Is this TOO cheap? or smart?

[hrh_disney_queen]

LOL, I love neccos, tootsie rolls, dum dums, fun size candy bars, and candy corn.

My kids love everything on that list execept of course, the tootbrushes, raisins and apples..that goes without saying! Even though they love apples, who wants to see something healthy in their candy bag?!!

 

[waltskids]

Yes, THIS! We get hundreds of kids, but it does irritate me that you can watch cars drop loads of kids off at the main road to wander through our neighborhood later in the evening. Big kids...some not even in costumes! Nope, that's the point where the lights go out and we close up shop to get our little ones ready for bed.

Honestly I understand having to do the car ToT thing as we lived in a very rural area when I was growing up, but my parents only took us to houses where we actually knew the people. To just randomly be dropped off in a neighborhood - it just seems weird! And I can only imagine what it's like in the really swank neighborhoods a few miles from here. OTOH, our lots are smaller so it might be a shorter walk for more houses here...might be why traffic is so high in this area.

Anyways, on the candy topic, I typically spend about $50 on large bags of mostly chocolate (4 bags of choc, one non-choc) and when they're gone, they're gone. The best part about Halloween here is that our neighborhood fire department comes through with their truck and tosses candy out to the ToTers! It's so fun to see the fire truck with all its lights on driving through the streets! The little kids LOVE it.

Yes! We also live in a development which gets slammed every year by about 150-200 kids who do not live in our development. It somehow must have gotten out that most of the houses participate in trick or treating= more candy for the kids who's parents drive them in. I grew up in a development and we only tot'ed there and DH grew up in the country, surrounded by peach farms and he didn't TOT at all. But others on the road had their parents just drive them to houses of people they knew. DH can't understand the whole 'driving from development to development' thing. What I have done is for the kids who live in our development, I make very nice candy bags and give them to those kids. The 'drive in' kids get just regular candy. I usually save the best candy (yummy chocolate) for the candy bags. I know it may sound mean, but it can get very expensive giving candy out for 150-200 kids I don't know at all. I love Halloween and want to participate and this is the best way for us to make sure our neighborhood kids get candy and the 'drive in's' get something too. Oh and I have turned the porch light out at 7:00pm ( when trick or treating ends) and the kids still knock. Maybe that's something parents don't teach kids anymore????

 

[singnring]

The best part about Halloween here is that our neighborhood fire department comes through with their truck and tosses candy out to the ToTers! It's so fun to see the fire truck with all its lights on driving through the streets! The little kids LOVE it.

That is so cool!

I wish our would do that.

Instead, they offer doughnuts and cider at the FD after ToT.

It's such a mob in that tiny Firehouse that you have no chance of enjoying it.

 

[Mickey1Fan]

I would just leave the light off and not give out anything. If there are children you know, prepare them a little bag of treats and give them out sometime over Halloween weekend.

I love that we teach children not to take anything from strangers yet parents will drive them to a neighbourhood where they don't know anyone and send them beggin for candy

 

[Melmac]

I've been reading this topic with interest except that everyone was talking about "smarties" and how it is a cheaper alternative to chocolate bars. I had to google "smarties" because in Canada, Smarties are similar to M&M's - candy coated chocolate (which I think are better than M&M's) but would have thought was just as expensive as other chocolate candy. Then I realized what everyone was calling smarties are "rockets" here! I love Rockets and my co-worker who gives them out always brings me the leftovers

Anyway, we don't get many kids although we live very close to two grade schools. We usually give out sweet tarts and the like because we always have leftovers and my DH loves sweet tarts! I will also get some mini chocolate bars.

 

[Mickey1Fan]

Thanks Melmac, I was wondering about the Smarties but didn't take time to figure it out.

Smarties are way better than m&ms. My son got married on the weekend, he is Michael and she is Melissa. I did favours with m&ms, I would have preferred the Smarties but it wouldn't have been the same with their names being m&m

I also drive a smart and named it Smartie.

 

[disneymom3]

As for the list...WHO on earth doesn't give out fun sized candy bars??

It cracks me up because when I was little the best stuff was definitely the chocolate. But my kids love the weirdest stuff. The gummy body parts are always a huge hit, as are the pretzels and gold fish crackers as well as tatoos. Cracks me up because before I had kids I always made sure I had what I thought of as "the good stuff" and now, they are begging to buy stuff I never would have considered. They will also trade their fun sized candy bars for things like Laffy Taffy and pieces of gum. Whose children are these??

 

[luvsJack]

I am one of those parents that have always taken my kids to another neighborhood in town to tot. We live in a very rural area, its dark and most people aren't even home from work during the regular tot times. We don't go late or knock on door when the light is off or anything like that. Its just easier to go to town, park and walk around with the kids. I really never thought about it bothering anyone.

 

[DISdreamin']

I am one of those parents that have always taken my kids to another neighborhood in town to tot. We live in a very rural area, its dark and most people aren't even home from work during the regular tot times. We don't go late or knock on door when the light is off or anything like that. Its just easier to go to town, park and walk around with the kids. I really never thought about it bothering anyone.

I hear you, but we are in a rural area! Our development was built in what used to be old farm fields. Not sure if we are just the first development on the way towards town, but boy...we probably get 10 times more ToTers than actually live in the neighborhood!

And lest I give the wrong impression, it's the carloads of kids being dropped off sans costumes, carrying pillowcases, that really get me. We're talking big kids, late at night. Umm...nope, thanks for playing.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

As for the list...WHO on earth doesn't give out fun sized candy bars??

We don't. We give out full sized bars. I just pickd them up at Sams 30 bars for 12 something. We get about 100 kids.

Couldn't imagine getting as many as some of you. Seriously 300, 400, 500 kids. Holy crap! Halloween could put you in the poor house.

 

[luvsJack]

I hear you, but we are in a rural area! Our development was built in what used to be old farm fields. Not sure if we are just the first development on the way towards town, but boy...we probably get 10 times more ToTers than actually live in the neighborhood!

And lest I give the wrong impression, it's the carloads of kids being dropped off sans costumes, carrying pillowcases, that really get me. We're talking big kids, late at night. Umm...nope, thanks for playing.

AAAhhhh. I see what you are saying. Yeah, that would bug me too.

 

[C.Ann]

Odd duck DGD I have.. LOL She's 11 and has always loved the small boxes of raisins.. Can't have them this year though because of her braces..

 

[smylie1]

I hear you, but we are in a rural area! Our development was built in what used to be old farm fields. Not sure if we are just the first development on the way towards town, but boy...we probably get 10 times more ToTers than actually live in the neighborhood!

And lest I give the wrong impression, it's the carloads of kids being dropped off sans costumes, carrying pillowcases, that really get me. We're talking big kids, late at night. Umm...nope, thanks for playing.

I get aggrovated when it starts getting alittle later in the evening and you get what looks like 15 year old kids in their school football uniform walking up the driveway. We always give out "good" candy earlier in the evening and save the "Kiddie Mix" (with Dots, single wrapped gumballs, etc,) for later. Once it's gone we turn off the light and shut the door.

 

[disneychrista]

We just moved to a new neighborhood and have no idea how much candy I will need. I bought a mix of stuff - Reeses, twizzlers, the dreaded dum dums (sorry I like them) and laffy taffy (my daughter loves them). I really find that list funny because most everything are things that (my) kids actually like, raisins, toothbrushes aside.

 

[WendyisDarling]

Yes! We also live in a development which gets slammed every year by about 150-200 kids who do not live in our development. It somehow must have gotten out that most of the houses participate in trick or treating= more candy for the kids who's parents drive them in. I grew up in a development and we only tot'ed there and DH grew up in the country, surrounded by peach farms and he didn't TOT at all. But others on the road had their parents just drive them to houses of people they knew. DH can't understand the whole 'driving from development to development' thing. What I have done is for the kids who live in our development, I make very nice candy bags and give them to those kids. The 'drive in' kids get just regular candy. I usually save the best candy (yummy chocolate) for the candy bags. I know it may sound mean, but it can get very expensive giving candy out for 150-200 kids I don't know at all. I love Halloween and want to participate and this is the best way for us to make sure our neighborhood kids get candy and the 'drive in's' get something too. Oh and I have turned the porch light out at 7:00pm ( when trick or treating ends) and the kids still knock. Maybe that's something parents don't teach kids anymore????

I grew up in farm country as your DH did. Mom drove us to neighbors. We would get to about a dozen houses at most. We knew them well. Had to come in show everyone our costume, have a conversation But, then we would get something REALLY good like homemade popcorn balls (we could eat them because we knew the giver like family).

I live in a development now, only about 1/2 the TOT'ing kids make it to our house because they have to walk up a 20 foot sloped driveway. That puts us at getting 125 or so. I usually give full size chocolate bars (isn't that worth the walk?) but either I missed the sale at Target or it didn't exist. We have regular size Airheads this year. They were pretty reasonable. I think $7 for box of 70. Way less than I usually spend.

Re: the bowling coupon. I know the OP was kidding. And I don't think a good treat at all. But, I'm betting the bowling alley wouldn't mind at all. Have you ever used one of those darn coupons? You still have to pay for shoes, perhaps others in your party, kid will bug you for another game, plus the refreshments...our bowling alley sends them out all the time.

I'm sure my kids would be thrilled with a Pepsi, but not me. Oh wow! Pepsi plus chocolate--it would be a wild time.

I only have one who goes TOT'ing now and he likes everything

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

When I was growing up, we had the absolute perfect neighborhood for ToT. (Suburban Detroit, neighborhood built mainly for auto workers.) The houses were small, on very small lots, sidewalks, doors that you could take the top glass out so it was like a Dutch door-just reach over without having to open the door. TorT went on from sundown til about 10, and it was a safe neighborhood, so yes at about age 10 we were out there without a parent. We could fill a pillow case in an hour or so, then go home, dump it out and head back out again. Back then, just about everyone gave out candy.

Those were the days, my friend.