How We Halloween

I’ll be completely transparent with you. I start planning for Halloween as soon as 4th of July passes. I know for some that is way too early to start thinking about the end of October, but for me it can’t come soon enough.

I’m totally in love with all things fall. It’s absolutely my favorite time of year. The tricky thing is I live in South Florida. It is still pretty warm considering the year is coming to an end. On good days we drop out of the 90’s.

I think because I’ve been missing out on what fall truly feels like, and I feel bad for my Florida boys… they have never experienced seasons.

Why do I start planning so early??? There are quite a few events each year I don’t want to miss, and if we wait till the last minute to plan them…we most likely miss them. Life has a way of messing up my perfectly made plans. We totally missed a corn maze this year. It’s first on my list for fall 2019.

Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party

I believe this is our forth year going to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. I don’t see that tradition stopping anytime soon. I will admit we are spoiled living so close to Walt Disney World, but if I had my way we would live much closer. Hopefully one day.

I’ve started making my ears for each trip. I save a whole bundle of money doing it that way and they are one of a kind.

We make sure to go early in October, before the crowds really hit. They start the party in September, but if I start celebrating then, I’m ready for Christmas before Halloween even rolls around.

If you get a chance to go make sure to look up the special Halloween foods they have at the park. Things you won’t get any other time of year.

There is something magical in the air during the fall at Disney. If you’ve never been October – December are the best times, in my honest opinion.

This year was the first year that trick-or-treat stations didn’t occupy a ride. As far as I could tell most of the rides were open and the trick or treat stations were positioned in quick service areas.

This year I also decided that I’m becoming a pin collector. You heard it here first. Well… other than Instagram and Facebook… So, you heard it hear third. I’m going to do holiday pins for now and see how quickly I get carried away with this new found hobby.

The Haunted Mansion is my favorite ride there, I’ve loved it since I was little.

I am so happy that both of my boys enjoy fireworks now. This is the first year I’ve been able to watch the fireworks without someone crying or begging to go inside. I know I will miss those moments, but I love that both of my sons were sitting with me and building those Halloween memories.

We make it a point to get a picture at these pumpkins every year. They are right before we leave for the night… and you can see it’s not the easiest picture to get, but my husband remembers every year which I think is adorable.

Boo at the Zoo – The Palm Beach Zoo

I have found that if you go to events like this on the first night there are fewer people. Others wait until closer to Halloween. I like to front-load my October. Does anyone else do that? When we find something local and we love it gives us more time to experience it over and over.

Gecko was a costume we had two years ago for my oldest son. I pulled it out to post on Facebook and my little one couldn’t put it down. He thought it was his all along. Saved some money on that one without even trying! Love hand me downs.

There are plenty of Boo at the Zoos in your area too. See what special events they have going on and if you plan it outright, you can trick or treat with the animals. It’s also a great way to meet local vendors that are targeting kids and families. This is how I find a lot of the places we go on the weekends.

Another reason I wanted to do Boo at the Zoo was because I saw that The South Florida Science Center was hosting a one night only:

Spooky Science – Nights at the Museum

It was a fun way to tie in a handful of STEM activities with Halloween. The boys were able to create pumpkin catapults, make spooky slime and go on a haunted dinosaur safari.

I will say the haunted house was a bit more intense than I expected. My two year old went with us, but I think I was more scared than he was.

My highlight of the night hands down was seeing Saturn. No. This is not my picture, as I wasn’t able to take one through the telescope. But this one is pretty spot on to what we saw. I was completely blown away by how clear it was. I was expecting just to see a ball of light.