August 2011 Update

Having three children -- the youngest of them being a new crawler -- has put canning on the back-burner this season.  Thank heavens for our upright freezer!  It is getting a workout this summer, with peaches, strawberries, strawberry jam, blueberries, and a half of a cow.  We have managed to can a few things this year, but nothing close to the previous two summers.  We've done pickled asparagus, dilly beans, peach jam, and cherry jam.   The tomatoes are just starting to ripen and that will be a priority for the water-bath canner for sure;  stewed tomatoes are a staple for us.