By now you’ve probably figured out that I LOVE holidays. The decorations, the seasonal treats, the themed music and outfits, and of course the fun traditions—it all makes my heart beat just a little faster and puts a smile on my face. Even before Charleston made us a family of three, I would rope Luke into joining me in the requisite traditions of dying eggs at Easter and carving pumpkins at Halloween. (He’s lucky I didn’t make him put cookies out for Santa on Christmas Eve; even I have my limits.) Now that we have a little one to join in on these activities, they are even more fun. Though Charlie is still quite young, I love that we are building traditions and memories around these special days.

With Halloween coming up, I’ve been looking into some unique new ways to celebrate the holiday. Of course we will dress up, carve pumpkins, roast pumpkin seeds, and go trick-or-treating. But I’d love to add some other themed activities to our celebrations. There are countless creative Halloween ideas on Pinterest; here are five that I think would be fun to do with Charlie—some now, and some in future years when he’s a bit older.

1. Mummy Bowling

This game is so easy to make, yet I know any young child would love it. It could easily be modified to fit other holidays, too. (I’m thinking “snowman bowling” or “pilgrim bowling” though I do think mummies are the most fun.)

2. Spider Learning and Fine Motor Table

I love this one! Charlie has been starting to show interest in bugs, so I know he would like playing with the spiders. The idea of using kitchen tongs to transfer the spiders from table to web makes my inner teacher downright giddy.

3. Halloween Treasure Hunt

I’m saving this idea for when Charlie is a little older. I know I loved treasure hunts as a kid—in fact, I still love them—so I’m excited to do something like this one day.

4. Halloween Gingerbread House

A Halloween gingerbread house would be a great way to put some of that extra Trick-or-Treating candy to use. Though gingerbread houses are usually reserved for Christmas time, I really like the idea of doing it around Halloween instead, since there are so many other traditions vying for time in December.

5. Halloween Sensory Bin

We haven’t done any sensory bins with Charlie, but I’m sure he would love this one. I’ll just need to keep a VERY close eye on him to keep those popcorn kernels from finding their way into his mouth!

In my search for fun Halloween activities, I came across a few great Halloween Bucket lists. This one is my favorite:

We’ve already checked off quite a few of these items this month, and I’m sure we will be doing more! How do you celebrate Halloween with your family? Do you tend to celebrate with the same annual traditions, or do you do something new each year?