Happy Carving Day!

Ah, Halloween. Aside from Christmas, it’s probably your child’s favorite holiday. Think about it. For a day, your son can pretend he’s Batman, or your daughter can be the real-life embodiment of Queen Elsa. Halloween is all about the children, and it’s your job to make sure your child enjoys an awesome day of fun and candy. Heck, it’s even your job to do your best to impress other people’s children with your impressive and unique candy selection, as well as your decorations, which can make or break your neighborhood reputation. The first step in creating an impressive Halloween decoration display?

Carving the pumpkin.

Sure the cobwebs, scarecrows and giant spiders can take a B display to an A, but with all things in life, you need to start with the basics. And if you miss on the pumpkin, well then your Halloween decorations have lost all credibility. No adorable trick-or-treater will ever come to your house again.

OK, we’re kidding. But you can’t discount how important the carved pumpkin is, and how children and parents alike appreciate a finely carved pumpkin.

That being said, here’s the best way to carve the pumpkin of your dreams. Using our kid-friendly methods, you and your child can have the pumpkin-carving experience that will make all of the neighbors jealous.

1. Obviously, choose the right pumpkin. Preferably one with few bumps and soft spots and not one too heavy or too small that will make it difficult to carve.
   
2. Once you’ve got your pumpkin, pick a location where you’ve got some room to work with. Have the kids help you put down some newspaper. It’s going to get messy.
   
3. Choose your design -- know your artistic strengths and limitations! Your children can grab the iPad and find one they like best to use it as a model. Then they can use a marker to draw the design for you to carve.
   
4. Using that marker, the kids should draw a medium-sized circle on the bottom of the pumpkin. We cut out the bottom of the pumpkin first for preservation purposes.
   
5. Using your carving tools, cut the bottom out. If you don’t have carving tools, take care in using your kitchen knives. Choose a short-handled knife for greater control.
   
6. Your child can reach in and take out all of the seeds. Don’t be afraid to eat them. Pumpkin seeds are a healthy source of protein! If the kids balk at reaching into the pumpkin, have them put their hands inside a plastic grocery bag.
   
7. Now go about with your design by using small carving strokes. Be as precise as possible and don’t go too fast. You don’t want to get hurt. While you’re carving, keep your children occupied with another task. They can decorate a pie pumpkin of their own by painting a scary face on it or start putting candy in the bowl. Just be aware they may sneak a Kit-Kat or two, which is all part of the process, of course.
   
8. Children don’t like to clean their rooms, but they’ll gladly help with the pumpkin mess. Throw all of the remaining seeds and pumpkin insides in a trash bag.
   
9. Once you’ve finished carving your pumpkin, consider putting an LED light in it, rather than a candle, to illuminate your pumpkin in the night.
   
10. And voila! Your pumpkin is ready to see the world. Place it where your masterpiece will be seen by the most people,
    

In the end, it doesn’t matter if you’re a Picasso carving the pumpkin. It’s creating family fun and traditions that counts.

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