Jamming--in More Ways than One--When Kids Want to Help

There's more than one kind of jam, right?

This is apricot jam that Danny and Hannah helped me make the day after we got home from western Colorado.

At the Sayler's ranch, they had two apricot trees.

This huge tree was loaded with apricots. Sunday morning a mama deer with her fawn was out browsing around under the tree, munching on apricots that had fallen.

Mike Sayler begged us to take apricots. His wife had already made jam.

So we decided to browse and munch, too! I got the boys and we moved the ladder around and started picking.  Katie Sayler holds the bag for Rose.

 

 At home, this is just part of the apricots left over after we made jam. I hope to freeze these later for apricot crisps and cobblers.

In the middle of washing and hanging load after load of laundry, I was thankful for Danny's and Hannah's cheerful help as we scalded the apricots so the skins would slip off, and gathered and washed jars and lids.

I found a low-sugar recipe that only requires about half the sugar of the old time recipe in my very old Ball Freezing and Canning book. You just have to cook the apricots a little longer to get them to set. Here the girls are helping stir three pans of jam while I fill jars. A simple method is also to simply fill hot, scalded jars with boiling hot jam, tighten the lids and rings, and turn upside down on the counter for a few minutes to help the jars seal well. This eliminates having to can the jam and works just fine.

"May I fill jars?" Hannah pleaded. 

I hesitated. First I said no. Filling jars has to be rather precise, and kids ALWAYS make a mess. 

Prove me wrong. 

But after a minute or two I reconsidered. I thought how if I sacrifice the fun parts of work to my children they will learn to enjoy working. So I gulp back my big hurry to get the job done and I let them help. 

Let me assure you, this means temporary agony on my part,

And yes, a dollop spilled very quickly, and yes, she overfilled one jar and we had to scoop some back out. But overall, Hannah did the ladling and Hannah had fun while Mom anguished on the inside to keep her patience and manage everything. 

Only God knows how many tears are on the inside of a middle-aged lady who just wants to get the job done and not have to be patient with a 10-year-old helper.

It would seriously be so much easier to do it all myself.

BUT--then my kids would grow up disappearing as soon as they hear the word "work."

Instead, now some of my children come up with projects of their own.

Yesterday, for example, two or three children made birthday baskets or plates of jam, pumpkin roll, homemade lip balm, and cookies for neighbors they work for who were having birthdays. One neighbor got tears in her eyes.

"Shame on you!" she cried, "but I appreciate it so much!"

That is when I know that backing off and letting my youngest child do the fun part of jamming 

will pay off in the end.

While staying the weekend at Ranch Haven with our friends the Saylers, the children did another kind of "jamming."

Here they are Sunday evening after the last service of campmeeting in the afternoon. It was such a joy to watch the children try out their musical skills. Katie Sayler can play several instruments, and has even composed words and music both for several songs. She sang and played one of her songs for us at the piano. Hunter played the bass guitar, Timmy the guitar, Rose her mandolin, Carrie the violin, and Hannah the ukulele.

Jamming a few weeks earlier with another family whose children are learning stringed instruments.