Halloween is less than a week away! I’m even more excited than usual this year because this is Jack’s first Halloween. Although at 6 months old, I’m pretty sure that means we will dress him up around 4:00, take an unreasonable amount of pictures and plaster them all over Facebook and Instagram, then put him to bed right around the time we’ll be expecting trick-or-treaters.
I’ve always bought the candy I love to eat, because otherwise all that’s left over is banana flavored Laffy Taffy. So gross. I typically buy anything and everything that combines peanut butter and chocolate.
While I love my Reese’s, I’m super sympathetic to those kids with allergies. I recently found out about the Teal Pumpkin Project. Kids with peanut and other food allergies have a hard time trick-or-treating because they can’t eat a lot of the things that are passed out. The Teal Pumpkin Project is a way to be more inclusive of children with food allergies. By painting one of your pumpkins teal or hanging one of these printable signs, you are signaling to parents and children that you have non-food treats available. I ordered some glow sticks off Amazon to give out as my non-food item. Kids love glow sticks! This will be my first year participating in the Teal Pumpkin Project and I’m looking forward to it.
In addition to my teal pumpkin I’ll be putting out a few jack-o-lanterns. I’ve always loved carving pumpkins and it’s been a tradition that we carve them the night before Halloween so they stay nice and fresh. I usually spend way too long choosing which template to use. I like to use easy templates that don’t require intricate carving because they tend to come out better. This year I’ve been looking for pumpkin stencils that the little kids will like. Here are some that I’m considering:
Spooky Black Cat
I used this stencil last year and it turned out really well. I skipped the eyes and just stuck to the silhouette of the cat. It was a snap to carve!
Cute Ghost
This little ghost looks like the perfect stencil for the littlest carvers. I love that it’s merry, not scary 🙂
Linus and the Great Pumpkin
When I see “It’s the great pumpkin, Charlie Brown” it takes me back to Halloween as a kid.
Minion
My little Jack loves his Minions so this one is for him! This is the easiest minion stencil I came across.
Cookie Monster
Did somebody say “coo-kies”?
Your dog
Last year I carved a pumpkin of my dog without a stencil. These would have been really helpful!
Elmo
This is a cute Elmo and it looks easy!
Thomas the Train
Little trick-or-treaters will love Thomas the Train!
Vampire Mickey
This stencil is more advanced, but it’s really cute!
Have a Happy Halloween!