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 4.63 (Highly recommend) from 20 votes (612 Visits) |
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10 Sweet Strategies for Halloween Candy: UPDATED |
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by jenlemen  (October 2006) (rank 17th) |
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If candy is an issue at your house most Halloween seasons, here are ten snappy strategies to reduce, ration or limit the loot without being a candy scrooge.
- Give them a filling, extra-nutritious dinner before they trick-or-treat. Do everything in your power to get them good and full of nutritious food before they hit the streets. Even a good homemade macaroni and cheese (made with whole wheat pasta, rich cheese and whole milk) will seriously reduce the appetite when they return on Halloween night. The last thing you want to do is send your kids out on an empty stomach, only to return ready to gorge on all things sticky and sweet in their goodie bags.
- Allow for a great indulgence on Halloween night and crack down later. I don't make a big deal about the candy on Halloween night. Instead, I let my kids come home and splurge, letting bedtime be the natural cutoff point. Usually there's not too much time left by the time they get home, and by refusing to scandalize candy, I reduce the "forbidden" factor that makes candy all the more enjoyable. By limiting the time--okay guys, in five minutes we're going to get ready for bed--I end up limiting the intake in a much less confrontive way.
- Decriminalize love of all things sweet. Scandalize candy in your house and guarantee you have a little sugar-junkie on your hands deperate for her next fix. I think it's a better strategy to act cool and unaffected by the amazing influx of candy and propogate an appreciation for moderation instead. I try to treat my kids like the candy is fun, but not so much fun that we want to risk a mouthful of cavities. Reassure your kids that there's no scarcity mentality here--the candy will be here tomorrow and we'll enjoy it a little bit at a time.
- Decide on a reasonable daily indulgence. Assure your children that they will be able to continue eating Halloween candy after Halloween night. Decide together on a reasonable amount--one piece a day is plenty at our house--and dole out the goods at the appointed time. Your kids will enjoy choosing each night and you'll be relieved to know that they're filling up on regular meals instead of one big candy binge. Guaranteed candy times can be after-school, in the school lunch or after dinner.
- Do your part. Really, don't you think you think everyone would be happier if mom had a little chocolate pick-me-up everyday out of the Halloween stash? I agree. No need to go crazy here, but helping yourself to the goods will help reduce the mass quantity of candy in the house and bring the Halloween season to a close that much sooner.
- Send half the loot to the office. If you live on the kind of street we do, it's entirely possible your children could come home with more candy than any family could ever consume. When the amount of candy your kids are collecting is really massive, send a serious bagful along to the office to help reduce the stash. Send all the non-essential along with whatever pass-out candy you have remaining.
- Put the Halloween candy out of sight. After Halloween, I immediately but the candy somewhere the kids do not see it on a regular basis. For the first few days after Halloween, they are very focused on the candy, but time fades the passion when the candy is no longer on display. It might be a little witchy, but when a week goes by without anyone obsessing or asking for the goods, I do a little magic and make it all disappear.
- Be their own public service announcement about the virtues of brushing. Use the Halloween season to encourage good brushing habits and make sure your kids are doing their very best every night before they go to bed. Let Halloween be your family incentive to brush up on good oral hygiene. This is your chance to restock on toothbrushes, floss and timers to make sure all the sugar bugs are banished early and often.
- Bring on the apples. The non-caramel dipped kind that is! Apples are filling and also are known to be natural teeth cleaners--especially when the skins are still on. Make sure your apple consumption is just as high as the sweets consumption and you'll be addressing two concerns at once--nutrition and dental hygiene. If you let your kids bob for theirs, they'll be that much more into it.
- Time to buy those groovy flossers. You know the kind--the ones where little plastic cartoon characters "hold" up one piece of floss. My kids don't mind flossing when this kind of hyped up fun is the thing--yours won't mind either! So stock up and see what happens. Your dentist will thank you.
How do you deal with candy at your house? Feel free to add your two cents in the comments.
copyright 2006 jen lemen |
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4.63 (Highly recommend) from 20 votes |
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 Related keywords: candy, cavities, floss, goodie, halloween, loot, strategies, sweet, toothbrushes, trick-or-treat
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