Yesterday we bought our pumpkins, and this weekend we carve them!  I’m super excited, but also a little nervous.  You see, in past years, however my pumpkin turned out, I was reasonably pleased with it and happy to have had fun.  I do always wish I had a few more to play with, but I can always promise myself that next year, our pumpkin patch will still be going strong on Halloween.

But this year, I’ve been inspired by a master, and don’t know what to do!  Check out these pumpkins, carved by Tim Trudeon at the state fair!

He did hour-long demonstrations, showing us how he finds the face within the pumpkin,

and brings it out by removing the pumpkin skin and pulp around it.  I don’t know if he usually names his carvings, but this fellow was dubbed Grumpy Guy by our family.  Isn’t he just so sad?

Now I have a big, beautiful pumpkin…and the burning desire to carve something spectacular.  Unfortunately, I suspect it takes more than a burning desire.  I suspect it takes skill.  Plus, it helps to have the right kind of pumpkin (Tim suggested sweet pumpkins, also called pie pumpkins, rather than the typical carving pumpkins) and the right kind of tools.  It also involves trusting myself and a willingness to make that first cut.

I guess if it looks really, really bad and so botched I can’t put it out on display, I can always feed it to the chickens!

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