We finished planting the garden last weekend, well that is not exactly true. The first rotation of crops is in, but we are looking forward to a second planting of beans and putting in a few crops like chard and bokchoi for fall. But it isn't too early for me to begin dreaming of the canner jiggling away on the stove and the musical ping of jars sealing.

This last week I actually got a head start on canning. Seeing strawberries in my future, I froze 9 quarts of rhubarb in preparation for jars and jars of strawberry/rhubarb jam. Last fall my father insisted on juicing gallons of grape juice so I could make him grape jelly, 27 pints of grape jelly to be exact. Now he refuses to eat grape jelly and only wants strawberry jam....go figure!

We are completely out of canned tomatoes. 24 tomato plants will get us caught up, but we have salsa coming out our ears from last year! I think that has something to do with my husband getting on a habenero kick and making the salsa so hot he is the only one who can eat it! This year I will have to be vigilant in guarding the salsa while making a MILDER recipe.

Then there are the green beans, the peas, the cabbage to be made into kraut....on the endless, wonderful list. Starting a root cellar this fall too.

So while the rain comes down today, and I have to stay inside, I can dream of rows and rows of jars to be filled by the growing veggies come harvest.