HAllOWeeN PaRtY??? HeLp me please?

Bonefires can be GREAT fun, but you need to do two things first...

A) check with the city...bonefires aren't legal in most cities. If you are out in the country that's great, if you are in the suburbs you will get a visit by some VERY annoyed firemen, and your folks will get a nice fat fine for violatiing the fire code. Where I live they are legal, but you have to get a permit, (which cost like $500) and have a fireman standing by, just in case. Drop by your local firestation and ask them what the rules are. Act all charming and maybe they can cut you a break.

B) Once you get the permits and such, make sure you have some fire extinguishers handy. If your bonefire decides to escape, your garden hose ain't going to slow it down any.

Federal Law prohibits the use of any Halloween decorations that have been used in a front yard from being used in a backyard.. :0) Just kidding...of course you can do that. Personally though I'd do something a bit different.

My neighbors every year threw a big halloween party. What they did was set up a spooky front yard haunt, and the guests had to walk through it (they had teenage boys who would jump out and scare people). The haunt trail went around the yard and wound up at the back door. There was a sign there for trick or treaters to the left (to the candy bowl and then out the gate) and for invited guests to the right...into the party. I'd do something like that. Keep the majority of the spooky decor out in the front yard (look on youtube for videos showing what to do) and put the party in the back. Put on spooky music (Midnight Syndicate is best, you can get their CD's at Halloween Stores) in the front yard, use dance party music for the backyard. You still want the back yard to be spooky, but put the REALLY scary stuff and gory stuff up front, keep enough in the back to lend some atmosphere.

What we are doing this year is borrowing a DVD projector, and then putting up a big sheet on the back fence for a screen, and watching old horror movies...if you can't swing a bonefire that might make a good substitute.

Since it is Halloween a costume party is in order, obviously. I have two suggestions on this point.

One is from a party I threw in college...we told everyone to come "dressed in the clothes you expect to die in". This lead to some INTERESTING costumes. One guy came in his bicycle uniform and painted a tire tread across it. Two girls painted themselves green and wore shirts that said "NUKED". One guy wore Army fatigues and put pressure bandages on them with lots of fake blood. One couple had clothes that were singed...they said their private jet went down on the way to the Bahamas. IF you think this would work with your friends, go with that idea, and have your Dad dress up like the Grim Reaper, he can escort your friends around the back to the party.

Another idea is to go with a theme party. Make sure your guests know the theme from the invitation. Take the theme through the whole affair. For example you could do a "headless horseman" party. Show SLEEPY HOLLOW (Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci) and THE HOLLOW as the movies, serve punch (punch was BIG in the 18th century...in those days it was seriously spiked though, and I don't recomend you do that...don't want the folks getting in trouble for underage drinking), and candy apples and pumpkin pie and popcorn and decorate in a harvest/early american sort of theme...scarecrows and pumpkins, etc.

OR show Mummy movies..here you wear a Cleopatra costume, and you serve flat bread (pita) sandwiches, decorate in a whole Egyptian theme, make fake mummy if you can, etc.

Or you could do dinner at Dracula's castle...this could be fun. Set up a big table in the back yard, do lots of cobwebs and have a dark red drink (ask your folks how they feel about getting some of that non-alcaholic wine perhaps) have spooky music, show Vampire movies, serve meaballs (the ones in a crock pot with a spicy red sauce...you eat them with toothpicks)

you get the idea...for werewolves do english food and decor and run An American Wierewolf in London and the original The Werewolf with Lon Cheny. For Frankenstien do German food (pretzels and sausages...maybe even roast frankfurters if you can get the bonefire) and show Frankenstien movies...see if the folks will let you have alcohol free beer. (Be careful on that...you don't want somebody's Dad freaking out when his daughter comes home and smells like beer and she says "it was alcohol free beer" and he doesn't believe her...save the recipts just in case). Do it like a German party in the back...if you can get someone to do it, have a really tall friend sneak away from the party half way through, get him dressed up like Frankenstien, and then have him "attack" the party at some point as a suprise.

In any case, you get the idea.

Good luck and have fun!

Well, You should have a bonfire! my friend does every year, and its sooo fun! they hang just a couple little decorations, do bobbing for apples and have a costume contest! also for food, serve hot chocolate and normal food. maybe get a cake? at my friends bonfires, she has chips, soda, cake, some people bring cookies and stuff.. you should definantly try it!!!!