When I lived up North with my kids, Halloween and pumpkin carving was one of my favorite family activites. The problem with Florida is if you carve your pumpkin more then one day before the big day, you'll have a moldy, orange pile of mush. I still buy live pumpkins, only we draw faces on them now.
A good friend shared this website with me. The kids have a grand time carving the pumpkin. When they finish one, they can erase and carve again. No muss, no fuss, which works for me. I hope everyone has as much fun as my kids have with this site.
http://www.cubpack81.com/images/carve_pumpkin.swf