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Wednesday, July 6, 2011

The only thing "domestic" about me is that I live in a house...

Moms are all about support - and my mom was great at this - as a teenager she walked me through making new recipes and would call to check on my progress if she feared my ambition had been a little too lofty for the day.

One day in particular the phone rang just as I finished hurling a large plastic bowl full of what was supposed to be Cream Puffs out into the front yard.

My mother, being supportive, covered the phone receiver before whispering to a co-worker "My daughter is as domestic as a rock".

I may be domestic as a rock but my hearing is super-human.

the thing is... she was right...

Alas, I cannot spend the rest of my life avoiding all things having to do with crafts, food, and decor... because then what would I blog about?

So, when asked by my friend if I wanted to learn a new skill I jumped at the chance.

"Jumped" in this case meaning that I stomped down my hesitancy to be an adult and trudged up the hill to her house.  The house with the overladen apricot trees...

ahhh... the apricots were quickly dispatched - into JARS nonetheless!  (okay, so a few went into my mouth... but just a few...)

and then when those jars were full we mashed up a bunch more... (mashed the apricots, not the jars...)

and put that goop into MORE jars!

and then some nonsense about boiling the jars for X amount of minutes even though the stupid flame on the camp chef didn't want to cooperate...

and a mere 7 hours later magically the kitchen counter is filled with these:

You know what I learned?

I learned to never, never NEVER complain about the price of Smuckers.  Next time I have to buy another jar of Jelly/Jam/Preserves - I am going to do so with a smile on my face... because somewhere, someone slaved over a hot stove to make this possible for me!  But until then, I'm going to eat my toast spread with Apricot jam.   ( yes, I do know they have big factories and all that... but that just ruins my happy little illusions...)

You know what else?

Every. Single. One. of those jars sealed.  I think that's a miracle or something.

Being Buoyed by that kitchen success I took on the task of fancy cupcakes...  not fancy decor (after the wedding cake last month I can't claim stupidity in that area) but fancy flavors...

We love our local cupcakery (it is TOO a word) and I'm a little embarrassed to admit that we have a frequent shoppers card there...  I wanted to try my hand at something flavored and got to give it a go when I got a request for a "get well" cupcake for the neighbor...

Pink Lemonade Deliciousness...
(yes, another Pinterest inspiration for those of you who claim I'm a Pinterest addict - but I tweaked the recipe... mostly because I didn't have vanilla pudding or frozen pink lemonade in the house)

and I didn't let it stop there - the girls wanted new headbands for the parade?


Ta-dah!!!!

and the little one wanted fancy invitations for a sleepover?


okay... so I actually made her do those herself...

I don't want to strain myself!



Shhh... don't tell my mom - she's going to think the rock has softened to the point where I'll cook when she visits.... psssshhh!

11 comments:

Kristina P. said...

I think I'm going to be domestic myself and make freezer jam. Or let Smuckers make it for me.

Welcome to the Garden of Egan said...

You are making me get all teary eyed!
I'm so proud of you doing apricots and jam! You totally rock.
I love doing junk like that. Really I do.

Hi my name is tauna and I'm am addicted to pinterest
"hi tauna"
My friend Tonya is also a pinterest addict!
YAY! A ton of wedding ideas came from this site.
The only bad part is that you have to make them. I can't even tell you what my house looks like....craft hell or something like that.

Nutty Hamster Chick said...

Very impressive. Way to go and all the stuff.

Cheeseboy said...

Smuckers has people slaving over a stove?! Pretty sure it doesn't work that way there.

Nice hair ribbons. Almost as nice as mine.

LC said...

Wowsers! Nothing says domesticity than a counter full of canned apricots. Way to go! (One of those jars would make a great housewarming gift the next time you're up:)

Sherie Christensen said...

Yeah, I doubt your Mom really thinks that any more and if she does than some of us are giant granite boulders. Great job with all of your domestic arts. I love apricot jam and my birthday is coming up (eventually). Okay, so I know how hard it is to make jam which is why I rarely do it. I guess you can go ahead and keep it. I'll buy Smuckers. But it won't be as good.

Suzanne Benner said...

Wow. You made jam? That's crazy. I might have to hire a maid to make the world a little more balanced.

Melanie Jacobson said...

I've similarly complained about not not being domestic. But today I'm attempting to make homemade sweet pickles and last night I was trying out different patterns for crochet flowers. I don't know what's happening to me.

Lisa said...

Rock, my fanny! Here I was hoping to feel all superior to you, and you let me down. WAY DOWN! Geez, woman, give it a rest already.

Megz said...

I find you very skilled at faking your domesticity!

Kelly said...

Found you today over at blog o cheese. Nice post. I think of myself as domestic yet I still have never canned fruit. Maybe someday... sigh.