Halloween

If you’re looking for something to wear to a Halloween or theme party, you need to find out where the costume shops are located. Sometimes, specialty stores open for holiday seasons and close when the season comes to an end. Halloween costume shops are well-known for that habit. They may open at the end of summer and close at the end of November. After Halloween, most of the costume shops have great deals that you can take advantage of for the following year. A lot of parents will do exactly that for their children.

Some costume shops actually have rentals that are available. If you are heading to a theme party for a special event or reason, you may want to look into renting a costume. A few years back, my husband and I were invited to a murder mystery dinner for his company. Each employee and spouse was assigned a specific character and you were to arrive in costume. Well, we searched high and low at various costume shops to find something appropriate and everything was either too expensive or not what we were hoping to find. Had we purchased the costumes, it would have cost over $100. One of the costume shops we had searched offered to rent us the costumes for half of that cost. We didn’t even hesitate to agree to their offer. Most of the other costume shops that we had visited never even mentioned that choice.

Costume shops aren’t always just for Halloween and parties. Adults who would like to find costumes for other means of activity can have a great deal of luck in their searches. Children who idolize a superhero can find silly and wonderful capes and magic wands that they can use in everyday play. I purchased my daughter purchased a princess outfit as a Christmas gift a few years ago simply because she loved to dress up. Well, the entire outfit with its glittered magic wand was a dream come true for her. For weeks she wanted to wear it everywhere we went. She adored it.

When Spiderman first hit the theaters, my son wanted anything and everything to do with Spiderman. My husband got him an entire outfit for a great price and he too lived in that outfit for weeks. Costume shops are always a good source for finding means of entertaining your children, letting your imagination go wild and stepping into the role of a new character. Don’t be afraid to let your imagination take you to new places. You just may enjoy it.

With the popularity of Halloween growing many families are
starting their own holiday traditions.  I wanted to share
with you a tradition that one of my neighbors started in our
neighborhood a few years ago that I’m sure has been around
for years.  It’s called “Ghosting” and believe me your
children will have a blast doing it!  It usually starts the
first week in October giving plenty of time for the whole
neighborhood to be “ghosted”. Depending on the size of your
neighborhood you can either ghost one family or two. Since
our neighborhood is small, I’m giving you directions for
“ghosting” one house; however just double it if you live in
a neighborhood with many homes.

Here’s what you do:

On a plain white piece of paper (8.5″ x 11″) draw a big
outline of a ghost in black permanent marker. Then fill a
goodie bag or brown paper sack with Halloween treats (candy,
brownies, cookies, etc…). Print the following poem on a
piece of paper and staple it to the picture of your ghost.
Don’t put your name on anything because no one knows who
ghosts who!

<u>You’ve Been Ghosted!</u>

Late last night, we left you a treat, the tradition is fun,
one we hope you’ll repeat.

Take the ghost and pin it on your door, to let others know,
you need ghosted no more.

Now it’s your duty to pass on the surprise, to another
family, we must advise.

Gather some treats and deliver them soon, within two nights,
under the light of the moon.

Include a ghost with each package you give, along with this
poem for the tradition to live.

Deliver the treat bag, poem and ghost after dark to your
target family by putting it on your neighbor’s porch,
ringing the doorbell and running. Don’t get caught! Remember
it’s a surprise and you don’t want them to know who
“ghosted” them. Then they in return “ghost” another family
and so on and so on and so on. Don’t be afraid to be the
first person within your family, friends or neighbors to
start a new yearly tradition. They have to get started
somewhere right? Why not you? In five, ten, even twenty
years down the road when you see someone you love passing
down that same tradition to their loved ones it will all be
worth it.

About the Author

Anna Bradford is an author and blogger for Halloween Express
where you’ll find the absolute largest selection of costume accessories available
anywhere including the latest  Kids Costumes and Teen
Costumes.

It has always been a tradition for every kid to have a scary or
Halloweenish costume, during, of course, Halloween. Trick or
Treat is the way of the children to go from one house to
another asking for candy and other sweet delicacies, and if
they are given none, then the house owners are in for a
“treat”.

However, some do not participate in this tradition anymore.
Why? It is because they have a different kind of Halloween
celebration to prepare for, the Halloween party.

Kids love Halloween parties for various reasons. They love them
for the fun games, the delicious and catchy food, and the scary
decorations that make their hearts jump out of their rib cages.

The games are the ones that they pay attention to the most
because they have fun with the games, and also get benefits, in
the forms of candies and other sweet delights. It seems that the
more scared they get, the more fun and memorable their Halloween
experience is.

Playing the Bean Bag Toss is not appropriate for a Halloween
party; therefore, what is played is the Liver Toss. Just thaw a
beef liver and the goal is to shoot, by tossing, the liver into
a pail.

The How game is quite easy to play. The kids are just supposed
to make as much as words as they can from the word Halloween.
You can also make use of small Jack-o-lanterns that are made of
plastic and have it passed around in teams that have already
been lined up.

The catch is, none of the players are allowed to use his or her
hands, just squeeze it under his or her chin. Get it all the way
from the front to the back first, and then your team wins.

You can also spread lots of candy on a table and have each
child get their share from the pile. However, they must never,
under any circumstances, use their hands. They can use any
other body part and have those sweet temptations placed in
their individual buckets.

This game is called Little Piggies. Draw a Jack-o-lantern, or
if you do not excel in the art department, have someone else do
it for you, and have the Pin The Nose On Jack game. The Mummy
Wrap will take more time compared to the other games.

A team member must be wrapped with white bath tissue from head
to foot, just leaving the eyes uncovered. That mummy must then
run around a post and back to the team and do the same thing to
the next team member. The team who finishes first is declared
the winner.

Always remember that it is not important that your child wins
every game he or she joins in. What is important is that your
child enjoys what he or she is doing, along with other
children.

That is what Halloween is all about. It is about sharing the
essence of Halloween with others, celebrating in joyous fun
with your neighbors, and of course, giving lots and lots of
candies to children who knock on your door.

About The Author: Low Jeremy maintains
http://child-party.articlesforreprint.com.

Halloween is a holiday for kids of all ages. Most people don’t celebrate the dark meaning of the holiday, they simply enjoy dressing up and hanging out with friends. Halloween has always been something that has been enjoyed in my family, if for nothing more than an excuse to try to scare each other. It’s almost become a tradition to see who can scare whom more. My brother once dressed up as Mike Meyers from the Halloween movies and hid in the bushes, scaring the wits out of each person who was unlucky enough to walk by.

When it comes to adult costumes for Halloween you have two options. You can buy something, or you can make something. I don’t believe I have ever bought adult costumes, as I find it much more fun to make something. When you make adult costumes on your own, you can make anything you heart desires, and you can be sure no one else will be wearing the exact same thing. No matter how crafty you are, or if you feel you are all thumbs, you can find ideas for adult costumes that you can make at home.

Many adult costumes you find in stores are older versions of what the children are wearing, with a few exceptions. There are some costumes that are decidedly adult only, and those are usually for women. If you want something unique, don’t go to the store and buy one. Although, if you look online for adult costumes, you may find something that no one else in your area has, and you may be OK. If anything, you can find an outrageous wig or a wild prop to make your costume unique.

For the truly memorable adult costumes, you must make one yourself. If you have something in mind, you can search through thrift stores to find the pieces you need, and go to craft stores for most of the special effects you may be looking for. If you don’t like to sew and glue, go to a store that carries nothing but adult costumes, and mix and match a few different items. If you are fresh out of ideas, look online for something you love, and give it a personal twist. You can also look through your closet for a lost piece of clothing you no longer wear, and think of many different adult costumes you could construct from it. This may be the best way to come up with a unique costume when you’ve run out of ideas.

Not everyone elects to have a traditional wedding. Some love
the fun and excitement of Halloween and want to share their
favorite holiday with others with a marriage ceremony. Just
like those “trick or treaters” that arrive at your door,
your wedding guests also deserve a special treat. Here are 9
ideas for wedding favors that you can present to your guests
when celebrating your Halloween themed wedding.

Trick or Treat Bags

Since it’s Halloween, fill small paper trick or treat bags
with the orange foil covered chocolate pumpkins and other
candies.

Halloween Candles

You can purchase some very interesting molded Halloween
candles in a variety of shapes and sizes (like pumpkins,
ghosts, haunted houses, etc.). Wrap up in orange tulle and
tie with black curly ribbon.

Cauldron of Pumpkins

Fill small, black plastic cauldrons with orange foil-wrapped
chocolate pumpkins.

Pumpkin Jars

If you’re on the crafty side, make candy filled pumpkin
jars. First, you’ll need to collect some baby food jars.
Paint pumpkins around the glass with craft paint. Cover the
top with orange felt and glue two felt leaves to the top.
Add a small piece of dowel, painted light brown, for a stem.
Fill the jar with candies.

Orange Net Favors

Cut 6″ circles of tulle in orange and black colors. Place
either candies or a small votive candle in each circle.
Gather and tie off with the opposite color of ribbon.
(Orange ribbon, black tulle and black ribbon, orange tulle.)

Wizard’s Wand

Buy 1″ diameter dowels and cut into 12″ lengths. Paint
dowels a deep purple. Apply gold stickers in shapes of
stars, moon and sun. Seal with acrylic sealer. Add gold and
purple streamers tied to one end. Attach a favor tag with
your names and wedding date that says: “The power of our
love creates a magical world. Thank you for joining us in
this mystical night.”

Witches Broom

Buy small straw brooms (available in craft stores). Wrap
black and orange ribbon down the handle and tie a black bow
just above the broom. Add some autumn colored silk leaves
and dried flowers tucked in and glued around the bow.

Pumpkin Butter

Purchases small jars of pumpkin butter. It’s like pumpkin
pie in a jar and it’s great on biscuits and crackers.

Miniature Pumpkin Pies

Check with a local baker to see if you could have miniature
pumpkin pies made. Wrap in cellophane and tie with
orange/black ribbons. Simple, unique and delicious!

Rose Smith is the owner of Wedding Themes and More, a
website designed to help you discover and plan your perfect
theme wedding. Planning a Halloween wedding? Then visit our
site at: http://www.wedthemes.com/holiday-weddings.shtml for
more great ideas.

Here is some useful advice on making decorations for Halloween:

With 36.1 million trick-or-treaters visiting homes in 2006,
it comes as no surprise that we all want our homes to look
as “Halloweenish” as possible for the big night.

Here are some simple Halloween decorating ideas that will
make your home look festive but won’t break the bank.

Orange Lights

Change the light bulbs in your outdoor
lanterns or house lights to orange lights. If you can’t
find orange light bulbs, you can purchase inexpensive
Halloween themed string lights (like Christmas lights) and
hang them around your front door.

Make Your Own Luminaries
Place homemade Halloween luminaries
alongside the sidewalk or walkway up to your front door.
You can make easy and inexpensive luminaries with paper
lunch sacks. You can either leave them the original brown
or spray paint them orange.

On each bag, lightly draw in pencil a rough outline of a
pumpkin, ghost or spider. With a sharpened pencil or nail,
poke holes about every inch along the outline of the design.

Fill each bag with approximately 1 �-2 cups of sand. Place
a votive candle in a glass votive holder and securely place
the votive in the sand (or use glow sticks if you’re leaving
your home unattended). Light the votives at dusk on
Halloween night and your home will have a beautiful
Halloween glow.

Make Your Own Scarecrow

Using old slacks, an old flannel
shirt, some hay and a straw hat, you can make your home come
alive with a friendly scarecrow welcoming your
trick-or-treaters. The other supplies you’ll need are twine,
permanent marker, an old pillowcase and an outdoor chair.

Stuff the pants and shirt firmly with hay, leaving some of
the hay sticking out from the bottom of the legs and bottom
of the sleeves. Position the scarecrow’s pants in the chair
and shift the hay so he “sits” comfortably in the chair.

Tie the arms and legs off with twine. Stuff the old
pillowcase with hay. Tie off with twine and position the
pillowcase inside the shirt collar to appear as the “head”
of the scarecrow. Secure the pillowcase to the shirt by
tying off with twine. With the permanent marker, draw a
scarecrow face and place the hat on top.

Make Your Own Pumpkin Family

By painting silly and
whimsical faces on pumpkins, you can create an entire
pumpkin family that can be proudly displayed on bales of hay
on and around your front door.

On paper, sketch your ideas of what kind of face you’d like
to put on your pumpkin. Transfer that design to a cleaned
and dried pumpkin using a non-permanent marker. Paint the
design using craft paints. Seal with a spray glaze or
sealer.

If each member of your family (even the little ones) paints
their own pumpkin design, you’ll have a memorable collection
of painted pumpkin decorations for your home.

About the author

If you’re looking for unique ideas for a costume this year,
why not try a Lindsay Lohan or Michael Vick Halloween
costume? You’ll find lots more fun & unique costume ideas on
the Get In Costume website.

Plus, get a free copy of my special report “The Family Guide
To Halloween Safety” at
http://www.getincostume.com/freereport

Before I became a dog owner, I thought it was silly,unfair, and perhaps a bit inhumane to dress dogs up forHalloween. Since those days, I have become a dog owner andnow realize dogs love to participate in all activities(except a trip to the veterinarian). Participating togetherin Halloween festivities with your favorite furry friend isanother opportunity for you to cherish your time together.

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Halloween is a very fun, exciting holiday. However, it isalso, sadly, one of the most abused holidays of the year.Many things have changed about the holiday, but some havestayed just the way they always were. What has changed hasdone so for the better. What has not changed, however, isall of the ill-intended behavior of certain people whowould ruin your fun without a second thought.

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I searched the net a lot and gathered tons of information abouthow to choose the best Halloween costumes. Most of it was prettyconfusing, so I combined the good pieces of info with my ownideas and I got this amazing list of tips on how to choose themost unique Halloween costumes.

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Many of you may be wondering where my obsession for Halloween comes from. I’ve left a clue for you, but you’ll have to visit Myspace to find it. Go take a look, see if you can spot what I mean.

By the way, “Obsession” - that’s the polite version of the graphic description my wife uses when I take all this too far and her patience snaps. Good to say though that she is very patient with me.

Halloween T Shirt Man

P.S. Have you noticed? Halloween is just a week away tomorrow, scary!