Two days to Halloween and you still don’t know how you’ll celebrate? Have yourself a merry little pumpkin party.

This theme can get pricey, but you can alleviate some costs by having your guests pitch in. Whether you celebrate tonight, Thursday or Friday, you can definitely carve pumpkins. The price of pumpkins has definitely risen this year, so it’s best to have your guests bring their own squashes and extra carving tools. You can buy pattern books at the store, which incidentally come with carving tools, or you can improvise and use kitchen cutlery and draw your own (or have an artistic friend draw) patterns.

Not everyone need carve a pumpkin. Your bake-happy guests can make pumpkin pie, muffins or bread, and everyone can enjoy a rented copy or TV special of “”It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”” and “”The Nightmare Before Christmas.”” And who doesn’t love noshing on the sugary pumpkins from a bag of Brach’s autumn mix?

You can decorate if you have it in you, either by

putting up decorations you already have, spending some dough on new ones or by being crafty and making your own. Nothing beats sitting down with scissors and a box of crayons to create pumpkins from construction paper. You could even add a dash of arts and crafts to the party if your guests are game.

On top of the baked pumpkin goods, you can refresh your guests with pumpkin ale, a punch made with orange soda and baked pumpkin seeds. To avoid overkill, you may also want to include some non-pumpkin foods, like chips and dip or salsa, Halloween candy and pumpkin-less beverages.

And don’t wear orange – you don’t want to be the pumpkin at your party.