Jackson, 8, slices a pumpkin while Fiona, 7, sketches an idea

Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson

Halloween abounds with tasks parents dread: combing the city for a size 4 Princess Aurora costume, baking homemade treats for the preschool party and shielding young eyes from the provocative ensembles at Ricky’s. In my home, though, the most anxiety-inducing tradition is pumpkin carving. Every year, a big misshapen gourd sits near our front door, and I have to muster the motivation to help my children transform it into a version of the spooky owl they desire. Is there anyone who actually enjoys dealing with this seedy, pulpy mess in a tiny New York City kitchen?

As it turns out, there is. Enter Hugh McMahon, pumpkin artist extraordinaire, who traveled to West Harlem from his Brooklyn Heights home to give a carving lesson to my daughters, Isabel, 10, and Fiona, 7, and their neighborhood pal Jackson, 8. McMahon has been creating masterpieces from squashes and watermelons for decades, and has a workspace at the Manhattan Fruit Exchange in Chelsea Market. He has produced culinary art for the big guns (the Food Network and Martha Stewart) but also demonstrates his craft at local parties (you can book him for your kid’s extravaganza at a mere $200 an hour). As soon as McMahon arrived, my gang got into the spirit, donning their spooky-print capes. Meanwhile, I cleared away as much clutter as possible, although McMahon did reassure me that we’d need only a few feet of counter space for the carving. Our leader displayed several finished pumpkins to inspire us before we got started: a beautiful sunflower, which brought gasps and oohs, and a realistic portrait of George W. Bush, which got boos all around. The girls finally settled on a cat-witch design, and Jackson chose an octopus.