Photo by kristen prahl on Reshot
Halloween celebrations are getting bigger and bigger every year in the UK, and it could be another one of baby’s firsts that you want to commemorate. Plus, we’ll take any excuse to dress them up in something adorable! Although celebrating with them won’t be the same as with older kids, it’s still something you can do if you’re a lover of all things spooky!
Get dressed up
As long as baby’s comfortable, getting dressed up can create some great memories. This is especially lovely if they’ve got older siblings who are dressing up too. You’ll probably want to keep it simple, as chances are they’ll grow out of it next year. It’s also possible that they might want to pull it off as soon as it’s on or there may be some spillages – your hard work/money could go to waste.
We’re loving this more-cute-than-scary skeleton baby grow from Not on the High Street and this absolutely perfect pumpkin costume from fun.co.uk. Of course it doesn’t have to be spooky – the Disney Store have loads of children’s favourites, like these wonderful Woody and Jessie outfits. Yee-haw!
Or if you’ve got a bit of spare time (of course, we don’t expect this as a new parent but you never know), you could try making your own.
Photo by Rainier Ridao on Unsplash
Make sure costumes are safe
Of course, as with anything baby wears, you’ll need to make sure it’s safe. This is especially important for Halloween costumes as they may have a few extra dangly bits.
- Make sure they don’t get overheated. Fluffy bunny costumes may be delightful, but all that fur can make baby warm. If you’ve got a Bluebell Smart monitoring system, just clip your Baby monitor to their costume to monitor their skin temperature – simple. (Get one here).
- If they’re walking already, make sure costumes are kept short (i.e. no long capes) so that they don’t trip over them.
- Avoid masks as they may irritate skin, or make it hard for them to see or breathe – not fun!
- Make sure there are no loose strings/bobbles/sparkly bits that they can pull off. Anything like this is can be a choking hazard.
If in doubt, just stick to a Halloween themed baby grow. They’re sure to be happy whatever they’re wearing!
Do a super cute photo shoot
Of course, you’ll want to capture baby’s first Halloween. And you can do your own DIY photoshoot at home! Here are some things you can try:
- Think about lighting. Natural light looks so much better, so try doing the shoot in the morning.
- When is baby happiest? Maybe after a nap or a feed? Time the shoot for when you think the best time will be to capture those perfect little smiles.
- Hold a toy above your phone/camera to get baby’s attention and get some lovely shots with eye contact.
- Take loads of pictures – you can always go back and delete some later.
- Use some (baby-safe) Halloween props – nothing with any bits that they can put in their mouths. We’re thinking sitting them in between some pumpkins, giving them a little witches hat, or setting up a scene behind them, out of reach (cobwebs, lanterns, etc.).
- You can get involved too! Throw on your cat costume and get in some of the shots for some beautiful family memories.
- If baby doesn’t want to sit still for a photo shoot, candid photos can also be wonderful. Snap some pics of them crawling about in their costumes, playing with their friends or siblings, or munching on some Halloween treats.
Photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash
Make some spooky treats
We all know that one of the best part of Halloween is the sweets! But babies shouldn’t actually have sugar before 12 months. So, they may have to miss out on all that classic candy, but you can still make them something scrumptious.
It’s advised that babies should start eating solids from around six months. So, if your baby’s a bit older, you could introduce some yummy Halloween themed food into their weaning schedule. Of course, the food that baby can eat depends on their age and how they’re being weaned. Check out our post on weaning for more on this.
- Try cutting their favourite sandwich, soft fruit or roasted veggies into Halloween shapes using Halloween cookie cutters to keep with the theme.
- These gruesome green pancakes are both healthy and strange. Oh, and delicious.
- Or take one of those pumpkins from the photo shoot and make some pumpkin and banana mash.
Throw a little shindig
What’s cuter than an adorable little baby dressed as a pumpkin? Try multiple babies dressed as pumpkins, ghosts and maybe even unicorns! If you’ve got friends or family with babies too, why not throw up some decorations (high up, out of reach of intrigued infants), cookie cut some sandwiches and invite your friends over for some baby bonding (and some much needed parent bonding).
You could try putting together some baby and toddler-safe Halloween themed sensory boxes, letting them have a little boogie in their costumes to some happy Halloween music, and don’t forget to give the parents a little treat, like these scrummy Halloween coffees. Mmm!
Photo by PublicDomainPictures on Pixabay
Or take the family out
With a new baby to look after, putting on your own event may be a bit too hectic. But there are plenty of family-friendly events that you could take the whole family to! There are loads of sweet but scary things going on up and down the country, such as Spooky Storytime at the London Eye, CBBC and CBeebies Spooky Screenings in Manchester, or the Halloween Spooktacular party at Glasgow Science Centre. There are so many things going on that are family-friendly, just do a quick search on good old Google to find some near you!
Of course, your little one probably doesn’t know it’s Halloween, so don’t feel too guilty about skipping it for the first year or two! So, however you spend it this year, we hope you have a splendidly spooky, or just a totally normal time!
