Harvest Time

We spent the day working around the house harvesting fruits and vegetables from the garden. This day is the first time in a long time that I recall devoting strictly to household chores.

I started the day running into town for some additional canning supplies. We have been busy this summer (Rachel more so than me) canning jelly, apple sauce, apple pie filling, and salsa. Our apple trees are loaded with nice apples and we have been working diligently to try to harvest


them.

We picked a bushel and a half of apples today and made cider for the first time. The kids picked the low apples and I set up a ladder and picked the high ones. Jesse dumped the barrels of apples into the cart.

We opted to can the cider rather than freezing to save on freezer space. At the end of the day, we had 21 quarts canned and a pitcher of cider in the fridge. It is very delicious.


The apple pie and suace is delicious as well. The kicthen has been a breeding ground for a myriad of tasty apple desserts. I turn up my nose at none of them! (My bellow tends to grow out though!)

I also picked another row of red pontiacs, which more than filled a 5 gallon pail. The onions are harvested and while the tomato vines are starting to thin, we have a lot of tomatoes yet to harvest. The pepper plants are still growing and healthy. The butternut squash is beginning to turn a nice pale brown color, so perhaps soon we will sample one.

We also, in addition to the cider, made about 10 pints of grape jelly. My brother has a nice supply of grapes and we traded a bucket of grapes for a bucket of apples.

I am very thankful for a bountiful harvest, as well as the opportunity that God has given to us to enable us to raise our kids in the country. I have always enjoyed an agrarian way of life and am pleased to have a spot on this earth to labor with my hands and to enjoy the fruits of that labor with my family. The kids love (ahem!) when I have a rare day home so I can put them to work!

You know, if I could be home all the time, we could grow enough meat and food on these three acres to sustain the needs of our family. It is a lot of work canning and preserving food. I have spent many evenings helping Rachel canning or freezing various things. Sometimes I calculate the actual cost of the canned goods and consider that their market value is far less than if I were to spend those hours working in my shop. Yet I believe there is something wholesome in laboring with your hands and working with your family to put some food in storage for the winter. It is an enjoyable and rewarding labor and I am pleased to be able to till this patch and to see God bless our labors. I hope that I can instill this same love for the land in the hearts of my children. They are a bit confused for now....I was in the garden digging potatoes with Mahaela and she when she saw some freshly dug carrots, she asked me, "What aisle are the carrots in?" I pointed to where I dug them and suggested that "We call them rows around here!"