October is a beautiful time. The temperatures begin to drop, the wind picks up, the leaves start to fall. Your kids are beginning to wear their hoodies and jackets to school. Academics have probably intensified, hopefully your parenting schedule has successfully adjusted to summer’s end, and your kids are starting to get settled in the fall routine. But there’s only one thing on their minds come October: Halloween.
The classrooms are all coated in orange and black streamers, major TV stations have scary movies playing around the clock, and the Pumpkin Gods have thrown up all over your local convenience store. Halloween is coming, and you can expect your kids to gallivant around in capes and costumes, receiving candy from neighbors. Some of the older kids will, of course, engage in some season-appropriate shenanigans. And you, as a parent, have some serious damage control to anticipate.
Younger kids will definitely need to be escorted by their parents for trick-or treating. Dress accordingly because the end of October is quite cold at 7 pm. One of the biggest issues that you’re going to face is the candy consumption factor. Halloween is the one night of the year when children (rightfully!) expect permission to gorge on their delicious troves of chocolates, gummies, and suckers. Here are some tips to keep things peaceful at your home as your little sugar-demon terrorizes his candy hoard.
- Keep in mind your week’s schedule. If Halloween is on a school night, or you have an early morning soccer practice, then an all-evening chocolate binge is not going to help him have a good start the next day. If bedtime is set at 10pm, stick to it. He’ll likely be amped up from trick-or-treating, so be prepared.
- Discuss your child’s Halloween candy with him or her before it’s time to trick or treat. It is important to allow your child to eat an acceptable amount of candy, but perhaps an unlimited amount is going to do more harm than good. But limiting his intake to “just two” is downright cruel. It’s important that you set your expectations with your child so he isn’t disappointed on Halloween with his candy treasure.
- Halloween candy tends to stay around the house for weeks or even months after Halloween. If this isn’t something that you want for your household, you’ll have to get rid of some of it. Make a plan and stick to it. If you don’t want the candy hanging around, decide to get rid of it by mid November. Or, talk to your child and encourage him to get rid of some of it.
- Many parents are starting to use the ‘buyback’ system to encourage healthy eating choices. This is where a parent offers the child payment in return for the disposal of candy. If you offer, say, 10 cents for each piece of candy he chooses to throw away, you can limit his sugar intake and he’ll feel good about making a few dollars. Plus, this gives him the choice to keep some of his favorites – maybe, he has a penchant for Twix but not Kit-Kats, and wants to keep that really cool piece of retro candy he got.
If you decide on the house rules before All Hollow’s Eve, your Halloween experience will undoubtedly run smoother. On the morning of November first, you’ll be able to drive through the neighborhood to soccer practice, laugh about the toilet paper in the trees, and have no regrets about your child’s candy intake.
Freelance writer, Benjamin Muskal, contributed this article on behalf of Candy Crate, your one stop shop for all of your Halloween candy needs.
