Halloween plans were up in the air this year due to COVID overshadowing everything. Events were still being cancelled and the CDC was advising against parties and trick-or-treating. But we decided not to let that ruin the fun and suited up to wander about the neighborhood.

I went all-out dressing up since I didn’t get to attend any parties or events! I was inspired by Maleficent and put together an outfit with pieces I already had. I did make one new thing- a magic staff out of a tree branch I found in the park. I removed the bark, stained it, then connected a big Christmas ornament to the top. The top piece unscrews so I can stick glow sticks inside! My son decided to keep things a little more simple with a Miles Morales Spider-Man suit.

Trick-or-Treating COVID Style

While there was definitely a smaller amount of people handing out candy, there was a lot of creativity in candy delivery methods for those that participated. It actually made things a lot more fun for the kids because each house was like a carnival game. I think this pandemic may have introduced some new things to Halloween that may stick around!

There were a of “candy chutes” where people hung out on their balconies and delivered the candy directly into baskets by way of a PVC pipe or tube. There were also baskets that were lowered from balconies, and even people with fishing poles casting out baggies of candy.

A Socially Distant Halloween

The streets were busy with small groups running house to house, but everyone did a good job of not cramming together. We did run into one overly-packed street party and cautiously steered clear. Many people chose to avoid contact altogether and just set out a table with individually bagged candy.

Overall it was a lot of fun, everyone had a blast and the kids came home with overflowing buckets of candy. So while we were cautious about going out, we didn’t let COVID stop us from enjoying my favorite holiday!