Weekend Projects

Project #1 Blueberry Picking
Friday we went to pick blueberries. The whole time we were there, the girls and I couldn't stop saying, "Wow, look at all the berries." It was amazing to be in a forest of blueberries! The trees were 20 years old and in some places the branches would cross up and over the path in between the rows. We stood there in the shade and simply pulled hand-fulls of berries down into our buckets. We ate a few hand-fulls too:) We came home with a little over 2 gallons (about 12-14 lbs.) for $17. I spent the afternoon putting the berries away-- freezing several quarts, canning 4 1/2 pints of jam, and rinsing the rest to eat as fresh treats for the rest of the week. Making blueberry jam was a little easier than the strawberry I made in the spring. The blueberries are so easy to prepare since there is no peeling or cutting. I used panoma's natural fruit pectin again and the jam came out awesome.



Project #2 Painting the deck

Daniel and I made a plan to paint the deck last weekend. It was a project that we have wanted to do for a while but the garden has taken most of our weekend energy this summer.

The deck was painted green but it was old and worn down. It was also causing the back of the house to be even hotter than it should be. The green was absorbing the heat and getting so hot that it would burn our feet in the afternoons. We went to work Saturday morning pressure washing and scraping the deck clean. That afternoon we began the primer. Sunday was spent painting.
The girls were very involved in this project. They both got quick turns with the electric pressure washer. They stayed out in the hot sun with us and scraped and scratched old paint off. Then Saturday they both had their own brushes to help apply the primer. Daniel took turns with them rolling the paint on Sunday. It takes a little extra patience having small hands help out. They had great attitudes and really wanted to be a part of this entire project.