Happy Halloween! On Saturday, we had our annual pumpkin carving extravaganza. This was one of the best years yet, since we extended it over two days (and were less exhausted), and because both Janie and Kathryn joined in. In recent years, Kathryn has not always been home from school, and Leslie and I sometimes helped Emma and Sarah with their pumpkins rather than doing our own.

Emma and Sarah got out of school early on Friday, so I picked them up and we were the advance team to pick out the pumpkins. We accomplished that in short order. That night, we cleaned out all the pumpkins.  

Emma is allergic to pumpkin meat, and Kathryn was not arriving until later, so we cleaned theirs for them. Janie tried a new technique for crispier roasted pumkin seeds, so she and Emma cleaned and boiled them that night for roasting the next day.

The next morning, Kathryn joined us and we did the actual carving. Janie roasted Italian savory and cinnamon-sugar pumpkin seeds. The girls no longer need our help, so they picked their own designs and carved them. This year, we produced 6 pumpkins!

The aftermath.

In the video (click on “video”), Sarah’s Tinkerbell is on the left. Next is Kathryn’s “Ron Burgandy” from Anchorman. Leslie had a more traditional Jack-o-Lantern. Janie experimented with the melted-crayon creation, and I exeperimented with an Arduino-controlled monster. On the right is Emma’s Moon and Stars creation.

The Arduino.

Later, we went out to dinner and came home to watch The Great Pumpkin. Another successful year!

Janie created this lighted tree as a fall decoration. Don’t tell the HOA, but we put it out in the hallway for Halloween!

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