It was bound to happen...

Time for a confession.  Two days ago I bought 96 canning jars on Craigslist.  Yes, 96.  For only $22!  It was actually kind of a hike to get to the folks (45 minutes), but I had to go halfway there that day, anyway, so what's another 20 minutes?  I'd been wanting to learn how to can, so this was the impetus to get going.

Now my friend Mary and I are on a quest to fill said jars.  She'd helped with canning once before; I was a novice.  We mostly used information online, these two sites being particularly helpful:  All About Canning and National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Here is our first attempt--tart cherry preserves (step-by-step instructions on the first website above).  It was successful, we think.  The only difficult part, honestly, was waiting for the water to boil.  My burners have always been incredibly slow, and this involved quite a lot of water, so it was a long process, though fairly easy.

Now to do something with the other 20 lbs. of cherries, as well as the 25 lbs. of peaches ripening in boxes in the spare room.  Peach salsa or cherry butter, anyone?