Peaches

I serendipitously came across a box of peaches on a return trip for work last Friday. Peaches weren't in the plans for canning this summer, especially the when the plan included leaving town for the weekend. But since it was the season and a box of juicy, ripe peaches can't call my name and not get my attention, I packed up 25 lbs of stone fruit and took them to the cabin with me for a canning extravaganza. It was a little more difficult working in a foreign kitchen without all of my gadgets or sharp knives but I managed. Justin helped by eating seven peaches in 2 days, a feat I didn't think he was up to. In the end there were 5 pints of spiced peach preserves and 8.5 quarts of sectioned peaches in light syrup....and an electric stove that about to cash in on its pension and retire.

Plums

 Isn't it wonderful to have abundant fruit trees everywhere you turn in this city? It's even better when there's a free-for-all pair of plum trees less than a mile away. On Sunday, Justin and I went to pillage the plum trees in preparation for the inaugural annual canning rituals. Someone had beat us to the low-hanging fruit so Justin, brave as he is, pulled himself up a small cliff holding onto ivy vines to get to the higher branches. Then he tossed each plum individually down to me to bag up. Truly a team effort!

Honey-ginger plum jam.

Today, I boiled and peeled and mashed and stirred those plums into a jammy slurry and canned my first* bounty of the season. Seven half-pints ain't too shabby.

*Technically the refrigerator pickle and dilly beans were the first but I forwent the water bath canning and opted for a simpler approach.

A Class Reunion

The class of '98 met up again for another summer picnic. This time the babies weren't quite so docile...2 of 3 are walking and the youngest pipsqueak is just about ready to launch. That's tough on a group of parents in a house with flights of stairs and not a single cabinet latch. Now that the kiddos are a little older, bedtimes are more important so the whole crowd was gone by 8 o'clock. 

L-R: Andy, Megan, Justin, Henry, Scott, Tory, Colin, Elizabeth, Jay, Esme. Foreground: Pongo's rear.

Flowers: A Montage

 Just a few shots from my garden on the last day of July.

Echinacea and Russian Sage

 

Bluebeard and Monarda

My favorite vignette: Penstemon, Daphne and Dusty Miller

Paintin' and Preppin'

Most of this month we've been lolly-gagging around, taking in the summery weather (Yes! I'm the only one in Seattle who thinks we were dealt a decent summer) and taking a break from the DIY projects. But, we've managed to cram in a few projects, specifically the prepping of the stairs for their big makeover (coming soon) and this weekend, a start on replacing the trim around the windows on the south side of the house.

Justin spent a few hours on Saturday digging out all of the wood from the garage that we've been storing since about this time two summers ago. On Sunday morning, I primed all of the pieces and by Sunday afternoon, Justin was into the blue paint, laying down the first finish coat.

Meticulously applying a coat to the trim boards.

Mini Vacay, Eh?

Check out my other blog for an update.