Domesticalities

That isn't really a word, I don't think. Anyway, we learned a new lesson yesterday. Let a toddler play with a camera, she breaks it. Let her play with it again, she might fix it. The girls were carrying the camera yesterday and then it started working again. It's nice that we could download the photos that were on the card, but sad that we missed so many things this last month that we would have like to take pictures of. The Fair, Eugene, birthday, anniversary, dinner parties, trip to the beach . . . . sigh.
Over Labor Day weekend we bought peaches outside of Ellensburg. I have never canned peaches by myself, so I only bought one box and I was pretty nervous about it. I ended up with a hybrid, Rich Lady. They were red and fuzzless and a semi-free stone meaning they didn't just fall away from the pit. But they were firm and so flavorful! I was so glad Stephen came from a canning family! He whipped through the blanching and peeling so fast, I couldn't believe it. I was so proud of the end result until I talked to my cousin in Eugene the next day. She and a friend canned 90 quarts of peaches!! It was her first time canning too. Our moms seemed quite proud that we are interested in carrying on the home economics traditions. They were canning queens. My sister in Richmond tried preserving marinara sauce made from her own tomatoes this year and my other sister was teaching ladies in her church how to can peaches too.





























Another domestic triumph lately was making tamales from scratch. My neighbor Jen is really good at it and she sent me a recipe and web site with instructions. Although it is time consuming and labor intensive, the end result was worth it. (Even though I let the water run dry once- thanks Kristyn for letting me finish cooking them at your house!) They freeze great and are inexpensive and kids love them- so easy to handle. My freezer is full of them and I can't wait to make more.
Stephen had his own triumph this week. Fruit flies are a constant annoyance for people here. You hear everyone complaining about them. Stephen finally made an effective trap and we have cleared most of them out. He took a glass pop bottle and put red wine vinegar in the bottom with a drop of soap. The vinegar attracts them and the soap breaks the tension on the top so they drown. We have caught dozens of them- yuck! (this is not an original idea, we got it off the internet- but we tried various versions before this worked best).
Things are humming along as we enjoy a few fleeting days of beautiful sunshine. Enjoy it while it lasts!