Tuesday, October 6, 2009

You're Just Too Gourd To Be True




Ah, Fall. My favorite time of year. Crisp, cool air. Beautiful colors. Football. And, the yearly trip to the local pumpkin patch for some old-fashioned fun. Yes, it's a wonderful season.

Last Saturday, my girl went with the neighbors out to the pumpkin patch to pick just the right one. I sent her with cash to pay for said pumpkin, limiting her to two. That quickly flew out the window, right about the time she walked out the door.

A few hours later, she returned, quarry in hand. Three pumpkins. Not two, three. Okay fine. So, she showed me the fantastic pumpkins, and her little grin said it all. She found a great one, good size, bright orange, and two little ones, one green and white, the other orange and white. She then proceeded to wash her pumpkins. You heard me. Wash them. Soap, warm water and scrub brush. Once they were clean, they were wrapped in towels, and gingerly squired away to a safe place. The two small guys were put in a storage tub, and the big guy hung out in the tub. That way, when she woke up the next morning, he would be all ready for his next bath. Yes, another bath. Mr. Pumpkin didn't set one toe outside the tub, but apparently he found dirt sometime in the night, because he was scrubbed and dried again. As were the other two. I got distracted by housework and studying, so I didn't keep tabs on the pumpkin goings-on. The little guys stayed busy, however. Especially the green and white one. He spent most of his day walking around with the girl, enjoying a fine Sunday afternoon. At some point, he must have mentioned he was cold, because the next time I saw him, he was swaddled in blankets and a heating pad. A heating pad. I didn't give it much thought at the time. Later, however, when we were doing the bedtime routine, she whipped out the little gourd, and he was a tad warm. She said, "Holy cow mom, feel him! He's really hot!!!" At this point, I realized he'd been slowly baking on a heating pad for a few hours. Not good for a gourd, unless you're planning to serve him for dinner. So, I explained that heat was not Mr. Pumpkin's friend, and if she wanted to keep him around for awhile, he needed to be kept away from the heating pad. Before you have a child, you never even think about the possibility of telling someone that a heating pad isn't good for a pumpkin. There I was however, getting ready for story time, and explaining to my daughter that heat and pumpkins don't mix well.

So, once Greenie cooled down to a balmy 200 degrees, he was gently tucked in between us, and wished sweet dreams. I started reading a story, and was interrupted by, "Mom! I'm going to miss him when I'm in school tomorrow!!!" Again, not a conversation you see yourself having..."It's okay baby. When you make your bed in the morning, you can tuck him under a blanket, and he'll be waiting for you when you get home from school." That seemed to put her mind at ease, and we proceeded with story time. She fell asleep, holding the little guy in her arms, and dreaming sweet dreams of pumpkin patches and jack-o-lanterns.

I needed to clean the tub yesterday, so I moved The Big Guy to the hallway. And there he sits, waiting patiently for his next bath. I tell you, pumpkins have never had it so good. Last night, while I was making dinner, she brought The Little Guy into the kitchen and announced, "He needs a drink." I think I need a drink. She filled a Tupperware with water, then inverted the little green one onto the bowl, so the stem was in the water. Fine, commence drinking, Mr. Gourd. Apparently, that wasn't working, so she grabbed a big straw, a funnel and a pair of scissors. I was cooking and visiting with my husband, so I didn't totally notice what she was doing. Five minutes later, she had cut slits in the bottom of the straw so it would fit over the stem, and stuck the funnel in the top. I guess the idea was to pour water directly into the stem by funneling it down the straw. Ingenious. Whether it would've worked, the world may never know. My girl got distracted by something, and the poor little guy didn't get his drink. Come to think of it, neither did I.
Photos copyright 2009 Cody Dahlen

1 comment:

  1. She cleans pumpkins AND bathrooms. You have trained her well. Although you should tell her that Mr. Gourd might warm up nicely in the oven, with a little brown sugar sprinkled on his head...

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