With the chaos of Halloween nearly upon us, it's time for us to take a look at how we plan to handle the candy craze. In the past, our kids would sift through their haul, picking out 20 of their favorites to keep. We would take away the rest and give the kids a book of their choice as a replacement. It was a win-win - they could still eat some of their favorite treats, but would not over indulge. But this year, I think I'll need to modify our approach a little bit. I am becoming increasingly concerned with how our son's behavior is affected by high fructose corn syrup and artificial colors. So, he may still get to keep a few pieces, but they will most likely have to be parent approved. OR I'll simply replace his loot with some candy that is made from real ingredients instead. But we are still excited about the book alternative. You've never heard of a child getting a rotten brain from reading too much!
For Halloween, we love trick-o-treating with the kids throughout the neighborhood. Generally, we get a large group of friends together and start out by meeting at our house for a glass of wine to fortify us on the journey. We have our route planned through the neighborhood, stopping at the house with the buzzing doormat, as well as the friends having a Halloween party out front, complete with appropriate cocktails. Our kids have a ton of stamina and will trick-o-treat long past the time others are in bed. Once we get home, candy is sorted and compared, then we allow them to keep about 15 pieces of candy. The rest of the candy is purchased from them for $.10 a piece. They make out like bandits!
So now my question to you
If you are a parent what is the Halloween candy policy in your home?
If you're not a parent what was the candy policy in your home growing up?
I love hearing your good ideas.
