For those individuals lucky enough to live in eternally-warm locales, ice cream is often a year-round staple. In New England, however, local ice cream is more often a seasonal indulgence constrained by days on the calendar such as Memorial and Labor Day. With the recent sprouting of the leaves on the trees, however, has come the season openings of some of our favorite local ice cream shacks and stands. As a result, the past two weeks have been a mad ice cream frenzy highlighted by a decadent Chocolate Lace and Rich Chocolate sundae at Dr. Mike’s in Bethel, a hefty helping of Toasted Almond (on the CT Meet and Greet) at Big Dipper in Prospect, and a double scoop of Maple Walnut and Grapenut at We-Li-Kit in Pomfret. Pictured above are before and during shots of our Dr. Mike's sundae with everything (meaning gobs of hot fudge and a small mountain of freshly whipped cream!).