Halloween Traditions

paula · October 23, 2005

I have lots of things to share on this thread, but I wanted to start it so we could ALL share our childhood Halloween traditions.

Even though Mike and I grew up in different parts of the country, our Halloween memories are similear. Groups of neighborhood kids dressed up in fun stuff (not really scary) and walked door to door laughing, tripping on each others costumes and eating the handouts along the way... and the parents that were designated to walk with us carried the flashlights.

There were no church activities to attend or "Trunk or Treats". Just regular Trick or Treating.

Great memories!

But times have changed.

Now that I have children, we bring them to a few houses to trick or treat - neighbors we are friends with and grandma's! Basically just letting them show off their cute little costumes. Then go home and order pizza.

Weve always strayed away from the group activities - way too many people!!!

Simple enough, and yet maintaining our own "tradition".

Well, this year our city has canceled door to door trick or treating due to the recent hurricane. Our sidewalks and streets are filled with debris from homes and trees. The city is encouraging "group activites".

So? Ive created this thread to hear from all of you. I have perfect aged Trick or Treaters that will need an alternative.

Please give me your memories AND ideas... anyone???

Iluvharleys · October 23, 2005

Paula - When I was young, we did about the same as you, only we had 3 nights of trick or treating. We didn't have all the bad stuff going on back then.

When my kids were young, we lived at the lake. They did about the same thing we did when we were young, but then one year they decided to have all the kids in one place. So we had a big party and all the parents brought their candy there. We got in a huge circle and passed the candy out to each of the kids walking past. Before they got to have the candy though, we played games, danced, and everyone brought a dish to pass. We made the kids eat before they got any candy. It was great, so we decided to do it every year. They still wore their costumes and got their candy too!

Now, we block the street off here and all the neighbors have a block party and cookout. When kids come up, we all walk over to the block off and pass out the candy. The kids and parents both love it because they don't have to walk to each house, and we have fun too! We have all been making our plans for this year!

vinesqueen · October 23, 2005

what the hell is a "trunk or treat????"

When I was a kid, there was always a big costume contest and prizes were awarded in various age groups. Then we would go out trick or treating with my big sister. One year I went as a hula dancer (I was 4), I was cold but I didn't care. We were frequently gypsies, and that was fun getting to wear my mom's jewlery.

We would go all over, way past our neighborhood, blocks and blocks. This was before anyone even thought to do product tampering. (the first cases of poisoned or tampered fruit were evil parents looking to cash in on insurance policies, and not stranger danger. We are in much more danger from people who "love" us than we are from strangers.)

We would have popcorn balls that the neighbor ladies would make, bobbing for apples.. carving jack-o-lanterns... When Spudboy was little we would go tricker-treating in our neighborhood and I would walk with him most years so I could go out and see all the wonderful decorations and wonderful costumes. It was always fun to see a grownup dressed with their kids too.

No, when kids come to my door, I always make the do a trick. I always announce in a loud enough voice for the parents to hear that I demand a trick! I'll make the kids do a dance if they don't know any tricks. The sad part is that this always stumps the poor kids--it's a rare one that knows how to detatch their thumb or will make a face. Just sad. (The parents always bust up when I make their kids do a trick.)

Or sometimes, after they say "tricker-treat!" I'll say Treat, and start digging through their bag...

I always give good stuff ... at home I always buy toys and give them a bunch of plactic spiders, clicker bugs, pirate bootey, gooey eyeballs, stuff like that. One year I gave out squishy body parts... noses, fingers, ears... stuff like that. (those went to the older kids) Thank you Orental Trading company!

chichigirl · October 23, 2005

When I was married, my husband had 8 or 9 nieces and they all lived in the city projects, not a particularly safe area to go door to door according to their parents. So every years we would through a Halloween pary just for them, they were a crowd all by themselves, LOL. We would decorate the living room, dining room and kitchen area with all kinds of fun things like spider webs, rubber bat and spiders, snakes and bugs placed strategically amont the food items, even had plastic 'ice cubes' with platic bugs inside. We filled up a big punch bowl with a mixture of orange juice, orange soda and orange sherbert floating in it. There's a great magazine that comes out weekly, called Woman's World, it's inexpensive and will usually have great party ideas that are simple to make but that even the coolest kids will enjoy, like Peanut Butter and blood (strawberry jam) sandwiches cut into cute bat shapes with a cookie cutter. Bloody fingers, simply a lady finger cookie with one end snapped off and dipped into vanilla icing that's been dyed red with food coloring. We had lots of goodies for them to eat in the way of real food, plue of course a Halloween cake. But the grand finally was a big pinata that was done in a Halloween theme, it had streamers with pom poms on the end. Everyone would grab a streamer and at the count of three pull, causing all of the candy and toys to spill into the floor. The kids have a great time scramling to see who can get what, and there was plenty for even the slowest child there to get plenty. We put thin black fabric ober the lamp shades and covered the windows. Of course we had creep Halloween music. We would have contests for the best costume, the prettiest, the most colorful, etc, so that each child won something. They were just little nickle and dime toys and we made our own ribbons showing which costume they had won. We had a blast, the kids were fed and exhausted so much so afterwards, they were ready to go home and go to bed. Half of them fell asleep in the car on the way home. We did it for at least 6 or 7 years and even as the girls got older, they looked forward to it and always had a great time.

Maybe you could do something on a smaller scale and have each of your children invite one or two of their friends for the party, that way it wouldn't drain you bank account or wear you out for a month.

Hope some of these ideas spark your imagination. Be sure to get the Woman's World Magazine though, it's really got a ton of great ideas.

Cindy

porclndoll · October 23, 2005

EEEWWE I LOVE THIS THREAD~~~ First, My idea for your children....you could do a camp out in your living room, and rent scarey movies...eeeeewwee and share some treats....ice cream sundae night was always a favorite in my house when i was little. Or Cookies or what ever your kids enjoy. You could turn off all the lights, use flashlights or candles, if they are old enough. You could put out tons of pillows and blankets to make the floor more cushie...and everyone can just sleep where ever they fall~ Of course, everyone needs to be in costume too~ You could even get into the act and make up a big b*s story to tell the kids about a long lost relative that use to be a witch ... and stuff a ton of Hershey Miniatures into a wicker box. I have told this story to HIGHSCHOOL students and almost made them pee their pants. Basically in a nut shell, I would pull out little trinkets...a wad of grass with some rubber bands around it served as the base of potions....a tiny thing filled with baby powder was ground bones, use what ever you have, and make a few different things up~ Then say that tonight is the night you have been waiting to summons this long lost relative...Be really still and really quiet...and say ahhhh the moment is here.....the spirit of Aunt Telly is here.....she is showing her self to us in the box........it is time.....do you wanna see...and pick the scarest kid to open the box infront of...and when you do make it FAST AND SCREAM REALLY LOUD~~~ Then once the screaming stops and they look in the box they will find all this candy~~~ eheheheheh TRICK OR TREAT~~~~

When I was little we use to be able to trick or treat on our street first, by ourselves. We lived there for like 20 some odd years and knew everyone. It was a dead end dirt road......Once that was done, we use to go back home and get my mother who would walk us to my grandmothers house, two blocks away......Then we would proceed down town. It was so much fun. I always had such great costumes. My father was sooo creative~ There also use to be a costume contest at the old drive in.....We use to go in and get divided up by our age....and then walk in a circle infront of all the judges... I use to win a lot....Thanks to a creative manic depressive father who use to think of the most outragious things~ Now I know where I get it from~

Now, I work at the Haunted House for the entire month of October, on the weekends only...and then on Trick or Treat night, I take my son out...usually with family. We dont go far or do too much as my son doesn't eat candy...he is disabled and has oral motor issues...but we do it more for the socialization. He loves to run with the kids and see his cousins. Once we are home and he is in bed, I will watch scarey movies and laugh my butt off.....

Road Queen · October 23, 2005

I live in a fairly small town (10,000) so people still bring their kids out. I take the window out of my screen door so I don't have to open it to hand out candy. Then Schnapps, my dalmation, and I wear costumes to hand out candy. This year I have an outfit I bought in Africa. Schnapps always wears her dalmation costume. Because most of the kids are from around here, they all know her and comment on her costume (and pet/kiss her).

My brother used to love Halloween (pre-divorce). He would put the candy, cans of pop, little toys in paper bags, and cans of asparagus and spinach in a big container and cut a hole in the top. The kids got to pick out their treat. As much as they could grab with one hand. For the ones that got spinach, my sister-in-law would run out the side door and exchange the spinach for candy as they walked away.

You might be able to replicate the his grab bag scenario at a party. Make sure one of the first to grab a can gets soda. That will make it more fun for them to guess what they will get.

dylansmom · October 23, 2005

I grew up with the traditional trick or treating too, until our family all became Christians. Then mom and dad starting taking us to Hallelujah night at our church. We could still dress up in fun costumes, go for hay rides, play games, and get the goodies, but the focus was on Christ and having fun with each other.

Now that we have Dylan, we just dress him up in a cute outfit each year, and then take him around to our familie's homes to get pictures. My mom and dad's, his mom's, his aunts, and then both sets of my grandparents as well. It gives us a chance to talk with all of our close and immediate family, as well as to get pictures with them that will last a lifetime. (And a small amount of candy for dad and son too.)

paula · October 24, 2005

Thanks for all the great ideas everyone.

Crystal, Trunk or treat is something where folks decorate the trunks of their car and meet in a parking lot - so the kids Trick or Treat from trunks - instead of door to door.

A really clever idea, just tons of people get involved! TONS.

These are really great suggestions/memories. Please keep'em coming!

vinesqueen · October 24, 2005

I thought it might be something like that... I was thinking of the Boot Sales they have in the UK, and wondered if they were sort of the same sort of thing.

La_madam · October 24, 2005

Some of my fondest childhood memories are on Halloween, maybe this is why it is my favortie day of the year.

My mother always made us grilled cheese sandwiches and homemade chili for dinner before we went out trick or treating...so for the last 15 yrs I have been doing it for my 3 boys....this is just one of my memories as a child and tradition that I keep alive

I'llsucceed · October 24, 2005

Paula-

I have no children BUT my best friend has 3. They are 9 - 6- & 3. For the last 4 years she has thrown a neighborhood only BOO BASH At her home whcih consists of fun games outside to play & pizza- hotdogs & burgers on the grill.

The best part is the neighborhood has a fund that helps pays for everything & she even gets to keep all the decorations for herself - which of course she uses the next year. Its grown bigger every year & the kids are safe & the parents have fun all helping out. It goes from 5 pm till late & there is always great litte prizes & tons of candy.< /p>

Maybe your association has a fund that they could start or maybe you could get a group of neighbors with kids the same age to all chip in. Good Luck.

porclndoll · October 28, 2005

SOOOO What did you deside on doing?? Can't wait to hear! This is such an exciting magical time!!! eeeeeee I think I am more excited than most little kids.

lovecats85 · October 28, 2005

we always had a block party in someones garage and bobbed for apples and played games and everyone got a prize for something costume related ,,, like "cutest princess", "scariest ghost" etc