Can't Pa spare just one pumpkin? Hattie's first glimpse of a jack-o'-lantern in the window of a store in town sends her running home to share the news with Ma and Pa. But Pa can't afford to spare one of his precious pumpkins for Hattie. After all, he's already put one aside for Ma's prize-winning pumpkin pie.
Hattie is put to work stacking pumpkins the day the Pumpkin Man from Piney Creek is scheduled to arrive. She finds the perfect pumpkin-just the right size for a jack-o'-lantern and thinking that Pa won't miss just one, hides it under some vines. Pa has been counting, though, and when the Pumpkin Man arrives, there are only 99 pumpkins to sell to him. How will Hattie ever get her jack-o'-lantern?