Squashed!

God has truly blessed our family this week.  I have been unusually stressed about jobs and finances, like most others around me.  Just when I thought I would lose heart in our situation, God came through.  I'm not sure why I am surprised when He blesses our family.  This week was awesome!

Here's a bit of background on what's what.  At a busy intersection near our house, an enterprising group put up a pumpkin patch/petting zoo/straw bale maze/haunted house.  The mountain of pumpkins was a sight to behold!  Some of the biggest and roundest orange globes all in one place.

After Halloween I noticed there were several boxes, large 4'x4'x4' boxes, filled with pumpkins.  I decided I was going to stop one day and ask about them.  Wednesday I was driving down the road and noticed someone doing some cleanup.  I whipped the car into the drive, got out and walked toward him.  "I was wondering if you were still selling your pumpkins?"  "No, but you can take some.  Do you want the large or pie pumpkins?"  "I'm hoping to buy pie."  "Well, the pies are over there, take as many as you want."  "What can I pay you for them?"  "Nothing.  They're just going to waste and I've been giving them to anyone.  So there's no point in charging you for them.  Take as many as you want."

Now, just for the record, this is more than I can handle so I will be putting the word out to my friends who may want fresh pumpkin pie.

These are going to become puree, pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin bread, and anything else I think need pumpkin.





As if that wasn't a hugely generous gift, God blessed again this week.  My daughter's boyfriend called last night.  He had a strange question for me.  It seems someone had donated some large squashes to the church's food pantry.  Most pantries can't keep fresh produce so the church was giving them to anyone who would take them.  He told me they were huge squash, about 40 lbs.  Well, my brain cannot picture what a 40 lb squash looks like so I told him, "Sure!  I'd love a couple."  When he got to our house he popped his trunk and hauled out (and I mean hauled out) this beautifully red-orange, bumpy monster of a squash!  Wow!  It is gorgeous!  The second is a beautiful white, flat squash.  I may get a couple more if they have them.  Here is what he brought over:

Are these not just the most beautiful examples of an autumn harvest you have ever seen?!  I may keep some seeds from the white squash for planting this spring.

The pretty white cat is Strat.  He is my daughter's large 16 lb cat.

Another shot of the 40 lb squashes.  I can't wait to cut into these for some soup!