Shhh...don't tell anyone

Our Homeowners' Association is a little persnickety (apparently I'm talking like my great aunt today - who the heck says "persnickety"?). They don't want any of us having gardens in our back yard. I understand that they don't want big bush-hogs coming in and tearing all the ground up, but I crack up every year watching my neighbors "sneak" a tomato plant or two into their back yard flowerbeds because of these rules. I mean, what the heck is the HOA really going to do? Throw those tomatoes at our houses? Make us write "I will not plant produce" a hundred times?

Anyway, we have never been drawn to grow anything really. Seriously - we have a rose plant that keeps coming back every year without any tender care from us. We do like to keep nice flower beds, but they are full of plants that don't need much maintenance. Let's just say Martha Stewart ain't knockin' down our door to do a show on our beautiful landscaping.

This year however, the produce growing fairies decided to bless our back flower bed with the most interesting choice of gourd - pumpkins. Actually, my dear hubby decided he might as well throw those unused pumpkin seeds from our carving experience last fall into the back corner flower bed. He never even considered that one of those little seeds might decide to take root. Well, our pumpkin seeds showed him!

Want to see what happens when you say, "hey, let's see what happens to this little pumpkin plant seedling"?

Yep - that is what is growing out of our flower bed, and it grows about a foot every day - no kidding. The HOA is NOT going to be happy with us, but we are now dead-set on having our own pumpkin farm and charging admission. Shoot - we may even offer hay rides (given by the girls pulling a wagon behind their bicycles) for another nominal fee (hey - someone has to pay for their college!).

So we are now plotting to keep the HOA from finding out we have this sucker. I mean - really - they could care less, but it is more exciting for us if we act like we're growing something illegal and are on the verge of getting "narced" on. DUDE!

And what will our family do with these truckloads of money we'll make from our pumpkin farm? Why we'll buy some pimp coats to go with our pimp hats and attitudes. Suh-weet!