Season’s Screamings 2021

Can’t quite move on to the new business without sharing some old business first and that of course means all the fun that was Midsummer Scream’s Season’s Screamings 2021 event!

The video highlights the Hall of Yuletide Spirits and all the fun cosplayers I ran into as well as the shennanigans we got up to.

Season’s Screaming 2021 Reflection & Review

Midsummer Scream 2019 was our last convention event attended before everything got postponed or cancelled. Season’s Screamings marked not just our first time back at a convention, but also with two littles in tow. Although there wasn’t a TON to do, it was the perfect event to ease back into a convention space. The crowds were never too overwhelming and the vendor’s hall never too busy to check out any one particular booth. I’m sure many felt it wasn’t on as grand of a scale as Midsummer Scream and that would be correct. However, it was just the right dose for me jumping back into events after being homebound with two small children. I never felt like I “missed” anything.

The Hall of Yuletide Spirits

The Hall of Shadows got a seasonal makeover as The Hall of Yuletide Spirits and had to be my favorite location to hang out. The Krampus parades would kick off here and the CalHaunts “A Christmas Scarol” display was very nicely done. When timed right, you could catch creepy carolers or characters from Dicken’s classic come to haunt you in real time. The scare actors really stole my heart, as they tend to do, with their interactions with our children. They were extremely respectful of our little ones and really tried to engage with them whenever they caught Monster or Boo eying them. Little Monster even braved a haunt (with her Papi as her shadow, of course)!

The Krampus Bar

They also had, what was labeled on their guide as a “Krampus Bar” but was just the convention bar with a Spirit Halloween Krampus animatronic set up on the side. I was hoping for something like they did with Midsummer Scream’s 2019 tiki bar theme, but perhaps that hook up fell through? If they ever look to create a themed bar area appearance, I’d be happy to volunteer some ideas and effort! The theme may have been lacking, but the cocktail was absolutely divine! We enjoyed their signature “Screaming Saki Sangria” all weekend long and throughout the convention center.

Holiday Themed Panels (we didn’t really catch)

I only had three panels on my list I really wanted to catch. However, once the time slots were announced, that three turned to two. Of those two, we only managed to sit through the “Ghost Stories of Christmas Eve’s Past“. It was a little different from what I expected, but I still quite enjoyed it. The littles were rather cooperative for the majority of it as well. We had to call it quits after that one panel since our littles were DONE with the weekend.

Haunting Season’s Screamings as Santavira

If you’re curious who that Santa Elvira is posing in all the photos…yup! That’s me!

This costume was so fun AND comfy to wear! Santa Elvira has been on my cosplay list for a few years now, but I’d never really felt like I had a good excuse to make or wear it since we never really had a proper place to take some photos. A Christmas Horror convention felt like the perfect excuse to bring her to life!

It was so much fun interacting with other cosplayers and getting asked to snap a photo or two. It has been way too long since we did a con event. I missed those vibes more than I realized! I think I was glowing the WHOLE time. Season’s Screamings 2021 was a perfect place to debut this costume. I’m really hoping I can bring it back for more in 2022!

Season’s Screamings Shopping

What’s a convention without frivolous shopping? We managed to do a little unintentional Christmas shopping too! (It helps that my whole family is into the spooky and macabre.)

I mostly picked up enamel pins. It’s just my thing. My selections included a tiki ghost from Carrie Anne Hudson Art, a reindeer ghost and creepy critter cat from Jeff Granito Designs, and of course the event and naughty list pins. Not to be ignored was Drew Rauch‘s Season’s Screamings pin and a print of the ghost trapped in the chimney. His custom pin for the event has to be my favorite of all the Season’s Screaming themed merch we came across! I hope Midsummer Scream has him design a pin for them in the future. The print is planned to serve as a set piece for Sips & Spirits next winter! Isn’t he just too adorable?

Pints and prints weren’t the only things we found. We picked up this gorgeous coffin wine rack from West Coast Coffins (and then two more to give as gifts to my mom and sister!). They had a lot of very unique items from coffin turntables to glass-top tables. Velvet Apparition had a beautiful gold foiled tangled web notebook that I couldn’t resist. Of course, a stop to Rhode Montijo could not be ignored and I got my hands on a “Halloween Make-up Kit” pouch (not pictured because it is already in use!) and Little Monster got her own Halloween Kid badge.

Possibly my favorite purchase was from Bun in the Coven! I picked up matching cobweb sweaters for myself and Little Monster. They are just TOO adorable and super cozy.

Concerns for Families with Littles under Five

Season’s Screamings was an overall blast. As a parent, there were a handful of things that caused duress for us as attendees with young children. These are not marks against the event organizers or even about the content presented at the event. However, I feel these things are definitely worth considering as parents wanting to attend these events with young ones. My concerns stem towards the more immediate future and will most likely not apply as the world finally moves on from the pandemic. Still, as Midsummer Scream and Season’s Screamings return in 2022, I really wanted to voice these concerns somewhere.

We were required to purchase a full-priced ticket for our four-year-old AND our one and a half-year-old. This was smidge frustrating, but also understandable as this was the event’s way to monitor attendance. Not only did we have to buy a ticket, but we had to get Little Monster tested. This was a last-minute announcement from LA County on the Tuesday before the event. Again, I understand the safety aspect, but it was still a trial finding a place that did testing for children under five in our particular area.

As the COVID environment continues onward, many large scale gatherings are still neglecting providing proper information for those under five. We have already seen handfuls of conventions adopt a “No vaccine, no attendance” policy while specifically barring children under 5. If Midsummer Scream also chooses to adopt this approach in July, it will mean we may not be able to attend. That may include any other events for quite a while as both of our littles will likely not have vaccines available to them until later in 2022.

As a parent, the pandemic has felt particularly frustrating because I feel that we’ve seen our children suffer the most as this carries on. Season’s Screamings 2021 was such a gift for us as a whole family, and I’ve always appreciated how Midsummer Scream has always made a space for children at its events as Halloween is also for them.

Will we attend another Halloween Convention in 2022?

In a recent group hang out, one member asked who might attend Midsummer Scream 2022 and honestly, my heart dropped at the conversation. We’ve watched our tickets for year five of Midsummer Scream get bumped over to the following year since the pandemic began. However, we may actually have to choose to let go of our tickets if we cannot attend with our children. All of the issues we had to go through just to get to Season’s Screamings 2021 makes Midsummer Scream’s return feel more daunting than exciting and overall disappointing.

Still, this mama is hopeful it will all fall into place. I have fingers crossed for Midsummer Scream, but if all else, Season’s Screamings 2022 has also been confirmed for an early December date and those restrictions can’t last forever!

Final Season’s Screamings 2021 Thoughts?

If I had to sum it up, I loved it. I get in the spirit for both Halloween and Christmas so this event was the perfect way to witness them melt into each other in a festive horror display. Maybe…just maybe, I’ll finally make it into a haunt next time.

What would convince you to attend Season’s Screamings?