A Night Sky Jack-O’-Lantern

What’s the idea?

Use cookie cutters to carve a jack-o’-lantern with a fantasy nighttime scene instead of a face. Your baby will love seeing the shapes projected around the nursery. It also makes a great table centerpiece.

What will I need?

•    A selection of bat, cat, witch, moon, star or house-shaped cookie cutters. You can use regular-size or mini cutters; just make sure that they’re metal (not plastic) so they can cut through the surface of your pumpkin.
•    A pumpkin large enough to fit several cookie cutter shapes
•    An electric or other flameless candle

How do I make it?

1.    Cut a lid from the top of the pumpkin and scrape out the flesh and seeds.
2.    Plan your landscape - figure out how the cookie cutters shapes will fit all around the pumpkin, with moon, stars, witch and bat toward the top, and the cat and house at the bottom.
3.     Map out your design with a pencil on your pumpkin
4.    Using a mallet or hammer, tap a cookie cutter into the spot where you want it, tapping until it goes all the way through the pumpkin shell. If you have trouble getting the cookie cutter all the way through, remove it and use a utility knife to finish the job.
5.    Remove the cutout and repeat with remaining cookie cutters.
6.    To make your jack-o’-lantern last longer, rub the cut edges with some Vaseline.
7.    Put an electric or other flameless candle inside to illuminate it; if you plan to take a photo, try putting a small flashlight inside, too, for the picture taking session.

Next: A Mini Haunted House