Carving a Pumpkin

When we went to the pumpkin patch, we purposely chose pumpkins that we would be able to carve.  In the almost 15 years that David and I have been married, we have NEVER carved a pumpkin together.  We decided that the entire family would experience pumpkin carving for the first time together.  David and I had planned to carve pumpkins last night, but unfortunately, David forgot he had to attend a board meeting.  So, tonight was the night.  Amelia has been REALLY excited about carving her pumpkins.  She had no idea what it meant, but when I picked her up from school this afternoon, she immediately asked if we were going to carve pumpkins tonight.  When David got home, everything was set up, and we immediately dug in and began to work. 

 I had a feeling that this would NOT be one of Amelia's favorite activities, and I was right.  She did not want her hands messy, so touching the inside of the pumpkin was a no go.  Instead, she used a metal spoon to scoop out the seeds. 

She managed to help David "cut" the eyes out with his drill, but she wasn't happy about the  noise.   I helped Amelia use a Sharpie to draw the nose and mouth, and she helped David cut them out with a knife.

She was quite pleased when we put a candle inside of the finished pumpkin. 

Instead of carving the second pumpkin, we used some plastic monster face pieces that I had to decorate the outside like a Mr. Potato Head.  Amelia LOVED doing this.  She loved it so much that she kept taking the ears off and sticking them back in.  I guess she needs a Mr. Potato Head now...

 The two pumpkins turned out great in our opinions, and the seeds we saved from the carved pumpkin were roasted tonight.  I tossed them in some caramel and spices, and Amelia thought they were "yummy"!

This is Amelia's normal look when I ask her to smile while looking at the camera.  She does NOT like having her picture taken!