Next Year's Halloween Bucket List

Looking back at my completed bucket list from Halloween 2018, I did A LOT, far more than I ever thought possible (and dang proud of myself for completing so much)! After seeing how much I was able to squeeze in, I'm starting to think ambitious thoughts about next year's Halloween season! So, I thought I'd jot down some of my wish list items for next year's Halloween season and share them with you below:

Happy Halloween + 2018 Bucket List Completion

Happy Halloween, my spookies!! And, whoa, where did the terrifying time go this October? It feels like just yesterday we were celebrating October 1st, and here we are already at the end of the month, on the best day of the whole year!

I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed all the content I've been sharing with you here and on my Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. This month has been an absolute whirlwind, packed to the ghoulish gills with such fun and festivities. However you celebrated this month, I hope you embraced the spooky spirit of the season and got Halloween happy!

Per my tradition, I'll be sharing with you what I was able to check off this season from my Halloween bucket list. I think this year set a record for most things I've packed into a Halloween season! I did sooooo much stuff and surprised myself with how much I was able to get done. Check out everything I completed from my bucket list (as well as a few items I didn't get to) below:

Halloween 2018 Bucket List

Happy October! Our favorite time is here, the spooky time when windows and doors are decorated with jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, ghosts, black cats, bats, witches, and monsters of all shapes and sizes. When fun-size candy beckons to us from the aisles of grocery stores. When horror movies and spooky stories abound. When Halloween decor is displayed in every store you walk into. When the nights are longer and cooler. When the leaves start to turn orange, yellow, and red, and the crisp air smells of mulled apples and spiced pumpkin. When the veil becomes ever thinner, and it makes it feel like anything is possible. This is our time, Halloween-time!

And not only that, but today is the first day of October and that kicks off the annual Countdown to Halloween, a blogging event I've been participating in since 2010 that celebrates 31 days of Halloween! During October, a creepy collective of spooky bloggers (find us all HERE) share Halloween-related content all October long. I'll be sharing all sorts of Halloween treats with you, from dreadful decor to eerie events to to-die-for recipes and DIYs to macabre movie lists and morbid music and so much more!

To kick off the 31 days of Halloween, my tradition is to share my Halloween bucket list for the year. I am really spoiled here in SoCal with so many incredible events and fearsome festivities during the Halloween season that I couldn't do them all if I wanted to! However, I do like jotting down my haunting hopes and spooky dreams for the month of October - this is like my wish list of all the stuff I want to do to really revel in the season! I am trying to take it easy this year, and enjoy small pleasures, like watching Halloween movies, eating pumpkin treats, making it out to a few haunts, and spreading the Halloween fear here as well as on my Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook! You can check out my list below...

Happy Halloween and 2017 Bucket List Completion

Happy Halloween! The big day is finally here, and while I'm stuck at work, I can't wait to get home to pass out treats to kiddies while watching Halloween movies. I'll be honest, this Halloween season has been really hard for me. While I did end up doing a lot of fun stuff, I felt this year was a bit lackluster for me and definitely went by too fast. I also suffered from Halloween burnout early on and between work and the anxiety of dealing with family in the California wildfires (they are all fine now), I wasn't very full of Halloween spirit this year. I'm hoping next year is better.

On the plus side, I did do a lot of great stuff on my bucket list this year! Check out what items I was able to cross off my bucket list this Halloween season:

Autumn 2017 Bucket List

Happy October 1st and happy first day of the 31 Days of Halloween!

If you've been a follower of mine for past Halloween seasons, you know that October 1st kicks off the 31 Days of Halloween event, hosted by Countdown to Halloween, where a collective of spooky blogs (like me) share Halloween-related content all October long! I've been participating since 2010 (!!!) and it is one of my favorite Halloween events that I look forward to every year. I not only love sharing my Halloween experiences with you, but I also adore reading other blogs. I highly recommend you take a look at the list of other participating blogs on Countdown to Halloween to fill your October with maximum spookiness!

Per tradition, I'll be sharing my autumn bucket list today, the first day of October. I love kicking off the month with my wish list of activities and preparing for everything I want to do. There is always so much going on in October, but I hope to have a low-key celebration where time slows down a little so I can enjoy the spirit of the season. I've already done a lot just in September, but I'm going to include those items here as well so I can keep a track of all that I've done when I revisit this list at the end of October. Here are those items as well as others I want to do this Halloween season:

Next Year's Halloween Bucket List

This is a pic of part of my living room Halloween night 2016

I've still got the Halloween blues bad (not to mention the added anxiety from all that is currently going on in the U.S.), so I decided to cheer myself up by starting to plan for next year's Halloween! Even though I accomplished a lot this 2016 Halloween season (see my recap of completed bucket list items HERE), there are still many events in SoCal I didn't get to. Many of these I've had on my to-do list for years, but hope to finally get to experience them next year!

This year there were a lot of non-Halloween events that took up my time (I love vegan events, but I wish they moved some of them to other months!), but I think next year I'm gonna skip any concerts/festivals/etc. that aren't related to Halloween so I can fill my favorite season with strictly spooky events in SoCal (and perhaps beyond)!

My list is ambitious (especially when you combine it with the events I already go to every year), and I probably won't ever be able to do it all, but dang it, I'm gonna try!

Halloween 2017 Bucket List (with the exception of other cities listed at the end of the post, all events occur in or around Southern California):

Happy Halloween and 2016 Bucket List Completion

Happy Halloween! This month went by frighteningly fast and today is rather bittersweet! I'm ecstatic that it is the best day of the year, but I am also feeling gloomy since it means my favorite time of the year is almost over. I am doing my best to enjoy the last hours of All Hallow's Eve - tonight I will watch Halloween themed movies, carve pumpkins, and hand out candy to trick or treaters!

I'm also reflecting back on the past months and a see what I was able to accomplish on my autumn bucket list! I did quite a bit over the Halloween season, here is what I was able to check off my bucket list:

Autumn 2016 Bucket List

Can you believe October 1st is already here?! It's unbelievable how fast it crept up on me this year, especially when I want to savor each magical fall moment (even though it's been in the 80s and 90s the past week, wah!).

Per tradition, October 1st kicks off 31 Days of Halloween, an event hosted by Countdown to Halloween and one I've been participating in since 2010! The gist is that I will publish a Halloween-related post daily (or as close to daily as possible) for the month of October. I'll be sharing all sorts of ghoulish goodies this year, including eerie entertainment recommendations, morbid music to set the stage for spookiness, rancid recipes, dreadful decorations, and much more! Join me...if you dare!

To kick off the 31 Days of Halloween, I have a custom of sharing my annual autumn bucket list on the first day of October. It serves as a running to-do list for me and keeps me from losing my head this macabre month! I'm looking forward to a low-key celebration this month, but plan on squeezing in lots of autumn and Halloweenie fun! Below is what I hope to accomplish...

Happy Halloween and My Autumn Bucket List Completion

It's the best day of the year! Happy Halloween, spookies!

I can't believe Halloween is already here, and I have to tell you with the elation of my favorite holiday being here also comes a melancholy feeling that another Halloween season is nearly over.

Today, though, is all about celebration, and I plan on eating pumpkin-flavored everything, putting on a costume, carving some pumpkins, and handing out candy to trick or treaters while marathoning Halloween movies all day and night long!

Autumn 2015 Bucket List

Wow, I can't believe October is already here! Autumn is just flying by, though it STILL doesn't feel like autumn since Southern California is perpetually stuck in summer temperatures. Nevertheless, I've been trying to enjoy the autumn season as much as I can, and one of those ways is participating in the Countdown to Halloween (along with a bunch of other Halloween fiends). And today kicks off my 31 Days of Halloween, where I try to blog as much as possible during the month of October. I don't think I'll attain my goal of a post a day this year, but I'll still be sharing lots of ghoulish goodies with you!

31 Days of Halloween: Happy Halloween and My Autumn Bucket List Completion

Happy Halloween, fiends!! Thanks for joining me on the 31 Days of Halloween countdown! I hope you had as much fun as I did. I cannot believe it is already over and that it is Halloween, the best day of the year! I want the season to start all over again and it's bittersweet that another Halloween season is nearly over.

I wanted to take a look back to appreciate all the bucket list items I completed this month. Let's take a look at my original bucket list and see what items I completed and can cross off, shall we?

31 Days of Halloween: Autumn Bucket List

Hello, Autumn!

Hello fiends and welcome to another wonderful October, where I will be again participating in the 31 Days of Halloween (you can check out past years' posts HERE!)! This year's overarching theme will be ghosts, and though not all posts will be ghost-themed, many themes will focus on hauntings and spirits.

31 Days of Halloween: Happy Halloween and Checking Off My Halloween Bucket List!

Wow, is it just me or did October really fly by this year? I cannot believe today is the day I have been counting down to for months and months and months! This was definitely a whirlwind month, and I wish I had more time to do more Halloween-y events! Alas, I did not complete all the items on my Halloween Bucket List for this year, but the good news is I was able to enjoy a fair amount of them! Let's review what I got around to doing this year, shall we?

31 Days of Halloween: Happy October Plus My Halloween Bucket List

 

Happy October, fiends, and welcome to the most wonderful time of the year, the October countdown to Halloween! I've participated in the "31 Days of Halloween" since 2010 (you can check out past posts here), but this year is going to be a bit different...unlike past years I won't be posting every day, but will try my best to bring you a Halloween treat as often as possible!

31 Days of Halloween: HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Our day is finally here! Happy Halloween everybody!

Whew, it has definitely been a jam-packed October! Halloween is always bittersweet when it finally arrives...I mean, it's Halloween, so YAY! At the same time, though, it is also signifies the end of October and the end of Halloween activities. Boo!

Speaking of Halloween activities, at the beginning of the month I shared with you my bucket list for the season. Like most years, I didn't get to do everything I wanted, but I put a decent dent in the list and, more importantly, thoroughly enjoyed this October's activities!

So, here again is my bucket list with all the items I accomplished!

• Drink apple cider
• Eat Candy Corn Oreos
• Crunch through dry leaves - Not many fall leaves here in SoCal, but my parking lot at work has tons I stomped through!
• Visit the pumpkin patch - Yay for Tanaka Farms! Read about my visit here!

• Have friends over to carve pumpkins - We hosted a fun horror movie night and also went over to a friend's place to carve pumpkins
• Throw an awesome Zombie Prom Halloween party  - Success!
• Pick out a zombie Halloween costume - Prom Queens, I'll eat your hearts out!
• Listen to Halloween music
• Watch Halloween-themed movies

• Watch the classic Universal Monster movies - I actually watched some new ones I had never seen before, like Son of Frankenstein!
• Wear flannel, scarves and boots - The weather finally cooled down enough so I was able to do this!
• Visit the Halloween store - Visited multiple ones this year!
• Bake pumpkin everything! - It was mostly too hot to do this, so I didn't get to bake as much as I wanted to
• Snuggle up in Halloween blankets - I even bought a new one from Target to add to my collection
• Try as many pumpkin beers as possible - I stuck with Blue Moon's Harvest Pumpkin Spice this month, so I didn't quite succeed with this one.
• Make icky-looking Halloween food - Zombie brains and fingers, anyone?
• Drink pumpkin tea and/or shakes - I made pumpkin pie shakes and lived on Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice tea!

• Send Halloween cards to friends and family
• Wear as much orange, black, purple and green (Halloween colors!) as possible
• Check out fall foliage (even if it is just lusting through pictures) - Thanks to Tumblr and Pinterest for this!
• Watch Halloween cartoons
• Buy new Halloween pajamas - Finally found some at Walmart (read my post) of all places!
• Eat vegan Halloween candy
• Buy Sweet n Sara Halloween s’mores - I didn't order these in time...argh!
• Get pumpkin trees from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's 
• Visit the Halloween display at Roger’s Gardens - Beautiful as always! Read about it here!
• Go to a haunted house, haunt or hayride - Darn, totally missed out on these this year.

• Read The Halloween Tree and other Halloween-themed stories
• Go to Disneyland for Halloweentime
• Put up Halloween lights and decorations
• Paint my nails with Halloween colors / get a Halloween manicure
• Go see ParaNorman / Hotel Transylvania / Frankenweenie in theaters - I didn't get to see any of these! :(
• See V/H/S / Paranormal Activity 4 / Sinister and other horror movies in theaters - I only need to see PA4
• See the original Halloween in theaters - Missed it 
• See Night of the Living Dead play - Missed it
• Go to Universal Horror Nights or Knott’s Scary Farm - couldn't find the time to go this year

• Take advantage of any Halloween DVD sales of horror movies
• Visit Julian, CA to pick apples - Sigh...it was just too hot to make the trek, plus I don't think the crop was all that great this year. 
• Roast pumpkin seeds
• Check out as many stores with Halloween decor/items as possible (Target, Walmart, JoAnn Fabrics, Home Goods, etc.) - I did them all and spend FAR too much!
• Wear Halloween tights
• Try new autumn recipes - It was just too hot to cook or bake anything autumn-y this month. Hopefully in November I'll be able to try some new recipes.
• Eat as many pumpkin-based foods as possible

• Wear Halloween jewelry - I got a new bat necklace and Halloween bracelets
• Visit cemeteries - Didn't get to any this year
• Complete the 31 Days of Halloween challenge! - WHEW! I posted at least 1 post every day this whole month! For the third year in a row! Yay!

31 Days of Halloween: Welcome to the Countdown Plus My Halloween Bucket List

Hello fiends! It is again our most favorite time of year – October! A time for cooler autumnal breezes, pumpkin-spiced aromas, spooky stories and things that go bump in the night! And, of course, the annual Countdown to Halloween! I will be again doing my 31 Days of Halloween and posting at least once a day about awesome Halloween stuff!

You can check out my last two years of 31 Days of Halloween HERE!

This year I will be posting a lot about zombies since our Halloween party at the end of the month is zombie themed. You can read all about the party theme HERE.

Besides zombifying things around here, I’ll also be writing about vegan Halloween recipes, posting kooky Halloween videos, rocking out to some Halloween music, watching appropriately spooky movies, featuring Halloween artists and sharing my own Halloween adventures!

It is going to be an exciting month and I can’t wait to share it all with you. You can also check out other Halloween goodies I'll be posting on my Tumblr, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter!

I also wanted to share with you my bucket list of things I want to do this wonderful season! I'm sure I've missed a few things and I know I won't be able to get to everything on the list, but here is my bucket list so far for autumn:

• Drink apple cider
• Eat Candy Corn Oreos
• Crunch through dry leaves
• Visit the pumpkin patch
• Have friends over to carve pumpkins
• Throw an awesome Zombie Prom Halloween party
• Pick out a zombie Halloween costume

• Listen to Halloween music
• Watch Halloween-themed movies
• Watch the classic Universal Monster movies
• Wear flannel, scarves and boots 
• Visit the Halloween store
• Bake pumpkin everything!
• Snuggle up in Halloween blankets
• Try as many pumpkin beers as possible
• Make icky-looking Halloween food

• Drink pumpkin tea and/or shakes
• Send Halloween cards to friends and family
• Wear as much orange, black, purple and green (Halloween colors!) as possible
• Check out fall foliage (even if it is just lusting through pictures)
• Watch Halloween cartoons
• Buy new Halloween pajamas
• Eat vegan Halloween candy
• Buy Sweet n Sara Halloween s’mores
• Get pumpkin trees from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's
• Visit the Halloween display at Roger’s Gardens
• Go to a haunted house, haunt or hayride
• Read The Halloween Tree and other Halloween-themed stories

• Go to Disneyland for Halloweentime
• Put up Halloween lights and decorations
• Paint my nails with Halloween colors / get a Halloween manicure
• Go see ParaNorman / Hotel Transylvania / Frankenweenie in theaters
• See V/H/S / Paranormal Activity 4 / Sinister and other horror movies in theaters
• See the original Halloween in theaters
• See Night of the Living Dead play
• Go to Universal Horror Nights or Knott’s Scary Farm
• Take advantage of any Halloween DVD sales of horror movies

• Visit Julian, CA to pick apples 
• Roast pumpkin seeds
• Check out as many stores with Halloween decor/items as possible (Target, Walmart, JoAnn Fabrics, Home Goods, etc.)
• Wear Halloween tights
• Try new autumn recipes
• Eat as many pumpkin-based foods as possible
• Wear Halloween jewelry
• Visit cemeteries
• Complete the 31 Days of Halloween challenge!

At the end of the month I will share this list again to see how many items I've been able to cram into this lovely month!

Will you be participating in the Halloween countdown?

What will you be doing to celebrate October and Halloween?