2:51 p.m. - 2005-10-31

First time for many things

Last year at Halloween we only had a brother / sister team come to our door for candy. I was disappointed. For the previous several years I had always been involved with something we called �Harvest Festival� at our church, and was never home on Halloween evening. T and I were happy to be home for a change, but hoped we�d get more kids.

This year, in hopes of better results, and less candy for T to eat after, I purchased three small pumpkins to take home and carve last night.

I was terribly excited. I LOVE carving pumpkins, and thought this might be a highlight for my hubby too.

To my chagrin � T had never in all his 41 years on this earth carved a pumpkin. I suppose that�s because he grew up on a small island, and �door-to-door� is not common.

After much insistence on my part, he acquiesced, and carved out your basic Jack-O-lantern face on one small pumpkin. I was very proud of his efforts, and I believe he was happy with it too.

After, said carving and lighting (quality control) I washed and salted the seeds in preparation for baking - my next favourite part of Halloween.

Once again � I was stopped in my tracks by my husband�s lack of basic childhood experiences. It was here that he firmly planted his foot down, and would not comply with my excitement over eating freshly roasted pumpkin seeds.

I beseeched, pleaded, and begged him to just try ONE. One small, harmless, yummy, warm roasted seed into his hands �

(Side note: if this seed had been covered in chocolate :: this would have been a different story.)

He begrudgingly took the small seed from my hand, then tried three times to fake me out to thinking he�d eaten it. Finally, popping in his mouth, chewing slightly, he pronounced, �don�t like it!�

This was worse than working with a three year old. None-the-less, I was proud of this day of firsts for my hubby. He�s a trooper!

Have a safe, and happy night!