Strawberries!

A little over a week ago, I was fretting I'd have few strawberries this year because of an early, warm spring followed by a couple freezing mornings.  Low and behold, berries are ripening and I've been picking.  I'm up to 3.5 quarts which I'm thrilled to have when I anticipated only a box or two would ripen.  We both love strawberries, and year's past I'd stop at every roadside "Strawberries for Sale" sign and buy them out.  This year was different when all the price tags said "$4.00 and even $4.50 a box.  Wow... that's a little salty for my pocketbook so we've been passing the strawberries by.  I may not have enough to freeze this year, but I'm planning to make up for the lost strawberry stock with wild black raspberries.  Time will allow me to peruse every fence line within a 2 mile radius of home for the luscious black berries this year, and I fully intend to do so.  When the strawberries are over, the patch will be getting an overhaul.  Runners are already started to feel their way to new territory through the fence and will need tamed.  Rick was already joking he'll just have to rototill more area for the runners (that's what we did last year).  That's ok with me Rick! Love the berries.