Halloween Party Prep 2010

We had a great time at our Halloween Party this year and I wanted to share some of the party prep with you.  I ordered two party tents, 10x30, this year and they worked out great.  The UPS guy was a frequent visitor last week and delivered the tents on Tuesday.  He was interested in how our tents turned out...I was able to report to him yesterday that they were a great success.

I wanted plenty of room for 60-75 guests and decided to use two tents, placed side by side to duplicate one large 20x30 tent....worked like a charm.  The poles in the middle were not restrictive in any way to our flow within the tent.  Here is an open view of the tents placed together and without all the sides attached.  We staked the tent down with extra stakes that we purchased seperately, because even though I was pleased with the quality of the tents for the price I paid...these tents would not withstand extreme high winds and I did not want to take any chances.  We put the tents up on Thursday night before the party on Saturday night, and as luck would have it, the wind started whipping up as soon as we had them up.  The stakes were definetly a good idea and otherwise we would not have been in Kansas anymore. 

 Another view of the interior space when most of the walls were in place...you can see the poles in the middle of the tent.  The windows helped bring in lots of light.

Another interior shot.  The ends of the tent have zippered doors, so we left one open for ease of movement.  We placed string lights in the tent and they worked perfectly with just the right amount of light provided. 

I used black, orange and green tulle to drape over the top of the tent.  Because it has been so dry here in Tennessee, our lawn is more dust than grass.  We scattered hay over the tent floor to keep the dust down and provide a good base for the people traffic.  Next year, I would like to have a couple rolls of outdoor carpet turf for the flooring. 

We also had to set up the hay play.  This year, Mike set it up by the playset so that the kids could slide down the slide into a hay tunnel.  This is an in progress shot with Connor (GB 3) providing his stamp of approval.

Mike and Alden (GB 1) unloading the hay to set up the hay play area and the fire pit seating area.   My brother, Peanut, is great and allows us to use some of his hay bales each year for the party. This year, we met in the hay field and picked up the hay as he baled it. 

My girls and the Grandbabes taking a test hay ride.

I'll be back tomorrow with another post complete with party pics and the food set-up.  Posting to the following parties.  Please click on each link to be magically whisked away to each party....thanks to the hosts for having me:

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