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We're an American family living in Australia, where everything seems a little bit turned-upside-down.


Thursday, October 3, 2013

Top 15 Halloween Events for Kids & Families in Perth

1. Throw a Halloween Party-
Go all out with ghoulishly fun Halloween Party foods, costumes, a pumpkin carving contest, games, and of course tons of candy!  While kids are having their treats, perhaps moms & dads can sip on these Halloween themed Wines.
Monsters U
2. Carnival Macabre-
Friday, 25 October to Sunday, 3 November.  A Festival of Thrills & Chills Including an excellent 'Van Ghoh, Dali & Beyond Make Your Own Mask' activity for the kids. The Mexican "Day of the Dead" activities also look great for the kids. I'm all for making Halloween a cultural learning experience!




3. Celebrate at your Local Play Centre-
This family friendly party at Go Bananas looks great!

Go Bananas Playcentre Joondalup

Or there's the Annual Halloween Family Fun Night, Kidz Paradise, Carlisle on Friday, 25th October from 5:30- 8:30 pm. It’s a night for your kids to dress up and burn off some energy with activities, music, games and prizes.
kidz-paradise-halloween -2013-perth



Chipmunks, Port Kennedy is having some Halloween fun on 31 October from 5-8pm.  Dare to enter the
"haunted" playground by torchlight!  Plus other spooktacular activities including a prize for the best costume!

Or how about haunting Chipmunks, Wanneroo on 31 October from 6-9 pm.  $15 entry includes meal & a drink.


On Tuesday 15th October Chipmunks, Whitfords will be starting their lead up to Halloween with craft sessions at 10am and 1pm. These sessions are free and run for 1/2 hour. All children are welcome to attend.

On Halloween, Thursday, 31st October, Chimpmunks Whitfords will hold activities throughout the day from 10-2pm. Activities include crafts, best Halloween costume, and a Halloween Hunt! 

Normal entry fee applies.

4. Take part in The Spooky Bike Ride
Saturday 26th October 2013 at Yokine Open Space.  Come dressed in your best spooky or sparkly costume and pedal through the spooky trail illuminated by spooky laterns.  Ride around the 2km circular path as many times as you would like before parking your bike to enjoy the free BBQ.  Registration starts at 6 pm, ride starts at 7pm, and the BBQ at 8 pm.  See you there, if you dare!
Stirling spooky bike ride



5. Organize a Neighborhood Trick or Treat- If you're not crazy about the idea of your kids knocking on unsuspecting stranger's doors and asking for candy, then organize a trick or treat route in your neighborhood that is pre-planned.  Talk with all the neighbors on your block and find out who wants to participate. Give them a pumpkin cut out or similar for their door to mark that they are a "Trick or Treat" friendly home.  In return, they can come Trick or Treating at your house and all other houses that are "in".  Just be sure to keep one parent home to pass out the candy! I've noticed a few 'Halloween in (*enter suburb*)' Facebook pages, so this may be another way to find fellow Trick or Treaters in your area.

6. Go on a "Night Stalk"-
The Perth Zoo has great information on their website about organizing a Night Stalk of your own, inspired by the Night Stalk held at the Perth Zoo.
  Night Stalk 2012

7. Free "Freaky" Movies 
at the Northbridge Piazza-
'Paranorman' Rated PG. 26 October at 4:30 pm.
ParaNorman poster

'Casper' Rated PG. 3 November at 12 noon.
casper_header

'Frankenweenie' Rated PG. 3 November at 4:00 pm.


8.  Brave Adventure World Fright Nights- 
Looks a tad freaky for the wee little ones, but perhaps the kiddie rides won't be too over crowded!
School 's Out Half Page September 2013

9. Fremantle "Halloween" Prison Tours-
30-31 October and 1 November. Sounds like a hauntingly good time to me.  I noticed they sell a family pass, so must be tame enough for the kids?


10. Halloween Piazzarama Northbridge- 
Have some Halloween fun on the Piazza 3 November from 12 noon until 6 pm. The Piazza will host free spooky activities such as face painting, balloon artistry and roving entertainment. Wear your Halloween Costume!

11. Halloween at Your Markets WA!-

For a frightfully good time, visit Your Markets WA November 2nd and 3rd for a Halloween Costume competition.  One for the kids both days, and the parents have their own competition on Sunday.  Prizes awarded for the best costume! Your Markets WA is Located on South Street, Kardinya.


12.  The Fairies Joondalup is having a Halloween Disco-
For all things with wings... how about joining the Halloween Disco?  Friday 1st November at The Fairies Joondalup.  There is a session for 2-4 years from 2:00-3:30 pm, and another for 5+ years from 2:00-4:00 pm.  $10 entry includes a drink and snack.  


13.  The Grove Library Halloween-
On Halloween night 31st October, The Grove Library has a whole evening of fun and games for the entire family! The fun starts at 5pm- 7:45 pm. Spooky stories and games, costume competitions, plus a special prize for the best themed family! Bookings essential: 9286 8686. There will be a sausage sizzle, so bring your gold coins!


14.  Trick or Treat the Retailers-
The Mezz, The Norranda Shopping Village, & The Park Centre have some great Halloween happenings! Trick or Treating, face painting, and a costume competition!  Thursday, 31st October from 4-7 pm.


Westfield Whitford City is having a Halloween Spooktacular!

Whitfordcity-oct-halloween-party-7558_172x133

Get ready for this year's Halloween Spooktacular with a FREE kids trick or treat party!

DATE: Thurs 31 October
TIME: 4pm - 7pm
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL
Get tickets here.


15. Not into Halloween thing?  
Perhaps opting out and attending The Shine Family Concert is for you instead! Featuring a concert with singer Sean W.Smith, face painting, games and sausage ... 260 Bagot Road, Subiaco.
Halloween Sine Concert

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Family Fun at the Perth Royal Show!



This year, we decided to Plan Our Day at The Perth Royal Show.  We checked out the Calendar of Events for the day, and I signed up for the free Plan My Day planner. We even pre-selected our Showbags before the Show!

The planner was great, and allowed us to choose our events to watch, places to visit, showbags, and rides. It plugged our choices into a printable schedule, complete with a map labeled with all our "stops".  This was ideal for us, because we tend to meander, and last year, many of the exhibits closed before we got around to seeing them.  Thanks to the Plan My Day planner, we were prepared.

Show Map

We gave the kids a fixed budget.  They could spend their cash on whatever; rides, food, showbags, but once it was gone...it was gone. 

We saw this coupon book for sale on our way into the Show.  It included coupons for food, showbags, and other goodies like recipes for the kids.
2013 IGA Perth Royal Show Coupon Book

Despite all our planning, we were too overwhelmed to follow a schedule.  The excitement of everything sucked us in when we passed by, and we couldn't resist.  The map and the schedule were tucked away, and we just let the kids lead the way!
Following a plan gave us "brain strain".

Top Ten highlights from our day at The Perth Royal Show:

1. Yellow Brick Road Activities-
The kids loved the activities at the Sports Stop, making a Mr. Sprout Head at Greenfingers Garden, and collecting fresh fruit and veg at the Fresh from WA Orchard.




2. Scouts Challenge Zone-
We loved all the free activities here including laser tag, mini mountain climbing, crafts, face painting, and more!


3. Buying Showbags-
We took our time choosing our favorites! Of course the Blinky Bill showbag for $1 was a must buy!
This was NOT us. 


4. Oz Rocketman- 
We loved watching Oz Rocketman take off and soar around the arena.  His jet packs were super loud, but super cool!


5. Making Sand Sculptures-
We watched the amazing sand sculpting artist make a fire breathing dragon!  Then the kids made their own "amazing" sand sculptures.


6. Patting the Animals-
The kids couldn't get enough of the animals! We patted a pig, and held a chick, a bunny, and a guinea pig in our laps.


7. "Buy West Eat Best" Photo Booth-
We had fun taking turns in the free photo booth.  A great keepsake to remind us of our fun day! It was located in the IGA Fresh from WA Pavilion.



8. Sheepdog Demonstration-
Amazing dogs!  We loved watching "man's best friend" herd the sheep with their intimidating stares.



9. Just Looking Around- this included people watching, hanging out around the main arena, looking at animals, watching demonstrations, wandering through sideshow alley at night, etc.


This guy attracted quite a crowd!








10. Browne's Dairy Pavilion & Milking Demonstration-
We got our fill of yummy Browne's dairy samples before giving milking a cow a go.






Although we didn't stick to a schedule, we did really well at sticking to our budget.  In fact, I think we ended the day well under budget!  Here's the breakdown:

Pre-Sale IGA Adult Tickets: $48
Yellow Brick Road Experience: $10
Slurpee: $4
Showbags: $31
Inflatable Hammer: $5
Donuts: $5
Five Cheese Toasties: $8
Propeller Hat: $5

That's a grand total of $116.  That's pretty good for a family of five!  We did pack our own picnic lunch, snacks, and plenty of water.  Also, we managed to keep busy with all the free activities, so we didn't spend anything on rides.
We planned to take advantage of the 2 for 1 rides from 3-4 pm, but we were too busy having fun with other things!
Too tired this year for Fireworks!

Free face painting compliments of the Scouts .



See you next year at the Perth Royal Show!