The Book of Halloween by Ruth E. Kelley

Ruth Edna Kelley's THE BOOK OF HALLOWEEN was originally published in 1919 and is still a classic. I love the original blue and gold cover as seen here. A handsome addition to any home library.

"Halloween was once a day of mischief, oracles, ghost stories and fires: Kelley tells the history of Halloween from the perspective of the early 1900s United States." 

Within the cover you will find a history of Halloween as Halloween was seen in the early 20th century. Beyond the history, you will learn about beliefs and customs held in countries like Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, France, Germany and even America. 

The book is a look into the back story of one of today’s biggest holidays. The original 1919 version is very difficult to find. I suggest looking on eBay by clicking right here though today when I looked there were modern copies but no antique ones but you never know when one might turn up! Otherwise, if you are willing to settle for the history, you can purchase a more modern copy of the book in paperback or of the eBook quite affordably on Amazon by clicking here.

Happy Haunting!

Boo-renda

Jenga: Halloween Edition Game

Jenga Stacking Game, Halloween Edition

Halloween Jenga is just like the original game of Jenga with a fun Halloween twist. It consists of 54 orange and black blocks that are decorated with the words Trick or Treat, Boo and Jenga and it includes a glowing die. 

Naturally, this version comes with some a Halloween-theme. The game is played with a tower of blocks and players taking turns removing them one by one.  On your turn, you roll the die to either a haunted house, spider or a bat and each tells you how to proceed. When you roll a pumpkin, the direction of play is reversed. Roll a Haunted House and you can remove any piece. Finally, when you roll a bat, you have to remove an orange block.  The last individual to take out a block without causing the tower to fall wins. 

Halloween Jenga is a simple, durable game recommended for individuals 6 years of age and up. In terms of learning potential, it helps develop coordination and knowledge of balancing but embrace it as a lively, fun game. A few rounds of this will be played fairly quickly and would be a great break from other longer games and the Halloween theme would be welcomed by Halloween fans, too.

Turns out that this version of Jenga is retired. However when I looked today, I found a few copies of the Jenga Halloween game available here on eBay.

See you 

on game night!

Boo-renda

MORE HALLOWEEN AND MORE GAMES:

Clue: Disney's Haunted Mansion Board Game

Disney fans will love this version of the classic board game Clue.

Boooo-opoly Monopoly Game

Yes, there's a Halloween-themed Monopoly game! Learn more here.

How about a Hocus Pocus T-Shirt?

Fans of the cult-favorite Halloween movie, Hocus Pocus will love this tee!

A page of Not-Too-Scary Movies for Tweens

Have a youngster clamoring for scary movies? Here are a few safe choices.

Discover a fun Halloween Treats Jigsaw Puzzle

If you love working puzzles and Halloween, you will enjoy these treats. They're calorie free!

Clue: The Haunted Mansion Board Game by Disney

CLUE: THE HAUNTED MANSION 

Not dark like the original Clue game, Disney's Haunted Mansion Clue has you setting out to solve a mystery when a Disney friend is haunted in a room by a specter. The basic gameplay is the same as the original Clue but this version has a really nice Victorian theme that suits Disney's Haunted Mansion. If you solve the mystery, you get to leave the haunted house.

GAMER'S REVIEW:

"Love this twist on the original game of Clue and all of Disney's Haunted Mansion feel including the haunted house and the Disney characters. No messy murders you will enjoy the fun spirits in this game. A great family game choice."

FAST FACTS

Age: 8 years old and up

Number of Players: 3 - 6 Players

Time to Play: Approximately 45 minutes

Year Made: 2004

Manufacturer: Parker Brothers

This game was available in a typical cardboard box and, at the Disney Parks, in a better-quality collectible tin container. Today you might have better luck finding it on eBay than elsewhere. On that website you will find numerous used copies but fewer new ones.  Find your The Haunted Mansion Clue game on eBay by clicking here. To see only new copies when you click through, just click the New button under Condition.

Happy Haunting!

Boo-renda

MORE HALLOWEEN AND MORE GAMES:

Boooo-opoly Monopoly Game

Yes, there's a Halloween-themed Monopoly game! Learn more here.

How about a Hocus Pocus T-Shirt?

Fans of the cult-favorite Halloween movie, Hocus Pocus will love this tee!

A page of Not-Too-Scary Movies for Tweens

Have a youngster clamoring for scary movies? Here are a few safe choices.

Discover a fun Halloween Treats Jigsaw Puzzle

If you love working puzzles and Halloween, you will enjoy these treats. They're calorie free!

Family Friendly Cranium Board Games

Discover a few of the Cranium series games.

Boooo-opoly Halloween Game

BOOOO-OPOLY: THE HALLOWEEN VERSION OF AMERICA'S FAVORITE GAME, MONOPOLY 

You guessed correctly. Booo-opoly is just like Monopoly but in this version you buy Halloween property like haunted houses and you trade them in for full moons. 

It doesn't sound difficult but you haven't accounted for the fright fees, bats in the belfry or getting caught soaping windows! 

There's a pumpkin carving contest and an opportunity to eat slimy spider tacos. Doesn't that sound like fun? 

This game is recommended for between two and six players and for children aged eight and up.

MRS. B'S REVIEW

"The Boooo-opoly game is one our grandkids love to play. They like creeping around the board trying to collect enough Haunted Houses to be able to trade them for a Full Moon Hotel. Winning a pumpkin carving contest is a treat while having to pay Fright Fees and having Bats in your Belfry are tricks nobody wants to win. Definitely and, surprisingly, 'monstrously entertaining' for all ages." 

Find your copy of Boooo-opoly here on Amazon.

Happy Halloween!

Boo-renda

MORE HALLOWEEN AND MORE GAMES:

How about a Hocus Pocus T-Shirt?

Fans of the cult-favorite Halloween movie, Hocus Pocus will love this tee!

A page of Not-Too-Scary Movies for Tweens

Have a youngster clamoring for scary movies? Here are a few safe choices.

Discover a fun Halloween Treats Jigsaw Puzzle

If you love working puzzles and Halloween, you will enjoy these treats. They're calorie free!

Family Friendly Cranium Board Games

Discover a few of the Cranium series games.

Jenga Stacking Games

Who knew there were so many versions of Jenga?

The Switch Witch and the Magic of Switchcraft Book and Doll Set Reviewed

The Switch Witch is an interesting concept. If you feel that your children have too much candy after Halloween trick or treating, why not employ a Switch Witch?

For the uninitiated, the Switch Witch is a good witch who visits homes with children on Halloween and trades candy for gifts. She is a bit like the tooth fairy.

At bedtime, your children leave a predetermined amount of their candy with the Switch Witch and in the morning *** poof ***  that candy has turned into a special gift.

Mother Barbara on SheKnows.com says, "This is an especially good solution for kids with allergies, medical or dietary requirements that may be restricted from having candy, chocolate, nuts, food dyes, etc." However, Parents.com elaborates that "it isn't about taking the fun out of Halloween but rather that it's about helping kids to understand that fun doesn't have to mean food." Indeed, a lesson for all of us.

The Switch Witch appeared on the October 23, 2015, episode of ABC's Shark Tank.
Included in each set is a Switch Witch doll, cauldron and book. Here’s how it works:

My children are grown but I love the idea of a book to share with your wee ones and of the log to record each year's costume and Switch gifts. I would be sure to add a photo of your child in costume, too. What a great Halloween memory book you would be creating. Using a Switch Witch is sure to become a family tradition just like the Elf on the Shelf is for many families. My children would have loved the idea especially if the candy magically became a Lego set, a coveted book, a trip to the movies, which is, I believe, the secret to using this idea successfully. Make sure the exchange is fun and will make your children's eyes light up.

I will leave you with this link to Amazon, which is where I originally found The Switch Witch set. The book seems to be available now but not the doll set.  

If you are after The Original Switch Witch doll set, be sure to click here to check on eBay. When I checked just now, I see that two sets are available. 

Be sure to leave us a comment below and let us know what you think about this Halloween idea.

Happy Halloween!
Boo-renda

Burger King's Halloween Whopper (2015)

I’ll admit. It made me smile. Burger King’s Halloween Whopper, that is.

It was released for Halloween 2015 for a limited time only. It included what you would expect and a bit more.

A quarter pound hamburger patty, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, mayonnaise and A.1. sauce, more sauce, pickles and onions. All loaded on a sesame seed bun. A black bun that is, infused with A.1. flavor.

Here's the official video from Burger King:

It looks pretty tasty, don't you think? I am not sure if I would eat one or not but I do think that the idea is fun for Halloween given our love in North America of Halloween. Of course, it is also a great marketing idea because it has us all talking about Burger King.

The small print? This burger packs in 710 calories and 43 grams of fat, which means that I will probably pass on this monstrous creation. How about it? Will you be trying one of these Halloween monsters or will you be passing? Be sure to 'lettuce' know.

Happy Haunting!
Boo-renda

MORE FOOD:

Springbok's Pass the Ketchup Hamburger Jigsaw Puzzle

The Heinz Ketchup Jigsaw Puzzle

The Founder: The McDonald's Story Movie Reviewed

Five Zombie Coffee Mugs

SHARE YOUR LOVE OF ZOMBIES WITH A ZOMBIE MUG

Zombie fans beware. I have uncovered a small but horror-iffic selection of Zombie coffee mugs. I've gathered them together and displayed them on this page and on other pages within this blog. Let me warn you that while I have included a few cute Zombie mugs I have also included a few not-so-cute Zombie mugs, given the true nature of this brain-eating creature.

Bet you would never have guessed that there are such, ah, interesting choices to be made when you go looking for a Zombie themed mug. Here's to the zombies...

INFECTED

The mug shown above is a perfectly horrible zombie mug. This one declares on the outside "Infected" and you get to see the real zombie revealed when you lift up the mug for a sip of coffee or serum. This mug (or maybe it is the contents) will bring you back from the dead.

If your mugs go missing at work, you might not want to choose this one because every one will have their eyes on it! 

This mug is no longer in production but occasionally you may find one by following this link to eBay.

SCHOOL OF ZOMBIES

Brains...I Need Brains. Where else would a smart zombie head besides school? This School of Zombies mug declares a zombies need for brains on the interior where it reads, "Brains...I Need Brains." 

A handsome choice by Lorrie Veasey and Our Name is Mud. Find it on Amazon by clicking here.

ZOMBIE SERUM 

Does your zombie need his zombie serum every morning? Does it bring him back to life? If so, he'll appreciate this green-on-the-outside and black-on-the-inside Zombie Serum coffee mug by Lorrie Veasey and Our Name is Mud. It reads, "Zombie Serum. It Brings Me Back to Life." Kind of a handsome mug, don't you think? 

No longer in production, but you might find it on eBay by clicking here where you will find an assortment of retired Our Name is Mud zombie coffee mugs.

HIS AND HER TALKING & WAKING DEAD

I'm not quite sure but don't you think these Talking and Waking Zombie Mugs by Lorrie Veasey and Our Name is Mud qualify as his and hers mugs? One says, "The Talking Dead, Don't Speak To Me Until I've Had my Coffee." The other, "The Waking Dead, No Brains Before Coffee." What do you think and which one are you? Find this cup on Amazon by clicking right here.

ZOMBIES...EAT FLESH

This humorous Zombies mug is, I believe, a take on the Subway Eat Fresh advertising campaign and reads, Zombie. Eat Flesh. It is available in both 11oz and 15 oz sizes and is both dishwasher and microwave safe. You'll find it from the creator on Zazzle by clicking right here.

Have you chosen YOUR zombie mug? - I'm 'dying' to hear which zombie coffee cup is for you... 

GOT ZOMBIES?
Boo-renda
Treasures By Brenda

Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Barbie Doll (2008)

Did you have any idea that there was such a thing as an Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Barbie Doll? I suppose if you have found this post you might have been aware but believe me, until today I was totally unaware.

Now I'm intrigued.

The Birds is a movie on our watch list.  We have one of two teenage sons still living at home and he loves horror movies albeit he generally chooses modern ones but he is not adverse to trying on an old one like The Amityville Horror, Carrie or...The Birds.

He's definitely NOT going to be interested in this Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Barbie Doll though.

She's from Mattel's Black Label Collection of Barbie Dolls and she really is pretty amazing.   She's the spellbinding character played by Tippi Hedren, a socialite named Melanie Daniels, and of course, she comes complete with The Birds. This Barbie is delightfully disturbing!

Happy Haunting!
Brenda

Quick Links:

Order your Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Barbie Doll from Amazon.

Meet the Andy Warhol Barbie Doll.

Superman A Super Hero Costume Favorite for Halloween

If your child's favorite Superhero is Superman, this is the costume he will likely want. Available in children's sizes up to size 14, the costume has a built-in muscle chest, boot tops and cape. All attached.

Dress your little guy like his favorite hero and have a fun Halloween! This costume is likely to be seen all through the year for dress up fun, too.




Quick Link:

Super DC Heroes Deluxe Muscle Chest Superman Child's Costume