INSIDE: If you’re worried about how to have a safe Halloween this year,
then these 13 top tips are just for you!
That creepy time of year is fast approaching! While your kids might be getting excited about choosing costumes, carving pumpkins and trick-or-treating, you may be wondering if Halloween should be cancelled this year.
But panic not! There are plenty of ways to have a fang-tastic night without spreading that ghastly virus. To help, I’ve put together a list of safe Halloween tips to ensure you and your family have a fantastic time.
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Table of Contents
- The Reality for Halloween 2020
- My top 13 Safe Halloween Tips for 2020
- Final thoughts
- You might also love…
The reality for Halloween 2020:
Although we all love dressing up and heading into the dark to go trick-or-treating, it’s just not a good idea this year. Your neighbours probably won’t welcome crowds of kids at their door and allowing your little ones to plunge their hands into bowls of potentially Covid-coated candy isn’t wise.
But none of us wants to ruin the fun, so what can be done instead to ensure that a spook-tacular time is had by all?
My Top 13 Safe Halloween Tips for 2020:
Go pumpkin picking
Nothing gets you in the Halloween spirit more than heading off to your local pumpkin patch to choose yourself a pumpkin. As it’s outdoors, it’s much safer than events held inside, but just be sure to stay away from crowds, maintain a safe distance at all times, wear a mask and don’t forget to wash your hands.
Get carving those pumpkins
Everyone loves a glowing pumpkin at Halloween and luckily this is one tradition that we don’t have to forego this year. Have fun scooping out the contents, designing some spooky faces and carving them out. Just be sure to supervise your kids to avoid any injuries and use battery-operated lights to stay extra safe.
Organise an online pumpkin competition
When your kids have finished making their spooky pumpkin creations, why not arrange an online pumpkin contest with all their friends? Use zoom to show off and compare their pumpkins. Get all the kids to vote for their favourite (which can’t include their own!) The pumpkin with the most votes wins!
Do some creepy cooking
Why not make a delicious soup or a pumpkin pie? You can use any type of edible pumpkin or squash for this. Probably best not to use a carving pumpkin. Although they are edible, they’re not very tasty. But you could try roasting the seeds from your carved pumpkin for a healthy snack.
There are all kinds of fantastic Halloween recipes to be found online. Why not get creative and make some witch finger cookies or some spooky sausage mummies? My kids always love a spread of weird and creepy looking food to tuck into on Halloween night.
Go all out in creating your very own haunted house
We always love decorating our house for Halloween, but this year I plan to let the kids go to town with it. Why don’t you do the same? Let them drape spider webs, hang ghosts and ghouls, change the light bulbs for red ones and turn your garden into a spooky graveyard. It’ll be sure to keep them busy, stop them from feeling like they are missing out this year will give all your neighbours a haunting surprise to admire when they walk by!
Organise a Halloween Costume and Lantern Parade
Although trick-or-treating isn’t a good idea this year, kids will still be keen to head out after dark on Halloween. So why not organise a costume parade to start the night off? Just make sure that everyone stays 2m apart and wears a mask.
Instead of knocking on people’s doors, why not make it a lantern parade? Get the kids to bring lanterns and torches to light up their haunting procession. That way, you can still create a spectacle and enjoy the spookily decorated houses in your neighbourhood.
After the parade, you could all head home for ….
An online Halloween party
Perfect for showing off your costumes to family and friends, why not have an online Halloween party?
Arrange some Halloween games for all participating households to play together on Zoom. Apple bobbing or eating doughnuts on strings with no hands are great choices. You could even make a gooey lucky dip for the kids to find some nasties in. Even if they can’t all be together this year, they’ll love watching each other have a go!
You could even turn your event into an online dance party and try learning the moves to some Halloween classics like ‘Thriller” or the ‘Time Warp. With the help of some clever technology, you can still make sure your kids have a great time this Halloween.
Do some indoor trick-or-treating
If you have a few family members, give them each some candy. Ask them to take it into their rooms and shut the door. Then send your little ones on a mini indoor trick-or-treating adventure. Get them to knock on each door and collect candy from all members of the family.
For some extra fun why not organise some harmless surprise tricks to play on them, like sticking spider webs to their doors, taking them drinks containing gummy worms frozen in ice cubes, or playing some spooky Halloween sounds outside their rooms!
If you don’t have enough people, hide little pot of sweets in each room for your kids to find.
Give out treats safely
If you feel guilty about the prospect of local kids leaving your house empty-handed on Halloween night, then it’s important to find a safe way to give out your treats.
First, make sure they’re individually wrapped to reduce the spread of infection.
You could stand outside in your full witch’s regalia and give your goodies out one at a time to all approaching trick-or-treaters. Just be sure to wear a mask and use plenty of hand sanitiser. You’ll also need to keep interactions brief and ensure that visitors keep a safe distance both from you and each other.
Alternatively, you could space your treats out on a table or blanket on your drive so that they can be picked up easily. It’s not a good idea to have a bowl that lots of hands can dip into this year, so be creative and come up with a different solution.
Bash a spooky piñata
We had a piñata for the first time at a New Year’s Eve party last year, and it was a great success. So this year, I might find a spooky version for Halloween. Why not hang one in your garden, fill it with sweets and maybe some nasty surprises! (I’m thinking plastic spiders and worms.) Then let your kids loose on it with a piñata stick. Just make sure they don’t bash each other in the process!
Tell some chilling tales
Everyone loves a good ghost story at Halloween, so turn out the lights and tell a spooky tale or two? (But make sure they’re not too creepy for the little ones.) You could even lighten the mood by telling some Halloween jokes instead. Why not invite your kids’ friends to join in on Zoom?
Why not create a scary mystery trail for the kids on which they have to find some creepy clues, or follow a path of fake blood? Maybe they could find a (not too) nasty surprise at the end, or some tasty Halloween treats.
Have a spooky movie night
After all the fun and games, make some hot chocolate, grab some popcorn and snuggle up to watch an age-appropriate spooky movie… a fitting end to fun-filled Halloween night.
Final thoughts…
Although it won’t be the same this year, I’m sure that by using some of these safe Halloween tips, you and your family can still enjoy yourselves this year. It’s just about being creative!
If you have any ideas of your own for how to celebrate Halloween 2020 safely, I’d love to hear them. Please add your suggestions in the comments below.
While most kids love Halloween and will be excitedly preparing for the festivities, some may be feeling a little anxious about it all. Perhaps they have picked up on your concerns about catching or spreading Covid-19 or maybe they find all the spooky costumes a little frightening. If you have an anxious child, then it’s important to give them the necessary support. Perhaps you will find this post helpful.
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Till next time,
Nadine x
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