want not...

It's another beautiful cool morning here in the treetop garden.  Breakfast outside with Hubs as the sun breaks above the trees listening to the birds chirping, calling each other to start the day. Yep, this is my happy place. I just finished watering the garden and soon I will start the day.  It took a slight detour from what I had planned, but I am going to make the best of it and head across the river to pick up some more corn to can.  

I have really gotten invested in finding ways to use every bit of everything.  Something I wanted to do before but never really had the time.  Yesterday morning I made Corn Cob Jelly.  It's an old recipe, a remnant of a time when waste was simply not done.  Last time I canned corn, I boiled the cobs for a bit and then strained and stored the juice.  Knowing that I intended to make more jelly, I'd already tried it once and found out it was super yummy.  I also used some of the juice in my stocks, it adds great flavor.  

In about 4 hours time total I made 16 pints of the good old fashioned full sugar kind, 5 pints of sugar free - I'm experimenting with these and used monk fruit, and 6 pints of low sugar.  I have friends that love sugar, some that cannot have any and some that restrict it, so I can meet all of them where they are.  It simply doesn't take long to make a batch of jelly.  As I was engrossed in doing so I kept thinking about all of the waste that we experience in our world today. It felt empowering to be using what would have been thrown out to further be able to make things that we might want or need. 

I used the time while it was processing to can up some pints of beans.  I can seriously tell you that home canned beans might be the best thing in the entire world.  I simply do not understand how store bought beans do not have that texture and richness of flavor. And they are so easy to do.  They are my fill in projects so that I can run a full canner most of the time, but yesterday I was only water bathing the jellies, so the pressure canner was all about the beans. 

supervising mom is hard work

Today, after I pick up the corn and get it all prepped and canned I will again boil up the cobs and save that precious juice, but I will put it in storage for now.  I am fairly sure I definitely have enough jellies to last a bit.  

Once I'm done with that, I absolutely have to pick jalapeno's and get those babies put up.  We discovered last night that we are down to our last jar.  And they have to sit for 4 weeks, it's going to be a long four weeks... Both plants are covered so that should net a fair amount of jars.  This weekend when we hit the Amish market, I hope they have some ready to go.  There is a locally sourced farmers market in town tonight, that I might stop by and see if they have any beautiful jalapeno's.  I'm now regretting sharing my jalapeno's with the jellies and cowboy candies that I made.  Only a little bit, my youngest grand is nuts about those. 

I can't tell you how much I wish I had made time to perfect these skills when I worked, my life would have been much less stressful if I had. 

Daddy stay home and play...

We went over to the girls' house last night, her raccoon had come by for dinner.  We haven't gotten to see it yet, every time we are over the little one doesn't come around. Last night was no exception, it must have seen her text me or something, because just as we pulled up it left.  Since we were there we spent some time with her and the youngest grand.  Marveling at all of the fantastic things she creates from free stuff and basically junk that others would throw away.  

Then the youngest had to show me her garden.  I'm super proud of her!  She randomly planted seeds and told her mom she had, but didn't know what she had planted.  That little five year old has the healthiest watermelon plant I've ever seen it already has 3 watermelons on it. Her bush beans are going crazy and every day she harvests her own tomatoes and blueberries.  Although last night she informed me that she wasn't interested in cucumbers or broccoli in case I was planning to bring her any. She is five, and she not only planted but harvests her own food.  I am over the moon in love with that child. 

hello friend - aka Bruno

While looking at the garden and her treasures that little raccoon came creeping up long enough to prove that they were real.  They've named him Bruno, but my daughter just calls him friend.  He walks up to her, tugs on her shirt or pants leg and lets her know that he is hungry each night.  She has a magical way with animals. Her bunny escaped his cage, but lived happily outside her house, coming in to be loved on and brushed for his entire life.  Never leaving her side.  He lived for 8 years.  I know she misses him terribly. 

There's not enough time today to linger and enjoy watching the world wake up.  I need to get moving. Anyone else out there intrigued by making things go further than we've been raised to think they could?  If you have any ideas or suggestions for me to try... well 99% of the time I am game... time to get moving...