How'd I do on My Summer Gottados?

If you've been following me since earlier this summer, you may recall I was in a slump. I was struggling. Yes. It's sad but true. I needed some motivation. Some prodding. Some nudging. Some ....well, you get the idea. So I made a list of things I wanted to do. You know....I gotta do.... If you missed that post, you can read it here.
So how did I do on my list of gotta dos? Pretty good actually. Let's take a look:

4th of July at Aunt Pam's - This was a great time of food and fellowship with family.

Bike Trip with Jess (me and my buddy are heading out on our Harley's for a few days) This was a great, fun, adventurous journey. You can read about it here. That post also has a link to some of the pictures.

Mammoth Cave  - Did not get to Mammoth Cave but we did go to the St Louis Science Center where they had a Real Pirate exhibit. The exhibit had over 200 artifacts from the Whydah, a pirate ship that sank near Cape Cod over 300 years ago. This is the only pirate treasure ever recovered. We got to touch REAL pirate treasure. It was awesome!

We also went to City Museum were we went down a 10 story spiral slide. This is definitely a place for small children with lots of tunnels to climb through. 

St. Louis Zoo - We totally went to the Zoo. We had so much fun. I'll post a few pics of that adventure soon.

Water Park - Didn't make it there. But I did make it poolside a few times. Does that count?

Make a craft (I'm going to need some ideas with this one. I seriously lack in crafting ability. Seriously.) - I'm still waiting on some ideas for this item. So...nope didn't do this.

Read a Bible story every day. The grand-boy and I read several stories together. Daniel in the Lions Den, Jonah in the Whale, David and Goliath, the talking donkey, the handwriting on the wall. 

Have a water balloon fight - bought the balloons. They're still waiting to be filled and thrown.

Go to the library. Read at least 10 books. - Ha! 10 books. What was I thinking? I went to the library and got my new card. That's as far as it went. The current book I'm reading only gets picked up every few days. Kinda hard to finish a book like that.

Bake cupcakes. - Bought the cupcake pan. Does that count?

Have a squirt gun fight - Nope.

Go to the pool every other weekend (at least) - Yep. Did this one.

Make s'mores. - Sadly the marshmallows, chocolate bars, and graham crackers are still in the cabinet waiting to be cooked and smooshed.

CANNING:

Refrigerator Pickles - These are delicious. So much so that I only have one jar left.

Zucchini Relish - Lots of this. I'm giving most of this away as gifts for Christmas.

Peach Jam - Delicious.

Tomato (some with basil. this stuff is amazing) - Have eight pints of these wonderful tomatoes.
Salsa (maybe) Thank you, Gigi for sharing your recipe.

Apple Pie Filling (definitely) - Apples are just being picked in my area. I'll be canning this very, very soon. I'm adding applesauce to the canning list too.

FREEZING:

Strawberries

Blueberries

Raspberries

Peppers (green, red, yellow, hot)

Herbs

I froze plenty of berries. I add these to plain yogurt with honey for a delicious snack instead of ice cream or blend together for a smoothie. Pies, breads, and other treats are just waiting to be baked with berries. I'm still freezing peppers and herbs. I tend to eat or cook with them faster than I can freeze them. 

I did start that exercise program of doing something at least three days a week.  Actually, I went big. Well big for me. Have you heard of the Couch-to-5K running plan? That's the program I started. I've never been a runner but this schedule looked like something I could actually do. AND, I'm running every week. Usually three times each week. Some weeks less. Some weeks more. I'm not a 5K runner yet. But I'm now able to run a few minutes, walk a few minutes, run a few minutes without collapsing from lack of oxygen. ahaha The crazy thing? I'm enjoying it. Crazy I tell you! I learned about it on FB. Go figure. Here's a link to the FB page and to their website.

How did you do on your summer list? Do you have a list for fall? What are some of the adventures waiting for you? Thanks so much for sharing my summer journey with me.

Peace and Joy,

Susan

Philippians 2:1-2 (NIV) ¹If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.