Stock up....to eat locally....

Ugh.
Summer is over...maybe that is why I have not written in a few days...my seasonal affect disorder is already setting in. I love my sun.
Don't get me wrong I love fall. Fall is fabulous....I do feel however that after fall should come spring...a three season environment would be divine. Since those magical unicorns have still yet to visit me and offer to grant me wishes...I will tell you how I am preparing for the long dull winter. Dull in terms of local fruits and vegetables.
I love the summer and early fall because in our area the produce is dancing with color and alive with flavor. The shear variety excites me. I know that it will not last forever...sadly it won't ...
so.....
I am stocking my freezer. To eat local when it is 20 below out. I am shivering angrily already.
To date...we have enough strawberry and peach preserves (Smuckers has nothing on me girls)to last until next summer, roughly 4 one gallon bags of local blueberries, 4 one gallons bags of strawberries, 5 one gallon bags of applesauce (will make more as it is apple season right now and still plenty of time!), 6 one gallon bags of pureed tomatoes, and to date... 5 meals worth of pesto (making more this weekend)......
Not complete yet but on the agenda is to make up some large batches of Kale and vegetable soups to freeze......
WHEW.
Now...if you are new here....lest you think I am running around in a pair of Dickies and a sweater made of hemp....and nails full of dirt....well the nails thing...not dirty but a manicure lasts about a day around here. My apologies.
I am not....I just have gotten fairly savvy with canning, freezing and preparing for the winter....
Am I a pro? Is my family going to consume 100% local food all winter...no and no.....
I aspire to that level...but I am a busy mom who has other interests and passions.....
BUT...I hope to inspire at least a few of you to find ways to do the same...
Trust me there is nothing like making a batch of pancakes on a Sunday morning in February ...and tossing in the blueberries that were picked by your hands and your adorable kids hands way back in July....
I feel it lights the spirit....brings back the warmth of the summer....and reminds you how lucky you are to live in a place where these little blue gems grow but a few short months a year...but are second to none.
Be mindful...be green....grab some apples and squash...and eat locally. You are my fabulous green girlfriends.