Family Fun: Celebrating Halloween in Your Neighborhood

by Cyn Gagen on October 2nd, 2018 | 9 Comments »

Fall brings with it so many fun holidays and when my daughter was little, we loved to celebrate them all. During each holiday, I always tried to find an activity we can do together that would focus on giving to others. This Halloween, "boo-ing" our neighbors was just the ticket.

How To "Boo" Your Neighbors

The idea behind "boo-ing" your neighbors is that you give a container of Halloween goodies to a neighbor. You can try to get a chain reaction going to spread the fun throughout the neighborhood. We begin by choosing just the right container in which to deliver our goodies to them. Sometimes we have an afternoon of crafting and make our own out of an old coffee can, ice cream bucket, or something similar. Other times we head to the dollar store and see what they to have offer.

Next came choosing the fillers for our container. We stayed away from any kind of homemade treats to eat. After all, we were delivering these anonymously and some might be wary of eating food without having any idea who made it. The items we included ranged from bags of candy to Halloween decorations to the supplies to make their own candy or caramel apples or even fun Halloween cupcakes. If you know the neighbor you'll be "boo-ing", you can even think out of the box and include more personalized items — perhaps something like a Halloween recipe or crafting magazine or storybook if you know those would be well received.

There are some important items you need to include beginning with a note or poem that lets your neighbor know that they've just been "boo-ed" and giving instructions on what to do next.

Here's the poem we wrote:

YOU'VE BEEN BOO-ED!
To our dear neighbors on our street,
We'd like to give you a special treat!
You've been boo-ed but who's the culprit?
We'll never tell; it's a secret!
Now refill the basket; send it on its way,
To give another neighbor a happy day!

In addition, you need to give them a "We've been boo-ed" sign to put on their front door so they don't get boo-ed multiple times. The note and sign can be something you make up on your own. Or, now that this tradition has gained popularity, you can find many websites where there are pre-made poems and signs for you to simply download and print. Not only is boo-ing your neighbors a great way to spread some neighborly love, it's tons of fun to do with your family! Happy boo-ing!

How do you celebrate Halloween with your neighbors? What is your favorite Halloween neighborhood tradition?

Before becoming a full-time blogger, Cyn Gagen was a classroom teacher working with children from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 9. Although born in Ohio, she now shares her life with her daughter who is a music/English major in university (and headed towards teaching herself), a German Shepherd who thinks she's a lap dog, and 2 crazy cats in London, Ontario, Canada. Cyn celebrates her love of finding creativity, joy, and fun in every day life on her blog Creative Cynchronicity through posts on crafting, cooking, parenting, family fun, home/DIY, product reviews, and more. She is the social media coordinator for Charity Wings, a non-profit organization that brings crafters together to raise money for worthy causes. You can also find Cyn on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Pinterest.