Lakepoint's answer to 'farmaphobia'

"It has become a bit of an addiction really," says Caroline Thornton, whose house in Lakepoint, Mullingar, attracts hundreds of visitors for Halloween.

"We started this about five years ago. It began as a distraction really, when my daughter Antoinette died. Her children are in our care, the twins Síóg and Reitin, who are 11, and our grandson Bauden, who's four. It was a way of creating new positive memories," she explains.

"Antoinette loved Halloween and as a family we always did Halloween big. We loved the wind-up of a good scare, and we just took it one step further and went all out."

Caroline says the spooktacular action will get going this evening about 5pm, when the children begin trick o'treating.

"We have a jack-in-the-box, a homemade coffin, and the twins made a witch's cauldron this year, which has smoke coming out of it. Most of the decorations are handmade, and my two granddaughters got really involved this year, they put their little heart and souls into it," Caroline continues.

"There will be great fun here this evening from 5 o'clock. We'll have a Halloween playlist on in the background, and to see the little kids faces, they do be amazed. But I think I get more out of it than them," she says.

"I have 200 trick or treat bags ready to go. I start buying treat bits from the start of September, just throwing them in with my shopping. And you know the big storage boxes for Christmas decorations? Well I have about three of them filled to the brim with treats.

"I find Halloween is no pressure, not like Christmas. Halloween is a fun night, for the adults and the children, when they get to get dressed up in their little costumes. I felt as a festival it was dying out a bit, there's more Christmas decorations in the shops around this time than Halloween ones, so I wanted to go all out."

Caroline says it will be all hands on deck this evening, as all the family get involved. "It will be myself, my husband Peter, my daughter Clara and her partner Eoin.

"It's very child friendly, I call it the kid's Farmaphobia. My four year-old-grandson Bauden will be in the middle of it all and he really enjoys it. We have a Halloween playlist on in the background, so yeah, anyone who wants to come and have a look they are more than welcome."