It is around 9 pm and I have been up since 5 am (because MJ is in seminary this year), but I can't go to sleep yet because my kids have friends over watching a movie. I know it's a friday night and I am usually on a date with my hubby, but he is out of town and I have been busy being a domestic goddess for the day. My domesticness started out at 9am when I went to one of my favorite places to get a breakfast burrito with my friend C, her Dad W, and my new friend and neighbor K (the one we have to thank for the laundry detergent). We had this nice little stop of goodness for burritos on our way to a lady's house that we know from church. Can I just say that this woman is so awesome. They built their house in Bernalillo in 1973 and they have all kinds of fruit trees plus she is known to work miracles when it comes to genealogy. Love her! Anyway she has way too many apples and pears so she invited us out to take what we wanted. We had the best time hanging out with her (she would not let me take her picture so she could later claim that we came and stole the apples. haha) I am seriously way too short to be picking apples. I have a pretty intense fear of heights but something overcame me and I was climbing in the trees trying to get the best apples. So fun!
Our next adventure after I had a quick lunch with my Nate and drove him to the airport was; showing C and her Mom and Dad how to make laundry soap. I picked up the ingredients and headed over to C's house. After about 2 seconds I realized yet again that I need to work on my muscles so I can grate the bar of soap much faster. We were all intoxicated by the smell of grated soap. It is worth the effort making the soap just for how good it smells plus I feel kinda like a mad scientist too. We got them all set up and ready to be dazzled and amazed with their new soap. The picture of C is cracking me up, she loves to make crazy faces. lol
During the soap making there was already a shift going for processing the apples. Holy moly did we come home with a ton of them. I am exhausted! We decided that we were making all the apples into apple pie filling for which I have my sister in law to thank for that recipe. She probably doesn't even remember giving it to me because I got it from her back when we lived in CA together 14 years ago. It has been hanging out in my recipe box untouched since then. Luckily I remembered that I had it when I suddenly found myself with tons of apples. There is still a batch being made over at C's house even as I write. Each batch we made takes 1/2 a bushel of apples. We made 5 batches (each batch made 7-8 quart jars) and we still have enough apples for probably 3 more. You have to peel and cut them which is always an adventure... as evidence by the worm picture. Ewww! Then cook them and fill the jars and then give the jars a bath in boiling water for 20 minutes. Each step in the process takes time but it is so worth the effort. Yum! It tastes soooo incredibly good. We even took the peels from the apples and made apple jelly. How cool is that. Those are the jars in the picture with the almost translucent color. I can't wait to try it. I am told that it is incredible and I will love it. Who knew all you needed was the peels to make jelly? I surely didn't. There is something about being self sufficient that brings pride, joy and peace. I am having the best time learning all kinds of things. I have the best feeling looking at all those jars of pie filling and jelly and knowing that we didn't waste a single apple, not even the peels...... well some of them....if we would have used them all we would have had enough for the entire state to get a jar. Add that to making the soap and I feel like I can do anything to take care of my family. I also loved just being in the kitchen working together all day side by side with people I consider family. Do I sound like an old lady or what? Oh well, at least I'm in good company, some of my most favorite people are older. :0)
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