For years, we have not even gotten each other a gift on our anniversary.  I decided to surprise my husband with a very nice gas grill.  The one he currently uses was my grandfather’s.  It is old and has its quirks.  There has been many a time when it has flared up the minute he turns his back and scorches our dinner.  Lane needed and wanted a new grill.

My husband is very particular about what he likes.  He has been shopping around for grills for months wanting to compare prices, quality, etc.  In fact the other day, he ran into a store that had a grill out on its porch.  I told the kids, “Watch your father.  He won’t be able to walk past that grill without stopping to look in it.” 

Sure enough, we all giggled as he abruptly stopped, turned, and opened the lid of the grill.  He studied it for several minutes.  I could tell that is was a large grill, which is what our family needs.

He came back to the car with a big smile on his face.  “Did you see that grill?”  he asked.  “It is real nice.  It has five burners, and it is on sale.”  I immediately decided that this was the grill for him.

Lane talked about that grill off and on for two days, but he was always with me.  There was no way to go get it without him knowing I left.  Then last Saturday morning, he had to take the show heifer, goat, and two pigs to town to get clipped for their up-coming show.  I called my mom, and she offered to take me up to the store in her pick-up truck. 

I bought the grill on the last day of the sale.  I got a great price on the exact grill that my husband wanted.  I was so excited.  We hurried home and hid it.  I worked super hard at home to make it seem like I had never left.  I really wanted to surprise Lane with not only the grill of his dreams, but an anniversary present.

Finally he came home.  I watched as he backed up the trailer to our barn so that our children could unload their show animals.  Lane climbed down from the truck, and said, “Hey, honey.  I got a surprise for you.”

Yes, he did.  He went and bought the same exact grill.  He spoiled my surprise.  I was initially irritated, but I got over it.  I guess after so many years being married to one another, we think alike.  There could be worse things in this world.

Part of one day's bountiful harvest.

I hope that everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend.  I have not written in over a week because life got in the way.  When life gets as hectic as it has been, I try not to stress over my lack of writing.  I do it because I enjoy it, and I am glad to be back.

What caused my life to get so hectic?  Well a number of things.  First, it is May.  I am sure that I am not the only one who finds the end of May completely chaotic.  In adddition to extra-curricular activities coming to an end with recitals and all, we have the county fair looming overhead.  Our show animals are requiring a lot of work.  I have been trying to help my children by being the judge as they practice their showmanship skills. 

The Mounted Posse has been practicing regularly for their two performances at the rodeo next weekend.  Jake and Kyla have been finishing their creative arts entries for the fair.  Jake turned 10 in the midst of all this activity. 

We still have all of our animals to take care of, but the most time-consuming thing in my life at the moment is my garden.  Because of the drought, I am watering it everyday.  Then I have to weed it.  I pick it every other day.  We are harvesting so many vegetables that it requires hours to clean them, cook them, and/or put them up.  And, I am still giving vegetables away. 

The harvest is in transition.  My fall garden/early spring vegetables are finishing up while my summer garden is in full operation.  Therefore, I am picking carrots, cabbage, and broccoli at the same time that I am picking cucumbers, squash, zucchini, eggplant, and tomatoes.  I also have been harvesting green beans, kohlrabi, peppers, and beets.  My spaghetti squash is doing well, but it is not ready to pick. 

Last week I started picking green beans.  We have eaten some just about every day.  I have blanched and frozen 12 pounds of green beans already.  Yesterday I had Kyla and Jake helping me pick our three rows of green beans.  We had a contest to see who could pick the most pounds.  Jake won, then Kyla, and I lost.  Altogether we have twenty-four more pounds to put up.  We are being greatly blessed by an abundance of fresh vegetables. 

I am trying not to get overwhelmed in the garden and kitchen, which is one of the reasons that I give away what I can.  However, I do feel like a gourmet cook.  Finding more ways to prepare squash and zucchini is always a challenge every summer.  I made a Zucchini Custard Torte from Lucy’s Specific Carbohydrate Diet Cookbook.  It was excellent! 

I also made Eggplant Parmesan.  I thought I had died and gone to heaven; it was out of this world.  Isaac took one bite and exclaimed, “I want this for my birthday!”  Needless to say, he made my day.

Kohlrabi is a great, versatile vegetable.  I have been experimenting different ways to prepare it, which is going to be an entire article in the future.  We are loving this odd-shaped vegetable.

All this work in the garden is giving me the opportunity to teach my two little boys about the importance of hardwork.  As we work side by side, weeding, picking, or watering, I praise them for their help.  I tell them that they are working hard.  I thank them for doing their best.  I teach them that in God’s Word it says, “If anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). 

Gardening is a good opportunity to teach this important lesson.  It is a tangible lesson.  My boys can see that they are helping to harvest food for our family.  Without the work, we would not have the vegetables to eat.  They seem to understand because my youngest tells his father, “Daddy, hard workers get to eat.  I’m a hard worker.”  Then Lane gushes over his sweaty little boy covered in dirt as he lugs in a bag of green beans. 

Life is good.  It is just busy.

Our Jalapeno Jelly

One of the entries my daughter, Kyla, entered in the county fair was jalapeno jelly.  Last summer, I had so many jalapenos coming off of two plants that I did not know what to do with them.  I froze quarts of peppers for chili and pots of beans in the winter.  We stuffed them with cream cheese and grilled them.  Clayton and Lane even ate some raw.  Despite all of our efforts including giving buckets of jalapenos away, we still had a growing surplus.

I had heard of jalapeno jelly, but had never tasted it.  So, I started reading different recipes.  I was surprised at how few jalapenos most of the recipes included.  Their jelly recipes consisted mainly of bell peppers.  Finally, I found a true jalapeno jelly and got to work.

It used only jalapenos, sugar, cider vinegar, and liquid pectin.  Therefore, it looked relatively simple to make.  After making my first batch, I was honestly afraid to try it.  My entire house smelled spicy and hot.  I could not imagine what the jelly was going to be like.  A couple of days later, I worked up the nerve to open a jar.  I could not believe how good the jelly tasted on a cracker!  The jelly is surprisingly sweet.

Kyla seeding and coring the peppers. When I made it the first time, my glove had a slit in it. I found out by the burning of my skin. Wear gloves without holes!

I began bringing my jelly, crackers, and cream cheese to different get-togethers as an appetizer.  People were raving about it.  The whole jar would disappear before dinner was served.  I was getting many requests for the jelly.  For Christmas this past year, I created Farm Fresh Baskets and included decorated jars of my jalapeno jelly.

Now I have taught my daughter to make it.  If I had to rate her experience level cooking, then she would be an intermediate.  She bakes mostly and can cook some dinners without supervision.  Even so, this jelly was not difficult for her to make.  Her batch won a blue ribbon this week at the fair.  Here is the recipe:

Jalapeno Jelly

3/4 lb of jalapenos, cored and seeded
2 cups apple-cider vinegar
6 cups sugar
2 pouches liquid pectin
3 drops of green food coloring (optional)

Wearing gloves, wash, seed, and core the jalapenos.  Puree them in a food processor with 1 cup of vinegar.  Pour into a medium sized pot.  Add the other cup of vinegar and all the sugar.  Bring to a boil while stirring constantly.  Allow to boil for 10 minutes.  Add the pectin and let it rapidly boil for one minute.  Remove from heat and skim the top if needed.  If desired, you can add food coloring.

Ladle jelly into clean, warm canning jars leaving a 1/4″ head space.  Wipe the rim of the jar and put on sterile lid.  Screw on the top.  Put in water bath for 10 minutes.  Remove, let cool, and check for good seal.

Serve with crackers and/or cream cheese.

The jelly itself is gluten-free.  My mother-in-law found some great gluten-free crackers for us to eat with the jelly.  They are Crunchmaster Multi-Grain Crackers.  The jelly is excellent on just a plain cracker.  Enjoy!

Jake showing a pig in the Pee Wee Swine Show last year.

In fact, Wednesday is Senior Citizens Day as well as Children’s Day.  Pee Wee Shows run all day as young children practice showing market animals to gain some experience.  Jake participated in this event for three years in a row and has gained some insight in the process of showing an animal.

On two back to back nights this weekend citizens came out in droves to support the rodeo events.  My three oldest children rode in the grand entry both nights as members of the Grimes County Jr. Deputy Sheriff’s Mounted Posse.  My husband and I were very proud of how they handled their horses and represented the county.

Kyla modeling her dress and purse. It took her a combined time of 19 hours of work to complete her ensemble.

This year my boys, Clayton and Jake, only entered photographs to be judged.  Kyla loves fair time.  She works all year making items to enter.  She entered four photographs, jalapeno jelly, butterscotch brownies, whole wheat bread, and molasses crinkle cookies.  Kyla also entered a t-shirt that she had embellished, a beautiful dress she made, and its matching purse.  All of my children are very anxious to see how they did.

The fair is not just about showing animals or various projects.  It is about supporting the youth.  Individuals, companies, and organizations band together to raise money in order to award scholarships to the hard-working youth in Grimes County.  Thursday night is the Premium Sale where the best of the best projects are auctioned off.  This is where all the hard work of the child during the past year pays off.  Friday night is the Freezer Sale where other qualified projects are sold.

If you have children and think that participating in something like this would be fun and full of learning experiences, then check into the requirements for your local fair.  For example in Grimes County, a child has to be a member of 4-H or FFA (Future Farmers of America.)  Both organizations are great helping children learn skills and compete with others.  They both also have plenty of scholarship opportunities.  My children are members of 4-Hers-on-the-Brazos, which is a group full of homeschooling families.

If you are in the area, I would highly recommend a visit to the Grimes County Fair.  You can see the schedule here.  However, more than likely you live too far away.  Still I encourage you to visit and help support the fair in your area.  It is a taste of the country and rural life even in the biggest cities.  It is where children are still being taught to can vegetables, quilt, raise livestock, and enjoy a good rodeo.