STILLMAN VALLEY, Ill. (Gray News) – It’s spooky season and you can’t have Halloween without pumpkins – really big pumpkins.

And in Ogle County, Illinois, a woman set a new state record for growing an almost 1,900-pound pumpkin for her local pumpkin growing contest.

WIFR shared photos of Theresa Miller of Stillman Valley who now holds the record for the largest pumpkin grown by a woman in the state of Illinois.

She earned second place at the Illinois Giant Pumpkin Growers weigh-off in Minooka over the weekend with a 1,871-pound pumpkin she named, “Miss Impressive.”

For over a decade, Miller says she has been raising giant pumpkins while fine-tuning the craft.

And since May, Miller spent close to 3-4 hours per day caring for three pumpkins: “Chalky,” “Tater Tot,” and of course, “Miss Impressive.”

Seeds are key to growing pumpkins this size and because of Theresa’s passion for giant pumpkin growing, her pumpkin seeds have become quite the commodity.

Watering, fertilization, vine trimming, and protection from the elements are a few of the daily tasks required for success. At times these pumpkins can grow almost 60 pounds per day.

“Miss Impressive” will be on display at Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden for their fall events. But the pumpkin won’t be there for long as the arboretum plans on having a local artist carve the pumpkin closer to Halloween.

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Whooping cough cases are up in Illinois and across the country, the CDC warns.

As of the end of September, reported cases in the state are nearly five times higher than they were this time last year, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Whooping cough, also called pertussis, is a highly contagious respiratory disease that spikes in the fall alongside other diseases like RSV, the flu and COVID-19.

The bacterial infection initially presents as a standard cold for the first week or two, said Dr. David Nguyen, an internal medicine physician at Rush University Medical Center.

As time goes on, the cough gets worse and can last for several weeks. The coughing fits tend to last for about five to 10 coughs and when the person catches their breath, the breath sounds like a whoop, Nguyen said.

Babies are especially vulnerable to whooping cough — one in three require hospitalization due to the disease, according to the CDC.

“The real danger is in babies, especially young babies under 6 months. They have smaller lungs and less reserves so they might end up having complications and stop breathing,” said Nguyen, who also specializes in infectious diseases in kids.

If the baby stops breathing, they’re at a serious risk for heart problems, Nguyen said. That’s when whooping cough can be fatal.

The disease can also seriously affect kids, teens and adults. It’s recommended adults get the Tdap vaccine booster every 10 years, which protects against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Pregnant people should also get the vaccine to boost their baby’s immune system and protect them in their first few months of life, Nguyen said.

For babies, the first dose of DTaP is given at two months and boosters are administered throughout childhood.

As of Sept. 21, 1,058 cases of whooping cough have been reported in Illinois this year, according to CDC data. At the same point last year, there were only 230 cases reported.

The spike in cases is likely because kids and adults are not up to date on their vaccinations, Nguyen said. That could be because people are refusing vaccinations for themselves and their kids or because people skipped visits to their primary care doctor during COVID lockdowns.

“One big reason rates go up is when vaccination rates go down,” Nguyen said. “It’s important not just for the baby to be vaccinated, but for everyone in the household to be up to date on vaccines.”

For both kids and adults with whooping cough, Nguyen recommends seeking medical help if the cough gets more severe and the person is struggling to breathe or throwing up because of the cough.

As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, the time is coming to “fall back.” But not all states observe daylight saving time, and some have introduced legislation to eliminate it entirely.

Here’s what to know as DST approaches.

When do we change the clocks?

Under federal law, those states participating in daylight saving time will roll their clocks back at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday in November, which this year falls on Nov. 3.

Clocks will then spring forward on the second Sunday in March 2025, which will fall on March 9.

What is daylight saving time?

Daylight saving time is a changing of the clocks that typically begins in spring and ends in fall. Under the conditions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, daylight saving time starts on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November. On those days, clocks either shift forward or backward one hour.

When not in daylight saving time, the time is known as standard time.

As it stands, Illinois shifts between the two. The “spring forward” is when the state enters daylight saving time, and the “fall back” marks a return to standard time.

According to the website Time and Date, standard time is the local time in a country or region when daylight saving time is not in use.

“More than 60% of the countries in the world use standard time all year,” the site says. “The remaining countries use DST during the summer months, generally setting clocks forward one hour from standard time.”

When does daylight saving time end?

Currently, Illinois and several states across the U.S. are in daylight saving time, which began in spring. But that will soon come to an end as clocks “fall back” this season, giving residents a coveted extra hour of sleep.

But when does that happen?

The federal government mandates clocks roll back on the first Sunday of November each year. In 2024, that falls on Nov. 3.

Do all states participate in daylight saving time?

Most states do participate in the twice-annual clock changes, but Arizona and Hawaii do not, having opted out of the practice.

Can states decide their own time?

Under provisions of the Uniform Time Act, states have the option of either participating in daylight saving time, committing to springing forward and rolling back clocks on the appointed days, or to opt out of the practice altogether, keeping year-round standard time.

States cannot opt to keep daylight saving time on a permanent basis under provisions of the act.

However, many states have passed legislation that would convert them to year-round daylight saving time should Congress alter the Uniform Time Act. According to KGW, Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee all have laws on the books that would allow for the states to observe permanent daylight saving time if Congress would allow them to do so.

Does Illinois observe DST?

Yes. Clocks in Illinois “fall back” each year in November, and “spring forward” in March.

While there have been laws proposed to observe permanent daylight saving time in Illinois, none have passed the General Assembly, according to lawmakers.

The same is true in Indiana, where most of the state operates on Eastern time and the northwestern counties of Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton and Jasper counties operate on Central time.

In Michigan, a referendum was proposed for voters that would have allowed for a vote on daylight saving time, but it was referred to committee and did not pass in time for the 2024 election.