As Halloween quickly approaches, I see lots of mommies scrambling to get costumes put together for their kids (which can be hard with multiple kids!). I would like to put out there for families that do coordinated family costumes, you are heroes in my book! I find costumes that fit my kids and then am done with it!
So this blog is not to advise you on costumes. This is about the trick-or-treating night. Whether you are taking your kids trick-or-treating or just to a harvest party, think on safety.
Helpful tips:
Buy a strip of reflective tape at a sewing/craft store and cut off some decent strips and put it on the kid's costumes. Most tapes are iron-on adhesives so you don't actually have to sew.
Before you head out, write your cell phone number on your kids in Sharpie on their arm or the back of their necks. Anywhere where an adult might look. Tell your kids that if you do get separated, find an adult that has other children with them and to show them the spot of the phone number.
The day of Halloween, my kids and I sit down and talk about what the best part of Halloween is. I'm hammering it into them at a young age that trick-or-treating is a tradition that our family has been doing since Grandma and Grandpa were little kids and we go to show off the costumes and give other people joy from seeing wonderful costumes. I really try to draw the attention off of the candy. Then I tell them when we go trick-or-treating they can have 2 pieces of candy while we trick-or-treat.
Our Family Rules with the Sacred Candy Collected:
Every kid gets their own bucket to put candy in, but Joe and I then carry a backpack that has extra supplies in it like water and diapers. Every 10 or so houses, we have all the kids dump their buckets of candy into the backpack and then continue on.
At the end of the evening when we get home, we allow the kids to pick out one piece of candy for how old they are (i.e. Serenity is 6 years old, so she gets 6 pieces of candy). Then we talk about how important it is to give (like we do around Christmas) to the less fortunate who weren't able to go out trick-or-treating and we donate the rest of the candy. I know there are dentists out there that have programs or programs that send candy overseas to our troops. Check in your area for these programs.
Our kids don't cry and whine over this. They are used to it. I don't let them have that much candy any other time of the year, so why would I let this be an exemption to the family rules?
I know I've gotten both positive and negative feedback on our family's method of candy distribution, but let me ask you: Between school Halloween Parties, church parties, trick-or-treating and the slew of other treats that are right around the corner for Thanksgiving, do our kids really need that much junk???
Have fun and Safe Candy Collecting! :D
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