Planning the Perfect Halloween Party (Part Two)

So in the first planning the perfect Halloween party post, I shared four core recipes. As promised, I will share a few more suggestions, popular costumes, party games, and DIY decorations.

RECIPES

Dirt n’ Worms. Fill clear plastic cups halfway with chocolate pudding. Top with crushed Oreos (for dirt) and then top with gummy worms. Kids will love this!

Halloween Pizzas. Use Halloween theme cookie cutters to create mini pizzas. Buy ready made pizza dough and roll out and cut the same as cookies. Add desired toppings. Cheap, easy, and fun!

Or, just buy cheese Bagel Bites and top with black olives to create spiders.

Ghost Cookies. Dip Nabisco Nutter Butter cookies in white chocolate to create instant ghosts. Use chocolate morsels or sprinkles to create eyes. Look great and taste even better!

BEVERAGES

What to serve? It depends on the age group and your personal preference. You can make a simple party punch or serve soft drinks and bottled water, or have alcoholic beverages. Google ‘Halloween cocktails’ for an endless list of seasonal suggestions. More ideas: mulled cider, pumpkin ale, wine, and hot cocoa.

POPULAR COSTUMES FOR 2019

Deadpool, Tomb Raider, The Incredibles (so cute for families), Batman & Batgirl (for couples), Wonder Woman, Pennywise, Eleven from Stranger Things, Donald Trump, White Walker from Game of Thrones, Harley Quinn, mermaid, Poison Ivy, anything from the 1980s (like Heathers or Madonna), Disney’s Descendants, Belle from Beauty & the Beast, and anything Star Wars and Avengers. The fun thing about Halloween is that anything goes so dress any way you like.

GAMES

Pumpkin Scavenger Hunt. Hide various sized pumpkins around your house and yard or nearby. Reveal instructions on a handout sheet, such as specific instructions (such as do not let the dog out or trespass in a neighbor’s yard), how many pumpkins they need to collect, clues, and time limit. Each pumpkin hidden should have a number printed on the bottom of it. This can be a fun game for all ages. Don’t forget a cool prize! Note: You can hide wrapped candy or other small items instead of pumpkins, just be sure to mark all scavenger items and give clues accordingly.

Candy Corn Jar. Place a tissue box (already has a slit in it) next to it and ask participants to put their best guess as to how many candy corn candies are in the jar in the tissue box. Announce the winner sometime during the party and present the prize.

Mummy Wrap. Break out a few rolls of toilet paper and assemble as many teams as desired. Whoever can fully wrap their teammate from head to toe first wins. The catch? The “mummy” is dead, which means he is lying “dead” on the floor, so he cannot move or otherwise help his team mate wrap him up. Note: Can use gauze instead of toilet paper.

Charades with Halloween and Horror movies and starring characters, such as Psycho, Michael Myers, Goosebumps, and the Great Pumpkin.

Scary movie. Keep it low key and forget about games. Have a few horror movies on hand, dim the lights, and get ready for a night of fright! I suggest staying away from hardcore horror movies, such as Saw and Cannibal Holocaust. Think slasher flicks and classics like Psycho, Ghostbusters, and Scream.

DECORATIONS

It is cheaper and easier than you think to decorate for Halloween. Go to the nearest dollar store and stock up on tombstones, spiderwebs for bushes, ghosts to hang in trees, ghostly doormat, plastic body parts (scatter in yard or create a cemetery), giant spiders, bats, signs and banners, etc.

The dollar store also sells Halloween helium balloons. Buy three or four and place on mailbox, porch railing, chandelier, and serving table. Buy a Halloween theme tablecloth, napkins, plates, cups, and utensils.

Churches often have pumpkin patches during October. Work out a good price and stock up on different sized pumpkins and gourds. Scatter these around your house, deck, patio, serving table, and porch.

Make luminaries for your sidewalk/walkway and buy or borrow a few lanterns for your porch and/or deck. You can use camping lanterns, hurricane lanterns, or plastic Halloween theme lanterns.

The dollar store, Lowes, Home Depot, Amazon, and most discount stores sell colored light bulbs. Buy a few and place inside lamps and chandeliers (even in the bathroom) to create a spooky fun effect!

Strategically place tea candles in Halloween candle holders (available at the dollar store) or use battery-operated tea candles if you prefer.

Optional: Invest in one or two “big ticket” items you will have as a decoration for many years to come, such as a large skeleton, mummy, coffin, or yard inflatable.