October is a great time to relax and have fun — decorating, costumes, trick-or-treating and lots of candy for the kids … and an occasional pet like our friend here. Halloween is a time when we get to appreciate the community where we live, and all the special events we have to enjoy all year round. This sense of community is even more important as people stay closer to home to save money.
Depending on where you live, there will be different festivals and fairs to visit. Some of the more traditional fall trips include fall foliage, apple picking, finding the perfect pumpkin and don’t forget the hay rides, which the kids absolutely love. All of these activities are great as they support your local businesses, who like you are having to work extra hard to survive and thrive in this challenging economy.
Don’t forget to decorate your house or maybe a scarecrow. Children love to get involved and this is a project where you can work side-by-side with younger ones to create that special look. If your children are grown and gone, maybe you’ll simply put out a nice display of pumpkins and mums to show your appreciation for everything good that we have.
If you’re searching for fun activities for your family, a great website to visit is WhoFish.com (more than 30 states and growing) where they list local events and send you a weekly update so you can always find something fun to do. You’ve simply got to find (make) the time to relax and have fun.
History of Halloween
Halloween began 100s of years ago. Celtic farmers believed that spirits rose from their graves on the last day of summer. They used huge bonfires and disguises to repel and confuse these spirits. In the 8th century, Pope Gregory the 3rd, created All Hallows Day on November 1st, in an attempt to distract the Celts. This quickly became All Hallow’s Eve as the Celts didn’t want to give up their traditions.
During the Irish potato famine, more than a million people immigrated to the US and brought these traditions with them. Bonfires turned into Jack-O-Lanterns and disguises became costumes. The tradition of Trick-or-Treat is less clear.
Watch the History Channels video, Haunted History of Halloween
Pumpkin Facts & Figures (watch the pumpkin video)
Maybe you’re a fan of pumpkin pie, love carving pumpkins or eating pumpkin seeds. Bet you haven’t memorized all these pumpkin facts …
Pumpkins originally came from central America.
American farmers grow more than 1.5 billion pumpkins each year … that’s a BIG number!
The largest pumpkin grown (so far) weighed 1700 lbs.
Pumpkins contain an average of 500 seeds.
There are 30 different varieties of pumpkins. The ones we carve are usually Connecticut field pumpkins.
Pumpkins are good for you, containing potassium, vitamin A and fiber.
Pumkins were originally thought to cure snake bites, freckles and more (gotta watch the pumpkin video).
