You can do it! I found that this year my pumpkins did that as well (the half rotten thing) and they were my first year. After consulting a friend of mine who used to supply the squash to the local elementary school, she said it was because they were not being germinated. She showed me how to take the male flowers off the squash plant, and walk around and manually pollinate the female flowers. After doing that, my pumpkins returned with strength (one is over 50LBs right now, and is the biggest in town!)

As for the Pea Shoots, I found that especially Sparrows love the sweet tenderness of the shoots, and they would always crop it them off at the top of my arch if my support. If you use a teepee support system, it should allow the shoots to grow upwards and prevent the birds from stealing their tender shoots. You can also make a protective barrier with them from hula hoops and netting. Just separate the hula Hoops so they can be used as arches, and the birds will not be able to get past the netting. Hope that helps for future years!