skip to main |
skip to sidebar
In all my spare time I have found a hobby I really like. Canning! My mom used to have a garden and we canned when I was a child. I pretty much didn't remember anything about canning except the mess it made and the wonderful products that we would eat all winter; but mostly the mess.
This year I planted a garden, not a very big one, and I started late in the season so I didn't get too much of anything out of it. In my garden I had tomatoes, lettuce, zucchini, cucumbers, broccoli, sugar snap peas, green peppers, hot banana peppers and cabbage; only a few plants of each. Not too long after I planted my garden the tomatoes got blight and I had to remove them. I did get a lot of cucumbers, zucchini and Banana Peppers; it was so sporadic though I couldn't do anything with them except eat them as they came in. Fall came and the garden was done, so I uprooted all the plants and called it a learning season!
I was determined to can something, so off to the market I went! I found a road side stand that had some tomatoes left, I bought a 1/2 bushel of "seconds" Roma Tomatoes and canning jars. When I got home I Google searched "how to can tomato sauce" on the internet and found a "You Tube" video on the subject. This guy made it look so easy, and most important to me, NOT MESSY! So I canned my first 7 quarts of tomato sauce. When I realized this was successful, my thoughts were "Oh imagine the possibilities!" And I began to dream about what I could plant in the garden next spring, and what I could make over the winter and can.
The next week we went on a field trip to an orchard north of us. October is apple month pretty much all over the state. So I bought some apples, came home and canned applesauce.
We quickly ran out of apples so my friend and I took our kids to another apple orchard and "picked our own" apples. I bought another 1/2 bushel of tomatoes to can. Yesterday I put up an other 7 quarts of tomato sauce and on Monday I plan to can another 5 quarts of applesauce.
This isn't nearly enough to get us through the winter, but I think I have learned a valuable skill for next year and how to plan my garden for the spring.
In all my spare time I have found a hobby I really like. Canning! My mom used to have a garden and we canned when I was a child. I pretty much didn't remember anything about canning except the mess it made and the wonderful products that we would eat all winter; but mostly the mess.
This year I planted a garden, not a very big one, and I started late in the season so I didn't get too much of anything out of it. In my garden I had tomatoes, lettuce, zucchini, cucumbers, broccoli, sugar snap peas, green peppers, hot banana peppers and cabbage; only a few plants of each. Not too long after I planted my garden the tomatoes got blight and I had to remove them. I did get a lot of cucumbers, zucchini and Banana Peppers; it was so sporadic though I couldn't do anything with them except eat them as they came in. Fall came and the garden was done, so I uprooted all the plants and called it a learning season!
I was determined to can something, so off to the market I went! I found a road side stand that had some tomatoes left, I bought a 1/2 bushel of "seconds" Roma Tomatoes and canning jars. When I got home I Google searched "how to can tomato sauce" on the internet and found a "You Tube" video on the subject. This guy made it look so easy, and most important to me, NOT MESSY! So I canned my first 7 quarts of tomato sauce. When I realized this was successful, my thoughts were "Oh imagine the possibilities!" And I began to dream about what I could plant in the garden next spring, and what I could make over the winter and can.
The next week we went on a field trip to an orchard north of us. October is apple month pretty much all over the state. So I bought some apples, came home and canned applesauce.
We quickly ran out of apples so my friend and I took our kids to another apple orchard and "picked our own" apples. I bought another 1/2 bushel of tomatoes to can. Yesterday I put up an other 7 quarts of tomato sauce and on Monday I plan to can another 5 quarts of applesauce.
This isn't nearly enough to get us through the winter, but I think I have learned a valuable skill for next year and how to plan my garden for the spring.
I have spent the majority of my summer working with a friend resuscitating a homeschooling support group here in Pittsburgh. We have done so much planning a working on this group. We've come up with new themes and new agendas for meetings and new place to meet, and even a new website!
Somewhere around mid August we started encountering some negativity. One obstacle after another kept coming up. We kept going right through them like they were nothing. After awhile it started to wear on me a bit. I just got tired of the stupid battles at every turn. It was crazy! Didnt these people understand we are only trying to make our group better? Why are they so bit into the nothingness they have made this group into? I didn't understand it! We asked questions we sent out surveys to the group, we asked more questions...we tried to listen to the groups voice and make our group into what the majority wanted it to be. In order to accomplish this task, we had to make some sacrifices. One being, we had to raise dues to accommodate some of the financial things that we needed to do to make these changes. My friend and I went on anyway trudging through the muck of grumpiness, trying to keep our eyes on the bigger picture, trusting that we had really heard from God about this, and what was best for everyone not just a few. Trying to keep our main focus on the new home-schoolers not just the "old-heads" and their comfortableness with status quo.
The September meeting was creeping up on us, my friend and I were beginning to get excited about launching our wonderful ideas to the group Monday night; we could hardly wait! We just knew our excitement would so infectious the group would be great!! We thought people were going to jump right on board with our vision and we'd be inspired to "go forth!"
Well as it turns out, a few nay sayers showed up that night asking a lot of "doubting Thomas" questions and not quite as supportive of our "re-newed" group as my friend and I had hoped they would be. I mean the meeting went ok, I guess, but over all, I am not so sure they saw things the way we'd hoped they would. In fact, we have a running total of about 50 members in out little group and only 10 or 12 showed up to see what all the hype was about.
I have to say I was a little disappointed. Things have gotten worse sense then. Membership is my part of the leadership team responsibility. It opens up in August and closes in October. It is quickly coming to a close, and I cant wait! After all the bickering I just want out. Dave fully supports me to finish out my duties then quietly drop off into the back ground eventually fading out.
My new plan is to pray about what God has for me in the area of home-school support. Dave and I believe He has something for me to do in this area, but I am not sure what it is right now. Maybe a blog...maybe a website...maybe nothing...
