Fall is here, folks! How did it come so quickly?! I swear it was just the beginning of summer yesterday. With fall underway, it means Halloween is right around the corner. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love fall and am a Halloween enthusiast. I've hosted some kind of Halloween party for years and the tradition continued after meeting Chris. This year, we will be honeymooning, so, sadly, no party this year. I suppose I can get over it and enjoy my time in the beautiful country of Belize!

So, since I can't throw a party this year, I at least want to re-live the fun spread we put together last year and share some Halloween party planning tips so you can have a ghoulish good time.

First, let's start with snack ideas! There are so many fun ways to give classic party foods a Halloween twist. I try to give things a festive feel without making the food look so gross that no one wants to eat it.

Skeleton Meat and Cheese Tray

Start with a selection of cheese and salami or prosciutto. Cut into chunks to arrange over a plastic skeleton placed on a platter. I picked up my skeleton at a one of those Halloween Express pop-up stores. This year, I've seen similar skeletons available at Dollar Tree. 

Spider Web Taco Dip

• A round platter or plate

• 1 to 2 cans of refried beans (depending on size of platter)

• 1 jar of salsa

• 1 container of sour cream (8 oz. or 16 oz. depending on size of platter)

• 1 or 2 packets of Wholly Guacamole (or you can make fresh)

• 2 cups shredded Mexican or Taco cheese

Note: Lettuce and olives are optional and may make the spider web effect more difficult.

Start with the beans, then continue to layer the dip with the guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. Remember to put some sour cream aside in a zip lock bag to use to create the spider web on the top. Add the shredded cheese. When you are done, cut a small hole at the corner of the zip lock and use to create a spider web design. To top it off I added three plastic spider rings from Dollar Tree on top. You can certainly play around with the layers to get the look you want. I've seen versions with the guacamole as the top layer with the sour cream spider web.

Mummies in a Blanket

Did you love pigs in a blanket as a kid? I did! These little mummies in a blanket went fast! To start, grab a package or two of cocktail smokies and a tube or two of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, depending on how many little mummies you want to make.

Unroll the dough; separate at perforations, creating 4 rectangles. Press the perforations to seal into rectangles. Cut the rectangles into small strips. You'll need them skinny enough and short enough to wrap around the little smokies to make them look like a mummy. There is no one right way to wrap these, so have fun with it! Bake at the temperature listed on the crescent rolls package for about 13-17 minutes. 

Add eyes with yellow mustard. Serve with a side of ketchup! If you want to try more full-sized mummies, use regular hot dogs.

With all of this delicious food, your guests will need something good to wash it down with. After seeing a lot of ideas for Hot Chocolate bars, we got the idea to do a Hot Apple Cider Bar. We filled a crockpot with cider to keep it warm. For those wanting some spirits, we had Captain Morgan, Fireball, and Caramel Vodka available to add. Guests could then top off their cider with some ground cinnamon.

For those who wanted a cold cocktail or a soft drink, we had a bucket of ice cubes with the extra dollar store spider rings frozen inside. Everyone loved them!

We set out all the food on our dining room table with a spiderweb tablecloth I picked up at Big Lots (a surprisingly great place for holiday decor at low prices). Chris changed out the lights to give the room an orange glow. I picked up orange and black plates at dollar tree and grabbed some fun free printables on Pinterest to adorn the table.

With everyone in costume, the party would not have been complete without a photobooth. We hung up a black tablecloth from Target and added a Target candy corn banner ($3 in Bullseye's Playground). Target has a variety of banners priced a either $1 or $3 this year as well. Guests used their own phones to take photos and many shared them on social media. I also recommend checking out Spotify's or Pandora's Halloween Party playlists to set the mood! What is a Halloween party without hearing the "Monster Mash" at least once?

I hope to get back to hosting next year! Until then, you'll have to enjoy my costume from last year: Basic Girl featuring Lululemon, a Starbuck's PSL, and my local grocery store bag!