Stella you have the best stories!!
I'm going to force hubby to read that one when he gets home, he likes to complain about his 50 hour work weeks as an apprentice while I "stay at home on vacation with the child"

(he had to take care of DS for 1 1/2 hours while I was at the eye doctor on the weekend, he had help & still had a complete about-face "how do you do it!?"

). Poor guy works hard, but I keep trying to explain to him it's nothing compared to what our grandparents had to go through!
For next year their are several varieties of squash that grow in a more "bush-like" manner, Um, I'm thinking acorns (very delicious as well) like
Celebration (bear with me, I haven't grown these yet, maybe next year) from Vesey's "...Compact bush plants do not take over you garden..." or a dumpling variety like
Bush Delicata (again Veseys say) "...A space saving, open pollinated, bush-type plant that spread only 3-4 feet and produces a beautiful crop...".
Also if you know anyone with babies who are in need (that's fantastic you're growing it all for the church!) squash is an EXCELLENT baby food. My MIL thought I was insane for making all my own baby food, but you cut the darn thing in half, fill the scooped out seed bit with water, tinfoil, 400F for an hour & it's $2 for more food then my son could eat in a week (I froze LOTS).