It’s Spook Season, ya’ll!

I traveled extensively last fall, so I wasn’t home for Halloween 2020. But since Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, my boys have received the ultimatum: if they’re around to help, we’ll go all out with the yard and house. If they’re not around, I’m leaving town for greener pastures.

They’re in. We’ve been doing some research on the hottest animatronics out there for Halloween 2021, so here’s some fun things you might see in our yard this year:

(Note: Wait until the last minute for animatronics in order to get the best price. These animatronics will go down by 40% if you hold out until the week before Halloween. If you want to stock up for next year, they’ll go down 80% on November 1st)

The Caretaker, Spirit of Halloween ($209.99). I don’t know what’s going on with Spirit animatronics the last few years, the quality has really gone down. But this Caretaker is the highlight of their 2021 line. He’s six-feet tall with light-up yellow eyes, and holding a shovel. His voice-over is fantastic, and as he speaks his mouth moves and his arms raise and lower the shovel.

Grandinroad Animated Floating Broom (($69.50). These are going quick, so if you like it, grab it. It’s super cute, and not too scary for wee tikes.

Rabid Girl by Horror Dome ($2,850). We have just discovered The Horror Dome, and now we realize where all of the quality animatronics are hiding. This price tag obviously would be for a professionally-run haunted house or attraction, but I wanted to share what quality scares look like. Rabid Girl is a Shocktronic, which means it starts out as an animatronic, but you need an actor to jump out at the end. Quality stuff.

Clawing Cathy by Horror Dome ($119.99). We love a good smoky graveyard scene at this house, so she will definitely be a major part of our display.

Crashing Witch on a Tree Inflatable by Wayfair ($41.99). People love their inflatables, and while we are not a fan of them, this one is super cute and reasonably-priced.

Swinging Skeleton Boy from Halloween Express ($179.99). We love this skeleton boy and he has already gone down 40%. In another two weeks, it’ll be down another 20%.

Wailing Phantom from Oriental Trading Company ($299.98). The 7-foot tall phantom features the new incredible light-up Digiteyes (patent pending) digital moving eyes that appear to look around and open and close. His tortured face with moving mouth says a haunting phrase, and his torso rises and lowers while his head sways side to side.

Ascending Evil Climbing Skeleton from Design Toscano ($175). He hangs on your wall by keyhole slots, and he’s handcrafted.

Tomorrow: Some delicious fall treats!