Strawberry Vacation

Mmmmm, the kids and I celebrated their first day of summer vacation by going to the local You-Pick strawberry farm by Mt Pisgah. It's out of town, feels like "the country", at the You Pick farm. PLUS you can smell the ripe strawberries as soon as you step out of the car. The kids picked so heartily this year, we brought home more than I expected. In case you've never picked your own strawberries, I should tell you that you go in the morning before it's too hot out, and are allowed to eat as you pick! They must factor that into the price. And ripe strawberries make a satisfying POP sound when you separate them from the vine. These berries were amazingly large.

I stayed up late to make three batches of jam in my cute vintage jars. Don't you love these? Perfect for freezer jam. They take up room in there, but I LIKE freezer jam because the strawberries are not cooked down, thus retain all possible flavor and color. MMMmm!

I thought the kids would be pleased by the fresh jam for their toast in the morning, but they both complained that I made jam without them. :-)

I took a few days off from the studio in order to have a yard sale. It's great to shed unneeded things, let alone clear the whole storage space. Thanks so much, Adrienne! AND I got ten neighbors to have a yard sale on the same day. I think it's so fun to park and walk to several sales in a row like that. With the price of gas, I noticed many more bicyclers and moped riders.

The kids had a lemonade and cookie stand and made $12.

BUT I missed my creative time in the studio! I'm back tomorrow. Back and badder than ever.......

xoxoxoxoxo