She carves pumpkins in 3 minutes flat. West Richland woman turns home into Halloween heaven

When it comes to Halloween, Monette Roberts does not go small.

The West Richland woman decks out her home in leaves, lights, jack-o-lanterns, witches, ghosts.

The decorations are artfully curated and beautifully displayed. It’s a Halloween wonderland.

And that’s just indoors.

The walkway and porch of Roberts’ home are lined with pumpkins — about 120 this year.

They’re not carved quite yet. But by Halloween, they’ll have spooky, silly or fun faces courtesy of Roberts’ infectious holiday spirit.

The pumpkins are a mammoth undertaking.

However, “I love the outcome,” Roberts said. “It’s a lot of work, but I love how people come in and (are dazzled).”

Roberts has been decking out her family’s home for years. It’s a tradition she comes by honestly.

Her mom, Mary Allison, also is a holiday enthusiast.

“She used to love to carve,” Roberts said. “We’d have big pumpkin carvings at my house growing up. When I had my own kids, it grew.”

Roberts and her husband, Don, who own a construction company, have four kids, all students at Richland High School.

Steele is 18, Stone is 16, and twins Sterling and Sieraka are 15.

They get in on the act, helping carve some of the pumpkins. Their friends do, too.

And the Sunday before Halloween, the extended family — including aunts, uncles and grandparents — come over for dinner and tackle some of the gourds.

But even with their help, Roberts still handles the bulk of the pumpkins herself.

She can knock one out in three minutes flat, from gutting the gourd to carving it up.

She has some secrets.

First, people often opt for a large carving knife, but a filet knife actually works better, she said.

Roberts also has a special scooping spoon and system of disposing of the pumpkin innards that’s the height of efficiency.

Believe it or not, she’s allergic to pumpkin — she wears gloves when she does the carving.

When she’s finished, she dips the jack-o-lanterns in a bleach solution to keep them from going bad before Halloween.

Roberts said it’s fun to delight people with her Halloween wonderland and pumpkin-palooza. But, for her, the main motivation is her kids.

“You know, they’re kids one time. I’m trying to do the right thing and raise them a fun way and have traditions,” she said. “They look forward to it.”

Roberts decorates for other holidays, too — St. Patrick’s Day, for example. And Easter.

Halloween is one of her biggest annual efforts. However, one other holiday does eclipse it.

“Christmas is crazy,” Roberts said. “It really is bigger than this.”

This story was originally published October 29, 2017 at 5:50 PM with the headline "She carves pumpkins in 3 minutes flat. West Richland woman turns home into Halloween heaven."