Keaton entering the spoooky pumpkin

Last night, we attended Pumpkins After Dark, a Halloween-themed walk-through event at Wesley Clover Parks that features over ten thousand hand-carved pumpkins. This event spans from September 29 to October 31, 2023, so there’s plenty of time and opportunities for Halloween enthusiasts to visit.

Because this event takes place over the course of a month, it really is ideal for those like myself who prefer a leisurely stroll devoid of intense crowds. In fact, when we visited last night, a summery Sunday evening, there wasn’t a crowd at all (it helped that the displays were vastly spread out).

Tent of funky displays

These pumpkins had all been hand-carved, and the details are just out-of-this-world impressive!

My brother would’ve loved these. They’re made out of pumpkins. How cool is that?!

The dinosaur display, or “Jurassic Zone,” was Keaton’s favourite part. He even argued it was Jurassic Park, not Zone. This was the part where he demanded for his daddy to take him off his shoulders, and excitedly ran off.

The Avengers

Batman and Superman!

Fictional and non-fictional boxing legends. (Again, all made out of pumpkins!)

Dreamy tunnel of pumpkins and lights

Singing pumpkins!

This little tunnel of singing pumpkins and dancing lights was so much fun. The entertainment factor was very well done!

As we continued, we saw so many more cool displays made out of pumpkins, featuring the Ouija board, Michael Jackson, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Harry Potter, Cinderella, and many more!

Keaton, although a bit scared at times, enjoyed it, especially the dinosaur exhibit. He also loved running towards the displays with lively music. (Perhaps he’s a little party animal, too, who loves going out at night.) Gaia, on the other hand, sweetly and quietly observed her surroundings from the comfort and warmth of her blanket and stroller throughout the evening.

As for my husband and I, it felt like a date night even with the kids present. We seldom go out at night in general because we have young kids (lame excuse, I know). But last night, this spontaneous outing was one of the best decisions and family events we’d made and experienced. It also helped immensely that the walk-through was leisurely and Keaton followed suit without any battles whatsoever (win!).

Everything contributed to a successful, memorable evening: an impressive and entertaining Halloween event, a warm evening with a light autumn breeze (featuring a big orange full moon), kids that were low maintenance, and finally, feeling that we’re actually living life as parents and as a family.