Pandemic Halloween Fun

Fall, is that you I smell in the air? I’m ready for some cooler nights, pumpkin patches, apple cider, and Halloween! Remember when all you had to worry about was whether all your neighbors’ porch lights would be on and making sure no one got sick from too much candy? Thanks to COVID-19, we have more precautions to take when celebrating Halloween this year.

So what does that leave us? Batty, for sure. Have no fear, there’s still plenty of fun to be had.

I believe a big part of holidays with kids are what we make of them. So this year, make lasting memories out of temporary circumstances. There are plenty of ways to have a COVID-conscious Halloween at home!

Pandemic Halloween Fun At-Home

Consider having a (themed) movie night or game night with a “spooky” menu and cookie decorating. I am using this list of easy Halloween foods to inspire my menu. The kids can partake whilst in costume, of course. Don’t forget to turn up the Halloween tunes for a dance party! In the yard, have a glow-in-the dark “egg” hunt for Halloween candy or get a Halloween piñata for your kids to destroy. Your kids could also make and decorate their own piñata as a fun activity! For other artistic ideas, I have seen Halloween paint or craft kits are available at Dollar Tree, Michael’s, Wal-mart, and Target (Bullseye’s Playground). My kids love these. Of course, no Halloween is complete without pumpkin carving or decorating!

Pandemic Halloween Fun in the Neighborhood

To share in the Halloween spirit as a neighborhood, a front porch or front door decorating contest would be fun. What a festive addition to behold on a stroll through the neighborhood! Kids could also color pumpkins and tape them up in the windows for a “Pumpkin Scavenger Hunt.” Remember the birthday parades during quarantine? A Halloween drive-by parade would be a fun way to build community in your neighborhood this fall. For a surprise element, anonymously “Boo” a neighbor by leaving sweets and pumpkin treats at their front door, a fun way to spread holiday cheer in the form of a random act of kindness.

Halloween during a pandemic will inevitably look a bit different, no matter what you do. Just because we need to sanitize, socially distance, mostly stay home, and follow 847,839,423 different rules (OK, maybe not that many!), doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun.

This year, for a frightfully good time, just get creative and make the most of it!