Nat made me do it.

 What was I thinking?! 140 pounds of Apples,140 pounds! I caved into peer pressure from Nat who kept saying  "Take some more, there's plenty.We can settle things later." ("settle later", means we are working out some trading for the apples.) He was so charming about it,like a snake tamer, smooth and casual . All the while Nat was talking I could hear the boys in the back of my head moaning because they had slurped up all of the sauce last year so quickly.And I had Chance there to help me lug 3 recycling bins full of Apples into the house so I caved. I went apple crazy,insanely bonkers,out of my screw noggin'- Must make more !
   Ever wonder what 140 pounds of apples looks like? It sounds like this huge amount and it is sort of. Nat has it all figured out,1- 5 gallon bucket weighs 20 pounds.That means Chance and I brought home  7 - 5 gallon buckets of apples home We filled 3 of our curbside recycling bins the city hands out to everyone.
  The apples are lovely to see and I don't really think Nat is a snake charmer but I am wondering about getting all of those apples cut,cooked and canned before New Years. I  just had not thought through the logistics of the doing part. Duh Rois you have a job now remember? Which means this year I will be making up small batches of Apple Sauce as I can ( Can...ha ha, get it? Can,what a bad pun.) We have worked out many of the homesteading kinks that we have come up with since I am working but canning is going to need more planning in the future.
  Issac had a check up today with his gastro doctor,she was a bit mystified that Issac has had no flare ups since his surgery two years ago.Zero,zip and boy are we happy about that. I really do feel that eating the way we do without all of the crap foods or additives is making the difference.I have tried explaining my thoughts about food and Crohns to Issac's doctor but I am not too sure she gets my point.My point being, if a person with Crohn's has this autoimmune system that is always in over drive fighting against the persons own body why add to that fight by eating foods and additives that our bodies* don't know what to do with in the first place.It's kind of like taking the bullets out of a loaded gun, no ammo means no fighting or least not as much fighting.
  * Our bodies,that's everyone's bodies.When we eat certain things our bodies don't know what to do with them so it has to work extra hard to process it or stores it because it dose not know what else to do.
  I know I have noticed a difference in my own body and with my Crohns as well since we changed our diet.I am now 3 years with out medications and no flare ups.Flares up happen no matter what is what I have been told but I don't know,my own body feels different in a good way and I think is from eating well.
  So other than feeling overwhelmed by apples and Issac stumping his doctor things are good.Lots of wintering in things are starting to happen.We are working on putting most of the garden to bed for the winter once done we will bring our energies indoors focusing on wintry inside things.Chance has a list of meats he is wanting to try out.I am going to learn to knit-finally and have a list of small things I'd like to make.And since things have shifted around here somehow I will be figuring out how to make my "mitten"sized house seem bigger than it is.Suddenly the boys and their friends are much larger in size and quantity causing me to think I hear the walls and floor creaking from the house being so full of great big awesome boys and one really swell girl thrown in there somewhere.(that would be Issac's girl,whom I am doing my best not to get to attached to because they are only 16.But she sure is great.)

Rois

PS- Nat still has apples for 25 cents per pound with a 20 pound minimum.If you are interested and live local send me an email and I will get you his info.
  Also- Todd,Chance would like to know if you have a blog and about the meat curing get together's you mentioned.