I feel like it’s a toss up when you ask people what their Halloween plans are. I know most of it has to do with the area they are in… but also so many of our favorite Halloween events have been canceled. I already know with a 95% certainty we will not be trick or treating, simply because our neighborhood isn’t doing it. (Most of our neighbors keep to themselves anyway – imagine a street with all of the porch lights off…that’s where we live.)

Halloween Build a Bear

Something that my boys absolutely loved this year was a visit to Build a Bear. Now my boys are not stuffed animal people… but the fact they were able to pick out their animals and then add spooky sounds and clothes… they were completely into the experience. As a mom, I knew this was something we are going to do on special holidays.

We plan on packing up our holiday bears with our decorations. That way each year, when we unpack it will be something that is uniquely theirs. In fact, we are headed back for another trip to grab the Jack Skellington Bear – because duhhh….

Movie Night with Snacks and Games

If you’ve watched Hocus Pocus once, or a million times… you can always watch it again. Make it different. Make it special. We made home made pizza in the shape of a dead man’s toe (use your imagination people) and played our new Hocus Pocus game from Ravensburger.

Do you remember when I found this on Amazon and ordered it within seconds. I’m not mad about it one bit.

Scary Storybooks (well maybe not so scary)

I love a great kids holiday book… If I’m being honest I think they are the easiest way to bring a little extra magic into the day, especially at bedtime. Go through your kids books and find all of the ones that could be Halloween books… or head to your local library. You can also find so many great books on YouTube, if you can believe it.

We added these from Candlewick Press to our holiday collection and I’m already planning a ghostly painting activity with Gustavo. (I’ll post it here once we are finished.) Head to your local book store and let each child pick out a new book, grab a flashlight and create your own spooky story night. Don’t forget the perfect snack…

The Perfect Snack

Like that transition??? Hahaha. If your kids are like mine, they have been asking for their own YouTube Channel for forever and a day. Now I didn’t give in and create a channel for them, but instead had them film a video for the holiday.

Looking for a no heat, kids in the kitchen friendly snack mix? Here you go! Have your kids watch it and then make it themselves this week.

Or if you are looking for something more substantial try these pumpkin chocolate chip bars… your life will never be the same…

Not in the mood to bake something yourself? Now is the perfect time to support a small business too! So many companies are offering do-it-yourself kits, that make it way too easy to add holiday happiness to your routine. We grabbed a cake ball decorating kit from Bova’s Bakery (on the Treasure Coast) but I’m sure there is something close to you that offers something similar.

Whatever your plans are… keep it simple, keep it fun and make the memories that your kids will remember from the Halloween of 2020.