Adventures in Canning (Part 1)

I can officially check this one off of my summer (and lifelong) bucket list. I canned! That's right, you guys. I bought the supplies and picked a bunch of strawberries and made my very first batch of strawberry jam. The jam is so divine, friends. I really can't believe how much better it is than the store-bought stuff. (And it's totally normal to eat it from the jar with a spoon, so I hear.) Considering the fact that I did it all myself, I'm pretty dang proud. I can't wait until our garden is really booming with tomatoes and berries and cucumbers and other things. I'll be a canning machine!

The Books
I checked out several books from the library on canning and preserving. They were all pretty awesome and had a TON of amazing recipes, but the two that were the most helpful for actually learning to do it were these two. 

The Gear
To get started, I went with a water bath canning kit. THIS ONE to be exact. Someday I may invest in a pressure canner, but the water bath option seemed like a good and affordable fit for now. Only low acid foods (meat, some veggies, etc.) have to be cooked in a pressure canner. Most of the things I will can (salsa, tomato sauce, more jam, etc.) have a high acidity, so the water bath method works just fine. 

The Method

I've heard that jam is a good starter for canning. It's pretty easy as long as you have the space and the supplies. I wanted to do a simple strawberry jam with as few ingredients as possible. Someday I'll get a little more adventurous and add fun spices and extracts and things. I used the strawberry jam recipe from the Ball website, but also used The Pioneer Woman's tutorial for step-by-step photos. I usually get annoyed with step-by-step photos for recipes, (yes, I know what diced onions look like!) but this one was really helpful!

The best part, other than eating it of course, was hearing all of the little pings and pops after the jars took their hot bath. Those glorious sounds let me know that yes, the canning method did in fact work and the jars were sealed and ready for the shelf! In other words, I DID IT! I made 12 jars of jam. So far I've only given a few away. Hoping to save the rest so we'll have strawberry jam all the way until next summer when strawberries are in season again! If you too, want to can, I strongly encourage you to try! It was easier than I expected and now that I've tackled one project, I feel ready for more! Enjoy!

-L

Off to a Good Start

It's not yet "officially" summer, and I'd say we're doing pretty good! What about you?? 

xo,

L

Bits & Pieces {& doing ALL the things}

First salad from our garden!!!

Oh my goodness you guys, I'm pooped. I don't know if I'm still worn out from our roadtrip or if it's the fact that I no longer have a babysitter, but I am spent. Writing and blogging and crafting are consuming me! (But it's good! Really, it is!) I am now writing at 4 (F-O-U-R) places besides here, which is amazing and will hopefully (soon) allow us to start a savings account, but I'm still trying to navigate how to keep myself organized and all of that. I know some bloggers who write for many more than 4 places and I would love to know some of their tricks!

Then, there's the other side of all of this - the part where I need to share all of my stuff with you. You know, tweets and photos and pins and updates on all of my posts so I can, in fact, get the pageviews and keep my jobs. Do you prefer a list of links each Friday? A few updates during the day via Facebook or Twitter? Or does all of this annoy the heck out of you and make you want to click "unlike page" on everything you see? :) I honestly would like to know.

It is Friday, my friends. I hope you get to relax a little bit this weekend and enjoy some of the beautiful weather. Don't forget, Father's Day is Sunday. Make sure to tell your pa you love him. Here are some of my favorite things from around the interwebs this week...

1. Hello Cheeseburger is having an AWESOME sale. I love that Jellybean necklace and if I weren't broke as a joke, I'd totally buy it. 
2. Melissa from Love Like Johnny and June just found out she is expecting a little BOY! Go and wish her the best!
3. Tried out this adorable hairdo last night. Still need to work on the bun. 
4. You HAVE TO see this adorable Etsy Shop. Seriously, some of the cutest things. Make sure you add them to your favorites!
5. Dreaming of an EPIC summer? My friend Maggie hit it right on the money with this post. 
6. Have a kid who throws the occasional (read: constant) tantrum? This will make you feel a little bit better. 
7. This is a fantastic reminder when I'm feeling a little down and dilapidated. 
8. This is how you roll up your sleeves, friends. Such a perfect little tutorial. 
9. If you love babies and Jay-Z, you'll be excited about this. If you don't, then you might be a terrible person. 
10. A great little note about child spacing. We've been having this conversation a lot lately. What do you think? 

And here I am, elsewhere...

On Moonfrye, I've got some totally rad summer crafts. You'll love the play-dough recipe, as well as the splatter paint and the butterfly feeder. So easy and so fun!

My newest job is at mom.me. This website is SO GREAT, so make sure you check it out. It's all about play - which is totally my cup of tea. I've got two articles there now - a fun DIY and a few ideas for getting your little ones to help out at home.

Here are my posts at Disney Baby this week. I will warn you, the bacon recipes will make your mouth water. (But go ahead and look. It's totally worth it.)

Lastly, I'm over at Child Mode, talking 5 family-friendly things to do in Memphis.

Whew! That was exhausting. If you are still reading, you are a dear friend.

Have a great weekend!

L

Tips on Buying Vintage with Life on Churchill {Plus, a GIVEAWAY!!!}

Good morning, friends! So excited to have Julia from Life on Churchill here today. Julia is so lovely, I just know we'd be dear friends in real life. Her blog, Life on Churchill, is great. She shares fun finds, family adventures, and cute/yummy projects. In addition, she has an awesome vintage store on Etsy! Be sure to check it out! P.S. - How cute are these vintage hangers? She's giving them away!!! xo, L

Hi! I’m Julia and I am so thrilled to introduce myself and family! My background is in product design, and for the past 6 years I’ve chosen to stay home with our two preschoolers Bryce (5) and Kinsey (3). 

I love to shop. Before kids I was a frequent shopper at Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, the Gap..If I needed a new purse I bought one at Target without hesitation! But when we went from 2 incomes to 1, I changed my shopping habits.  My husband and I found ourselves frequently visiting the thrift store for everything from home furnishings to kids clothes. Almost every piece in our living room/dining area was thrifted. My love of thrifting and vintage led me to open an Etsy shop earlier this year. I love finding one of a kind pieces and sharing vintage finds with customers! 

A few tips for buying vintage...

1. Be flexible. Have a list in mind of what you need but keep your eyes open. I don't think any of my thrifted purchases were planned. The dressers, books, and vintage items were all randomly accumulated! I think its more fun that way. 
2. Be patient. I’ve been on the lookout for a file cabinet for a while now. I know I’ll find a good one eventually if I’m patient. And I’m willing to wait if it means I can save $50 or $100!
3. A little TLC. Several pieces of our furniture were painted. Including our lamp, desk and toy dresser. It makes pieces look more modern and customized for a fraction of the cost! 
4. Value days. Most thrift stores have discount days. Ask a sales associate which days have good deals. Keep in mind that those days are popular! Parking spots can be hard to find. :)

Aren't these vintage hangers so awesome?! One lucky winner will receive them both! They'd be so cute hanging on a wall, displaying wall art or an adorable vintage clothing find! Enter to win below. Also, be sure to check out the Life on Churchill Shop. For the month of June, all Living on Love readers will receive 10% off their purchase! Just use the code JUNE10 at checkout! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Our Epic 6-State, 4-Day Roadtrip

This past weekend, we managed to see 1/8 of the contiguous United States. (Phil did the math, but I think it's pretty accurate.) That's equally impressive as it is insane, I know. We saw the boothill of Missouri, bits of Arkansas, the very Western part of Tennessee, lots of green Mississippi, the land and coast of Alabama, and the swamps of Louisiana. (Prior to this trip, neither of us had ever been to Mississippi, Alabama, or Louisiana! Check that off our bucket list!)

Our dear friend Sophia got married on Saturday in Orange Beach, Alabama. Aside from my duties as bridesmaid and wedding singer, we managed to turn the weekend into a mini family vacation. It was EPIC, you guys. Each Stroessner lost their mind at least once, but it really was worth it.  On Thursday, we traveled to Memphis, Tennessee. We had never been there before and we had a really great time. We saw the Lorraine Hotel (where MLK was shot,) got some BBQ, saw a Redbirds game, walked down Beale Street, and stayed at the historic Peabody Hotel. (I will say that KC BBQ is a million miles times better than Memphis-style.) Memphis was pretty great, though. Perfect for a one-night stay. In fact, I did a little write-up about our time there over at Child Mode. Check it out!

Friday, we left Memphis early in the morning and headed to Alabama for the first of the wedding festivities. Most of the drive was in M-i-ss-I-ss-I-pp-I! (Remember that game?!) I will say that I greatly admire the state of Mississippi for their ban on billboards along the highway. I'm not kidding you, the drive was so beautiful. Nothing but green trees the entire length of the state! Saturday was great. I spent the morning with the bridal party and Phil took the girls to the beach. Aside from the scary waves, the girls really loved it. (I'm still finding sand in their ears.) The wedding was fabulous. With a girl as unique and wonderful as Sophia and a wedding party 15 bridesmaids strong, you can't really go wrong.  :)

wedding photos by Erica Ballard

Sunday, we got really crazy and decided to drive 3 hours west to New Orleans, another place we had never been. Being this close (3 hours is close, right?!) it seemed silly to not make the drive. I mean, when would we ever again have the chance to visit the Big Easy?! We ate an incredible lunch at Mother's Restaurant. Phil had a famous po boy and I had jambalaya for the first time. After lunch, we walked around downtown Nola and then to the French Quarters. We saw lots of neat buildings, heard awesome live music on the streets, and ate beignets in the muggy heat at Cafe du Monde. When everyone was completely pooped, we hopped back into the car, not quite ready to make the 13-hour trek back home. (I'm still disappointed I didn't see a wild alligator. I assumed they'd be everywhere, like Missouri deer.) We got home at 4 AM on Monday morning, completely exhausted and ready to sleep in our own beds. 

Like I said, the weekend was awesome. We are a bit crazy, but I kind of love it. I pray our girls will develop a sense of adventure because we did stuff like this when they were young. If not, they'll just think their parents are insane, which is not a far claim to make...

xo,

L