Halloween Candy Alternatives

Trick or treat? There are too many people to consider before choosing the perfect treat to offer to those who come to your door on Halloween. What is your favorite candy? What about the adorable toddlers who waddle up to your door to say those famous words that they have been practicing all day? Who has an allergy?

Sometimes it is easiest to ditch the candy and offer an alternative that will work for everyone.This option may also keep you from gaining an extra five pounds during Halloween week.

Before having kids, I always stocked up on the bags of candy that I could indulge in for days after trick-or-treaters came and went. However, the first Halloween that I had a baby to parade around the neighborhood in a cute costume, I found myself struggling to decide what treat to pass out at our door. I suddenly realized that those delicious chewy candy bars might not make sense to give to children who may not even have all of their teeth yet.

Every year, I am pleased to see better selections offered in stores that could accommodate all ages and needs. If you want to make your life easy and simply add items to your grocery cart, think about these treats: mini boxes of raisins, small packages of fruit snacks, mandarin oranges, fruit pouches, juice boxes, or hot chocolate packets. If you feel like you are leaving an older age group out by excluding candy, go ahead and buy that bag of your favorite candy so you’ll have it just in case.

Passing out something for kids to do rather than something to eat is also an option. You could give out one or a combination of the following items: stickers, pencils, mini notepads, coloring books or individual coloring pages, small boxes of crayons or chalk, or a small tub of play doh. Cheap birthday party favors could work as Halloween treats as well. Party stores have aisles full of little trinkets that kids love to get their hands on to play with. What about this adorable Lego pumpkin?

Be creative and feel good about what you decide to offer to trick-or-treaters this year!

Sarah Cole is a freelance writer and mother to a four-year-old and two-year-old in Colorado.  Since becoming a parent, she has realized that it is not necessary to buy that bag of her favorite Halloween candy because she will most likely find peanut butter cups in her children’s trick-or-treat bags.