This last year and a half has been difficult and with the stress of living through a global pandemic, I realize my kids are growing up and outgrowing some fun kids activities right under my nose.

Autumn is my favorite time of year.

We didn’t go trick or treating for Halloween last year, even though lots of our neighbors did. We didn’t turn on our light or set out candy and the kids and I cringed every time our doorbell rang anyway. I worried we would get egged or TP’ed or some other vandalism, but we were trying to follow health guidelines in spite of everyone else. It was a long, rough night.

We tried to celebrate Christmas last year and make it special. I love having teens and watching them grow, but it is bittersweet seeing the last semblance of their childhoods fade away.

It looks like this year will be more of the same. I’m sad and I’m seeking ways to make our average days special and give us all something to look forward to. We are all depressed and worried and stressed and wondering if there will be an end in sight for the pandemic and tragic world events.

We did attend a few outdoor events when we thought it might become safer – before it was a reality that the Delta variant and COVID were still rampant. We are lucky we are healthy.

We’re still masking and distancing while it seems much of the rest of the world is moving on, going “back to normal.”

Two of my daughters have had close calls with coworkers and friend’s family members testing positive.

My son hardly eats as fall baseball is canceled and he has lost any social interaction we were able to continue. I have watched my happy go lucky little boy turn into a sad-eyed young man in a year.

Our kids will never fully recover from the stress of this era, most of which was preventable.

I’m desperate to find activities we can do in our home as a family that keep us occupied, take our minds off the catastrophes for a little while.

Halloween with Teens

• Movie Party
• Spooky Books
• Dress-up or Costume Party
• Scavenger hunt
• Bonfire
• Jack o’ Lanterns
• Decorating with leaves, pumpkins, gourds, spider webs, skeletons
• Game night
• Card games
• Baking – We love these Pumpkin Scones and these Pumpkin Streusel Muffins!
• Cooking contest (like Chopped)
• Fall leaves hiking
• Cocoa, tea, or cider bar
• Outdoor games
• Pumpkin patch or corn maze
• Learn about the Reformation
• Learn about All Saints’ Day

My kids actually like being together and I love to see it!

How do we create opportunities to look forward to something?

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• How We Celebrate Halloween
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Linking up: Grammy’s