rising from the sugar house. That's the telltale sign that the sugar house is running and there's someone happy to pass the time chatting with a visitor interested in sugaring.

Maine maple sugar season is a short one, and for our family, a springtime tradition. If you have a chance, visit one of the many Maine sugar houses. Find one near you at the Get Real, Get Maine website at: getrealmaine.com/visit/maine_maple_sunday.html.