Self reliance in a can...

This past weekend I canned stewed tomatoes (8 half pints) and four pounds of pickled beets(13 half pints), I still have four pounds of beets to pickle.

Over the next two weeks I'll be canning 20 pounds of carrots, 60+ ears of corn, potatoes, green beans, pasta sauce, fire roasted peppers and who knows what else.

Now that the pantry is empty of the manufactured veggies, jams, jellies and so on, I can finally restock with the homemade all natural stuff. By the time I'm finished we should have about 6 months worth stocked up, if not more. I also plan on making my own juices sometime this summer, and canning those as well.

Bug loves helping with the canning, she gets to snack on the stuff as we make it. My mom's been a big help with this as well, she's been helping with the supplies since she wants me to can stuff for her too. This will help us out a lot, and make it so we're more self-reliant.

We already made strawberry preserves this year and have plans to make more kinds. We're planning on making blueberry, black berry, and boysenberry. Not to mention spiced apples, apple sauce, apple butter and sliced peaches.

Sure, it's a lot of work, but the end result is well worth it, especially when it means more time spent with Bug and teaching her as well as having fun. Not to mention the fun of going to the farms and picking the fruits ourselves, that's always a blast!

So, between the canning and all the fun day trips we have planned, this summer should not only be a blast for Bug and I, but it should also go by quickly, and the quicker it goes by the better. And when Strider gets home we won't have to worry about much as far as fruits and veggies.

I'm also planning on fixing up the back yard, if I can, as well as digging a fire pit.


< /RANT >