When the girls came in later (at 6:30, at which time I told them yes, it could now be Morning), they wanted to know if there was church today. "Then what day is it?" Claire asked when I said no. "It's Pumpkin Day!" I told them. I explained that we would go to the pumpkin store, buy a pumpkin or two, come home and chop it open, scoop out and roast the seeds, bake the pumpkin, and make pumpkin muffins. Claire was jumping up and down with excitement, and it always delights me to see how full of wonder the children are, so I was happy too.
After a hearty breakfast of oatmeal with grated apples, we all got dressed and trooped down the stairs to get the stroller and the girls' bikes. It was not very cold out, and though the puddles reminded us that it had been raining, it was dry while we were out, so it was the perfect time to get some fresh air. The Pumpkin Store (aka Alnatura) supplied us with two lovely squash, chosen by Claire and Lilah. At home, I chopped them open and the girls dug into them with spoons and fingers, attempting to clean out the seeds and pulp. Cole glared at me indignantly when I tried to keep him from digging in.
We drank hot fruit punch, ate lunch, and the kids settled in for naps and quiet times. Pumpkin day continued for me: I tossed the seeds with olive oil and salt and shoved them in the oven, then scraped the cooked flesh out of the skin and heaped it into a bowl. After an hour, I went to get Claire so she could help me make the muffins. She is becoming an expert dumper and mixer, and soon the thick batter was scooped into the tins and ready for the oven. She played in the kitchen and snacked on copious quantities of roasted pumpkin seeds while I pureed the rest of the pumpkin and portioned it into bags for the freezer. Lilah joined us, rosy and wispy and sucking her wrist, and we all sampled the muffins.
Then it was time for a break from pumpkin: the dough was ready for our pigs-in-a-blanket dinner. The girls helped me roll the hot dogs into their blankets and put them on the trays. They got out playdough and I got out knitting, and we worked together at the kitchen table. I finally went to get Cole up after three hours had passed, and he tried out the playdough but wasn't so enamored with it. They trickled down the hall to play; I kept knitting, enjoying the music and the fruits of our labors piling up on the counters and scenting the air. I called home to let Dad and Mom know I was praying for them as they embarked on their Marriage Encounter weekend and had a sweet, short chat with them while I cut up some veggies to go with our little piggies.
Everyone enjoyed pigs in a blanket, and Halloween candy, and then they scattered to dress up one more time and give the baby doll one more feeding before bed time while I did the last dishes for the day and munched on a pumpkin muffin.
It was a happy day. I hope tomorrow can live up to Pumpkin Day!
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