Planning a party can be stressful and expensive, but, it doesnt have to be! here are a few ideas, tips, and bargain advice for you. Good luck this season!

Games, and Fun!

There are many different game ideas during halloween, and almost all can be modified to fit your childs age group.
Depending on how long your party will run and how many children are going to be coming, you should probably plan between 3 and 6 different games. It will keep the kids occupied, and yet still allow for a chance for them to play amongst themselves and eat.

BOBBING GAMES:   Kids can bob for different things, such as apples, foam pumpkins, or rings.  If your kids are going to have face paint, perhaps a fun, gross way to play this game is an order.  Start with a large tub, fill with something yucky like peeled grapes and boiled spaghetti.   and then bury any objects you'd like in there, for the kids to fish out.   I myself like to save up kidsmeal toys,  which come individually wrapped in plastic to prtect the toy. That way, the kids can each take, say 30 seconds, to retreive as many prizes as they can. Some children are squeamish but most would JUMP at the chance to make a mess in cold brains and eyeballs!!!


PUMPKIN PAINTING:   This is a safer way to decorate pumpkins. Get enough little baby pumpkins to go around, and let kids paint their own. Make sure you use washable paint though, or parents will be irrate! no one wants to see a 20 dollar costume ruined becuase paint wont wash out, ok?



GIFTPASS GAME: get a small gift or toy, and place in small box. Then wrap with any type of paper.  Even tinfoil. doesnt matter. re wrap and rewrap in layers, till the gift looks bigger and has many layers. then have the children sit in a circle, and pass the gift around, each unwrapping one layer at a time.  No one knows who is going to get the prize, what it is, how big it is, and kids get very very excited and suprised. Works well with younger children, who LOVE to tear into gift wrap.   Try light up pendants, which can be purchased at any dollar store.


FEAR FACTORS GAME:   Only the very brave will compete in this one.   You need three different gross activities, and three small prizes.   Kids who complete the nasty task first wins a prize in each round.  make sure that different kids get to compete each time, unless you only have a couple of kids.
Try the Barfaroni!   Get some cooked macaroni noodles, and blend them in your blender (or mash them together by hand if you dont own a blender) blend it with a bit of ketchup, a bit of mustard, a little bit of milk, and some lime jello!!!!  Its the grossest lookin drink ever!..... for younger children, try just the macaroni and the jello.... still looks gross but ketchup and mustard may be a bit too acidic for the tiny ones! 
Try the bug finder.  First kid to bring you a worm wins!!!!!
Try the BELCH contest.  give kids a sip of soda and see who can come up with a belch. Biggest or funniest wins!
If you dont approve of belching, try the nasty smell sniffer!!   Get something really raunchy, and put it in a plastic bag and then a paper bag to conceal the item...... The first kid to take a good enough whiff of it to IDENTIFY the odor wins!  (you can use fart powder, a rotten egg, an old sock.... anything you find particularly stinky!

And of course, THE COSTUME CONTEST.   Kids get hurt feelings if they dont win SOMETHING for their costumes, so, in order to give everyone a bit of confidence, have enough prizes or ribbons for all kids, and come up with a different category for all the winners. examples: most original costume, best homemade costume, scariest costume, cuddliest costume, prettiest princess (SOMETIMES THIS ONE HASTA BE A TIE GUYS! LOL, girls will be girls) strongest superhero, best makeup, coolest costume, funniest costume, best Teeth.... the categories all depend on what the little guys or gals are dressed like!

FOOD

Junk food is allowed at this time of year, but there are only so many sweets they can eat before you have a little URP on your carpet. so try some healthier snacks to go along with the sweets.
Try  fruit leather cutouts.   You can get fruit leather at certain stores, or you can make your own. its very easy.  just blend your preserves, spread on a sheet of wax paper on a baking pan, and bake till leather..... usually takes a few hours to make a big batch, so if your gonna make it yourself, start reallllly early.  My advice..... buy it. lol. its not too pricey.   Then, take a couple cookie cutters and cut out some shapes, arrange on a tray, and voila.... KIDS LOVE EM.

Try orange pumpkins. Get small, seedless christmas oranges (these are great cuz kids can peel em) and draw jackolantern faces on em!   simple and healthy

Also, you may want to do flies on a log.  Celery sticks smeared with peanutbutter, with little raisins stuck in the PB.

Of course, you could go with the double decandent, super sugary, awful for your teeth, but the kids will ove you forever, Graveyard dish.  Get a casserole dish, lay graham crachers on the bottom, and fill with a mixture of chocolate pudding and coolwhip. The, crumble some chocolate cream oreos on top for dirt. then you can decorate the top of the cake with half chocolate cookie tombstones ( you can really go all out and write on them with frosting) candy corns and pumpkins, and pretzel sticks for old gnarled trees.
I do this sometimes......... the kids really do love you forever and come to all your parties after that if you serve it lol.

all in all, if you do each and everything here, shop at the dollar store and walmart for everything you can, and bargain hunt for the prizes, you are looking at spending around 70 dollars for the ENTIRE party for up to 10 children!!! thats a great great price for so many kids!

Good luck and have fun with this stuff, the kids sure will!!!