Moving Beyond our Pumpkin Carving Traditions

The idea of handing my toddler a sharpie let alone a knife has a tendency of filling myself with trepidation.

Is my son going to be a genius and draw a face on the pumpkin or will he decide to attack me with the sharpie? I really don’t know what will happen when I put the power of a sharpie or knife into my child’s hands.

Over time the grand old tradition of carving pumpkins has evolved as we try to share this tradition with our children.

I’m not really sure if it is just a generational thing, but I feel that when I was a child my parents weren’t scared of given us knives.

I have memories of sitting on our kitchen floor with newspaper spread out everything diving right into the pumpkin gutting it ferociously.

I could be blocking out the times with ended up stabbing ourselves or each other. I’m not really sure.

Now I have a four-year-old and we want to do pumpkins. This will not be our first year in doing pumpkins, not by a long shot, but I have begun thinking this year of all the ways we have come up with for decorating pumpkins over the years. It astounds and excites me all at once.

1 Painting your pumpkins

There really are endless ways that you can paint your pumpkin. It really just comes down to the individual's creativity will give them and what the pumpkin will be used for.

2. Decorating your pumpkin with markers

3, Decorating your pumpkin with food

Now decorating you pumpkin with food is a new one for me. I really thought I had seen it all with my research of trying to find new ways of decorating with my son. I do have to say that these little ghosts are just adorable. 

4. Decorating Pumpkins with props to look like characters or home decor

Again, I'm in love with this adorable little mummy and I'm hoping my son will let us make one with our pumpkins. Using items around the house or simple materials like felt or flowers is just brilliant. You can' make your pumpkin into something amazing any time of the year really. 

5. Carving your pumpkin

Ahhh the classic tradition of carving your pumpkin. Umm. Wait these pumpkins don't really look like the traditional Jack-O-Lantern faces that I'm used to. Well, the pumpkins in the top right corner do, but the others are just fantastic.  One of my favorites I have seen over the years is the pumpkin who looks like he is throwing up. 

6. Decorating your pumpkin for other Holidays

I really wouldn't have thought to use pumpkins as Christmas decorations, but I do have to say these are adorable. If I had a surplus of pumpkins that I would definitely make a pumpkin snowman.

7. Decorating a pumpkin with paper

I'm in love with the white pumpkin with the bats, but really I love them both. There are countless ways that you can decorate a pumpkin with paper. If you would like to take this route with children you can use tissue paper and glue it to the pumpkin. It makes for a beautiful piece of work.

8. Decorating with pumpkin attachments

This last way I have seen with decorating pumpkins I feel is taking the easy way out. You don't spend much time decorating your pumpkin. No more than just sticking in the pieces and bam. I might be alone on this, but really I think it should be more involved. 

I have painted pumpkins with paint and I have carved, but I can say that I haven't done any of the others that I discovered. It really gets my hamster wheel upstairs going with creative ideas.

How are you going to do your pumpkins this year? Let's see those photos.