Tag: halloween

Children, Families, Family Life, Farms, halloween, Kids Days Out, Large Families, Memories, Photography, Surrey

Pumpkin Picking With Picking Patch

by thejoyoffive2 Comments on Pumpkin Picking With Picking Patch

Over the years Halloween in the UK has got bigger and better than ever, and I am most certainly here for it! Decorating the house, ‘trick or treating’ and probably my favourite activity of them all – pumpkin picking.

We normally have to head a little further afield for this, so I was over the moon when we were asked to visit Picking Patch’s new site in Warlingham, Surrey.

As we arrived in the field we were greeted with a sky full of orange flags wavering in the breeze, lines of wheelbarrows all smartly stacked and ready for use and a band of happy helpers that were there to let you know exactly what was going on and the best way to plan your day. The pumpkin patch is completely free to enter and once you have selected your favourites – they have an impressive twenty varieties to choose from! you can the head to the pricing boxes to see what you need to pay and finally finish things up at the till.

The boys loved being able to push the wheelbarrow through the fields and spent a good while selecting their favourites.

The fun didn’t stop there for us as we were booked onto the Halloween Maize Maze. We followed the story of the Feather Family, joined them for a selfie or two, sat down for a spooky dinner, left our spells on the haunted tree and whiled our way through the apothecary only getting lost once!

We ended the day with a bite to eat. There is a van serving hot food and drinks and an ice cream van if you are looking for a sweet treat.

We had an amazing morning and if you fancy seeing a little more then head over to Instagram or book your places HERE.

Children, Families, Family Life, Festivals, Food, Giveaways, halloween, Holidays, hotels, Kids Days Out, London, travel

Family Halloween Brunch At Mama Shelter

by thejoyoffiveLeave a Comment on Family Halloween Brunch At Mama Shelter

Anyone that follows me will know that we are huge fans of Mama Shelter. It is the perfect destination for families and we can’t wait to celebrate Halloween there this year!

On the 29th October from 11.30am – 3pm the hotel will be bringing a taste of Mexico to East London with their Dia De Los Muertos – Halloween Family Brunch.

Alongside a gorgeous brunch menu – which I can most definitely vouch for! There will be a whole host of fun from face painting to magic tricks, football tournaments to arcade games, karaoke and much more!

When you book this fun and interactive family brunch you get to enter our competition. On the day, share your Instagram stories and posts of enjoyment, tag us @thejoyoffive and @mamashelterlondon and you will enter the prize drawer to win a Family Stay at Mama.

So what are you waiting for! GET BOOKING

T+C: The winner will be selected on Monday 31stOctober and the Family Stay includes a nights stay’ with two bedrooms (one for the parents and one for the kids) with complimentary breakfast. The stay will be valid to be booked to stay during the month of January 2023.

Click HERE to book you table now.

Children, Families, Family Life, halloween, Kids Days Out

Our Top Places For Halloween Fun!

by thejoyoffiveLeave a Comment on Our Top Places For Halloween Fun!

Spooky season is upon us so I have compiled a list of our favourite places to visit at this time of year. I would love to know if you have anymore to add to the list!

Secretts Of Milford: 2nd Oct – 29th Oct This has been a favourite of ours for years now. There is of course pumpkin picking, a spooky trail and the best pumpkin cake I’ve ever tried!

Chessington World Of Adventures: 15th Oct – 30th Oct Howl ‘O’ Ween is always a great day/or night out. All the fun of the theme park plus lots of scary extras. We love being able to take to the rides in the dark!

Godstone Farm: 22nd Oct – 30th Oct They have so much on offer this year from wand making, meeting Griswalda the witch, a spooky trail and lots more!

Picking Patch: 8th Oct – 30th Oct Now this is a new one to us this year so keep an eye out for what we get up to!

Hever Castle: This is another one we never miss! This year they have another fantastic trail, some gouly ghost stories and even the chance to plant some garlic to keep the vampires away!

Hobbledown: 26th Oct – 3rd Nov Meeting creepy crawlies, mystery boxes, puppet shows, ghostly tales, crafts, pumpkin bowling and sooo much more!

Let us know your plans!

Children, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Food, halloween, Kids Days Out, Large Families, Messy play, Parents, Reviews, Soft Play, Surrey

David Lloyd Know How To Party

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As I’m sure most of you know by now that I only have praise for the amazing health club that is – David Lloyd.

It helped my find my mojo again and was the catalyst for my weight loss, it’s a great way to spend quality time as a family as well as keeps you fit and it has even pulled my gaming mad son away from his Xbox which is no mean feat and I will be talking more about this soon.

As well as everything I have mentioned above one of the big pulls for me is the sense of community that David Lloyd encourages. There was is always something going on from quiz nights to BBQs and the other evening we went along to experience this at the kids Halloween party.

The three hour long party was full of fun from beginning to end. The children got the chance to make slime, try their luck with the slimy lucky dip, bob for apples, get their faces painted and so much more!

The staff all got into the spirit of the event and were dressed up and full of life. They boogied away with the kids and seemed to be enjoying themselves as much as the children.

All parties need some good food and there was plenty on offer…even cheeseburgers in the shape of pumpkins!

It was the perfect way to kick off our Halloween half term and has only instilled in me more why David Lloyd is the only health club we would choose.

*We have been given a family membership for the purpose of these posts and they are all my own, honest opinions.

Children, Children's Books, Cinema, Families, Family Life, Large Families, London, Memories, Parents, Reviews, Reviews, teenagers

A Spooky Morning With Goosebumps 2

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Over the years my love for all things spooky has grown and grown. As I child I never really got into the whole Halloween thing, but as I’ve had my own children and Halloween has become more popular in the UK it’s one of the things I love about autumn.

We spend the weeks in the lead up picking pumpkins and decorating the house but spooky movies are something I’ve never got into – mainly due to the fear of scaring the life out of the children and me getting no sleep for months!

So when we were asked along to the screening of Goosbumps 2 I was a little apprehensive about who to take.

Izzy had already seen and loved the first film and after watching the trailer the boys begged me to come along ensuring me they were brave enough to go along!

We arrived to the cinema foyer decked out in with all things spooky. There were magic acts, photo booths, face paint stands and food galore. The children really were spoilt for choice.

Full of sugar and eager to see what the film had to offer we made our way to our seats.

Minutes into the film came out first jumpy moment and I questioned wether I should have taken the boys or not, but the didn’t seem fazed and continued to sit with their eyes glued to the screen.

The film sees mum Kathy the heart of the Quinn family trying to juggle raising two children alongside working in a nursing home which is not for the faint hearted.

Some of the child care duties are passed down to her eldest daughter Sarah who’s eyes and heart are taken away from her duties by her love interest which leaves plenty of time for her brother Sammy and his friend to get up to lots of mischief whilst trying to make a few pennies with their house clearance business.

Whilst out on one of their collections they unearth some seemingly harmless treasure in the form of a locked book and a ventriloquist dummy, but they had no idea what problems these finds were going to bring.

The unfinished work of R.L Stine(Jack Black) and ‘Snappy’ the ventriloquist dummy in fact bring a whole host of problems to the Quinn family and give the entire town of Wardenclyffe a Halloween to remember!

Goosebumps 2 gave us the perfect introduction to horror and although it had plenty of heart in mouth moments, ghosts, ghouls and monsters galore and the fear factor of not knowing what was going to come next; it was perfect viewing for the younger ones whilst still giving the teens a movie to enjoy.

The film also had a great comedy element to it in the form of the mad neighbour Mr Chu who helps the kids on the mission to save their mother from the grips of Snappy with his huge knowledge of all things Goodebumps related and his quick eye for fashion!

Goosebumps is definitely one to watch and for me I will never look at a gummy bear in the same light again!

Cafes, Children, Costumes, Families, Family Life, Memories, Parents, Reviews, Surrey

Having A Spooktacular Time At Chessington World Of Adventures

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Chessington World Of Adventures don’t do things by halves and this years Howl ‘O’ Ween celebrations were as fantastic as always when we visited yesterday.

As soon as you hit the entrance the park is festooned with all kinds of pumpkins and skeletons to get you into the spooky mood.

We usually head to Chessington for the fast rides and thrill and spills they have to offer, but this time we decided on a calmer day where we would just go to enjoy the smaller rides, the animals, the shoes and of course everything they had to offer for Halloween.

Trick Or Treat Wood is always a favourite with all the family as it allows for the element of surprise and is jumpy without being too scary.

We weaved our way through the woods where we were confronted with all kinds of creepy, cute and funny creatures that took us on an adventure to make it through the woods and claim our special treat at the end.

From here Izzy braved the Creepy Caves that saw her escorted through a creepy quarantined area which was extra scary as due to nobody knowing the whereabouts of the missing zoo keeper!

More scares were to come with the Curse Of The Tomb where you need to find your way through the scary maze in search of Genghis Khan’s lost tomb.

This one certainly wasn’t for the faint hearted and I got the wits scare out of me by one of the actors simply popping his head out of the caves!

It was an absolutely freezing day and we were very grateful to be able to warm up for a while in the Sealife Centre that the children all love.

We then made our way to some of the smaller rides such as the flying jumbos, the carousel, adventure tree, tiny truckers and of course Hocus Pocus Hall has to be done at this time of year!

We took a little bit of time out to watch the brilliant Room On A Broom story time they brings the much loved book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler to life which the children were captivated by and then loved getting the opportunity to meet the witch herself.

Another place we love to visit is the Dragon’s Placehouse where the boys have a whale of a time jumping through the soft play while I get the chance to have five minutes peace and a cheeky muffin in the cafe next door.

We were a little pushed for time and gutted we didn’t get the chance to see the brand new Haunted Howl ‘O’ Ween show which looked like great fun.

There was also a competition running for the best dressed Halloween adventurer.

All the fun is going on until 4th November so don’t miss out!

‘I am a Chessington Blogger Ambassador, I was given a Chessington Annual Pass to do this review with my family and I was not paid to do this post. If anyone would like to confirm any details in the post, please email press.office@chessington.co.uk’

Cafes, Cakes, Children, Families, Family Life, Farms, Food, Garden Centres, Kids Days Out, Large Families, Memories, Nutfield, Outdoor Play, Parks, Photography, Priory Farm, Reigate, Surrey

Saying Hello To Autumn At Priory Farm

by thejoyoffive10 Comments on Saying Hello To Autumn At Priory Farm

A chill in the wind, beautiful rich colours, Halloween and cosy afternoons snuggled up under warm blankets are just a few of the reason I absolutely love October.

The weather hasn’t yet changed to the bitterness of winter and getting out into the great outdoors is a real pleasure.

The first adventure for us is always a trip to Priory Farm to select the perfect pumpkin for carving and eating if I ever get round to trying pumpkin pie…I have been promising the children this for the past goodness knows how long!

I have written about Priory Farm countless times as it has so much to offer from fantastic play areas to a brilliant discovery walk and they always go that extra mile for special occasions such as this.

Today we climbed aboard the truck that was decked out perfectly for Halloween with missing limbs, cobwebs and huge spiders.

The short journey lead us straight to the pumpkin field which the children couldn’t wait to get to and select their favourite pumpkin, which for the first year ever wasn’t a competition to see who’s was the biggest.

A good few laps of the field and more than a few pumpkins picked and rejected we finally had our favourites and headed back to the kiosk where there was a game of ‘roll the pumpkin’ and hoopla onto creepy arms to keep the children amused while we waited for our ride back.

Prized pumpkins in hand we climbed aboard and headed off to get a well earned piece of scrummy cake and a good coffee.

There is so much going on over the next few weeks at Priory Farm as well as the pumpkin picking and a visit come highly recommend from us!

Country Kids

Allergies, Allergy Free, Cakes, Children, Chocolate, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Families, Family Life, Food, Lollies

Allergy Friendly Halloween Ghosts

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When you have a child with allergies times like Halloween can be a bit of a tricky time with treats around every corner.

I’m planning ahead this year and making sure number four has plenty of treats ready for the weekend ahead.

One of my easiest and most loved recipes for him are my Rice Krispie lolly pops. 

I have used the basic ingredients from this and changed it around a little to create these cute ghosts.

Allergy Friendly Halloween Ghosts 

  • 150g Rice Krispies
  • 3tbsps dairy free spread
  • 320g dairy free white chocolate 
  • Dairy free chocolate drops for face 
  1. Over a low heat melt the butter and marshmallows in a large pan.
  2. Once melted add Rice Krispies until completly covered.
  3. Take a small handful of mixture and mould into an elongated oval shape that is tapered at the end to create a tail.
  4. Place onto greaceproof paper and cool in the fridge for about thirty minutes.
  5. Meanwhile melt the white chocolate in a bowl over the top of a pan of boiling water.
  6. Once the ghosts have hardened up cover the top half in the chocolate, add a few chocolate drops for eyes and a mouth and place back in the fridge to set the chocolate.
  7. Once hardened they are ready to serve.
London, Uncategorized

Strictly Adults Only At The London Bridge Experience And Tombs

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I love Halloween with all the pumpkin carving, trick or treating and dressing up. However I’m much fonder of the softer side aimed more at the little ones rather than the darker side of things like gouls and ghosts that I tend to avoid.

An invite hit my inbox to an adult only event at the London Bridge Experience And Tombs and fear set in as soon as I read it!

An event that is being put on especially for the Halloween period and would transform the tombs into a ventriloquists workshop with a difference!

There was no way I was going to go it alone so I took my sister along for some moral support.

We arrived at the opening where there were magic tricks being performed and snakes being drapped over people’s shoulders. After a couple of drinks for some Dutch courage our group was called to start our tour.

I was lured into a false sense of security as the first room was relatively tame and my pounding heart had settled a little.

This was extremely short lived and I grabbed at my sister’s sweaty palm like a small child.

We made our way through the thirty minute tour trying to avoid clowns leaping from the dark, unknown arms grabbing at you from behind shrouds and chainsaw welding men appearing when you least expect it.

I had my heart in my mouth the whole way round, my palms were sweating, my pulse was racing and my language was more than a little blue the whole way round!


All logic went out the window and I was completly drawn in by everything that was going on around me.


For me it was like being on a roller coaster. I hated every minute of it whist it was going on but the adrenaline rush was so great that I came out on a complete high lovely every minute of it.


The event is only on until the 31st October and there is a great offer ‘here’ which will give you a huge saving of 73% taking the entrance price from £26.95 to £15.50.

I will leave you with a sneak peak of what to expect!

Children, Families, Family Life, Farms, Kids Days Out

Halloween Has Started:Priory Farm Pumpkin Picking

by thejoyoffive18 Comments on Halloween Has Started:Priory Farm Pumpkin Picking

The days are getting colder, evenings are drawing in and one of my favourite times of year is nearly upon us…Halloween!

I’m a huge kid at this time of year and love all of the preparation for it, the most exciting part being picking our own pumpkins.

This is only a tradition we have started over the past few years but it is always such a lovely thing to do as a family and far more fun than just picking one up from the supermarket.

Last year we missed the picking at one of our favourite places – Priory farm in Nutfield and just took park in the spooky discovery walk which is also a great activity for Halloween.

Priory offer more than just a field to pick from, you climb aboard the spooky tractor and take a short ride to the field which allows for a smaller number of people than most places to pick.  This made it feel much more relaxed. 


Once we got to the field the kids made a beeline to find the perfect or actually biggest pumpkin!

I got so excited about a good photo opportunity but the kids really weren’t feeling it today.  They were way to excited to be posing for me unfortunatly.


Pumpkins sized and paid for we all piled back on the tractor and stopped off in the coffee shop for big hot chocolates and a run around in the playground.

Priory Farm is a fabulous day out with so much to do aside from the pumpkin picking which will be running again next weekend if you fancy a trip.

Country Kids