The Final Day of the Weekend!

Today, I started on the tomatoes!  I cut these up, discarding any rotting spots or holes.  This didn't even make a dent in what I have -- I think I have 30 lbs. so far!!  I guess we know what I'll be doing all week! :-D  I DO NOT mind, I'm ready, with my favorite canning recipes and everything!  I've got some kind of bird-problem, I think, because many of these tomatoes have holes in them....perfectly round holes.  And the other morning, when I walked up there, about 6 small birds flew out of the tomato patch!
I'm only losing about 1/10 of my tomato crop (by cutting off the holes), but I think we're going to have to put a scarecrow up there or something....the birds also ate ALL of my grapes this year! :-P

Anyway, today was food-shopping day (blah!), and I got what I needed for canning....

 Do you see that silver pan-thing....?  THAT is a food mill, I have a smaller one, but we found this large one at Goodwill last week, for $4!!!!  No one there even knew what it was!  While I felt like I hit the jackpot!! LOL   I'll be able to process alot of cooked tomatoes so much faster with that one!

The other thing I like to do with my tomatoes is save the seeds....I did it for the first time last year, and it worked perfectly!  Today, I did it with an Opalka (paste) tomato, because I don't have many of those seeds left......

They had been soaking in water for about 3 days, and I rinsed them in a strainer and spread them on a paper plate to dry....it doesn't take long!

Here they are close-up.....

Once they are dry, I store them in little plastic bags and date them....it's SO EASY!!

Now I can save my favorite seeds forever!! LOL  When I was reading about how to do it, the article said that for generations, mothers would teach their daughters how to save seeds, and would give them seeds when they got married and started their own homes....I love feeling like I'm part of that! 

Now, tomorrow, the real work begins!!! ^-^