THE CDC ACTUALLY HAS SOME FUN RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HALLOWEEN

What are your plans for Halloween? We know, it’s a month away, but if you have kiddos, they’ve been asking for a month already. The CDC has released a new guidance for Halloween and other fall celebrations like Thanksgiving, Rosh Hashanah,  Día de Muertos, and more.

The CDC says that a lot of typical Halloween activities are high-risk, like traditional trick-or-treating and parties, but have some ideas on lowering the risk. The WI Department of Health Services also released a similar guidance, you can check their list out HERE.

They remind us that a costume mask is not a substitute for a cloth mask and we shouldn’t wear a costume mask over a protective cloth mask because it can be dangerous if the costume mask makes it hard to breathe. Instead, consider using a Halloween-themed cloth mask.
Our favorite part is the moderate risk suggestion of an outdoor, physically distant movie night. Their guidance says, “If screaming will likely occur, greater distancing is advised. The greater the distance, the lower the risk of spreading a respiratory virus.” 😉

Here’s a few of other ideas we’re diggin:

Lower risk alternatives

• Carving or decorating pumpkins with members of your household or outside, at a safe distance, with neighbors or friends
• Decorating your house, apartment, or living space
• Doing a Halloween scavenger hunt where children are given lists of Halloween-themed things to look for while they walk outdoors from house to house admiring Halloween decorations at a distance
• Having a virtual Halloween costume contest
• Having a Halloween movie night with people you live with
• Having a scavenger hunt-style trick-or-treat search with your household members in or around your home rather than going house to house

Moderate risk activities

• Participating in one-way trick-or-treating where individually wrapped goodie bags are lined up for families to grab and go while continuing to social distance (such as at the end of a driveway or at the edge of a yard)
  • If you are preparing goodie bags, wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 second before and after preparing the bags.
• Having a small group, outdoor, open-air costume parade where people are distanced more than 6 feet apart.
• Visiting pumpkin patches or orchards where people use hand sanitizer before touching pumpkins or picking apples, wearing masks is encouraged or enforced, and people are able to maintain social distancing