trick or treating

Some things in this world just seem too insane to be true, earning them the title "urban legend." In the '80s, parents feared trick-or-treaters would come home with needles in candy bars and wrappers laced with drugs. Alas, nobody I ever knew stumbled upon such horrific findings.

Parents in Ramsey, MN, found one "treat" that turned out to be a potentially lethal trick. Their 7-year-old son was given $85 cash and $200 worth of methamphetamine! Thankfully the tot didn't think it was rock candy and consume it, and told his parents about it instead. His folks suspect an older teenager dropped it in his bucket after asking the youngster if he wanted some candy.

Lesson learned — I'm going home to thoroughly search the rest of our candy stash before my daughter gets her wee hands on any more chocolate.
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The night of fright has passed, but while sorting through my kid's candy, I unearthed a couple of fun and inexpensive, non-candy items that I'll keep in mind while passing out party bags in the months ahead.

• Jingle Bell Spider — a toy spider crafted from jingle bells, beads and ribbon that children can enjoy all year.
• Multi-color retractable pen key-chain — the small pens are right up a lil artist's alley as they can hook the writing utensil to their backpack and not worry about toting their pencil pouch.
• Mini-packs of pretzels — the whole wheat treat keeps kids snacking on something other than candy.
• Placemat — the inexpensive mats keep children happy, tables clean and can be used again and again.
• Festive cup — youngsters can use them for drinking or for storing their treasures.
• Coloring book — provides hours of tot entertainment and artistic expression.

Did your child collect any candy alternatives?

A Michigan woman in support of John McCain turned Halloween into more of a trick than a treat for Barack Obama supporters and their tots who went to her door. Using the opportunity to push her political agenda, Shirley Nagel handed out packs of M&M's stapled to McCain/Palin collateral only to those voting for the Republican ticket. She said there were no handouts for Obama supporters, liars, tricksters or kids of supporters. Parents and neighbors were outraged.

What do you think about this woman's use of tots in her tactic?

When it comes to carting home candy, children have a lot of options — plastic bags and containers, even noise-making plush handled pumpkins or cardboard carriers. But for moms and dads that want to save money and have their wee ones get more mileage out of their treat sacks, use pillowcases. They hold more trinkets and sweets than the other options and can be slipped under your tot's head to lull them to sleep.

When day turns to night, don't add to the fright. This Ecoween leave your car at home and trick-or-treat locally. If you are venturing outside of your neighborhood, lessen your family's carbon footprint by going on foot and pushing babies in their strollers or pulling wee ones too tired to walk in wagons. Beyond getting exercise, you'll teach your tots a valuable lesson in respecting Mother Earth.

Halloween is supposed to be a spooky fun holiday for kids to indulge in freaky activities and gather sugary goodies. The fright night gives parents enough issues to fret about — fire hazards, getting lost, candy and street safety to name a few. I'm also concerned about predators. It's the perfect time for offenders to steal a glance at unsuspecting children.

Some states require registered sex offenders turn off their porch lights and place a sign in the window saying, "No candy or treats at this residence." To trick-or-treat on the safe side, I looked up the homes of registered sex offenders on Family Watchdog. Just type in the zip code where you plan on trick-or-treating and see which houses your family should avoid.

Mommy Dearest,

I don't like giving my three and four-year-old daughters candy. We've never gone trick-or-treating for this reason. But, this year all the families in our cul-de-sac are throwing an outdoor party since the holiday lands on a Friday. There will be food, games, face painting and to my chagrin, each house will be handing out candy. My husband is all for the festivities and thinks I'm taking the fun out of everything. Should I let my girls trick-or-treat and confiscate the candy or not allow them to participate at all?

— Say No to Candy

To read the response from Mommy Dearest, read more