Ball Canning Jars

We had a pretty exciting day around here!!

Okay, well...I had a pretty exciting day!  The kids, to be honest, rolled their eyes at me.   : ) 

But that's okay, because I'm still really excited!!!

I posted on Facebook that I would willingly take any canning jars that were being unused in a basement some where.  I've really wanted to try some new recipes, like homemade sauerkraut, dill pickles, kefir, etc.  But I don't have any jars leftover when I finish up a batch of chicken stock.  And at this moment in time, I can't get myself to justify a purchase of a couple dozen Ball jars.  So I thought about my former mother-in-law, who used to store up jars and jars of applesauce every year (after picking them from the tree themselves, of course!)  : )  Aimee has told me that she doesn't make as much applesauce now, as she did when her kids were younger.  It made me wonder how many others have jars sitting around that at one time were in frequent use, but in the past few years have sat empty.  So I thought, "Hmmm...it can't hurt to ask!" 

I'm so glad I did!!  A friend of a friend sent me a private message and told me she had over 4 dozen jars of various sizes, if I wanted to come get them.  : )  OF COURSE!!!  The kids were super excited about a car ride in the middle of the day, and I was envisioning all of things I would use them for.  : D

I came right home and ran them all through the dishwasher, so I could store them clean and ready to use.  Here's Lexi with them on the table, so they can dry thoroughly before I put the lids back on.

Of course, setting a 3 year old in front of a bunch of clean empty jars is not the best idea.  I heard several times, "I touched that one, Mommy.  Oops...I touched that one, too."  Silly girl.

I was really glad that the jars were different sizes, too.  The quart sizes are perfect for chicken stock, kefir, fermented veges (i.e. sauerkraut), etc.  And the pint and jelly jars will not only be used for the homemade toiletries I'm making to replace our commercial ones (I will be posting recipes later, as I make and try different recipes).  But...

We use them as drinking glasses!!  The little jelly jars are great for the younger kids, and the pints are perfect for the older kids and adults.  Plus, they're not only a great alternative to plastic, but they don't shatter when they're accidentally dropped on the floor.  Perfect!!

So a big thanks goes out to Lisa L. for the jars!!!  I'll be posting in the next week or so about some diet changes the kids (but mostly I) will be making, along with what's going in the jars.  : )  I'm so giddy about it all!!

I should add, too, that the first thing each of my parents said when they saw the jars was, "What are you going to use all those for??"  And second, "Where ya gonna store 'em?"  Hahaha.  I'm still working the details of that last one out...  : )

Have a good weekend!!