My little neighborhood grocery store set up a huge box of pumpkins for sale in the produce section because Halloween is just a month or so away. There are several different kinds, too. There are pumpkins for carving into Jack-O-Lanterns and pumpkins for cooking and other pumpkins for decorating. I have to admit that I bought one to make into a Jack-O-Lantern, even though I don’t have any kids. I like carving pumpkins and decorating with things like corn stalks and hay and scarecrows. It makes me feel like we are welcoming the change of seasons as well as celebrating Halloween.

Last year I bought 2 pumpkins and never got around to carving them. I ended up just painting them with acrylic paints, and they lasted for a very long time. Once you cut into them, bacteria starts to grow and they slowly rot. But if you don’t cut them, they can last for 3 months before they show any signs of rot. But on Facebook I read a tip from a friend that you can douse the cut and cleaned pumpkin in a bath with bleach, which kills the bacteria so it lasts longer. That gives me hope and I will try that trick this year to see if it really works.

So, my next questions is, what do I carve into my new pumpkin? A scarey face or just some kind of design? I have seen some really cute designs…..