Happy Father's Day! I hope you were able to honor all of the fathers in your life today. I thought I'd report my weekend in chapters. Seems appropriate matrix for my father the the proudly analogue librarian. Happy Father's Day Daddy!
Chapter 1: The Freeing of the Echinacea plants
They are such beautiful flowers. I especially love the orange spikes. Nothing in the daisy family likes my yard though - so I'm especially happy these two plants have survived the last three years and happily continue to bloom. Despite my neglect.
Here's the back garden before I commenced the yearly battle:
Very green you think? Yes, that jungle is a combination of nasty creepy crawly vines that spring up overnight and strangle anything they can get their vines around, several 6ft tall poke weed plants about to produce those nasty purple berries the birds love and the poop purple all over the yard, and then the general mix of wild grape (not edible - but again plenty of food for bird pooping), paper mulberries and you name it. Hopefully no poison sumac this time. Last time I had to haul this much junk I brushed against something nasty that put me on steroids for five days before the itching cleared up. I didn't want that again so I took advantage of the over cast morning - put on the long pants - tucked into socks, a long sleeved shirt, gloves, and head covering. Showered immediately after coming inside. I hope that will do it. I've had some funny itchiness... but I hope it's just me being a worry wort.
In the end it's still worth it. It's even better in person - the plants look like they can breath again. They are free!
Chapter 2: The Raspberries
Other plants still need to wait for proper care. The raspberries I tied up and gave up for a lost cause this year (due to the porch) are doing just fine. Not quite as prolific as year but that is not a surprise.
I've had three bowl fulls of raspberries so far. And I've gotten better at leaving them on the vine until they are really ripe. I don't have plans yet for them. I might make my tiny batch of jelly like I did last year. Precious stuff that was.
Chapter 3: Knitting update
The first of the little sweaters is finished. I said last time that I thought I'd put lady bugs on it - but now I'm feeling more like butterflies. Her brother will get a blue one - and I'm thinking fireflies for that one. Especially if I can find some glow-in-the dark embroidery floss... What do you think?
I roasted my last chicken from my winter farm share on Friday and so Saturday it was time to haul all of the carcasses and veggie rests out of the freezer and make stock. It smelled so delicious in my house on Saturday.
Chapter 5: Strawberries
When it came time to make strawberry jam... it was time for a new pot. But I forgot. My Amish farmer even called me (yes - with his cell phone!???) to let me know he was keeping a flat for me and I ran over to get the VERY ripe berries. Got them all prepped:
And THEN remembered the issue with the copper pot. So the strawberries were frozen for the week until I had time to run to Fante's to pick up a new pot. And look how spiffy it is!
It comes with a steamer basket, the pasta-strainer-thingy and it's just so shiny! 
It is the perfect size for a jam pot and did the job beautifully this evening. Here's this year's haul on the jam.
Jessica also gave me a Tupperware full of sour cherries she'd picked on
Friday. I thought I'd get to them tonight - but I didn't. I'm not really
sure what to make anyway. Cherry jam? Cherry pie filling? Should I stew
in port wine them and have them ready for Ellen Emlen's cherry bread
anytime? Ah the options are endless.
Chapter 6: Jacques the show off
While I was on the phone with my dad this afternoon Jacques decided I wasn't paying enough attention to him and he had to show off by jumping up onto the top of my very tall fence. 12 feet tall that thing is.
I'm not sure where he was planning on going - but he got about half way across and also decided he'd rather be on the shed roof. So he turned around and came back.
Epilogue: Weekends are too short. Hope you all had lovely ones.
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