Pumpkin Atrocities

Thursday morning, Puck played with a painted wood box, filled with play things – Linnea’s candies, bottles of Halloween sprinkles, a tube of black frosting, bottle of vanilla, and a ring encased in a bubble gum machine box. It was time for Halloween things, and that meant sorting through his box, on loan from Linnea, and balancing the items on the kitchen window sill, while he sat on the counter and helped his Tante Carrie-Bri make more sugar cookies with the new pumpkin, ghost, black cat, and crescent moon cookie cutters. While they worked, tribal fusion blasted from the radio.
Francis had stories from the night before at youth group.
“For the pumpkin decorating contest, Puff ‘o Lump, Creole, and I were disqualified. Because our pumpkin was too weird.
We stuffed it with pencils and door knobs. And it was spray-painted black. And then… I got hit in the nose with a tiny pumpkin. I saw it flying, and it hit my nose. And it started to bleed.”
Francis’ nose, fortunately, had seemed to mend with little damage.
Meanwhile, Puck had been sat in his high chair to help Carrie dump sprinkles onto the cookies. He carefully picked up one sprinkle at a time and placed it on the cookie. Carrie also made a fat black cat in honor of Pumpkin.
On the way to Florissant Valley Community College that afternoon to check into Joe’s spring semester, Mom treated Joe and Collette to McDonald’s. Mom ordered a Happy Kids Meal, which included a miniature London Barbie doll.
The air was cool and warm at the same time. In the 70’s. Carrie was a little happier, but still felt cold. She spent part of her afternoon up on the roof, soaking sunshine into her soul.
And the evening ended with the usual Office party, this time supplemented with the Carrie and Puck Halloween cookies.