We’re here to tell you that Halloween 2020 isn’t canceled! It’ll be different, yes, but it doesn’t have to be a bore. If your city is in full-on restriction mode, or your family is opting to be extra careful and won’t be partaking in traditional Halloween parties or trick-or-treating this year, we’ve got plenty of alternative ideas for you.

• Easter has egg and candy hunts, why not add this tradition to Halloween?! In lieu of trick-or-treating, hide Halloween candy around your home (and porch or front/back yard if the weather allows) for your kids to find.
• On a larger scale, you could coordinate with some of your neighbors to do a candy scavenger hunt in your neighborhood! Hide candy at different locations in your area, all individually wrapped or in small gift bags for the kids to find. If you’re feeling extra ambitious, you could even create clues that lead them to each hiding place.
• Carving pumpkins with your family (or with your “quaranteam”) is definitely quarantine-friendly. This is also an activity that can be done while keeping physical distance, made especially easy if you have a porch or a back deck, and if the weather cooperates. For an added bit of fun, throw in a twist to your pumpkin carving: have a collection of template options for each part of the jack-o-lantern face – the eyes, nose, and mouth. The zanier and more mix-matched the better! Number the designs, then have the kids roll a dice to determine which design they have to carve for each part. They could end up with eyes that are from a heart eye emoji face, a pig nose, and a skeleton mouth! You could have add-ons they roll for as well, such as devil horns or cat whiskers. 
• This might be an obvious one, but it’s certainly a way to turn lemons into lemonade: have your kids decorate their face masks to make fun or scary Halloween-themed or costume masks! Here’s a tutorial for a Jack-O’-Lantern mask and a mummy mask, to get you started. Other ideas include decorating masks with spider webs and creepy crawly things, or drawing or painting a mouth that pairs with your costume, like a witch or pirate mouth. 
• Some alternative ways to trick-or-treat this year: create individual grab and go bags for friends to come by and pick up, so that you all can maintain physical distancing. Another idea you might’ve heard about that has gained popularity is “Yeet the Treat”! Plan a small number of houses that you and your kids drive to, with individually wrapped candy in tow, or little bags of Halloween candy. When you get close to one of the houses, roll down the window and throw your candy gift bags onto their lawn or driveway, for your friends’ kids to go out and collect. Of course, make sure to warn your friends before doing this, so they know to expect projectile candy! 

Last but not least, there’s always costume parties via Zoom, Halloween movie marathons at home, and plenty of fun Halloween cooking and baking ideas, like Chef Laura’s Jack-O’-Lantern Hand Pies, or Caramel Apple Pizza. However you choose to celebrate, we wish you and yours a safe and fun Spooky Season, filled with fond family memories.