[justmeTammy]

The last 2 years we have held a "harvest party" at halloween time. We invite a few of our kids best friends'families- and the whole famiy is expected to show up in the spirit! It has been so much fun! There are kids and adults of nearly every age. We have only a couple rules: every family brings 2 bags of candy (or 1 bag and a refreshment), no scary costumes at all since there are many little ones that would not understand, and everyone plays at least one game... the kids have to play them all.
I'll tell you below how we've done it in the past, but first: here is my question: What other themes would be good for a party like this? ...themes so the costumes and decorations have a connection. OR~~~Do you think that a party like this is best not to have a theme at all?? What theme parties have you gone to that you loved...or hated?? Please share why you felt that way! We have been debating the pros & cons of doing a theme this year, and we'd love to have your opinions and ideas!! Do you have game ideas to share?? We could use them too!

The first year we had the children come dressed as whatever they wanted with the exception of scary costumes. Last year we tried a harvest theme- all garden related costumes. It turned out great! We had farmers, all kinds of veggies and animals. Even though some people dressed as the "same thing" the kids loved it because no 2 costumes were alike. There were all kinds of dress up: store bought, home-made, kid-made. We even had a dress up box by the door for the few kids and adults that didn't come with something, or wanted to look for accessories. The dress up box has been there every year with rave reviews.
Decorating was a snap with a theme, too. I took some time to look up little known facts about the origins of halloween, harvest time, and facts about the treats we usually give out. I put the things I found on decorations the item...for example: on the tag of a giant (foil-covered cardboard) hershey kiss was written how many hershey kiss bags are sold in October. Pumpkin cut-outs were hung from the celing with a face on one side, and the other side told when the tradition began. Other things like this were all over the house. It looked cute and the adults who detest active games still were amused by each decoration they came across. Plus the kids thought it was really cool to know how many pounds of tootsie rolls were consumed on Halloween night in the US!
We play lots of games. Generally I do a search online every year to come up with new games that are in-door/out-door friendly. (We live in Northern NY and you never know how the weather will be on Halloween.) While we do have some favorites that we love to re-use, it would be boring if all games were the same year to year. For our afternoon of fun active group games are key! Even grown ups can get into a game when food is involved- LOL We try to stear away from tons of games that are "one player" but we always work in the old favorite of bobbing for apples. We time the kids, and the lowest time wins a giant tootsie roll or something like that.
For the candy extravaganza~~~~All the candy that is brought in is put into grab-bags equally, and leftovers are put in dishes to munch on through the night. If any dish is not empty when it's time to go home then its goodies get added to the kids stash for home. Also, I get extra treats to give as prizes for the games so the kids feel like there's a reward for friendly competition. Using these guides, everyone usually goes home with at least as much candy as their family brought and all kids get about the same amount of treats.
I thought I'd share what worked for us in the past, and see if you'd share what worked for you. What parties have you liked the best? What are your thoughts on trick-or-treating these days? Should parties be at night as an alternative to trick-or-treating, or during the day in addition to trick-or-treating? Also, if you want game ideas email me! I've got lots that we've tried before- just always looking for new ones to mix it up.