Halloween Memories

While driving by a pumpkin patch on the way to work, I started thinking about my favorite Halloween memories. Somehow, they all involved being gathered with my family in the kitchen. Whether carving pumpkins on the kitchen table with my dad or roasting the seeds with my mom, we were always in that heart of the home. So, when I arrived at Cabinets & Designs, I started asking my coworkers about their favorite halloween memories. Surprisingly, the answers were all similar: memories of early childhood halloweens, helping their parents prepare in the kitchen. So, to get you in the halloween spirit, we’re sharing some of our favorite memory making halloween tips and treats.

• Pumpkin Carving: There are some wonderful pumpkin carving kits on the market. However, before the days of actually hacking into the pumpkin ourselves, we used to draw our design with permanent marker on the skin. Then the adults would do the actual carving. It was just as fun and much less dangerous. Of course, the best part was pulling out the slimy innards where the pumpkin seeds lived. While dad carved our designs, we helped mom separate and roast the seeds. It was one of the most fun family activities of the year.
• Haunted House Preparations: We all remember walking through haunted houses and feeling bowls of eyeballs, intestines or brains! It was cool and gross all at the same time. You probably don’t need your kids’ help boiling spaghetti for those guts. However, little fingers are perfect for peeling skin off grapes which will become the bowl of eyeballs. They can also help stir the jello that will be molded into zombie brains. If you have a child with a steady hand, let them pour green or blue flavored drink into latex gloves. After freezing, you’ll have hand shaped ice to float in your halloween punch.
• Recipes: There are too many fun halloween recipes to mention here. However, the thing to keep in mind is where your children can help. Though they can’t chop and peel, let them stir, decorate as much as possible, and come up with ideas of their own.  You can also keep a fairly large group of kids occupied at a halloween party by letting them decorate their own personal pizzas. Well placed cheese, sauce and toppings can make the pizzas look like mummies, ghosts or vampires. You can also have an area for the kids to decorate their own cupcakes or cookies. 

However you spend your Halloween, preparing for it as a family is sure to make memories that your children will cherish long after they have kids of their own.