Strawberry and raspberry fields forever...

This was a weekend for canning! I went with my neighbour out to a local u-pick, and picked strawberries and raspberries! This place, called The Jungle Farm, is absolutely amazing! The have huge fields of berries and are extremely friendly. I also picked up pickling cucumbers and dill for pickle making!
They also have rows and rows of lilies-and only $2 a stem! So for $6 I got the most gorgeous bouquet, which kept me company while I canned!

Me with my baskets of berries!

Freshly picked and ready to be canned!

Rows and rows of lilies

...in my happy place...

12 jars of raspberry and strawberry-rhubarb jam!

Dill and garlic-dill pickles...17 jars total!

All in a day's work!

So now it's your turn! How is your canning coming along?

Things, they are a-growin'!

Here is the main garden plot now, just bursting at the seams!!! The spaghetti squash is taking over a corner of lawn, and squash blossoms are popping up all over the spaghetti squash and the zucchini! The rhubarb has already giving me 2 bags of frozen rhubarb and 2 rhubarb crisps, not to mention jam!

Squash blossoms!

The sunflowers are getting ready to blossom!

The peas and carrots are getting there as well-I thinned some carrots, and although they are tasty, they are not quite there yet!

Garden Update!

The little garden that could is just chugging away, growing right before my eyes! Other than the lettuce and spinach, there is nothing edible yet, but the plants are taking over!

Okay, I pulled out the tiniest carrot and ate it. Yum. Not quite there yet, but the one bite was fantastic!

Here is my garden during the first bit of summer-at this point I was just excited to see "bits of green" poking their way above the ground!

My sunflowers are doing very well-growing up 3/4 of the height of the fence so far-I cannot wait for their early fall blossoms!!!

The lettuce is doing very well. it was not started from seed, but rather from starter packs from the nursery. I have already gotten to enjoy this - a red leaf variety.

The spinach has really picked up, and we have been able to enjoy it as well. It keeps blooming and I am forever deadheading the blooms so it uses its energy for leaves, not flowers!

A thick patch of carrot tops! They always look so promising, only to find the carrots are itty-bitty!

What is a garden without flowers? The fuchsias in my hanging baskets love me this year! Blooms galore!

The garden is now at the point where the spaghetti squash leaves are starting to tumble onto the lawn and the pea pods are taking shape. it is so exciting, and one of the most rewarding years of gardening I have had! I will post new garden picture soon, and they will show my beautiful new siding in the background! (Full sized garden shots were sidelined by siding efforts).

Happy Gardening!

August Challenge: Can, Can, Can you do the Can-Can?

Pretty self-explanatory challenge for August-CANNING!

1. If you don't can: CAN! It is easier than you think! Start with a simple jam, or just go with what your stomach wants! I have great plans for my August canning, and am hoping to fill my shelves and give some to friends too!

2. If you do can: Add to your list. If you already make jam, make some pickles; make a salsa; can some cherries! Then when winter makes you want to scratch your own eyes out every time you look out the window and all you see is WHITE-then these summery fruit flavours will be there, beckoning you, reminding you that delicious things will be back...in a few months.

So DO IT! And when all your friends are impressed by your Little House on the Prairie pantry...I told you so.

July Challenge: Recap

So here is my quick recap on the outcome of the July Challenge!

1. It is easier said than done. While I was home alone and the husband was away for work, this was a BREEZE! I ate pretty much whole foods, and any packaged stuff (bread, juice, etc.) was from the organics aisle. Although I am not die-hard organics, they do tend to have more basic ingredients than other processed foods.
However, when said husband was around, pizza, Chinese food and Coke reigned supreme.

2. It translated well outside of food. Since I was reading what went into my food, I also started reading my cleaning products, etc. For not much extra $$$ you can find cleaners that are made with plant-derived cleaners and no nasty, non-pronounceable chemicals. (No lungs burning while I scrubbed the tub either!)

 I would say the key takeaway is that understanding your ingredients is doable-you just need to hold your ground and not be swayed to the path of junk food...
What I loved is I found some new "go-to" products that can be grabbed without worrying about what is going into my food!

Happy Shopping!