Summer Homesteading: Sweet as Honey

Some things are genetic, I suppose. Like getting overzealous at a good locally grown crop of tomatoes. When my sister learned of my tomato bounty, she loaded up Big L and little l and headed south for a 24-hour food preservation whirlwind.

Big B and little b could just hardly stand it, waiting for their arrival.They came bearing tomato-trading gifts: four quarts of frozen blueberries they'd picked this spring, two jars each of homemade strawberry and blueberry jam, vidalia onions from a u-pick on the way to our house, and potatoes fresh from their garden.We spent twelve straight hours in the kitchen processing our harvest. This is one of two five-gallon containers of tomato puree!
We canned 18 quarts (about 50 pounds) of herbed tomato sauce and 12 pints of yellow tomato and tomatillo salsa, leaving us each with about 25 pounds of tomatoes to bring home.The next morning, Aunt S revealed the four frames of honey she'd brought from her hives to show Big B and little b how it was bottled.The honey glistened like gold as she scraped the beeswax from the comb.Big B got a turn scraping the honeyed wax......and little b got a turn eating the honeyed wax!
When the frames were emptied there were several containers of sweet golden wildflower honey on our dining room table.Aunt S poured all of the honey and wax into a large bucket fitted with a filter to catch the comb, squeezing out as much of the deliciousness as she could.
We left the bucket o' honey bathing in the sun while we took a quick dip in the ocean. When we returned, it was ready to pour into jars. And in case I haven't mentioned it, this is by far the most delicious honey I've ever tasted.
A quick visit with very little money spent yielded a feast of homegrown goodness for two families. Canning and processing is hard, fast-paced work, but there is so much love poured into each jar, and so much peace of mind knowing where every single ingredient comes from. This is one lesson that radical homemakers are re-learning, one that our elders know all too well. As one wise woman said to my sister upon seeing the many mason jars in her shopping cart: "I kinda feel sorry for you, and I kinda feel envious of you at the same time."

Letter Walk :: L

Big L and little l were in town for the weekend! We had a great time. As we embarked on a leaf collecting expedition this morning, it was unanimously decided that we'd also search for all things 'L.' I love this collection!

Color Walk :: Black

A morning color walk with cousins is the best. Big L and little l are in town for Big B's birthday, and we set off this morning for adventure. Each big kid chose a different color, so we diplomatically played a guessing game to determine the 'winner'--and Big L came out on top, choosing BLACK. A great start to the last day of Big B's fourth year!

Dome Fresh Eggs

Aside from the memories of time spent with family, playing in the country, and connecting with old friends, we left the North Florida woods last weekend with a tangible treat--actually, seven tangible treats--fresh eggs from the dome chickens.Just outside the dome-sweet-dome where Aunt S, Uncle S, Big L and little l live, eleven chickens present them with fresh eggs every day (except the rooster, the two funky chickens, and the one brooding mama hen).Big B and little b love the daily ritual that occurs there, inspecting the coop for eggs like seekers on a treasure hunt. Many of my friends and Papa's family are familiar with the taste of fresh eggs, but this is a relatively new indulgence for me. It is something very special. The morning after these seven were collected, we made simple turkey-cheddar omelets for breakfast. They were easily the most delicious I've ever tasted.

"Love and eggs are best when they are fresh."
-Russian Proverb

Color Walk (on location) :: Rainbow

We spent the weekend in the North Florida woods with Aunt S, Uncle S, Big L and little l, celebrating Big L's eleventh birthday. This morning we decided to take a color walk, inspired by the realization that there are RAINBOWs scattered everywhere on their beautiful property.

Inspiration: Creative Living

Saturday afternoon, we rounded up Grammy and went to the County Fair. After experiencing so many people, rides, sights and calories in such a small space... ...we packed up and headed north, back to where it all began, and spread out a little bit, enjoying the fresh spring air.
Between functions on campus, we stayed at Big L and little l's dome sweet dome in the woods, where creativity thrives. Some current projects there: Uncle S is putting the finishing touches on an observatory over their glassblowing studio...Aunt S is working on a scrappy crazy quilt (and let me raid her amazing fabric stash, thank you)...Big L is painting signs and making palmetto roses for her first art festival next weekend...And little l, running so fast I can't keep up, is learning the arts of skateboarding, fiddle-playing, and trampoline acrobatics.It was a lovely excursion, where Big B and little b were able to be dirty and free, enjoying their cousins and life in the country. As evidenced by the writing on the bus where we slept, what goes around comes around. Every time I visit my sweet sister and her family, I feel refreshed, renewed, and somehow washed of complication, so that I strive to live more simply and create more beauty in my world.

2nd Knitting Project: Happy Birthday, little l

Big L and little l came for a visit! These are Big B and little b's cousins and two of the loves of my life. Part of the reason for their visit was that we hadn't seen each other since well before Christmas, and had not yet exchanged gifts, nor celebrated little l's sixth birthday (which falls the day after Christmas).

Little l wanted to see snow for his birthday, so Aunt S and Uncle S packed up their converted 'karma' bus and headed north . In that spirit, I packaged him up some snow of my own, and to go with it, I made him this scarf, using the same colorway as Papa's hat.

This scarf went everywhere with me. I knitted 12 stitches per row, which in that chunky yarn was just the right size for a six-year-old neck. A row or two at the drive-thru at Starbucks...
...and getting ready to knit a few more rows out by the fire Friday night. So cute on him, dontcha think?

Snippets of a Weekend