What: Yule Forest Pumpkin Patch
When: Pumpkin Patch opens Oct. 2, 2010, Weekdays 4 – 7 pm, Weekends 9 – 6 pm
Cost: Admission is $5 per person (includes free hayride and petting zoo) Additional activities are $1 – $3. (Note the Kids Zone with the jumpy pillow is extra and your kids WILL want to do this)

This week I went with my son’s kindergarten to the Yule Forest pumpkin patch. It was a lot of fun and I was amazed at all the activities available for the kids. Pumpkins were really an after thought, the real attractions were a fun zone with a HUGE jumpy pillow, bounce houses, play ship and kid-sized maze. There were animals galor including a petting zoo, bunny town and reptile house. There were even some educational elements like a video on growing pumpkins (where my son learned he needed to plant his seeds in July to have pumpkins in October) and displays about everything from Georgia to farming to recycling. My only dissappoinment was getting our small pumpkin on the way out in a plastic bag. I understand this is supposed to be a “trick or treat” bag, but honestly, I have enough Kroger bags. Save yourself a few pennies, save the environment a bit, and just hand out the pumpkins without the extra bag.

Earlier this month I did a round up of Pumpkin Patches in Atlanta. It’s been a popular post and I’ve had a good bit of feedback. It appears there is a huge difference between patches. Some offer lots of activities, like the Yule Forest, while others are quieter. Depending on your family and your budget, it helps to know before you go what kind of patch you’ll be visiting. If you’ve got a favorite pumpkin patch (or Christmas Tree lot), let us know about it and tell us what makes it so special. Are there a lot of things to do, or just enough? Let us know prices too. As much as I love the festival atmosphere, those $1 and $2 extras add up, especially when you have three kids, so sometimes we opt for the locations with fewer activities.

Things To Do
Atlanta

This is it, the weekend my youngest has been waiting for since about July… Halloween! There are a TON of activities going on all around town but here are a few that I mentioned this morning on CBS Better Mornings Atlanta in the 5 am hour and in the 6 am hour.

Atlanta Botanical Gardens Scarecrows in the Garden (+ Fest of Ale and pumpkin carving)
Pumpkin Patches around Atlanta
Uncle Shucks Corn Maze (and other corn mazes around Atlanta)
Georgia A-Scarey-Um at the Georgia Aquarium and Dali-ween at the High Museum of Art

A round up of Trick or Treating opportunities at area malls from Atlanta with Kid
Flick or Treat Fest at the Cobb Galleria
Haunted Houses around Atlanta

What: Flick or Treat Fest
Where: Cobb Galleria
When: Saturday, Oct. 30, 2010 at 5 p.m.
Cost: FREE

I’ve enjoyed Peachtree TV’s Screen on the Green movie series in the summer, so I’m super excited about this family friendly Halloween version.

On Sat., Oct. 30 at 5 pm, the Cobb Galleria Centre convention hall will become the site of the Flick or Treat Fest. There is trick or treating, carnival games, a costume parade and live music and at 7 pm, a screening of Shrek the Third. In addition, parking is FREE at the Cobb Galleria in one of their three main parking decks.

What: The Ghastly Dreadfuls
Where: Center for Puppetry Arts
When: Through Oct. 31, 2010, 8 pm nightly with a special 5 pm performance on Oct. 31.
Cost: $25 ($15 for members)

With all the Fall Festivals and Halloween hoopla, are you looking to get AWAY from the kids for a night? May I suggest a date night to the Center for Puppetry Arts to see the adult only live theatre + puppet show – The Ghastly Dreadfuls?

I haven’t seen this show, although I’ve been dying to for a few years, so I asked fellow blogger Wendy from Atlanta Events (@ATL_Events) to draft a review. She even gave you some pre (or post) show dinner suggestions! Thanks Wendy.

Who would have guessed the place that you take your kids during the year for fun puppet shows about pirates and talking animals, also has fantastic adult programming as well? Enter the realm of The Ghastly Dreadfuls, a family of undead performers who take over the Center for Puppetry Arts once a year to entertain and delight audiences with their spooky stories, songs and maybe even a little scandalous soft-shoe.

The Ghastly Dreadfuls show can be part of a memorable Halloween themed date night, paired with dinner at some great restaurants in Midtown – all within a couple blocks of the Center for Puppetry Arts.

For dinner try:
Nan (upscale Thai)
Shout (casual Mediterranean/Sushi) – Colony Sq – validated parking
South City Kitchen (casual Southern)
Spice Market (upscale Asian) – W Hotel Midtown $6 discounted valet parking
Steel (casual Japanese/Sushi)
Tamarind Seed (casual Thai) – Colony Sq – validated parking
TAP (casual, American)

This annual Teen/Adult Halloween-themed show has tickets available for shows this Weds-Sunday for $25. If you’re a member already, they are only $15! Parking is free at the Center for Puppetry Arts and there is also a beer/wine cash bar available on-site for those seeking licentious libations.

Halloween isn’t just for kids, so let The Ghastly Dreadfuls be your hosts this year for a spooktacular good time!

Halloween is a big deal on our street. It’s one of the reasons we bought our house. There’s a cookout and then ALL the kids go trick-or-treating. I love seeing the costumes and the kids running around. Whether or not you have an awesome trick-or-treating street, there are lots of places to go for trick-or-treating during the month of October. Here are a few. Know more? Tell us about it.

What: Trick or Treat at the Museum
Where: Children’s Museum of Atlanta
When: Sat., Oct. 23, 2010 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Cost: Members $6 plus tax, General Admission $15 plus tax (no tickets available at the door)
This event sells out quickly, so don’t delay if you think you’d like to go. There will be crafts, prizes, games and some surprises too!

What: Boo at the Zoo
Where: Zoo Atlanta
When: Sat. and Sundays Oct. 23, 24, 30, 31 (10 am – 3 pm)
Cost: Free for Members, Free with General Admission ($19.99 adults, $14.99 Children 3 – 11)
Explore magical paths, sample sweet treats (while supplies last), meet the whimsical characters of Zoo Boo Town, and much more.

What: Goblins in the Garden
Where: Atlanta Botanical Garden
When: Sunday, Oct. 24, 2010 11 am – 5 pm
Cost: Free with Admission (train rides $2, pony rides $4)
Bring young goblins dressed in their Halloween best for a costume parade, the ride-on-train, games, pony rides, tricks, treats and more! Plus, explore Scarecrows in the Garden! The Garden is stuffed with more than 100 wacky creations.

What: Georgia A-Scary-Um
Where: Georgia Aquarium
When: Oct. 29 – 31, 2010
Cost: Kids 12 and under in costume are FREE accompanied by an adult
Not only will the Aquarium be decked out with Halloween-themed decorations, but there will be music, candy stations throughout the Aquarium, Halloween craft tables and costume contests throughout the day. So join us, wear your costumes and get ready to have a screaming good time with bat fish, spider crabs, ghost jellies and more!

What: Dali-ween
Where: High Museum of Art
When: Sunday, Oct. 31, 2010
Cost: Children in costume get in free!
Start your Halloween Festivities this year by listening to spooky stories and creating fantastical Dali-ween masks at the High Museum of art.

What: Spirit of Oakland Halloween Tours
Where: Oakland Cemetery
When: Friday, Oct. 22; Saturday, Oct. 23 or Sunday, Oct. 24
Cost: FREE if you win the tickets. If not, $17.50 for adults, $10 children 10 and under

Historic Oakland Cemetery has many visitors by day, but only at Halloween do its gates stay open at night. What better place for a Halloween tour than a cemetery. Hear about Atlanta’s past from a host of Oakland’s “residents.” Bring a flashlight and comfortable walking shoes. The stories are historic in nature and there aren’t any goblins or ghosts jumping out at you.We did this tour last year and the stories themselves aren’t scary, but walking around a cemetery at night could be a little frightening for little ones. We left my youngest at home that night.

Tours start at 5:30 pm each night at the Bell Tower (Quasimodoish, how creepy) and last approximately one hour. There will also be musical entertainment and fortune telling throughout the evening. You must have your ticket to enter. Tours are sold in timed increments, so advanced ticket purchases only. These tours sell out, so if you want to go, get tickets now.

So how can you win FREE tickets? Leave a comment below and tell us your favorite fall activity in Atlanta.

Want an extra shot at winning?
Twitter: Follow @suerodman and tweet “Looking for a haunted house alternative? Capture the spirit of @oaklandcemetery w/the Halloween Tours. Win Free tix from @suerodman”
Facebook: “Like” Field Trips with Sue on Facebook and leave us a wall post on your favorite fall activity in and around Atlanta. Better yet – upload a photo for us to see! If you upload a photo, leave your name so we can include you in the contest for tickets.

We’ll announce the winner on Monday, Oct. 4.

What: Peachtree TV’s Scream on the Green
Where: Centennial Olympic Park
When: Sat. Oct. 31 5:00 pm, movie starts at 6:30 pm
Cost: FREE

I love the name of this event. If Halloween wasn’t so much fun on our street, I think I’d consider attending, at least for the older boys. In addition to trick-or-treating, there are carnival games, a costume parade for kids and live music. The evening is topped off with a screening of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

What: Trick of Treat with the Braves
Where: Turner Field
When: Oct. 19 – 31
Cost: Free with a visit to the Braves Museum and Hall of Fame Walk-up tour tickets are $12 for adults, $7 for children and $10 for groups of 20 or more

Also: FREE Halloween Pumpkin Stencils

For the die-hard Braves fan, this is a great opportunity to visit the Braves Hall of Fame Museum and get a little trick-or-treating in. Children 13 and under receive a Braves trick-or-treat bag at the start of the tour for the treats and surprises they collect on every tour stop.

Can’t make it to the stadium for trick-or-treating but want to show your Braves spirit? Make a Braves pumpkin with these free stencils. Then enter your creation in the Braves Pumpkin Carving Contest, you could win a pair of tickets to any 2010 Atlanta Braves home game. For complete details go to braves.com/pumpkin.

What: Stadium of Screams
Where: Gwinnett Braves Stadium
When: Through Nov. 1, 7 pm – 12 Midnight
Cost: $13 for the Not So Spooky Attraction and Movie and $20 for the 2 Spooky Attractions and Movie. Discounts available online.

I found this attraction when looking up haunted houses. The Stadium of Screams offers various levels of fright. There are two spooky attractions and a not-so-spooky alternative.

The two spooky attractions, the Tunnel of Terror and the Corridor of Horror are recommended for those 12 and over, but you know your child best. On the website FAQ, they answer the question “how long is it?” with “How fast can you run?” Not fast enough I’m sure. I’m still gingerly opening dark closets after a dead body fell out in a Starkey and Hutch episode. In addition to the haunting, at 9:30 pm is a screening of horror movie The Grunge (rated PG-13) on the JumboTron.

For the young or timid, there is a not-so-spooky option called the Concourse of Characters. This includes costumed characters, as well as games and prizes. The PG rated Monster Movie plays at 7:30 pm.

Chelsea Viran is our lastest ticket winner (through random.org). Chelsea, email me at sue@fieldtripswithsue.com to confirm your tickets and let me know what performance you’d like to attend. Your tickets for the Georgia Ballet’s A Sleepy Hollow Story will be available at will call.