Oh, What A Glorious Grape!

Fall....what a glorious time of year. I certainly know that I am not alone in this sentiment. I find myself dreading the coming days of winter but rejoicing in the beauty of the landscape, the slight chill to the air, college football surrounds me, harvest time is in full splendor. The peaches and pears are nestled snuggly in their jars for consumption throughout the long and desolate winter. Each one providing a bright spot of color and a promise of days to come when the earth again will produce such perfection fresh in our hands. I love these days - even as they seem to race by at an ever increasing speed, hurtling towards the holidays and the end of our calendar year.

Peaches and pears come when the days are still hot and sticky. But following the peaches and pears come........the grapes. Or more specifically, the grape juice. And oh, what glorious grapes they are this year! Our early and sudden hard freeze following a week of above average temperatures captured the grape at its' absolute finest and sweetest.

We (Brian and I) had hoped to head to lunch for another celebration of my birthday ;) Instead, after receiving a call from our beloved "grape man", we headed out to the vineyard. (it sounds much more glamorous than it is!) What a blessing that Barbie had already agreed to have the girls over for play time that day. The adventure proved to take much longer than we had planned but, oh we are so pleased with our bounty. The girls had a grand time in our absence as evidenced by this post.




We have done a couple hundred quarts of juice so far. It's so easy and so d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!!! Brian's youngest brother and his family are headed up for a visit in a few days and we will finish off with another successful canning season helping them with their haul!!




I know canning may seem old fashioned to some and just plain ridiculous to others. I mean, why do it if you can just buy it right??? But, there is something extremely satisfying about looking at the "fruits" of your labor...knowing exactly where it came from....what was put in it....and to see it so beautifully lined up on your shelf for your family to enjoy. For all of these reasons, I LOVE it. It's time consuming and yes, my back usually hurts a touch after and my feet ache but the memories of visiting and working together and the final result more than outweigh any discomfort or complaining on my part. Though right about now....when it is nearly finished, but not quite, I am more than ready to say "I am done with the earth"!