Sep 8

Written by: Sandra Simpson
9/8/2005 12:31 PM

Fall Fun
I love the change of season, especially from summer to fall. I know it is a gradual transition but every year it seems as if it happens overnight. One morning I go outside and there it is; the air has gone from heavy and humid to light and brisk. I start to notice that pumpkins and mums are at the grocery stores and family farms. My five-year-old golden retriever dogs leave their lazy summer hazes to bound around like playful puppies. I turn off the air conditioner and leave the windows and doors open so I can feel the fresh air and hear the rustle of the trees as their tired brittle leaves rustle every time the wind blows.
With my new-found energy that fall has brought, fall decorating is now high on the list. The fun begins by selecting the right pumpkins and making our scarecrow. When our children were small, we always let them pick the pumpkins and make the straw person. Now that our youngest child is sixteen (she seems not to want to be involved in decorating) pumpkin picking and straw-person making is up to the only enthusiastic kids left in the house, me and my husband. My husband has always been in charge of the pumpkins, me the scarecrow. For years, long into the night he carved jack-o-lantern faces drawn by the kids. No matter how tired he was after a long day at work he always took time to find my best knives to break while carving those pumpkins. Now he just settles for picking the right pumpkins. Last year at Vollmer Farm in Bunn he (and several of the help at the farm) hauled out one of the largest pumpkins to date (over 100 pounds!) That year we only had to have one pumpkin for decoration (we could only afford one). Needless to say that is the year the pumpkin carving stopped, but only after I threaten to hide all my kitchen knives.
This year my plan was just to let time go by and no one would notice that we did not have a homemade straw person hanging out. I thought the pumpkins, mums and bails of hay would be enough. It was then that my sixteen-year-old chose to take notice. So this year’s straw person was made by Mom with love and care for all the children who live at my home and come to visit over the fall holidays. I am blessed that our family and friends have come to love, care and look forward to our family’s traditions.
Attached is my recipe for making our family scarecrow for all of you and especially for my sixteen-year-old, just in case she wants to have one next year. This way she can make it herself.
Ingredients
1. One to two children or children at heart
2. Chair, porch swing, rocker or garden benches work great to create a sitting scarecrow. Sitting straw folks are much easier than standing ones.
3. Straw, usually it takes ¼ bail of straw.
4. Long underwear for stuffing straw into.
5. Old pillow case for stuffing straw and drawing a face
6. Rope for a belt that doubles as a way to tie straw him/her to chair (the straw person, not the children).
7. A bandana to decorate the neck and keep the head in place.
8. Old worn out hats and/or mask and wigs from Halloween costumes.
9. Pins for holding the hat in place. Old diaper pins work great.
10. Gloves for making fake, stuffed hands. I use my old garden gloves.
11. Old shoes.


Assembly:
Start by stuffing the legs of the long underwear and then the chest part of the long underwear. Dress with bib overalls or any clothes you may want. Sit the person in the chair. Use the rope to make a belt and hold the critter in place. Run the rope right through the belt loops and around the chair. Stuff the top of the pillow case into the hat. Work the straw until the hat is a snug fit on the head (pillow case). Pin hat on head. Attach head to rest of body. Use the bandana to cover any mistakes sticking out around the neck. Stuff gloves with straw and rest “hands” on the chair. Stick shoes onto dangling legs. You may need old socks.
Optional themes
Cowboy; use bandana to tie over the face like a bandit
Old sports gear, baseball, football, soccer, etc.
Boys love to use old mask and costumes from movies like Star Wars, Ninja’s and the like.
Girls tend to want to dress the Ms. Scarecrow up in Hawaiian skirts and leis or their discarded English riding boots and hats.
We have had the most fun with witches, their brooms and stew pots resting nearby.

I hope you have fun with this one. If you have any holiday ideas to share please email me at southernsandra@earthlink.net. I welcome all ideas from food, to decorations, to that plant that is perfect for the season.

Copyright ©2006 Sandra Simpson

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