The Halloween Fairy
What to do with all that candy
by Lynn Siprelle
by Lynn Siprelle
ike any good mama, you're probably worried about the candy avalanche that's going to hit your house on Halloween. How on earth are you going to keep the kids from eating themselves sick? More importantly, how are you going to snag that Hershey's Special Dark bite-size bar without the kids seeing you?
Have I got a scam--uh, I mean great idea--for you.
Meet the Halloween Fairy
When Josie was little, I read about a family where the Halloween Fairy visited. The kids would pick ten pieces of candy from their haul, and the rest would be placed on a table for the Halloween Fairy. When the children wake up, they find the Fairy has left a little giftie and the candy is gone! We adopted that idea for Josie's first trick or treat and have done it every year since.
Here is the story I tell my girls: The Halloween Fairy is a Banshee with a sweet tooth. You may think it's the wind you're hearing tonight, but it's really her, calling for you to share your candy, wailing and tapping at the windows! She doesn't mean any harm, she's just so hungry! Won't you please leave her a treat? She'll leave you a present in return.
I Get It--What Does the Fairy Leave?
Nothing big. We've left inexpensive Barbie clothes (hint: Thrift stores are OVERFLOWING with Barbie clothes in perfectly good shape), decks of cards, little games like a set of jacks, things like that. Dollar stores are good places to find things. We're not talking about elaborate stuff here, folks, just one little giftie per kid.
And What Exactly Do You Do with the Candy, Eh?
At our house, Mama is pre-diabetic, so she takes one or two pieces and reluctantly hands over the rest to Daddy. He takes it to work before the girls wake up and makes his office mates happy. The girls wake up and spend the rest of the day playing with the Halloween Fairy's gifts. A win-win-win situation.
© 2006 Lynn Siprelle
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halloween candy
Unfortunately in my house, only my daughter is under the age of 10 so a story like that won't fly with a household of teenagers:(
Fortunately, she can't eat much dairy so the candy she does like and can eat is usually gone within a few days.
Oh baby!
I've got DD7 totally fired up about this -- so I'm fired up too! She is all about the Halloween Fairy. Love this idea.
Shaun
www.homeschoolblogger.com/shaunms
I've done this with my
I've done this with my kiddos a few years. They did like it, but now that they are older, the prizes have to be bigger! We called it the Great Pumpkin. oo
We do another tradition, called "Booing", where you drop off a poem and a treat bag at 2 friends' houses and then they pass it on to 2 friends, etc. You drop it, ring the bell, and run. I have the poem if anyone wants it. Halloween is big around here and this is part of it.
Andrea
Works for us!
I heard of this idea a few years ago, and now my girls always look forward to the "Halloween Witch". I don't bother giving the candy away--I just dump it in the trash after they go to sleep. I used to feel bad about that, but not anymore. We only go to a block or two anyway since the girls are so little. I haven't thought about what to do when they get older, but while I have control of what comes into my house, I will use it!
By the way, any good ideas for what to give out other than candy (my husband is an orthodontist, but refuses to be known as "the house that gives out toothbrushes").
~Melissa
Comment on Halloween Fairy
What an absolutely brilliant idea! I wish I had thought of something like this when my kids were little but I shall definitely pass this idea on to my son and his wife so that they can use it with the boys.
halloween fairy
Wendy liked this idea and Sam did too, but as with everything he adds his own twist. He has decided that Santa and the Easter Bunny live together at the N. Pole and help each other out. Now the Candy Fairy has joined them. They remake the candy into different kinds and redeliver for Christmas!
Melody
Because the candy isn't the point for them
Dressing up and seeing the decorations is more fun for them than the candy. For one thing, we're gluten intolerant, so some of the candy we can't even eat. For seconds, my oldest doesn't even care for sweets that much, so this is by far the better deal. The oldest is getting a nice (but not too nice) pen and pencil set, and the youngest is getting a set of colored pencils she's been coveting, so these are things they want versus candy they might not be able to eat and might not like anyway.
Lynn Siprelle, Editor
Why would you do this? Your
Why would you do this? Your children spent all night running around for the candy and then you take it from them and give them a cheap prize.... unless you buy your children candy often which many people don't.
Dressing up and going out is the fun part...
We are a sugar free home, so my DD8 cannot eat anything she brings home, anyway. So she gets to trick or treat and trade the candy for a cool set of toys.
The storybook is really sweet, she LOVES this tradition.
____________________
Until he extends his circle of compassion to include all living things, man will not himself find peace.
-- Albert Schweitzer
that's the trouble
You have to get 'em when they're small.
Lynn Siprelle, Editor
Story?
Is there a book that goes along with this tradition?
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