Getting Stuff Done

DH got an unexpected weekend off so we crammed it full! We didn't have time for planning, we were in "shoot first, ask questions later" mode! Here's a rundown:

  Friday evening I went to the Amish auction and got 8 baby Dutch rabbits to grow out before winter. We still had 2 of the last batch of rabbits and they couldn't be kept in the same cage so the new ones got to have a big slumber party until DH had time to free up some space.

  Saturday DH finished working on his truck brakes. Then we harvested the sunflowers. It was the first time I had grown them and I was very pleased with the results! I would have liked to finish them out on the stalks but they were in the middle of the garden so we decided to cut them down.

Then I took a picture of the disaster our summer garden had become. Yikes! I am almost too embarrassed to share it but I've heard other horror stories and I don't want those people to think they were alone. Besides, I want to have a "before" and "after" show. 

"Before"

         and 6 hours of hard work later

"After"

 Of course the birds came out to help us finish up. I think they were checking to see if any pesky worms had been tilled up!  We left the green bean, pepper, and tomato plants because they are still blooming. And that evening I made a turnip seed tape to plant along with some leftover onion sets and a new pack of sweet peas. All that stuff will go in the ground today!

 Sunday we went to a great morning worship service at our church, hit a local Chinese buffet with a couple of DSs for lunch, mowed MIL's yard, butchered the last of the New Zealand rabbits, and still had time to take in a movie in town! Whew!

This morning I shipped DH off to St. Louis and, as promised, I am going to share about Peach Butter. This was the first time I've made it and I didn't follow one specific recipe. I just searched for lots of recipes and then played it by ear.
 I peeled and pitted, then pureed the peaches in my food processor. I didn't count or weigh them, just kept the process going until my crockpot was almost full. Then I added the sweetener and spices (4 cups of sugar, 3 Tablespoons of Cinnamon, 1 Tablespoon of Ground Cloves, and 2 teaspoons of All Spice.) I stirred all that real well and then set the crockpot on low with the lid propped open to vent steam. My goal was to just let it cook on low until it reached the thickness I like but 16 hours later I just got tired of waiting (patience isn't one of my virtues) so I turned it up to high for the next 2 hours. I also took the lid completely off. Then I processed it in half pint jars in a hot water bath for 15 minutes. It turned out sooo yummy!

Matthew 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.