Pumpkin House Play

This year I'm doing something a little different with our pumpkin.  First of all, I'm going to select a HUGE one and then I'm going to turn it into a house for my kids little animal and doll figures to live in. Likely it won't stay fresh enough to make it all the way to Halloween but I'll get a back up pumpkin for our regular jack-o-lantern. I anticipate it will be totally worth the extra cost for the amount of time my little ones are likely to play with this. Want to join us and build one with your Little Observer? Here's how:

1. Find a big, fat, wide pumpkin! One that rests firmly on the ground and isn't too roly poly. If you have a place that lets you go pumpkin picking so much the better. This gives you time to choose the perfect one and lets your Little Observer see the environment in which pumpkins grow.

2. Like you would a jack-o-lantern, cut a hole in the top around the stem and just enjoy the mucky gucky part of cleaning out the pumpkin gutts with your kids. This is ROAMing at it's best!

3. Cut a wide opening on one side of the pumpkin so that it becomes almost like the open side of a doll house.

Photo from A Mountain Hearth

4. On two other sides add windows in whatever shape you like. You can even insert little twig window panes if you wish. Add a moss carpet or other natural items to make a cozy little home for someone tiny!

5. Pull out some little animal characters or small doll figures and play play play!  Calico Critters would be adorable tenants of this kind of house but any figures will do so long as they are fun! You might even consider having a  little acorn family move in...

Image from Beanful Mom