Several years ago, hubby and I discussed some different ideas to make some great memories with our kids.  We discussed having some movie nights in the backyard, tournament nights for the latest craze (Pokémon, Age of Mythology, Wii Games, etc.) and a Haunted House Halloween Party.  These have all been successful ways to bring our family closer with fun activities.  We also like to include other neighborhood families and school friends. 

Last weekend, we had our third annual Haunted House Halloween Party. We had over 200 people, including our friends from our elementary school and our neighborhood.  Several years ago, when my hubby mentioned a Halloween Party including a haunted house, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  My hubby and his brother built a 4 room Haunted House in our garage, complete with wooden walls. Hubby worked on a theme, the logistics, getting volunteers to help, etc. I worked on the decorations, games for the younger kids,food and drinks. It has been a big hit in the neighborhood and we decided to try and continue the tradition. 

I thought the Haunted House was pretty scary the first year and we did have several parents tell us their kids slept with them that night.  We were hoping to create a great family memory, but that wasn’t quite what we had in mind! So, the next year, we let families know that the haunted house is definitely not rated “G”.  We told parents if they thought it would help, to bring their kids by during the day to see it in the “daylight”. 

This year, hubby decided to change it up a bit. The typical entrance, became the exit, he had a new theme and he increased the “scare” factor. We had a mad scientist running experiments on the “organs” of his victim.  (Side note – the organs were amazing and looked great. Hubby researched and found our how some are made for movies.) This year, the last room included the butcher (complete with a chain saw) running around. And to top it off, when you were running to the exit, you had 3 doors to choose from.  One was locked, one had a wall behind it and another was the exit. We knew the kids would tell the others what door to use, so occasionally it was switched!  Although I was nervous about how the kids would react, they LOVED it! Most of the kids said it was the BEST one yet!

Every year, I am amazed at my hubbies ability to plan out the haunted house. The work he puts into it is amazing.  I am now wondering, how do you top this one off? I can’t imagine anything scarier… except the thought of next year!

To get an idea, I included my video of the Haunted House and some pictures. Let me know what you think.

And finally a story book that has a few ideas for decorations and costumes. I hope you enjoy it.