Halloween~ My children are not happy!

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Replies

  • ajburroughs
    ajburroughs Posts: 16 Member
    I have 4 kids and our neighborhood is great for trick or treating so we get a LOT of candy! We have to buy a lot too, though, because we probably have a couple hundred kids come through. People will bring whole trailer-loads of kids to our neighborhood. Love it though because I grew up not being able to trick or treat too much. And all the neighbors are out and talking to each other. We leave our candy in a big bin out in the driveway and let the kids get their own. Most of the kids will only take one or two pieces so it works out. 3 of my kids have birthdays within a few months of Halloween so we use the leftover candy to fill pinatas. That works great!
  • kenazfehu
    kenazfehu Posts: 1,188 Member
    We usually start out handing 2 treats to each trick-or-treater, but if we still have LOTS after an hour or so, we double up on what we hand out. When the crowd as really thinned out, we'll give out a handful to each child, although it's usually older teens by the end of the night, and most of the time they aren't even wearing a costume. I'm happy to get rid of it; nobody here these days but husband and I. He doesn't mind taking a few in his lunch box each day; he always buys candy for that. I pretend it's black licorice and won't go near it.
  • magj0y
    magj0y Posts: 1,911 Member
    I purchased Rice Crispy Treats!
    Why? They're much cheaper to make than to buy, they're really easy to make and really fun! Get the kids involved in making the treats, it always make them taste nicer, plus gives you something to do as a family.

    Most parents would never let their kid eat home baked foods. i wouldn't... my mom wouldn't... it's like...candy rule #1 of safety!
  • kyodi
    kyodi Posts: 376 Member
    whoever is the last stragler of the night gets the whole lot of it! lol.

    Last kid that appears to be under 10 yrs old gets the rest of the bowl. Kid thinks Christmas was 2 months early, and I don't have 3k empty calories staring at me. Win/Win.
  • acstansell
    acstansell Posts: 567 Member
    I handle this two ways:

    1) I don't buy candy until the weekend before Halloween. That way my husband doesn't steal any and I don't have it around long enough to eat it myself.
    2) I buy just enough candy to last me. I actually usually run out 15 minutes before the 2 hour window. If I notice I have a lot towards the last half hour, then those lucky kids get extra. I've even given some to my neighbors because I don't want it my house.

    I'm going to be that annoying parent who lets thier kids only keep some of their candy then they give the rest to a dentist for cash.
  • soulfulsally
    soulfulsally Posts: 326
    My son's 1st grade class is having a thing where we can bring in candy to send to the deployed troops. My husband is in the military and he always appreciated stuff like this when deployed, so this does two things for us.

    1. Gets rid of all that extra candy!!

    2. We get to do something nice for the deployed troops & show our appreciation.

    My son is OK with this as well :) Win win situation.

    I didn't think military people would want candy. This sounds like a win-win thing to do. Is there a specific program for this?
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I purchased Rice Crispy Treats!
    Why? They're much cheaper to make than to buy, they're really easy to make and really fun! Get the kids involved in making the treats, it always make them taste nicer, plus gives you something to do as a family. Practically every kid I've ever met would rather make rice Crispy treats than buy sweets, it's something they've made and can be proud of, plus they have fun and can lick the bowl. Now personally I don't like them, but I was always happy to make them.

    Most parents would immediately throw out any food item that is not commercially made and sealed. Basic Halloween safety.
  • feliciapeters
    feliciapeters Posts: 525
    any candy left over goes either to my kids or the lucky last kid tocome to the door
    i buy candy i dont really like anyway
    and luckily, im not a big candy person anyway
  • Panda_1999
    Panda_1999 Posts: 191 Member
    I lock the gates and leave the dogs on the loose, they sound vicious but wouldn't bite the kids... they don't know that though! :laugh: I've not had to buy candy for years :tongue:

    How mean :sad: Your yard would be full of eggs in my area. egg covered dogs :tongue:
  • rjhoughton
    rjhoughton Posts: 5
    Last year, we didn't buy candy at all. We bought the Costco "mini-playdoh" 1 oz bags (there were 80 mini cans in each bag).

    it was a huge hit! We even ran out, and had to turn off our lights because we had no candy as a backup. We looked for the playdoh again, but didn't see it this year.

    I think we are not doing trick or treating this year - just keep the lights off and hibernating upstairs watching tv (and working out).
  • capnrus789
    capnrus789 Posts: 2,736 Member
    I'll be handing out raisins and protein shakes and ezekiel bread with sweet potato spread.

    Then, I'll move to another state because my house would get burned down.


    Honestly, I'll be handing out candy bars and when it nears the end of the night some lucky kid will be getting a buttload of candy. This solves the leftover candy issue and it makes one kid really freakin' happy.

    I do the same thing. Unfortunately, it's always some teenager who shouldn't be out there. C'est la vie.
  • kjjm08
    kjjm08 Posts: 217 Member
    My son's 1st grade class is having a thing where we can bring in candy to send to the deployed troops. My husband is in the military and he always appreciated stuff like this when deployed, so this does two things for us.

    1. Gets rid of all that extra candy!!

    2. We get to do something nice for the deployed troops & show our appreciation.

    My son is OK with this as well :) Win win situation.

    I didn't think military people would want candy. This sounds like a win-win thing to do. Is there a specific program for this?

    Unfortunately there are men/women that are deployed, who never get a care package. So anything that is sent, they love and they love candy lol. No specific program, just something his class is doing. We live on an Air Force Base, so the area is very military oriented. Although, there are many programs out there like Soldier's Angel, for sending stuff to deployed troops. :)
  • ItsGoodToHaveGoals
    ItsGoodToHaveGoals Posts: 58 Member
    Buy the mini candy bars & hand those out. When there's left overs, buy the sugar cookie dough in the fridge section, slice off a piece and wrap the individual snickers etc and bake like a cookie. Gooey candy centers like Milky Way & 3 Muskateers are my fav- then I give them to my co-workers for something different at the office instead of everyone's leftovers.

    You could also do the little individual packets of trail mix, but that gets expensive.
  • lorettaasmith
    lorettaasmith Posts: 418 Member
    I usually get a couple hundred trick or treaters by my house. Long ago, I started a tradition of buying bubble gum.....the kids love it (sorry Moms!) and I am not tempted to eat all the candy before Halloween! There usually is none left, but if there is, I add it to my Operation Christmas Child boxes!

    Thank goodness my kids are all pretty much too old to trick or treat. I used to figure out I could pilfer a certain amount of candy from each of their buckets wtihout being detected! :-)
  • lilvicvic
    lilvicvic Posts: 2 Member
    I lock the gates and leave the dogs on the loose, they sound vicious but wouldn't bite the kids... they don't know that though! :laugh: I've not had to buy candy for years :tongue:



    :heart:
  • jpe71
    jpe71 Posts: 50 Member
    I get hundreds of tricker treaters, our neighborhood shuts the streets down and people of all ages dress up and roam the streets we have a haunted trail and guys in chainsaws scaring all the little kids. its so much fun. The 1st year we spent 500 dollars on candy and it was all gone by 9pm.

    The next year we went to the movies instead.

    Now I roam the neighborhood and dont really give out candy, or will give it out for about an hour then roam the neighborhood. =)

    If its gotten that insane, idthink about putting out word that next year, the neighborhood will be charging a small fee to help offset the cost of candy. If you make it free to attend, but say, two bucks a kid to go trick or treating, that'd probably keep it fun whil offsetting expenses somewhat for the street. Have wristbands to show who's paid up, and give them to all the neighbor kids (and maybe one each to share with a friend. they can buy them at the first house they visit, neighbors can divide the money up afterward, or put it into a fund for candy the following year (which you then buy wholesale).

    I love Halloween, love trick or treaters, but I think this trend of taking your kids to another neighborhood is ridiculous. I get maybe two dozen kids all night, whil area kids go to the cool neighborhood. To me, it's one more lost opportunity to know the people you live near, which is important for safety and community. Neighbors I'd only met trick or treating myself sometimes ended up helping me out when I had a bike accident, or that time a stranger did try and talk me into his car. Knowing the neighbors, even by sight, gave me a bit more comfort handling a few rough situations as a kid. I think if these neighborhoods charged strangers for the privilege, the crowds would think bit, the costs of buying chocolate for the whole zip code would be offset, and kids wild spend more of their time gathering chocolate closer to home.

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