Before sunrise on Thursday San Diego was already buzzing with activity. From the comfort of my hotel room I watched lines for the convention center grow longer, weaving in and out of sight on the boardwalk behind the hotels.

It seems to be that in order to get into Hall H, you need to start lining up more than 24 hours in advance. Thankfully, our plans didn’t involve anything in the six thousand seat monster that is Hall H. Instead we opted for some different panels scattered throughout the San Diego Convention Center itself as well as neighboring hotels.
Who ya gonna call???

Ghostbusters 101

We love Ghostbusters. The franchise is perfect for our family with the right amount of scary and humor to please Mommy and Daddy Fearist as well as our two small children. With my son’s proton pack strapped to his back and my daughter’s “Stay Puft” ensemble, we didn’t have to wait too long for the Ghostbusters 101 panel.

The audience erupted in cheers as Ivan Reitman walked on stage. Mr. Reitman spoke in detail about the films and even the VR games.

Writer, Erik Burnham, along with artist Dan Schoening introduced what is new and upcoming for the Ghostbusters 101 comic. As well as a new partnership with Playmates Toys for the release of “Ninja Ghostbusters” six inch figures.

While it sounds like a wacky combo, it really makes sense when you think about how each set of characters parallels each other. From brotherhood to adventure each Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle is matched up with a corresponding Ghosbuster. Each figure has eleven points of articulation and comes with- a PKE meter, Proton Pack with rotating spectral stream, ghost trap and an original ghost from the original Ghostbuster movie. Pick up yours at Target and other retailers mid to late October.

Raising Fan Kids: Teaching Young Kids to Be Confident and Successful

I am glad I wore my good walking shoes because we made the trek over to the Marriott for another panel, “Raising Fan Kids: Teaching Young Kids to Be Confident and Successful.” The stand out panelists were two kids about to enter 9th grade but wise beyond their years. Tati said, “Geek is now cool.” Right on sister! I agree!

The panel also touched on bullying and different attitudes towards dealing with outsiders. A continuous message about acceptance, support and validation left me with a sense that I am doing the right thing with my own children.

Where did we go next? Back to the convention for some amazing cosplay.

About the Author

Erin Jefferson-Foley (Mommy Fearest) is terrified of scary movies, gore and zombies. But she loves all things Halloween and Haunt related! Slowly but surely she has been dipping her toes into the realm of horror movies with great results. Pretty soon she will work her way up to watching a scary movie when it is dark outside. Erin has had a love affair with theme park Halloween events for the past 20 years. Her first time at an event was at Knott's Scary Farm in the late 80s when a family friend, a Knott's employee, escorted her into the park to watch Elvira and give her a behind the scenes tour. She was intrigued as she walked through the break room and realized that they were just people in masks and makeup. It seemed like only a short time later, Erin was performing for Halloween Haunt which led to her meeting the love of her life, her husband. Each year she cheers on her husband and his friends as they set up and run a home haunt. You can catch her helping with line control and repeating the same instructions over and over and over to the guests each night. She has been a professional dancer and actress for over 20 years. When she is not in the studio teaching dance or in her office writing, you can catch Mommy Fearest with her husband and two kids at various conventions throughout California. She enjoys Cosplay, Star Wars, Renaissance Faires, Halloween, haunted attractions, paranormal happenings, special effects makeup and horrible reality television shows.