Homemaking Mondays: Canning for the Pantry

Hello! 

A lovely fall day here 

and it is nice to know that we are almost 

ready for winter. 

I've been canning a bit more.

Using my pressure canner for more then just soup stock.

This year I've done carrots and chicken for the first time.

I thought I'd make some soup to can...

but then decided I'd focus more on ingredients 

so that I can make more of a variety.

Below is some cheeseburger soup that I made this week.

I added a bunch of summer greens that were in the freezer 

and that was just the right touch.

In this new house we are blessed with a walk in pantry. 

It has narrow shelves all around and an alley way space between.

The shelves will hold two quart jars deep and 

three pints with the last offset.

It's cooler then the rest of the house, 

but not that cold....yet! 

We have stored a lot of food down there

and it's nice to have it out of the kitchen 

and then just going down to get what we need for a meal. 

There are rubbermaid totes holding some dry goods.

Some bins for potatoes and onions. 

We didn't get a huge amount of potatoes,

and then we bought a few more. 

It's not that cool so they won't hold that long. 

But!  Long enough for us to eat them all. :) 

The pantry also hold other odds and ends

like extra cake savers, and 

my cake decorating toolbox.

As soon as I'm all done with my canning

all those supplies will get fitted in there as well.

It's fun to look at the shelves when I'm down there

and see the fun things that I've processed 

on the shelves. 

Jams, relish, salsa, tomato soup, carrots,

pears, oranges, broth, and chicken.

Little testaments to how I've spend some of my time.

One other space that I've been working on lately 

is the laundry room.

There is this "window" that is cut into the wall 

for heat distribution. 

I like to be able to sit things on the sill that it has

but things got knocked over.

So I added this bit of chicken wire

to keep things where they're put.

Then I added some small fun 

printouts with clothespins.

With the little window and a plant it 

makes for a quite cheerful space

to do the laundry in.

With fall all around us it has made me want to crochet again.

I was given a couple fun cakes of yarn 

and decided to make a small blanket with them.

A dear friend taught me to take the "cakes" apart

and then roll up the yarn in separate colours to make the sections bigger.

I decided to give it a try.

So....I've begun.

I'm going to change up the original order of the colours

primarily because now I have no idea 

what they originally were because my basket got bumped. 

HA! 

So it shall be a surprise how it all turns out in the end. 

This is a simple pattern of two alternating rows. 

I've used it before for baby blankets and it's

very pretty and simple to work up.

You can find it HERE if you want to try it.

What has fall got you thinking about?

Have you been squirrelling things away in  your pantry?

Have you settled down with some yarn?

Praying you have a beautiful day! 

Love and Prayers,

Jennifer