How and when to pick a ripe home-grown melon

Being that it's 9/11 and also my youngest daughter's first day in kindergarten, I'm feeling a bit verklempt. So I'll be brief today so that I don't go all maudlin on you and burst into tears. Life is good, right? Transitions are important.

So that is why I've chosen the important topic of melons for today's post. Yes, melons. In some ways, it is good that I'm an inexperienced gardener. I saved seeds last year from some of the tastiest produce we ate. I talked with other local gardeners about growing melons. And they all told me not to bother. The summer here is usually not long enough or hot enough to grow melons. Do you think I listened? Ha! I did not. On the watermelon front, things aren't looking so good:

The watering can is tiny, making the watermelon about the size of a Roma tomato.

But check out this nice set of melons! If my baby girl (uh, I mean, big 5 year old kindergarten girl) wasn't at school right now I'd make her hoist these two beauties up to her flat-as-a-board chest and model. But alas, not today. These babies might even make Dolly Parton feel small!

So here's the deal. I think this melon is called Orange Dream and it's somewhere between a cantaloupe and a honeydew. I have no idea what a ripe one is supposed to look like. Do I thump it? Do I sniff it? Should I take them bowling? Anyone, anyone? Advice most appreciated.