Since last year was kind of a weird year in general we did a small Halloween party for the kids and our family, just to do something fun. Although the kids were young they had a lot of fun participating in the different activities with family and friends. I thought I would share some of the Halloween party ideas we did to make a memorable holiday.
Halloween Party Food
You can't have a party without food, so here are some foods we made and ate for our Halloween party. They're all fall-related foods and you can often find them at fairs this time of year, so we cooked our own.
Fair Foods
When you think of fair foods, it's usually fried food you think of. We used a mini oil fryer (you can try to use an airfryer too if that's what you have or just a simple pot filled with oil. We experimented with all types of fried food including, fried pickles, fried cheese, jalapeno poppers, and fried dough. The fried dough can be done simply using Pillsbury crescent roll dough and some powdered sugar. Fried pickles are extremely simple to make using pickles and a wet batter that you probably already have all of the ingredients for (flour, spices, and a liquid like water or beer). We didn't try it, but making fried ice cream is another option to make that is absolutely delicious.
Candy
Would it be Halloween time without a big bowl of candy? No! Of course we had a ton of candy for everyone to enjoy and snack on. You can find good deals for lots of mini sized candies this time of year. Target and BJs Wholesale club often offer good deals for candy, and whatever isn't eaten at the party can be saved to pass out for Trick or Treating.
BBQ Foods
My family loves a BBQ, we pretty much do BBQ's year round, even at Christmas. We have a smoker and slow cooker rotisserie we cook meat on. We also ALWAYS have a pot of homemade baked beans for every family gathering.
Activities
You'll also want to do some fun activities and there are plenty of them! This is a list of some of the activities we have done over the years that were a hit with the kids and adults in the family.
Candy Hunt
This was something I came up with last year when we were unsure if Trick or Treating would still be put on by the towns. I had thought about how we do Easter Egg hunts for candy so why not do a Halloween themed hunt. I dug out the plastic Easter eggs from the basement and took all of the Halloween colors, orange, green, and purple. Using a sharpie I decorated the eggs with spider webs, witches, Frankenstein and flying bats. I put candy and little prizes from the dollar store in each egg and hid them outside around the yard. The kids dressed up in their Halloween costumes and walked around the yard looking for the eggs to put into their baskets. They had fun opening them to see the prizes and candy they found.
Leaf Jumping & Collecting
Get the kids some small rakes, or let them use their hands and have them help you make a huge pile of leaves to jump in. You can also gather the leaves in a Halloween themed trash bag, like a pumpkin when they're done playing in the pile to add some yard decor. You can also have a contest to find the prettiest or biggest leaves and later use them to press between wax paper to make a book.
Pin The Nose On The Pumpkin
There are plenty of fun Halloween games to play, like pin the nose on the pumpkin. You can buy one already made, or create one yourself! Have the kids color and decorate their pumpkin noses before pinning them. Whoever gets the closest, wins!
Halloween Movies
Halloween movies are fun to watch, whether you enjoy scary movies or prefer the kid friendly Halloween movies. If it's too cold to be outside, stay in and watch a movie together as a family, or play it in the background while doing other activities. For a list of family Halloween movies and where to watch them this year, look here for The Best Halloween Movies.
Bonfire
If you want to have your party outside, have a bonfire too! Bonfires are perfect during the fall months because it's cooler outside and you can warm up by sitting around the fire. Cook food over the fire like hotdogs and s'mores to add some more fun for the kids.
Apple Decorating & Haunted Gingerbread Houses
Apples are a staple during any activity that has to do with fall. If you've already gone apple picking for the season, you probably have a ton of apples laying around. You can make caramel or candy apples, but also make it a fun activity for kids by having them decorate apples. They can be dipped in chocolate and decorated with candy faces, or other spooky designs. Have a contest for the most creative apple decorating.
Another idea is to bring gingerbread houses into the fall season. There are ready made kits or you can make them homemade. Decorate the houses with a Halloween theme. Make them haunted with ghosts, pumpkins, and a cemetery. Have fun and get creative, then eat them when you're all done.
Pumpkin Carving/Decorating
Get a bunch of different sized pumpkins and decorate or carve them. Depending on the ages of the kids you may want them to decorate pumpkins with paint, glitter, and/or stickers as opposed to actually carving them. Have the adults open and carve pumpkins and let the kids play with the mushy "guts" of the pumpkin. Some will think it's fun, like slime, and others won't like the feeling as much.
Conclusion
You can have a family friendly Halloween party that actually can be fun. There are plenty of fall-themed activities that you can plan for everyone to participate in. Some of these activities can also be done at Thanksgiving if you're looking for something to do.