Family Halloween Party

Tomorrow we are hosting a family Halloween party at our home.  We have invited some of our neighbors, new school friends, and old friends alike.  I always enjoy hosting this event, as our kids love Halloween and given that this is a tricky holiday to maneuver around with a peanut and tree nut allergy, we can have a lot of fun and be safe!!

Our party is late afternoon (after our naps!) and we will be serving some appetizers, desserts, and playing some fun games.  The kids will get to wear their costumes one more time and we will all have a lot of Halloween fun.  I thought I'd run through our party in case you are in need of any ideas for food or games for an upcoming party at school or home.

Our menu is intended to please kids and adults alike, while being easy for me to prepare ahead of time and have little prep work the day of the party.  This is our appetizer list:  crockpot BBQ little smokies, Rotel dip and chips, chips and salsa, veggies and ranch dip, apples and caramel dip, cheese and crackers, and "witch's brew."  Our "witch's brew" will consist of:  Teddy Grahams (bears), marshmallows (ghost poo), Cheese Balls (pumpkin poo), pretzel sticks (skeleton bones) and candy corn (I found some at the Dollar Tree that says "made in a peanut free facility!").  

For our sweet treats, we are serving pumpkin bars (my favorite!), cupcakes with buttercream frosting, and homemade caramel corn.  I'm also going to simmer some apple cider with cinnamon sticks all day.  Yummy!  

We plan to play some games as well.  We've cleaned out our garage so we can have a corn relay.  Very simple supplies:  a few mason jars, a bucket of shelled corn, and spoons.  Whoever fills up the jar first wins!  We are also playing pin the hat on the witch, Halloween bingo, having a scavenger hunt, pumpkin Bozo buckets (with eyeball ping-pong balls!) and ghost tag (my oldest son's idea).  Should be a fun time!  Another idea we are using for my daughter's Halloween party is the mummy wrap:  take strips of cloth or toilet paper and wrap up an adult.  Fun for the kids!  If time allows, we'll make a pumpkin craft as well using a paper plate and cut up tissue paper.

I have a lot of baking to do yet tonight, but I am looking forward to a fun day with friends and making memories with the kiddos.  They always talk about our Halloween parties and look forward to them each year.  Happy times!