Where to Take Young Kiddos for Halloween Fun

The leaves on the trees are starting to change colors, parents everywhere are high fiving each other as they drop their children off at school, and your mailboxes (both physical and virtual) are being filled with advertisements for Halloween costumes. It is safe to say that Halloween is going to be here before you know it.

Halloween can be a very scary time for some young children. When my daughter was younger, she thought the pale zombie girl on the swing, who sings in the most terrifying voice, was the most interesting thing she had every seen. "Mommy, will you go with me to see the girl on the swing" she'd ask and I'd reply with "nope, I'm good." Flash forward to the present and she is very concerned about seeing the scary "girl on the swing" who appears in our neighbor's front lawn, which closely resembles the Halloween decoration section at the local costume shop, every year. My, how two years can change one's perspective.

Taking pictures with sister can be so scary

So, that means haunted mazes and hay rides are out of the question, but that doesn't mean that we can't enjoy the Halloween season fun though. There is plenty in Orange County to do with little kids to celebrate the Halloween season (and get another wear out of that $50 costume).

Disneyland (and Mickey's Halloween Party)
Address: 1313 Disneyland Drive, Anaheim
Hours: varies per day, check website
Admission $99 for adults, $93 for children 3-9 years old, under 3 years old is free
(Mickey's Halloween Party tickets are $69 and up depending on the day)

Peek-a-boo with Minnie the Witch

Jump 'n Jammin

Address: Kaleidoscope Mall, 27741 Crown Valley Pkwy, Mission Viejo
Hours: Sunday-Thursday 10am-6pm, Friday & Saturday 10am-8pm
Ages: Crawling to teens
Admission: $12.95 for one child + one adult + one sibling under 2 years old, $5.49 for one toddler under 2 years old, $3 for an extra adult

There are so many reasons why I love this place. I have brought the kids here over a dozen times and each time, the play areas and bathrooms are clean. I often see employees in the play structures with a rag and what I can only assume to be some sort of disinfecting cleaner. It could just be water in that spray bottle. I'll give them the benefit of doubt. Also, there's something for every type of kid. My nephew was a little wary of the faster slides but loved the slide by the ball area since it was a lot slower. (It's so slow that you have to scooch yourself down near the end of the slide.) But if you've got an ambitious one, send him over to the rock climbing wall. It's more of horizontal rock climbing wall so you don't really have to worry about the kids going too high.

For younger kids, they put the "wristband" on the child's back

By far, though, the number one reason why I bring the kiddos here is that they cannot escape exit without you. With multiple kids, it can get a little difficult to keep an eye on all of them. With Jump 'n Jammin's system, you can rest assured that your child won't be walking down Crown Valley Parkway by himself. When you enter, you all are given a wristband with a matching number. The number corresponds with a bin that they provide for all of your shoes and belongings. The bin is kept safely tucked away until you are ready to exit. Once you decided that it is time to go (aka you've hit your limit), an employee, who is waiting at the exit gate, checks your wristbands and gives you your bin with your crap.

Jump 'n Jammin has it all.

Slides, obstacle courses, and more

Fun at Pretend City in Irvine

Address: 29 Hubble, Irvine
Hours: 10am-5pm (closes at 1pm on Mondays)
Ages: Infants to 8 years old (I recommend walking to 6 years old)
Admission price: $12.50/per person (adults must pay admission, under 12 months are free)

Pretend City is one of my favorite places to take the kids. There's so much for the kids to do that we rarely get to everything in one visit. The toys and facility looks sparkly clean even though the place is crawling with grubby hands. But the best part is that there are volunteers everywhere returning the toys to their proper homes.

There are so many exhibits to explore and keep the kids busy.

Amphitheater

What kid doesn't want to be the center of attention on stage? There are usually costumes, props, and/or musical instruments available so that the kids can really get into it. My kids' favorite part is the sound and lighting panel. It's the perfect example of cause and effect. Push a button and something cool happens.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

We took our children to their very first baseball game. Here's how it went.

Now, I will start this off by saying that I am not a big sports fan and you will never catch me watching any type of sport on the television at home unless someone (aka my dad) has changed the channel from the Food Network or Disney Junior to "the game." 

Bubblefest (and Lego Travel Adventue) at the Discovery Cube

We just got back from the Discovery Cube in Santa Ana where we checked out the Bubblefest exhibit and the Lego Travel Adventure exhibit.

Let's start with the Bubblefest
The Bubblefest runs until April 15, 2015 and there is an additional $7/person admission fee to enter the Bubblefest area. General admission to the Discovery Cube is $16.95 for adults and $12.95 for children 3-14 years old. Children 2 years old and younger are free.

Mega Bubblefest Laser Show

The absolute best part of Bubblefest is the Mega Bubblefest Laser Show featuring Deni Yang, who is bubble scientist wizard extraordinaire. This guy is amazing! Bubbles in bubbles, "smoke" filled bubbles, splitting bubbles. Crazy, it's just crazy, what he can do. The kids are able to sit on the floor so they can be up close to the action. The show is about 45 minutes long but he definitely keeps the audience in amazement the entire time.

Children's Museum at La Habra

Address: 301 S. Euclid Street, La Habra

Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10am-4pm, Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 1-5pm

Ages: Walking to elementary age

Admission: $8 per person, under 2 are free, $7 for La Habra residents

There was a Groupon for the Children's Museum at La Habra, so we decided to check it out. Here are the highlights.

1. Trains!

On our way from the parking lot to the entrance of the museum, we came across two rows of old, non-operating train cars complete with a passenger car and a caboose that you can enter.