This is my third attempt at canning, so I am NOT an expert. While I would not recommend canning jams, salsas, or sauces while multiple toddlers are running around, I actually pulled this off with my 3yo 'helping' me. Jams, salsas and sauces all require you to pour molten hot liquids into boiling hot, slippery glass jars all while keeping them clean and sealing them before they cool down. This is really hard to pull off when you have non-stop toddler distractions and loud thump...pause...scream incidents. Especially when food safety issues with canning can KILL YOU. Damn botulism spores. The green beans were raw-packed though, and this made it MUCH more manageable. In raw-packing, the jars are still hot, but you pack the veggies into the jars raw and uncooked. My 3yo was able to help me bundle the beans, jam them into the jars, add the garlic & bay leaf, measure out the 1 tsp of salt per jar, and screw the tops on prior to pressurizing. We accomplished this during the 18mo's nap. I still wouldn't try this with both of them running around.

I followed the raw-pack instructions for pressure canning green beans found on page 386 of the 'Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving: 400 delicious and creative recipes for today' except that I added 1 bay leaf and 3 small cloves of cracked garlic to each 1 qt jar. I also mixed green and yellow beans thinking it would look pretty. As you can see from the picture, the difference is muted and some of the beans just look a little sickly in comparison to the others. Nichol's also has purple beans. They turn green when you cook them, but maybe I'll try them next week and see how they look after canning. I seem to recall them keeping a brighter green color after blanching that may lend itself to prettier canned beans. I would also like to can some of their haricot verts if I get the chance.