While you may feel like flying is a special occasion, don't dress up to your international flight. Flights overseas are long, and you'll want to wear loose, comfortable clothes. If your flight is especially long, consider packing a pair of sweats for your flight in your carry-on. Change back into your original clothes for the landing. Some airports offer long-term parking rates for your car while you're away. Call or email about the long-term car storage options and the costs of each choice. If car storage isn't an affordable option for you, use a shuttle service, hire a taxi, or ask a friend/family member to drive you there. Check in for your flight as early as possible to go through security and board on time. You'll also have time to use the bathroom or grab something to eat before you depart. While you're waiting for your flight, bring something to relieve boredom: keep a book, journal, or game in your carry-on to entertain you while waiting. Dehydration is a common problem on long flights, which can lead to exhaustion or irritability. Buy a large water bottle to fill up before you board the flight so you can take it in your carry-on. Avoid drinking alcohol or caffeine before and during your flight, as both can lead to dehydration. Most nations require you to mark on an official form what goods you bring with you to their country. Which items you must declare depends on the country. You will likely receive your customs form at the airport and during the flight. Fill it out while on the plane so you are prepared for landing. Some countries require a customs form for each person traveling while others require one per family. Check beforehand to know which forms you must fill out. Most countries require declaration of: alcoholic drinks, tobacco, animals, seeds, soils, medication, and animal products. International flights involve crossing time zones and long, uncomfortable plane rides. Both can disrupt your sleep schedule. Bring a sleeping mask and earplugs with you, and consider taking an over-the-counter sleep aid to help you adjust to the new time zone.

Summary: Wear comfortable clothing to your flight. Check with your airport about car parking rules for international flights. Arrive at the airport two to three hours before your flight. Stay hydrated. Declare your items for customs. Prepare for jet lag.

The pumpkins should be uniformly bright orange in color (unless you're growing a white or mottled variety). The vines will begin to shrivel and dry out. Most importantly, the pumpkins' skin will be tough. If you can indent it easily with a fingernail, the pumpkins need more time on the vine. Leave several inches of stem at the top of each pumpkin, since this keeps them from rotting too quickly. Don't pick up the pumpkins by their stems, since if the stems break their bases will rot. As soon as you cut them, they're ready to be removed from the pumpkin patch and used in whatever way you like. Rinse them off (you might need to scrub the dirt off the bottom) and either cut them to make pie or carve them into jack-o'-lanterns. If you store pumpkins in a cool, dry place they'll keep throughout the winter months.

Summary: Look for signs the pumpkin is ready for harvest. Use shears to cut the stems. Rinse, use and store the pumpkins.

Before you begin purchasing materials and building your deck stairs, you need to go online, call your local government, or contact a building inspector to make sure you're following your local building codes. Building codes can vary, so you need to be sure you're following your local codes or you could face a fine and be forced to remove your deck stairs. Many local governments list their building codes online. The first thing you need to do is find where your stairs will end, or where the landing spot will be. Picture a line running from the edge of your deck down to the ground at a 40-degree angle. Place a tape measure on the ground where you think the stairs will end. It does not have to be measured precisely. The 40-degree slope should start the bottom of the support beam of the deck because this is where the stringers will be attached. Take a 2in (5.1cm) by 4in (10cm) board and lay it on the top of the deck so it stretches over the landing spot that you estimated. Use a 4ft (1.2m) level to make sure the board is level above the landing spot. Use a tape measure to measure from the landing spot on the ground to the bottom of the straight board to find the approximate height, or total rise, of your stairs. Write down the measurements so you can calculate the materials later. Take the measurement you made of the total rise, divide it by 7, and round the number to find the total number of stairs you'll need for your deck. If you have a number with a decimal that is 0.5 or more, then round the number up. If your number is less than 0.5, then round the number down. For example, if your total rise was 60 inches (150cm), then divide that number by 7 to get 8.57. Round that number up to get 9 stairs. Write down this number to use in your calculations. The actual rise, or height, of each step can be calculated by dividing the total rise by the approximate number of stairs. This will tell you how tall each step will be. For example, if your total rise is 60 inches (150cm) and your approximate number of steps is 9, divide 60 inches (150cm) by 9 to get 6.67 inches (16.9cm) per step. Most building codes say stair risers should not be taller than 7.75 inches (19.7cm). The treads boards create the part of the stair that you step on. According to many building codes, the stair treads should be at least 36 inches (91cm) long 10 inches (25cm) wide. The number of steps you calculated is the number of treads that you'll need. Stringers are boards that have sawtoothed or stair-shaped notches cut into them and run diagonally along the length of the stairs to support them. To find their length, add together the square of the run, or tread, and the square of the rise. Then take that number, find the square root, and multiply it by the number of steps to find the actual length of the stringers you'll need. For example, if your tread is 10 inches (25cm), square 10 by multiplying the number by itself, which gives you 100. If your rise is 7 inches (18cm), square that number by multiplying it by itself to get 49. Add 100 to 49 to get 149, then find the square root of 149, which is 12.206. Multiply that by the number of steps that you have to find the total length of your stringers.
Summary: Check your local building codes regarding deck stairs. Imagine a 40-degree slope to find the landing zone of your stairs. Rest a straight board on the deck and make it level over the landing spot. Measure the total rise from the landing spot to the straight board. Divide the total rise by 7 to find the approximate amount of steps. Find the rise of each step by dividing the total rise by the number of steps. Use tread boards that are at least 10 inches (25cm) wide. Find the length of the staircase by calculating the length of the stringers.