Find Your Happy Medium This Halloween
By Kerry on October 5, 2019
Quote of the Week
“It’s just a bunch of Hocus Pocus.”
I Love Halloween
We’re really lucky because our neighborhood doesn’t mess around when it comes to the holidays. Especially Halloween. Most everyone decorates their home to some capacity and quite a few homes go all out. The streets FILL with kids on October 31st and we spend time with our nearby friends walking door to door, watching our kids partake in the age old tradition of trick or treat. Their toddler joy is euphoric and I wouldn’t skip it for the world.
However, the euphoria quickly wears off by the next morning where the sugar monsters arrive looking for their sweets…
And even before All Hallows Eve there’s planning and back and forth on what costumes we wear. Do we all dress up? Do just the kids dress up? And each day the kids change what they want to be!
Here are a few tips and tricks I’ve uncovered these last 2 years of trick or treating to help you find your happy medium.
I Am Not A Seamstress
I completely marvel homemade cosplay and Halloween costumes. I have a few seamstresses in my group of friends and am just in aw of their mastery. I am not a seamstress. I’m sure I could be if I put energy into it, but my passions and limited “me time” lie elsewhere at the moment. And so for Halloween my kids get the store made costumes and that’s what works for me.
For those that do have knack for making your own, my friend Kate recommends making sure you know EXACTLY what your toddler/preschooler/kindergartener knows what they want to be. Confirm often. Show them pictures of what you’re planning to make. And once 100% confirmed, then show them how it comes together. Show them the fabric you bought. Show them after each stage of things being cut out and sewn together. By making them part of the process and forecasting they’re more likely to be invested and want to wear it.
If you’re going to order from Amazon you still want to make sure they’ve seen it and are completely onboard with the costume. You’ll also want plenty of time because if it doesn’t fit, you’ll need to send it back and order another size. Also, stock seems to run short closer and closer to October 31st. The first year my kids went out, the C3PO costume for my daughter was too small and too late to order another. She didn’t get dressed up that year. At 2 Years Old she wanted to be C3PO and I just thought that was so creative and cool and was really sad when she was just too uncomfortable to walk around the neighborhood in it because it was too small. Order early and order one size up! You can always modify it smaller. You can’t make it bigger.
Die Sugar. Die.
The thing that stresses me out most about Halloween is all the candy. By Christmas time last year I literally threw away the remaining Halloween candy because I was so tired of battling the sugar monsters that my children turn into this time of year.
There’s a few things I learned to lower my blood pressure and their sugar intake:
- My rule has become one piece of candy a day, right after naps. That’s enough time for them to burn off the sugar before bed to not disrupt their sleep (most of the time).
- After trick or treating, we pour all the candy in the middle. We divvy it up, letting them take only their absolute favorites, and then they trade the rest in for a small toy. Usually a matchbox car and My Little Pony.
Find Your Happy Medium
My daughter LOVES Halloween. It’s all she talks about. We have family in Europe and she wanted to move to be with them, but said we had to move back by Halloween. That’s how much she loves it. I can’t wait to help them get dressed up this year and walk around with all our friends. And the nights leading up to it we get to walk around our neighborhood and look at all the houses which is the perfect pre bed time ritual.
With a plan in place of already having their costumes, and setting the candy ground rules I just know this will be the best year yet.
You do you, Momma, and keep finding your happy halloween one fright night at a time.