Making Jam

I was so excited to go strawberry picking with Julia and some friends. Could I make my own jam??? Well sure, we have our own kitchen, we can do what we want...YAHHHHH

Early Friday morning we dropped Jade off at Oma's and headed up to Visser Farms. Julia was so happy to be out with just Mommy and with Cadence(her friend). We took a large, medium and small basket and were sure that we would fill them all. Mommy filled most of them but Julia did a very good job for her first time.

We headed home and thought maybe we will spend the day on Saturday and make jam then, but then my mother in law needed my camera so we had to make it Friday night so we could take pictures.

We were so happy to be able to make this memory together as mother & daughter. We bought Julia her own apron so we could be twins in the kitchen. I washed all the strawberries and called Julia when it was time to mash the berries. I though, WOW this is easy and then I noticed...we didn't have lemon juice, I am almost out of sugar and wow...i need more jars...it makes more than I thought. So I sent Brad out to pick up supplies.

Once we made the 1st batch, we felt like pros. We had such a system when we made the jam. I filled them and wiped the jars down and Julia put the lids on and stacked them neatly on the counter. She was so proud of her accomplishment and so was I. We couldn't wait to taste it!

The next day we headed out again for some more supplies to make the rest of the jam. Grabbed the pectin, jars, and more sugar and back into the kitchen I went.

Thinking I was a pro at this i glanced at the instructions and the way i went. I made 16 more jars and tidied up the kitchen.

As I glanced at the newly batch of jam i noticed they didn't look the same but thinking...maybe they were riper berries I sat down to Facebook. As I looked at my friends status, she commented on my jam making and she stated that she messed hers up b/c she didn't boil the water & pectin, I sighed and then it hit me...

I too did not boil the water with the pectin. That is why it looked separated. All the pectin was at the bottom and the berries and sugar was at the top.

I was so upset...here I thought i was such a pro already...then my supportive husband that he is had an idea to separate the jam and pectin in two bowls and add the missing water and boil it with pectin and then mix it with the berries and jar them again.

Well at least this was the way we fixed it...we will see how it turns out in a day or two but any way it will sure taste good on toast or ice cream.

What will be next in our adventures in the kitchen...WHO KNOWS?

Our Move

Alright, it has been over a month since I last posted but I have had a good reason. We finally moved to a home that is ours. Thing went very smoothly.

A few days before we moved i was talking to my sister in law and we were looking at all of our boxes downstairs...boy did we have alot of stuff...maybe we should rent a truck or something? We were planning on doing it with two trailers, two minivans and maybe another truck or something...we don't need a truck? Well, it would make me feel better if we had a truck, just in case...so I called Brad at work and he booked a 24' u-haul truck and we were ready to pick it up on Moving Day.

Thursday, May 28th, we headed off to the lawyers to sign all the papers. Boy, I have never signed my name so much. Everyone was so friendly and very interested in our little story on how we were finally moving to our own home after living with 7 other people for 5 yrs. Now to wait til the next day to get the key. He said that it could be 10am or 4pm that he would have the key...her really didn't know. Oh we will be so busy with moving that the wait will be fine.

Friday, May 29th, The day had come...moving to our home. We left at 7am and grabbed breakfast at mcdonalds with the girls and then headed to pick up the moving truck at 8am.

We headed home to start the loading.
Dad was at the house already tearing down the walls for us to get our bed, couch, lazyboy, and other items out...plus wendy needed the walls down for her stuff too so leave it to Dad to just take down the walls.

We began packing at 9am with the help of our great friend Chris who just came form an overnight shift but he was so willing to help. The guys just made an assembly line and loaded that truck. I really didn't think we would fill that truck up so full. I knew we had a lot of stuff but not to fill a moving truck, our mini van, dad's mini van, and his trailer...plus all the stuff from Gramma's which was all my kitchen items. But who cared...we were moving. We were done packing by 12pm. NO call yet about the key so we sat down to have lunch and just do some last minute clean up...around 1pm still no call and I was starting to go nuts so I left and did some shopping for the house...when I am done, we will get the call right...NOPE. Not til 4:00pm did we get the call!.

FINALLY MOVING IN!

We loaded up the girls in wendy's van, Dad and Chris headed up to the house and I called Gramma and Gramps & Mom and Dad to head up to the house as well... we will all meet there at 5pm.

Brad and I headed to the office to pick up the key...here I thought this was going to be this big thing but all they did was hand us this envelope with the key in it...oh well it is the key to our house so I won;t get picky.

Finally. We had the key to our house...now to unpack...I was so tired so I was hoping my second wind would kick in...it was going to be a long night.

We drove up to our house and there was the whole family waiting to get in. The one thing I wanted though was to walk into the house as a family...There we were at our door ready to walk into the house...

Turing the key and seeing the empty house ready to be filled with our stuff ready to make it ours! Brad actually carried me over the threshold of the house which was really sweet.

The House got very busy. The guys were loading every thing into the garage and the only items to come into the house were the beds and suitcases with clothes, couches and kitchen stuff.

Mom and I got the girls bedrooms set up so the girls could sleep comfortablly tonight.

Gramma set up my kitchen very well I might add...I didn't even have to move things the way I liked b/c she did a great job...well while the kitchen and bed rooms were being set up we hear..OH NO...

That is right...our queen size boxspring didnt fit up the stair well. No matter who tryed, it still wouldn't fit. So we had to buy a new split queen size boxspring later that week so we could sleep off the ground.

By 9:30pm the trucks we unloaded, couches were in and the girls were asleep in there rooms.

The smiths and hilborns left around 8pm so my family ordered pizza and just kind of relaxed and enjoyed the new house.

Brad and I stayed up til 11pm to set up the t.v and satalite for the kids in the morning.

Over all, the move went so well. We were finally in our own home...who knows what the next day will go. Or how the unpacking will go. Only time will tell.

BED TIME for us.