Halloween and ALL. THE. CANDY.

So many parents dread the after effects of Halloween. There is just SO MUCH CANDY!!! All the artificial coloring, sugar, processed food. Ick! So, what’s a parent to do with everything that comes home Halloween night!? We can’t have our kids indulging in all of this candy daily until it runs out but, with older(ish) kids, throwing it away doesn’t seem to be a great option either. At least not in my house! : / Momma would be punished for days!

Some parents trade candy for money. I.e. they pay their kids to give them their candy and either send that candy elsewhere or throw it away. Others let their kids pick out a new toy in exchange for their candy. I love those ideas. But, in our house, this would likely lead to buyers remorse once the novelty of the toy wore off. At which point, crazy little humans would start asking for their candy back. Manipulative little stinkers! Ha! Who can blame them though! Candy really does taste soooo good. Not gonna lie, Mom and Dad Low reap some of the sugary benefits of Halloween after the kids go to bed :).

But, by about November 3rd, I’m so ready for that candy to be out. of. my. house. So, what do we do?? We don’t make a big deal of the candy. I let my kids indulge while they’re trick or treating. Usually, they each eat about 3-4 fun size pieces and then maybe 1-2 pieces when we get home.

We play it cool. One night of sugar/coloring/processed foods isn’t going to hurt anyone. Then, once kids are asleep, the hubs and I indulge. Haha! seriously, it’s awesome! We have to take from the littler kids who won’t notice what’s missing though. We then put their halloween buckets high in a closed cabinet and hope they won't ask for too many pieces.

November 1st, candy is always requested and usually 2-3 pieces are given to the kids and happily consumed. In the next few days, I start throwing away little by little. And, simultaneously, kids start forgetting it’s there. After a while, they totally forget or there’s so little left from mom tossing it without them knowing. If they don’t ask for it for about a week, I toss the rest. If they keep asking, I just keep tossing it bit by bit and they get 1-2 pieces/day until it runs out.

As I’m typing this, I’m feeling a little guilty about the fact that I’m throwing away their candy without them knowing but, in the end, it is a win win for us. They don’t eat WAY too much candy but still get A LOT in my opinion. And, they don’t miss out on the candy experience of halloween.

I have one kid in particular who can’t seem to part with anything —even trash. So, in our house, this is what works and what I feel like is in the best interest of the kids and adults. With my two other children, I could probably talk to them about sharing the candy with others and sending some of it elsewhere but, it works best to follow the same protocol for all 3 kids. So, do what works for you. But, if you have a strong-willed, persistent hoarder type in your house, try our method and see how it goes ;).

Most of all, enjoy this holiday season with friends and family, and, don’t miss out on all the treats that come with it!