Trick or Treating Alternatives

Trick or Treating is an extremely popular way to celebrate Halloween. On October 31, ghosts and ghouls of all ages and sizes roam the night collecting candy and treats from willing givers. For many young children, Halloween trick or treating is a highlight of the entire year.

For more and more families, trick or treating has become an increasingly undesirable option. Safety concerns, religious objections, and weather worries are among the most commonly sited reasons to forgo trick or treating.

There is another group of people who would like to fully celebrate Halloween but do not have children to take trick or treating. Whether your children are too grown up for trick or treating or you simply don't have children, you must realize that trick or treating is not the only way to celebrate Halloween. With a little creativity and planning, you can enjoy a spectacular Halloween night!

I have listed 2 great alternatives to trick or treating below. I have personally participated in these events and recommend them to anyone seeking to have a good time without trick or treating.

Host a pumpkin carving party.

A few years ago my next door neighbors deciding to host a pumpkin carving party. My family and I had so much fun that we decided to host a party of our own the very next year.

Your pumpkin carving party can be as small or as large as you would like. You should consider your guests. Parties that include a lot of children will be much different than parties that do include children!

You should start the excitement by sending out party invitations. Your invitations can be bought or hand crafted. If you have children, it is always a great idea to include them in the invitation making process. Let them express their creativity and excitement for the event .

You will need to decide whether you will be providing the pumpkins for carving or, if you will require your guests to bring their own pumpkins. If you will be providing the pumpkins, you should be sure to purchase enough pumpkins for everyone to be able to participate. The pumpkins can be arranged on your porch for easy access. Guests will choose which pumpkins they would like to carve. Be creative! Pumpkins come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. At our party, we had guests draw numbers to determine pumpkin selection. This made the event a little more exciting. If your guests are to bring pumpkins, you might suggest that they prepare the pumpkins prior to the party. the choice is totally yours.

Patterns are great to have when carving pumpkins. There are many places where patterns can be purchased. Grocery stores and mass merchandisers often sell pumpkin carving patterns with included carving supplies. The packets usually contain several types of patterns and feature carving tools that are easy to use. There are also free pumpkin carving templates available for downloading on the internet. One of my favorite sites is www.pumpkinmasters.com If choose not to use patterns have fun and good luck!

Be sure to designate a pumpkin carving area. This area should be covered with vinyl or newspapers. You may want to consider carving the pumpkins outside to prevent mishaps. Never use your garbage disposal to get rid of pumpkin waste. I know from experience that pumpkin strings can clog your system!

It is always fun to judge the pumpkins after they are carved. Why not make a game of it? You could pick several categories such as "Best Carved", "Most Creative", or even "Craziest Looking". remember to be creative and involve the younger party members as much as possible. You may want to provide awards for category winners.

Host a Halloween movie night.

With countless scary movies being produced each year, you should have no problems selecting movies for a thrilling movie night. When planning a Halloween movie night, it is very important that the movie selections will be appropriate for your desired guest list.

Halloween thrillers come in many forms. There are movies for people of all tastes. Sometimes the selection can be overwhelming! You may want to ask your guests to bring a selection or two. This is great because it takes some of the strain of pleasing the entire crowd with your selections.

If young children re to be in attendance, classics like "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" and modern favorites such as "SpongeBob SquarePants Halloween" are sure to please." For those movie goers who are not fans of blood and gore, try watching parodies such as "Scary Movie". If you are having a large number of guests who can't agree , you may want to consider setting up several viewing areas.

If you need more movie ideas and suggestions, try visiting local movie rental stores. The sales people will be able to advise you of in stock hits.

Pop some popcorn, bring out the drinks, and turn out the lights! Enjoy your movies.