One Giant Red Carrot

Garden and Canning

A gal in our ward gets fresh produce for great prices every year. I ran out of my yummy salsa a few months back, so when I saw that the roma tomatoes were $0.50 per pound, I went a head and got some, even though I have one roma tomato plant in my garden, I figured I would mainly eat the ones from my garden and can the ones I buy. 

Jeff does not like it when Shiloh decides to run around the house in just her diaper. I could care less, but to him it is a big deal. When she is older, I will share the same concern, but for now, she's two, so let her have some fun! Anyway, after taking the skins off some of the tomatoes, I sent Jeff a picture of the "naked" tomatoes. He never responded to the picture, but I'm sure he wanted to find them some clothes.

My sister, Julia came to help me. Together we were able to can 38 pints of salsa. Not too bad for one afternoon (and evening).

 In the same order of tomatoes, I also ordered some peaches. I split that box with a fellow ward member/neighbor. I only canned these 5 quarts and at the rest fresh.

Just a few items from our garden. 

We also had strawberries and raspberries, but those didn't last long enough to get any pictures.

Yummy Goodness

Oh yeah, check out these beauties! I just harvested these from our garden. We have so many of these yummy strawberries ready for picking! I only picked what I could fit in this 8 cup bowl and we probably have another 16 cups or so ready to pick. I love summer and having fresh produce from my garden.

Ahhh....freshness

I love love love fresh fruit! Especially when it comes straight from the garden. Here's the strawberries and raspberries I was able to pick yesterday and there are plenty more that will be ready in the next day or two.

Garden 2010

Here are the beginnings of our garden! I am so excited! One of our three pumpkin plants.
One of two of our zucchini squash.
Red and Orange bell pepper plants.
Tomato plants
Can you see the three tomatoes growing? Oh yeah baby! This is what I am really excited for, picking tomatoes right off the vine and eating them! This is something I did ALL the time as a kid. Every summer my Dad grew tomato plats (he still does, like ten plants!) and I would take off the ripe ones and eat them while playing outside.

Here are the strawberries that I transplanted from a person in our ward's garden last year. I didn't get any strawberries last year, but I already have a ton growing. I think I'll be lucky if I get enough to make even one jar of jam though, because Mason and Cooper can't wait until they ripen. They've already told me that they are going to eat them right off the vine.

Here are the raspberry plants. I transplanted them last year too, so I didn't get much off them last year. This year should be awesome!

*Disclaimer: After my sister DeAnne commented telling me what a good job I did getting the garden in even with being sick, I fell I need to tell everyone who the person with the green thumb really is. Jeff. Yup, he does all the planting, watering, weeding, and pruning. I just enjoy all his hard work. Spoiled? Yes. And I love it!

Garden 2009

Some of those 40 pictures taken by Mason were of our garden. I was just thinking yesterday that I should really take so pictures of the garden, now I don't need to, thanks to Mason. In the bottom left corner is the pumpkins, then the zucchini squash and cucumbers behind the pumpkins.
Cucumbers
Zucchini squash
Corn
Strawberries
Raspberries

Both my strawberries and raspberries were starts from other people, so I don't think I will get much from either of them this year.