8 Non-Scary Halloween Activities for the Entire Family

1. Make Your Own Costumes

One of the best Halloween activities you can do with your entire family is to make your costumes. Depending on the age of your children, they might be able to help with the design process. I personally have never made my Halloween costume from scratch, but I have thrifted items to create a themed costume. It could be a lot of fun to make your and your children's costumes together.

Look online for a few ideas and get all the supplies you need. Ensure you allot enough time to create the outfit, style it, and get proper measurements. If you and your children don't have any ideas right now, you could try a fairy, a ghost, a pumpkin, a princess, or a singer. Even if your child doesn't have a set-in-stone costume idea, you can craft one together.

2. Bake Your Own Halloween Treats

An activity that is fun for the entire family is baking your Halloween treats. When we think of Halloween, we normally only think of candy. While candy is an all-time favorite of most children, there are many other things we can bake on Halloween. A few ideas include bat brownies, pumpkin cookies, or layered Halloween Jell-O. If any of these ideas are interesting to you, the links are attached below:

• Bat Brownies
• Pumpkin Cookies
• Layered Halloween Jell-O

Your children will love each of these recipes, and even if they are picky eaters, they might be surprised at how much they like these treats if they just try them. It should be noted that none of these recipes require nuts, so if you choose to pass them out to other kids in the neighborhood, it will be safe. Many children have peanut allergies; it is better to be safe than sorry. However, be aware that each of these recipes do include milk, wheat, soy, and gluten.

Related: 10 Fall Recipes for Grandparents and Grandkids to Cook Together

3. Make Goodie Bags to Pass Out

The goodie bags you and your family make to give to kids in the neighborhood can include the treats above, or you could come up with other ideas. You could pass out toys, Halloween bracelets, or pieces of artwork. If you wanted, you could also include a gospel tract in each goodie bag. However, Chick tracts should be avoided because they can cause an improper view of God.

I remember receiving a few Chick tracts in my youth, which were absolutely terrifying. The cartoons were scary, and so was the subject matter. It made me scared of God. I thought He was going to send me to hell. These types of tactics are not helpful to children or adults. If anything, it will cause the person to dislike God, be afraid of Him, or give a child nightmares.

Choose to give out helpful tracts that point kids and adults to the love of God. Fear lasts for a short time, but love lasts forever. Try to remember this when you are picking out tracts for your goodie bag. Most kids would enjoy a message of God's love as they enjoy their treats, special Halloween bracelets, or artwork.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Wholly Owned IS United Kingdom

4. Go Trick-or-Treating

If there was something my mom would do for my siblings and me every year for Halloween, it was to take us trick-or-treating. Even though she tossed most of the candy because it was suspicious, it was still fun to go door-to-door, dressed in costume, and say, "Trick-or-treat!" If you elect to go trick-or-treating with your children, make sure you stay with them. Don't leave them without a watchful eye, and don't let them into any houses.

Stranger danger needs to be taught to your children ahead of time. Unfortunately, there are many predators out in the world today, and Halloween is a common time for these individuals to be out. Rather than allowing your children to go trick-or-treating alone, ensure you or your spouse are with them. This will ensure their safety and give them lasting positive memories of Halloween.

Photo credit: ©GettyImages/Sara Monika

5. Have a Monster Mash Dance Party

Not many kids in this present generation are familiar with monster mashes. My mother used to have a monster mash record she would play and it had a variety of Halloween songs. With our Halloween costumes on, we would dance to the songs and have a fun party. This was what we would normally do if the weather was too bad or someone in the family was sick.

As we got older, we didn't have monster mash dance parties, however, they are perfect for younger children. If you have a mix of younger and older children, still try this idea, but don't force older kids to participate if they don't want to. Older children might think this is embarrassing. If this is true for them, suggest a different type of Halloween party, such as a game or movie night. By asking your older children their thoughts, you might be surprised at the many great ideas they come up with.

6. Watch Kid-Friendly Halloween Movies

Regarding different ideas on our last point, older children might prefer to watch Halloween movies rather than have a monster mash dance party. Even if your older children want to watch scary movies, you need to put your foot down. If scary movies are not allowed in your household, then they are not allowed. Make sure your family knows this ahead of time, as the family will only be watching family-friendly movies.

Scary movies are too terrifying, even for adults. The plots normally center around gore, killing, and scary looking creatures. Rather than watching these types of movies, try to watch a few Halloween movies from Disney. If you are unsure what movies to watch, a few Halloween movies my family and I have always loved include Halloweentown, Casper, and Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie.

7. Host a Family-Friendly Halloween Party

Family-friendly fun can also be found in hosting your own Halloween party. While my family and I never had a corporate Halloween party that included our neighbors, we did have many family-centered Halloween parties. If you want to do the same, that is great, but if you want to include neighbors and friends, that is great, too! See what you and your children would like to do for the Halloween party.

At the Halloween party, there can be music, special treats to eat, and games to play. Research ahead of time a few ideas for games. Even if you didn't want to make any games of your own, you could pull out a few board games. My family and I used to love to play board games and they would keep everyone entertained for hours. If you decide to invite friends or neighbors, make sure everyone takes turns at the game to ensure nobody gets left out.

8. Halloween Crafts

At your Halloween party or even during the days leading up to Halloween, you could make a few Halloween crafts. Halloween crafts are especially fun as many glow in the dark. Even as an adult now, I have already purchased a Halloween craft I want to do with my sister. Therefore, even if you are older, you can still participate in Halloween crafts. The craft I purchased for my sister and me is called "make your own glow-in-the-dark Halloween bracelets." The link to purchase them is below if you want to do this craft.

A few Halloween crafts you and your family could do include making your own pumpkin friend, Halloween balloons, or Halloween themed beaded bracelets. If these look appealing to you and your family, the links are below.

• Pumpkin Friends
• Halloween Balloons
• Halloween Themed Beaded Bracelets

Whatever you choose to do this Halloween, ensure it is family-friendly and fun. Your children will grow up with happy memories if the scary and horror is left out of Halloween. Most scary things for Halloween just are not appropriate for anyone and it is best to keep things whimsical, happy, and light. Happy Halloween!

Have you created any non-spooky traditions of your own? Share on Crosswalk Forums and get even more ideas!

Related Resource: Halloween Candy, Stolen Sleep, and Over-Editing

Want a good laugh? Check out one of our favorite episodes of Talk About That - where Jonnie W. and John Driver ponder Halloween candy bowl etiquette. Plus, a conversation about creativity and how to know when it’s time to stop editing your work. If you find yourself laughing out loud, be sure to subscribe to Talk About That on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!