BOO!

Happy Halloween!!!

This year the list of Halloween activities for kids grew by a mile; there was absolutely no shortage of things to do, places to haunt or spooks to see. The local family website Kidding Around Greenville gives a good idea of the options with their 2014 Ultimate Halloween List – crazy, right?

We opted to go back to Greenville Zoo for yet another year of Boo in the Zoo. Once again, remember to buy your tickets beforehand in order to use the “fast lane” to get in and go the first week if possible; this is helpful in avoiding the lines. The night we went we would have done well to go later in the evening, as the crowd had thinned out by then.

I like that the treats handed out at the zoo are a balance of treats and trinkets, but be warned that the trinkets aren’t made to last. And I know that Pepsi is a local company, but what kind of message are we sending the kids by handing out cans of Pepsi at the zoo? Luckily Lauris and Mikus understood when we said that the organizers wanted to make sure the adults get a treat…

Next up was Enchanted Tracks, the Greenville County Rec event at The Pavilion. Complete with trick-or-treating in a forest filled with fairy tale creatures, bounce houses and all sorts of games, this was much more crowded than last year and luckily we arrived not long after it opened and were able to avoid the lines for the fairy tale forest. George the Train wasn't running due to required maintenance on the tracks, but he should be back up and running in the next few months. Thank you to Macaroni Kid for the tickets!!!

A local group hosted a fun get-together during the week, with a parade, piñata and plenty of friends to race around with. If we only did one Halloween-themed activity next year, I wish we could come back to this party.

And finally, tonight’s the night! I am forgoing my handing-out-candy duties here at the house this year so that I can join the boys out trick-or-treating. Be on the lookout for the pirate, firefighter and pumpkin, and make sure to save a Reese’s for their mom!

PS The boys requested to see their costumes for the last few years, and I enjoyed seeing how they’ve grown! Here is Halloween 2011 (in France), Halloween 2012 and Halloween 2013.