20th Birthday / Halloween BBQ - - HELP!

[koolaidria]

I'm turning 20 on 10-20-2010, which is amazing. And I love Halloween. And my friends. I want all of us together to celebrate me and my favorite holiday one evening next month. And I need help with EVERYTHING. I'm doing this in 1 month exactly (so October 23rd). I just started the group on facebook and haven't even come close to inviting everyone yet. So there's time, but I still have a sense of urgency.

I don't need invites, that'll be done electronically. I don't need a venue - - I'm using my backyard! It's HUGE. My niece's 3rd birthday saw 80+ children - - and their parents -- all in the backyard with huge inflateables and there was no problem at all. We've got the grill, I think my BIL will do the grilling. My sis and I will probably make all the treats and munchies.

Estimated budget - - no more than 300, I'm sure. I'd like to keep it closer to 200.

So what I really need is help with activities, snack/treat 'menu', and decor.
IDEAS FOR ACTIVITIES:
- Eating contest. I LOVE messy party games. I thought pumpkin pie, or 'brains' - jello done in a brain mold or cooked spaghetti -  but really, what's an outdoor BBQ party hosted by yours truly without some eating contest?
- Pumpkin carving. Which I LOVE. And it's also fun to get into an innards fight, throwing the goop at eachother and just getting messy in general.
- Outdoor movie. I'd like to hang some thick white sheets over the back of my house and project a movie once the sun sets. We can lay out blankets or they can bring fishing chairs or beanbags, or maybe get a few free couches off craigslist and watch a Halloween-y movie.

DECOR:
I draw blanks here. Just a bunch of black and orange stuff is all my mind goes to. I need help. And I need it to be cheap.

FOOD:
Easy but fun foods. Main course will be burgers and hot dogs, but for the sides and desert things. I thought of a cupcake tree, with these awesome chocolate chip pumpkin cupcakes my kid sister makes, instead of a birthday cake.

I don't think this'll be a costume party, cuz of my love of messy games, but what are trash bag cover ups for? What should I do for a birthday dress? Or if I DO decide to do costumes, what should I dress up as that's cute/pretty and birthday/center-of-attention worthy?

As you can see, my ideas are suffering.... HELP ME!! I welcome every single suggestion/website you have!!

[makeaneffort]

apple bobbing is always good and you could use goop instead of water if you want messy
how about boxes filled with yuk stuff either with a prize in or you have to guess what it is when you put your hand in
scary ghost stories by candle light
palm reading/tarot cards
masks /witches hat making
mmm out of ideas for now ... happy birthday by the way x

[Aislynn]

You can usually get hay bales pretty cheaply this time of year.  If you get a couple of those, you could stack them up for seating/decoration, and use one to make a few scarecrows.  That fake cobweb stuff is also really cheap, and can go a long way.

For your outfit, why not do something that's inspired by Halloween, rather than an out and out costume.  Like you could do a black dress with a witch's hat, or take an orange dress (or shirt) and paint or embroider a jack-o-lantern's face on it, or make a candy-corn colored dress, or an orange skirt, yellow shirt, and white birthday hat.