Halloween is one of my favorite times of year! I love the fall colors, the crisp air and all the Halloween decorations I see in people’s homes and yards. The creative pumpkin carvings are fun to check out on those evening walks and the treats you get at Halloween parties are spooky and delicious. Since these are some of my favorites, I thought I’d share some tips on how to make your house, pumpkins and party treats super-special this year!

Decorating your home for Halloween is easier than you think! It doesn’t take lots of little Halloween-y knick-knacks like you see at the store. (Although they ARE cute, and we will talk about them too.) You can find a pretty bowl, and send the kids into the yard to find some beautiful leaves to fill it up. I like to cut out lots of pumpkin shapes and then give them to my boys to color the different faces on. Taping those to the windows in front of your house makes for a great look! For some easy and fun to make ghosts, find some round-ish pinecones (or balloons or Styrofoam balls), toss over some white material, gather it at the bottom with a string and draw on a face. They are great for hanging from light fixtures or ceiling fan strings. Black pipe cleaners can be bent into creepy-crawly spiders for some fun additions to a mirror or lampshade.

For those who like to buy the accessories you see at all the stores, pick a theme and run with it! My Mom collects light-up haunted houses. They’re almost like a spooky version of the winter villages you see around the holidays. I love all the little wooden jack-o-lanterns, witches and ghosts! They’re a bit sturdier, so the little hands that like to touch them often can’t break them as easily. Stuffed witches, cats and scarecrows are also great for sitting on shelves or chairs around your room.

If you’d like to find out about even more fun decorating ideas, check out these sites:

Kids Domain: Halloween Crafts
Better Homes and Garden: Halloween Decorations
Family Fun: Fun Halloween Craft Ideas for Kids of All Ages


Of course, no house would be complete without a great jack-o-lantern on your front steps. These can be funny, scary, silly or just plain beautiful. You can carve them, paint them or even put Mr. Potato-Head-like accessories in them. One of my favorites as a child was our silly pumpkin. We’d give it crossed eyes and a big red tongue sticking out its mouth. We’d make that out of a red bell pepper and it was always a hit with the Trick or Treat crowd! The little pumpkins you find at the grocery store in the bag of 5 are great for little kids. They can be decorated with magic markers and placed up and down your sidewalk. They’re fun for everyone!

If you’re going to carve your pumpkin, I highly recommend going outside in the backyard to do it. Spread out some newspapers and dig in. Don’t worry about the mess, the squirrels will eat any stray seeds. They’ll love it! When picking your pumpkin from the patch or store, make sure you can envision where the face will go. That will help you choose the best one for your design. I always like to sketch the design on the pumpkin before cutting. That way I’m sure all the holes will be lined up correctly. This is a good idea for painted faces too!

While cleaning out the inside of the pumpkin isn’t the most appetizing task, the seeds inside actually ARE quite tasty. Toasted Pumpkin Seeds are a great treat for the family during the fall months. Why not make use of the ones you’ll have while carving your own creations? They’re healthy, yummy and fun to make.

For even more fun pumpkin decorating ideas, check out these sites:

Swan’s Pumpkin Farm: Carving a Jack O'Lantern
Pumpkin Carving 101
Walt's Pumpkin Carving Secrets
Better Homes and Gardens: Boo-tifully Decorated Pumpkins
Family Fun: Painted Pumpkins

Last, but certainly not least, the Halloween party! There is nothing more fun than coming up with the most unique theme and menu for your spooky bash. You can have something as simple as a costume party with regular snacks or a full-blown haunted mansion theme with spooky food. Everything from finger food—designed to look like REAL fingers—and Jell-O with gummy worms, peeled-grape "eyeballs" and other creepy-crawlies. Let your imagination run wild and see what ghoulish treats you can come up with. How about handing out rolled-up invitations with spider rings wrapped around them? That would be a creative, but inexpensive, way to set the theme of your party. You could then have lots of spiders involved in the decorations and food to incorporate it all. If something less creepy is more your style, how about a fall nature party? You can have your guests come dressed as their favorite part of the fall nature scene. Someone could be a big bag of leaves, someone could be a beautiful flower and another person could be a bale of hay. Then you can serve lots of nature-themed food and have fall decorations all over. Be creative and come up with something you would enjoy most. No matter what theme you choose, the party is sure to be a hit as long as your friends are there.

For some help, you can check out these sites with great Halloween food and party theme ideas:

KitchenLink.com: Halloween Recipes
Kids Domain: Revolting Recipes
KidsKuisine.com
Fun Halloween Party Ideas
Better Homes and Garden: Halloween Party Ideas

Halloween is such a fun time, and we hope you are able to make the most of it this year. Always remember to be safe, but don’t forget to have fun, too!

Julie is a wife and the mother of two boys. She is looking forward to having a great time this fall and enjoying the Halloween scene to the fullest!