Mrs. Peasant's Spooktactular Halloween

Unknown French Master: Allegory of the Vanity of Earthly Things 1630

Tempus Fugit, Memento Mori

Time Flies, Remember Death

It's officially October. I am so excited to share our simple Halloween plans. I use the Fly Lady holiday planner (see page 9) to help me plan for each holiday. I try to keep our traditions super easy. Here are our Halloween must haves. 

 1. TREATS

Since Mr. Peasant is plant based, we don't eat a lot of regular candy. I am making rice crispy treats with Dandie vegan marshmallows, and this vegan peanut butter cups recipe which tastes exactly like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. I didn't use the coconut oil and just froze them. 

Used a Dayquil cup to cut the rolled out peanut butter mixture into circles.

I just spread the chocolate on one side and then kept them in the freezer.

2. DECORATIONS

I use a capsule style decorating philosophy. I use items that are easy to put up, easy to take down, easy to store, and extra happy. Our decorations total 15 items, and they can fit into a shoe box. I also have three pumpkins wrapped in grocery bags. It only took me 5 minutes to decorate for Halloween. Here are our minimal Halloween decorations. I think the mantel is bursting with joy. 

Halloween Capsule Decorations. Only 15 items but big impact.

Mantel before decorations. 

I use a thrift store polyester curtain that I cut into a mantle scarf and doilies

Topped the lace runner with a plaid scarf. Halloween decor up in 5 mins.

3. THINGS TO DO/ THINGS TO WATCH

We will be watching spooky movies on the four Friday nights in October. 

--Ghostbusters 1 and 2. 

--The Batman Animated TV Series ( a few episodes each Friday). 

We always watch the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown Special on Halloween night.

Here are some of my favorite spooky movie suggestions and links to the most terrifying radio episodes I've ever heard. (Perfect to listen to in bed with the lights off. If you dare!)

👻👻👻 SCARIEST TRUE STORY RADIO SHOWS 

Woman dies and goes to hell

Exorcist Priest Malachi Martin

Bob Cranmer's Haunted House

🎃🎃🎃 MY FAVORITE SPOOKY MOVIES

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Coraline

The Haunted (The true story of a Catholic family in a demon possessed house) 

Garfield's Halloween Adventure

Return to Oz 

Unico In the Island of Magic 1983

4. NEW TRADITIONS YOU MAY LIKE TO TRY

--For a fun Halloween night dinner, I bought a box of vegan corn dogs on sale.  

--I want to try a new chili recipe. This one is a copy cat recipe from The Natures Table Restaurant in the mall food court. Do you remember that place in the 90s? This one is a Cincinnati Style Chili with chocolate in it. I'll put all the ingredients on a Halloween grocery shopping list. 

--Create a prayer plan. As a Catholic, Halloween will always be the eve of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. I like to remember our loved ones throughout October. I write a list of relatives and friends that have passed, so we can offer up our nightly rosaries for them throughout the month of October. 

5. THINGS THAT YOUR FAMILY DOESN'T LIKE TO DO. (It is better to know now and be able to discuss it than to suffer and everyone be miserable.)

We decided last year to stop handing out candy after the third small child fell on our property. The parents were not watching them, and they ran across our sloped front lawn. The last little girl couldn't have been more than 4 and faceplanted in the grass. We decided it wasn't fun anymore. We put the pumpkins on the mantel and enjoy a cozy Halloween indoors now. 

I hope this post inspires you to take a few moments to quickly jot down your simple plan for October. Thank you so much for stopping by and God bless you!

And when this mortal hath put on immortality, 

then shall come to pass the saying that is written: 

Death is swallowed up in victory.

O death, where is thy victory? 

O death, where is thy sting?

 Now the sting of death is sin: 

and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, who hath given us the victory 

through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast and unmoveable; 

always abounding in the work of the Lord, 

knowing that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

1 CORINTHIANS 15:54  DRA

Memento Mori still life with musical instruments, books, sheet music, skeleton, skull and armour
Carstian Luyckx 1650