Tag Archives: pumpkins

Pumpkin Seeds 101

Have you carved your pumpkins yet? If you live in a warmer climate you might have held off until today to do so. When you get around to crafting your jack-o’-lanterns don’t forget to save the pumpkin seeds. Large pumpkins yield dozens of seeds that can be used in a variety of ways. GETTING THE SEEDS After you remove the top of your pumpkin carefully scoop out the pulp and seeds with a large serving spoon (or your hands) and place them in a bowl. You will need to separate the seeds from the pulp. I like to wash and … Continue reading →

More Fun Pumpkin Seed Projects for Kids

We bought our big pumpkins weeks ago, but have put off carving them until today because the weather has been so fickle (one day we’re in the 70s, the next day the 40s). We now have three incredibly cute (not spooky) jack-o’-lanterns on our stoop and more seeds than I care to deal with. I plan to roast a bunch for snacks and use the rest for craft projects. Our favorites include the pumpkin seed mosaic I shared in a previous blog and the other kid-friendly ones I have listed below. Note: If you have never used pumpkin seeds in … Continue reading →

A Week’s Worth of Simple Halloween Crafts

This is it; the countdown to Halloween is on. You now have less than a week to get your house is prime shape for trick-or-treaters. If your home looks more barren than Boo-some, more flat than festive or more hapless than haunted, then you’ve come to the right place. This blog provides detailed instructions on a variety of simple Halloween crafts that you can make to welcome all the little ghosts and goblins that will be ringing your doorbell Friday night. Take a look: October 20th—–Halloween Crafts: Spooky Scarecrows and Creepy Candy Creatures. Let your creative juices flow making these … Continue reading →

Making Gorgeous Gourds

If you are on a tight budget this Halloween, but you still want to add some festive touches around your home then forgo purchasing the larger, more expensive pumpkin and opt to buy several gourds or miniature pumpkins. (Wal-Mart is currently selling a netted sack with 10 gourds and mini pumpkins for $2.) With a few simple steps you can light the way for trick-or-treaters by turning those mini gourds into larger than life candleholders. Another option is to place the gourd candleholders in the middle of your dining room table and surround them with fresh-cut flowers, fall leaves, and … Continue reading →

Fall Crafts: Making Paper Bag Pumpkins

My daughter is far too young to wield a knife and carve crazy caricatures on fresh pumpkins so this time of year I am constantly on the look out for more age appropriate craft ideas. This next paper bag pumpkin project was a hit last year with our 3-year-old playgroup. Not only is it festive, but also simple and affordable. This particular project also proved especially helpful for my family as I was searching for craft projects my daughter and I could make for my ailing grandmother who had recently been placed in a nursing home in Hawaii following a … Continue reading →

Free Pumpkins

Now is the time to stock up on free pumpkins. You’ll find a lot of them available right now, if you know where to look. Right now, retailers are trying to get rid of their pumpkins. This is because it was a good crop this year, and the supply outpaced the demand for pumpkins in October. You can take advantage of this fact to snag lots of free pumpkins. Why would you want all of these free pumpkins? Well, just think of them as pounds and pounds of free food that can be made into everything from soups to pies. … Continue reading →

Ten Ways to Use Your Leftover Pumpkins

Okay, Halloween is over, but what can you do with all of those leftover pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns? Actually, there is plenty you can do, from home schooling activities to feeding your family. Read on to find out ten different ways to use your leftover pumpkins. Feed them to the wildlife. Hunter routinely gather old Halloween pumpkins and use them to lure deer to hunting grounds. While we won’t be hunting in our backyard, we will be able to provide the native wildlife with a tasty snack. Donate them to a farmer. Farmers can use the leftover pumpkins to feed some … Continue reading →

Three Little Pumpkins

Sitting outside in the rain are two little pumpkins. They aren’t quite sitting on a fence, but they are pretty close to one. They shine in the moonlight and declare the Fall. My two older children decorated them with tempera paint, swirls of color that has now washed clean. The purples and browns and blues and yellows and reds are no more; the pumpkins are back to their natural clean orange state, and I get the sense that it is just mother nature washing off her makeup. Like any good mother though, she’ll put up with a little mess, and … Continue reading →

Some Simple Halloween Decorating Ideas

If you’re looking for some simple ways to add a few more Halloween touches, here you go: Boo! Scrap wood is great for this decoration, because it will give it a more rustic look. If you don’t have any, craft wood will work too. Look for pre-cut wood for small signs, which often have a wire for hanging already attached. Paint the wood orange and let it dry. Then, paint the word “boo!” with black paint. Apply the paint in thick coats so you get a few drips. Free hand the letters (they look better if not perfect). Add a … Continue reading →

Protecting Your Home from Pumpkins

Did you know that the pumpkins are just waiting to attack your home? It’s true. Just read on to find out how to protect your valuables. Fall is a wonderful time, but just look out for those pumpkins. No, not in a night-of-the-living-dead kind of way. That would be silly. I bet you had visions of crazy monster pumpkins with pointy teeth when you first started reading this article, didn’t you? What I am really talking about when I talk about protecting your home is all of those very real stains that pumpkins can cause when they start to mold … Continue reading →