Mama Kat Thursday: Pumpkins!

That's today's topic: Pumpkins. Anything about pumpkins!

I love pumpkins. I love carving them and eating them! Especially as pie or bread!

We carved them as kids, so pumpkins have a heavy family-fun memory association for me.
I had 2 sisters, so that usually meant 3 carved pumpkins. Some years, our parents got in on the act and we'd have 5 glowing pumpkin faces of various expressions.
Pumpkin choosing was a fine art if we purchased them. We'd pour over the selection of large pumpkins, each choosing our own size and shape.
Sometimes we had home-grown pumpkins---though these were usually volunteers that came up on their own.
You see, living way out in the country as we did, we didn't have services like sewer lines or garbage pick-up. Nor did we have a garbage disposal. We had a slop pail, a plastic bucket sitting in the kitchen that anything wet or moist, such as melon rines, potato peels or, as in this case, pumpkin inwards went into. Then that bucket would be later emptied into a shallow gully on the edge of our property. The seeds dumped there in the fall would pop up as thriving plants the next spring, bringing forth a crop of free pumpkins the following October!My mother was also very resourceful and, once Halloween was over, she'd clean, cut-up, par-boil and can those pumpkins for later use.
Waste not, want not.
Of course, back then, the pumpkins weren't out, but a few days and were still in good condition on the inside. Just a little charcoaled by the candles.Sometimes I still enjoy carving a pumpkin. In fact, I'm thinking of getting one this year. I, too, then often re-cycle mine for eating purposes, since it will only be out one, maybe 2 days.
There's so many things you can make with pumpkin: bread, casseroles, soup. Yum!

I enjoy carving pumpkins for the art of it, though I usually just do a classic face design and it brings back so many fond family memories.
Nowadays, as you can see from the photos, it's a form of art people do for enjoyment!
So get your pumpkin out and get carving!


Comments

Jamie Miles said…
I'm so jealous. You got to carve your own pumpkins. This has been a dream of mine forever. Maybe I'll try that trick. After we carve our this year -- I'll toss the seeds in an isolated spot out back. We've had some volunteers spring up before from our carvings on the porch. But those vines always feel victim to the lawn mower.
Dionne said…
It sounds like you grew up in a wonderful, rural area and way of life. I often longed for that growing up so when I moved to Grand Junction, CO I finally found that I could have a bit of city and farm life. I am amazed at how people come up a plethora of ways to carve or decorate a pumpkin.
Thank you so much for stopping by my blog today...I love linky parties like Mama Kat's b/c it gives me a chance to read lots of different blogs. Like yours! Happy pumpkin carving!
May said…
There were so many of us kids that jack o'lanterns were deemed an unnecessary expense at my house growing up. I longed for one every year and drew many, many pictures of them. Your memory sounds wonderful.
kayerj said…
we usually carve the night before or the morning of Halloween. We call it the great pumpkin massacre. kaye—the road goes ever ever on
carol daniels said…
Your memory of carving pumpkins way out in the country was fun to read. I like carving pumpkins; it's the gutting that's not fun.
I love carving pumpkins too. I can't wait until my children are older and they enjoy the pastime as well.

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