We came home from our trip to a bountiful harvest in our vegetable garden.

To carry our harvest from the garden to the house, we have been using an old plastic tote that some of Norah's sand toys came in. We grabbed it by chance, because the tote was in the sandbox next to the garden, but it has proven perfect for the job, since it isn't too big or too small, has handles and can be hosed down when we are finished with it.

And, I've ordered the supplies I need to start canning my own tomatoes. My supplies should arrive some time later this week. My good friend Jessica has a lot of experience canning and has agreed to come over one Saturday soon and help me can the first batch, step by step.

In the meantime, we are trying to find as many ways as possible to fit our fresh vegetables into our meals so the tomatoes and other things we've already picked won't go bad before we can use them or preserve them for the duration. And, we are giving many away to neighbors and friends.