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It doesn’t have to be Halloween…parties for kids are nightmares. Especially toddlers. Let’s set the stage: your baby is between 18 months and three years old. Old enough to destroy everything in their path, but too young to pay attention for more than two minutes. You want your toddler to participate in fun seasonal activities, but they’re “outing” capacity is about 78 minutes. Therefore, by the time you get to the pumpkin patch, unpack the car, pay, fight over a jacket, and enter within 50 yards of a pumpkin, they’re screaming because there’s no cheese here. I’m here for you mama, with the most fool-proof party plan for throwing the PERFECT Halloween Party for Toddlers.
I’ll show you some simple and budget-friendly party ideas that the under-three set will go crazy for. I purchased almost everything I needed on Amazon, and I’ll be sharing the exact links as we go through each thing. I definitely encourage you to DIY and switch up any instructions I give you, utilizing what you already have in the house. Kids don’t care, parents won’t judge, don’t spend a ton of money to make this happen.
I’m here for you mama, with the most fool-proof party plan for throwing the PERFECT Halloween Party for Toddlers.
First, as with any good party, we’ll start with the food. Feeding kids has changed since I was a kid. With all the special dietary needs/allergens, it can be stressful to prepare foods for picky toddlers that won’t kill off half your invitees. I knew I needed to get creative with my Halloween themed treats, so of course I turned to Pinterest. Here are the toddler snacks I found:
One-Eyed Monsters
I found what might be my new FAVORITE snack idea ever, Halloween or otherwise, at The Healthy Foodie blog. These one-eyed monsters were easy to make, and a huge hit. Even better, they’re healthy, and allergen free. Instead of peanut butter, I used sunflower butter. Low on sugar for the health-conscious mamas, but high on the cute and festive scale.
One trick to remember: buy more apples than you think. The way you have to cut the apples to fit the strawberries, means you actually lose quite a bit of apple–set those pieces aside for later! I opted out of the teeth part, because I ran out of time. I purchased the eyes here, and you can also get girly eyes here. Many grocery stores carry googly eye sprinkles, but it’s a gamble.
Mummy Dogs
So. Easy. And…everyone loves hot dogs. Thaw some puff pastry, cut into small strips, wrap around hotdogs, then bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown. These went FAST. ‘Nuff said.
Toxic Slime Oreos
Yes, this is a LOT of sugar to give a toddler, but ya know what? They’re cute. And, it’s a Halloween party for toddlers. Toddlers love sugar. Let ’em live a little. Almost every kid pitched a fit when they weren’t allowed to have 3rds and 4ths…so you know it was successful. They couldn’t be any easier to make, and you don’t have to put them on sucker sticks like I did. I happened to have some laying around. #foodbloggerproblems
Banana Ghosts
When I saw these cute little banana ghosts from Flo & Grace, I knew they would be another great addition to the Halloween party menu. Most kids love bananas, plus, they’re easy for little fingers to hold onto, and relatively clean. (I’d much rather clean banana off of my couch than say, strawberry!) These are the easiest of the treats I made, but I did make the mistake I made was trying to use regular sized chocolate chips. I was attempting to use what I had, but they would have turned out better if I’d used the mini’s.
Next, come the activities. Toddlers have literally the tiniest attention spans, but I came up with some games to match. I DIY-ed all of these games, using things like boxes, table cloths, crepe paper, tape, and card stock paper. Get creative and make yours however you want!
Catch the Ghosts
If there’s anything a toddler loves, it’s putting things into containers, and taking them out. They also love balloons. I combined the best of both worlds by buying ghost balloons, and covering a big amazon box in a white table cloth, to play the game “Catch the Ghosts.” These cute kiddos immediately got the gist of the game and were scrambling for balloons.
Feed the Spider
Ok I saved the best for last, because this game was HILARIOUS. I honestly didn’t think they would understand, or care, and at first it seemed that they didn’t. Then, one by one, they all became obsessed with feeding the spider. It was the cutest thing to watch their reactions. Especially that funny toddler focus where they can’t be pulled away.
I made my spider out of cardstock, taped to a black trashcan. For the legs I ordered this thick, puffy pipe cleaner and attached them with hot glue. You could make a spider out of the side of a big cardboard box, or posterboard. You just need an obvious hole for the bugs to go in. I picked up some cheap plastic bugs on Amazon, and they doubled as party favors!
Witches Brew
I got some flack for this one, but the kids had way more fun than I anticipated, so I stand by it. “Witches Brew” could also be adapted for older kids. The way I did it kept everyone relatively clean, and far away from the vinegar. It was so simple: plastic cauldrons from amazon with a couple tablespoons of baking soda inside each. Bottles full of 2 parts water, 1 part vinegar, and green food coloring. I put the cauldrons in an over-sized plastic bucket, and let the kids go crazy spraying the water bottles.
Cookie Decorating
Ok, so this is also a snack, but it doubles as an activity. Additionally, it kept everyone busy for a solid 20 minutes, if not more. If I was to do it all again, I would get more sprinkles, since those were the crowd favorite. To reduce mess-stress, I taped down a black washable table cloth for the kids to just go wild on. I chose to do a skull cookie cut out, and white frosting–because it’s a skull, and because it’s clean! Here are the sprinkles I used.
And that is how you host a Halloween Party for Toddlers. Most importantly? Let it all go, and let the kids have fun. Don’t stress about timelines or tantrums…it’s simply what kids do.
If you’re a fiend for throwing parties, check out my wedding ideas, or my bougie bridal shower on a budget. Happy to have you here, as always, if you use any of my ideas, I would LOVE to see! Tag me on Insta @thechicgourmay.
