Pumpkinpalooza

Although I usually have two children, at Halloween I gain another child — my husband. And by “child,” I don't mean immature, young, or that I am a parent to him — I mean he is unabashedly in love with Halloween in the purest, most fun sense. It’s all about the fun to him, and he goes all out in wanting to share that joy with our boys. Every year, even before we had those boys, he carved a few pumpkins and put them out in front of whatever house we lived in as seasonal decor. As the years went by, the display got larger and larger, until by the time we moved to Massachusetts and had the real estate to showcase it, the pumpkin count had moved up to about 15. Each year they get more and more detailed, and each one is unique; it seems as though the pumpkins get bigger, too! Here are some of this year's crop — I took photos of them in the daytime (so you can see the detail) and also took some nighttime shots so you can get the full effect of what we call "The Pumpkin Lights," which to our neighbors are like the aurora borealis — you can tell what time of year it is by the glow of the orange, cobwebby tableau. Here are a few:

This one had some creepy mold on it, which added to the ghastly effect.

This is an attempt at a panoramic shot with my iPhone. Imagine 15 pumpkins covered in cobwebs and orange twinkle lights . . . spread out over about 50 feet of a shrub- and tree-covered mulch island in front of our house.


A shot of one angle at night. It's supercool.


Note the peace sign. Maybe all world leaders can take a lesson from our pumpkinpalooza. And because my husband is a Deadhead from back in the day, there's always a pumpkin carved with the Steal Your Face (which for the peanut gallery is the skull with the lightning bolt across it that is the unofficial logo for the Grateful Dead) as a living testament to the power of Jerry. Happy Day of the Dead to all of you! And since I'm not a Deadhead, let me just say, The Dude Abides.