Today after ballet class, Kaitlyn and I decorated for Halloween. We brought two big plastic bins filled with Halloween decorations… although not everything we own made it. (For instance, our black fake trees with orange lights are in storage.)
Kaitlyn carefully unwrapped everything and we put out our ghosts, haunted houses, spiders and vampires. Most are bowls or containers, which is especially tough in a house with so little (aka: no) counter space. So now they are holding fruit, veggies and coffee and their usual containers are on top of the fridge. (Well, I can’t see them there)
Then, Kaitlyn wanted to get a pumpkin to carve. Pumpkins here aren’t pumpkins like we think of. They sell them pre-sliced in most stores because the flesh is several inches thick. I bought two last year and didn’t do anything with either and ended up just tossing them. So I don’t even know what they’re like to try to cook with, but I guess they aren’t much like the canned pumpkin I’m used to.
We went to the marche in our little town. There are usually a couple of produce vendors there. Not today. Just one, and he had no pumpkins. The Petit Casino in town didn’t have any, either.
We did see an older lady on the street who had picked something up off the sidewalk… as we passed by her she held out what was in her hand and said noisette. Hazelnut. I don’t know if she took it home to eat . Probably. People here just pick stuff up and eat it. Nuts, mushrooms, whatever. I tried to convince Kaitlyn when we passed back by the same spot to leave the nuts on the ground for the squirrels.
Since by then I was starving for lunch, we went home. I fully intended to drive into town this afternoon and try one of the better fruit and vegetable stores there. But I was just too tired (I couldn’t sleep last night) and then it started to rain and, honestly, the idea of struggling with one of these massive mutant pumpkins just didn’t appeal. So we didn’t go. I do feel a little bad about it. Maybe this weekend, when Bill can be the one to try to stab the thing.
Then Kaitlyn decided she wants candy. It is Halloween, after all. I pointed out that we don’t have any because she doesn’t even like it. She wants candy corn. I don’t think they sell that here. Maybe I’ll try to make cookies in that shape. (yea, maybe I’m crazy)
It all makes me miss Target and pumpkin patches.
She should be able to get her fill of this stuff on her pending trip to the New Knighted States right around Halloween, assuming that is still in the works.
How do they celebrate Halloween in France? And, if they do celebrate, what seems to be the hot costume this year?
I don’t know how they celebrate it here. It’s apparently a “new” phenomenon. They don’t trick-or-treat, which provides no explanation for the bags of candy or costumes that should appear in Carrefour any day now.