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Halloween candy
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What do you plan to do about the hords of Halloween Candy that are about to attack? Sometimes I really hate this time of year!
We live in AZ and here the dentists are offering to take the candy and it will be sent to our troops overseas.
We don’t celebrate Halloween, so there is no “trick-or-treat” stuff to deal with, but my kids have acquired more candy than we’re used to having around at various parties and church harvest events during this season. In the past, we also had my two stepsons whose mother insisted on taking them out that evening, and they would return with two pillowcases about 1/4 to 1/3 filled with candy….I’m getting dizzy just thinking about it!
So, we would allow them to choose two pieces when they returned, then I confiscated the stash. For the next couple of days, they could choose a piece or two from their personal containers after school and one or two after dinner. By the following weekend, we threw everything (including the younger kids’ harvest party stuff) into a huge bowl with a lid (and I mean larger than most popcorn bowls to share) and we continued to let them choose a piece or two each day until the supply dwindled (which it did within a week or so because my husband and I also snacked from the bowl). Then, it was put away in a smaller container and whatever was left (usually the stuff that was less popular) was kept out of sight in a cupboard, ready to be used as a special treat or reward.
These days, I am trying to keep my kids off sugar as much as possible. We haven’t had a candy bar for weeks. However, we have been invited to a movie night party on Monday as a Halloween alternative, and the hosts (who are very sold on a low-carb way of eating) have surprisingly said they will allow candy to be eaten at the party. *Sigh* Well, I think I will provide a few sugar-free candies for my kids to eat while there and then simply insist that they not be allowed more than two pieces of the regular stuff. I can trust that the mom there will do her best to monitor and remind them of this, so at least there will be some restraint.
If we did trick-or-treat, I don’t know what I would do with all of the candy. First, I would probably limit the trip to one or two nearby streets and keep telling the kids “We have to get home soon so we can watch our movie/have our game night/whatever we decided to do and have our special snacks!” Then, I would probably allow them to choose a couple of pieces for that night and a few pieces for the next day, and after that, the candy would “disappear.” For a loooong time. Maybe even donate it to some place that helps kids. Although, I am no longer comfortable with giving candy to other kids all of the time, even as a Sunday School reward.
We may save ours for a pinata at the end of Nov…..or try to share it with others. We do limit our kids but even a bowl of candy is too much, let alone, bags/buckets of candy. I don’t even like candy…..why can’t it be ice cream
.We don’t do Halloween either. Doug Phillips has an excellent article posted just this week on Halloween.
http://www.visionforumministries.org/issues/news_and_reports/the_five_scariest_things_you_c.aspx
I’m ok w/a limited amount of sugar, what bothers me most is all the artificial junk, sweetners,colors, flavors, ingredients I can’t even prononce.
I usually trow away the ones that look really bad, keep some chocolat and a couple of candies which I let them have very sparingly.
Last year I washed the dye of the M&M (they had gotten a tone of them) and made chocolat icecream w/it.
@ petitemom, do you really have that much time on your hands? Washing off your M&M’s? LOL! I’m impressed, and they don’t go to waste either.
One thing I try to do is put it in my bedroom closet so it’s not always tempting then. After the initial night where I let them splurge a bit, I put it away and it’s only supposed to come out as a once a weekend snack (minimally). Or as a take along snack to an outing we may have splurged at anyway, but then we don’t have to buy one:) My struggle is keeping dh out of it…and him giving the kids some when I’m not around! Blessings, Gina
This year I am not arguing with the kids over the “safe” or not safe candy (allergies), and I presented an alternative to our usual trunk-or-treat routine. I asked the kids if they wanted to bake some goodies, dress up and take them to people who are alone, and then that evening we will play carnival type games at home (I was in charge of a carnival the last 2 years at church and still have some stuff) and have special fun foods, then trick or treat from room to room OR did they want to do the Trunk-or-Treat and have me go through and pick it all apart before they could eat it.
They are all for this idea of taking treats around and then a simple fun party at home. I am pleased – yes, it is more work for me – but I can maybe teach them that Halloween doesn’t have to be scary or all about me me me. It will be fun to turn it into a interesting service day. =)
As answer to the question of what to do with the candy – my friend saves the chocolate to use in her holiday baking. You can save lots of it to decorate gingerbread houses with, too. Because we are on a pretty restricted diet, I also save the “safe” kind for times when people have treats and my kids can’t have them (I keep a stash in my bag). That helps a lot with the feeling left out and makes it so my kiddos aren’t stuck with trying to accept or sneak things they shouldn’t.
Throw it away, especially the really sticky pieces that are bad for teeth. After my kids go to bed I usually sort through thei bags and “edit” out as much as I can without them noticing. And then they can have a treat a day after dinner or something.
Thank goodness we can’t eat refined sugar!!
I never did care much for teaching my kids not to take candy from strangers and then going around asking for it! That’s just me.
art – I wish I could “like” your post – it made me laugh… I was raised by a farmer and small business owner, so my big thing is – if you want it, work for it… trick or treating kinda feels like welfare and entitlements (of course so do school buses and public education!), but I know most people don’t see it that way and I don’t hold it against ’em.
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