We had an overabundance of strawberries again this year. We gave many away. I do not like the texture of frozen strawberries, and have little use for them, so we did not want to freeze any. Several years ago a friend gifted us with a jar of freezer jam, and Arthur raved about it. We use little jam, but I thought I would make some nonetheless, to try something new and to use up the strawberries. I was so green that when I went to buy a box of Sure Jell, I did not know why there were two different boxes, and after a superficial reading of both - I did not feel like spending half an hour reading and picking out boxes - I grabbed one and headed off to the rest of my shopping. When I got home I discovered that I had gotten Sure Jell for low-sugar jam. No big deal. Less sugar is fine with me. The box said my yield was expected to be six jars. I kept having to wash more jars, and by the time I was done I had 13 half pints ready for the freezer and refrigerator. Going back over the recipe I discovered that I had doubled the strawberries, and not the sugar. I was afraid that we would have very runny, tart jam, but it firmed sufficiently enough that we can spread it on our toast. It tastes fine. To make a long story short, half of the jars are gone. We like the freezer jam so much more than processed jams because the strawberries retain their bright red color. It is so much more appetizing looking than processed jam, so we eat more.
I bought blueberries at Aldi's the other day because the price was so good. The price savings was not worth the time I had to spend picking off stems before I could make Arthur's blueberry muffins. Ciabatta buns are my Aldi's treat. I am also a sucker for their low priced chips and crackers. We go through so many eggs at our house that I can always pick up a carton of their very cheap eggs.
Yesterday's blessing from God was my three year old housekeeping helper. We swept and Swiffed the whole upstairs, singing and chatting as we worked. She talks non-stop, but it made the work fun. The work helps her to feel so grown up. Last night I put on my red/green glasses as we bowled on the kitchen floor, so I could count it as vision therapy.
I finished the 1,000 piece puzzle that Miss Ari and I started a couple of weeks ago. She did help with the edge pieces, but then gave up on it. I thought that would happen, but why argue? I debated between leaving the last few pieces for her to finish when she gets home, or doing it myself. Myself won. Now I can get to bed on time.
Gotta get some sewing ready for Ari next week. I also have to sew some dolly diapers. I do not like having to wipe up Baby Alive dolly poop from the kitchen floor. The "disposable" dolly diapers are significantly more expensive than baby diapers, but the girls are fascinated with feeding the dolls. I like their maternal interests.
