Pat to his sister..."Mom used to stand at the sink and cut the apples, too!" Family day of canning applesauce!

Up to the top with applesauce!  Our 40 quart pan we got at an auction from Holy Redeemer school about 25 years ago... is full to the top for 4 times yesterday and we got most of these jars full for our 7 families over the next year.

Ruth and Pat's sister, Raterra, stood side by side at the sink cutting about 20 pails of apples as we picked the entire tree...  Pat commented on how seeing his sister and daughter there for hours cutting reminded him;  "That used to be mom's job of standing at the sink and cutting apples."  So many fond memories of family days of canning with many willing and cheerful hands making the work enjoyable, and making new memories with Ruth's kids in her canning kitchen in the remodeled farmhouse she grew up in... now made hers!

Joy left many apples with bites out of them around as she walked from pail to pail full of red rain washed apples!!!  She is walking at 17 months!  Why walk early when you have...

Grandpa's big arms to hold you and shoulders to lay your head on?  Pat worked hard all day putting through applesauce - 216 quarts!  But he always had time to hold and snuggle his Joy! 

We used two stoves and 4 canners to get the sauce soft for those putting it through the colanders... we had two of those going this year with different workers...

Rose and Luke worked on the first apples and got warmed up after picking apples in the cold rain.  How different to need jackets out side, after the heat of this summer.

Two canners on the stove up stairs and two down the basement on our old stove... It truly is amazing what we can accomplish as a family sharing work of putting up food for now 7 families as John and Bobbi joined at the beginning of the summer.

I asked Pat why the jobs in the house with the family are enjoyable times of sharing together and when we have family jobs involving the livestock it is usually tense and less than pleasant... I do know the answer in part... the big and unpredictable animals are difficult to work with and make for tension and harsh words and actions from time to time... it is the nature of the beast! 

David with muddy feet after picking apples in the rain and they all came in with tales of grandpa lifting them in the bucket high into the apple tree... we picked the entire tree and then got them all made into applesauce!  There is a pie tree and eating tree left filled with so many apples!  HELP!!!

Today is the feast of the passion of St John the Baptist... my stomach starts to cringe thinking about the head on a platter... the King offered up to half his kingdom for her dance and that was what they wanted - to end this voice of Truth!  John's motto for his mission:  "I must decrease, He must increase."   So true for all of us, and never stop living and sharing the Truth!

Part of the apples awaiting their fate.  I had already cut about 3 pails and there were 4 more pails by the door... probably close to 20 pails picked = 216 quarts of sauce for our 7 families including Hallel and her Little Sisters in KC!

 It was so wonderful to take our homemade food to share with our daughter, who was here in the U.S. for the first time in 10 years last year, and we hope and pray she will return for another year here again this year!

Luke's job was to push up the pails of apples to the sink and snuggle with baby Siamese kitten while he had stories to share with any and all!

It is hard to find places for 200+ jars, so we got creative!

Simon and Mary getting ready to can on both sides of our big pan filled with 40 quarts of sauce while Ruth and Raterra cut and cut and cut somemore!  Carrying forth the tradition of their mother and grandmother... how we love our great-grandma Ann and how she passed on her love of the farm and all that it entails!

There was a line in the Psalm from mass today that made me smile after our huge day of making food for 7 families... maybe 8 as Raterra will share some with her son's family which now includes Lawrence, who is 3 months old!
R. (1) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
Psalm 128:1-2

 Filling the jars and pushing through the sauce!  Yes, we will eat the fruit of our handiwork until we can again next year, and we know not how many apples our trees will produce, but it could be an off year as they tend to be every other year.  We were delayed by France, and the county and the state Fair... but I think we made good and total use of the apples ready to be used!

Buried in apples!!!  With 2 new babies coming in March this will be special for them!

 It was a good day indeed! 

Jesus, there is joy to be found when we can work together in harmony and share in a huge family job of putting up food for many families over the next year!  May that happiness of sharing in our work carry over to all areas of our lives in the ways that we give without counting the cost!  It tastes so good and feels so wonderful to see the smiles of delight when we "eat the fruit of our handiwork."  Handiwork of taking the fruit of the gardens and of the trees and making healthy wonderful food for our family to grow and develope sharing our Faith as a domestic Church/family with JOY!  Jesus, we trust in you.  Amen and Hallelujah

The two youngest girls sharing and smiling are a gift in our busy times together... the two canners on the stove are filled with jars processing now that all the sauce is made and the last 40 jars to fills!  Such a good feeling to see the end in sight!  Bless-bless, Barbara Mary Luke

 Grandma got to dress Joy twice, but couldn't spare the time to do her hair... for grandma to miss doing that is a sure sign that we were busy!

About half the jars left to process with 6 year old Rose, who is always a good hard worker!  LOVE to see the little ones learning to share in this farm work and happy family times!

Saint Therese of the child jesus, pray for us ❤️

Love her, and think of Bobbi as she is her patron Saint as well as granddaughter, Therese! 

Solanus is huge for our family as his relic came to John during his brain cancer!
http://familysoulstory.blogspot.com/p/johns-cancer-stories.html

His promo video!

The Passion of St John the Baptist
Saint John the Baptist
Died: 30 AD
Feast day: June 24 (birth) August 29 (death)
Patronage: convulsions, epilepsy, hailstorms, baptism, converts, lambs, Jordan
John the Baptist was the son of Zachary and Elizabeth and cousin of Jesus. John began his ministry around age 27, preaching a message of repentance to the people of Jerusalem. He converted many and prepared the way for the coming of Jesus. He Baptized Christ, after which he stepped away and told his disciples to follow Jesus. Imprisoned by king Herod and was beheaded.

In the midst of our big day... I missed St Augustine, Gus's feast day and his parents' 8th anniversary! 

Let's have an Adventure!

PS: I love that this man's feast is the day after his beloved (never-stopped-praying-for-his-salvation) mother!!!

Nancy and Bill in Lourdes almost 2 weeks ago!!  Happy Anniversary!  WE love you so much!  

Danielle Rose - Small things with great love