I tend to dread Halloween. I think you can figure out why. Being a Real Food Freak does not align well with Halloween traditions. School Halloween parties (aka: school stuff-my-kids-with-junk-galore parties) make me crazy. The amount of sugary-gluteny artificial garbage that is given to each student is out of control. I get that most of the adults that organize these parties are not Real Food Freaks… I do… I. get. it. But how does anyone justify giving kids cupcakes, cookies, and several bags of candy? I don’t get it.
Don't lose your mind!
I have decided to change my game plan this year. Instead of freaking out, I’m going to talk to my kids about making good decisions at school. After all, at some point, they have to own this way of eating. When they are outside of my supervision, they have to make their own decisions. I don’t think that being high strung about “food” (even though what we are talking about doesn’t qualify as food) or freaking out is going to encourage my kids to make good food choices. Nope– I think that being overly-controlling makes for kids that sneak and/or feel guilty about “food”. I educate my children about what these types of ”foods” do to our bodies and why it’s important to eat real and nourishing food, but let’s be real. My school-aged kis are 7 and 9 and when faced with a smorgasboard of sweet treats, most of that goes out the window. Candy wins.
Talk about scary!
So, what is a Real Food Freak to do? This is my strategy. I’m going to be relaxed and I’m going to be enthusiastic about celebrating Halloween with my kids. I’m going to focus on being excited with them as they pick out costumes. I’m going to sign up to bring in gluten-free Halloween treats. Lastly, I’m going to bribe my kids. Oh you don’t bribe? Call it an incentive. Call it whatever you want, I’m doing it.
Yup, I said "bribe."
So this is how the deal went down. I proposed to my kids that they should avoid all of the junk at their school Halloween party. Instead, they could bring whatever (real food) treat that they wanted. Both of my kids selected pumpkin muffins. However, there were a couple of demands. They want to call them pumpkin cupcakes and they want them in a Halloween-themed wrapper (they thought they were expert negotiators– it was kind of hysterical). No problem! In addition, I proposed that after trick-or-treating they could choose 2 pieces of candy to eat. The rest of the candy will be used as currency to buy a lego set of their choice ($15 limit– have you seen how much some lego sets cost?) My kids (who, despite my best efforts, LOVE sugar) thought this was the best deal ever! Win.
Halloween doesn’t have to be scary… but, like me, you may need to change your focus. I am determined to focus on enjoying the fun and creating great memories. What about you? Let’s continue the conversation. How do you handle Halloween with your kids?
Shared at: Real Food Wednesday, Fight Back Friday, Monday Mania, and Fat Tuesday.
October 12, 2011 at 2:41 pm
You are so cool, Leslie! So glad we are friends.
Great ideas!
October 15, 2011 at 9:33 am
Hi there.. Great article.. My son who is 5 1/2 has been on a gluten free, sugar, free and wheat free diet for almost a year.. He also takes supplements that help with his overall behaviour.. The reason being as his teachers from Senior Kindergarten believe he has ADHD/or ADD.. So I was able to find a Homeopath through family and he was promptly put on this diet and although he too LOVES sugary treats.. The only time he does is for a special occasion.. He also LOVES fruits and most of his veggies.. Following this idea that it may help has also turned his Dad and I onto the same path.. This will be his first time not participating in Halloween..Other than school activities, he will not be getting his usual sugary treats.His school believes that taking healthy snacks that are Orange will be the better bargain.. But not all parents think the same way or they are not well informed as to the amount of sugar that is in processed junkfood.. I love the Pumpkin Muffins.. that is a great idea.. Look forward to more!
October 15, 2011 at 10:38 am
Thanks for sharing Alissa. I am a firm believer in diet and proper rest for children. But you’re right, many parents (people in general) just don’t get it in regard to sugar and processed foods. Our hope is to be able to educate in a simple and easy to grasp way and to be able to offer alternatives that are not over-whelming to people who desire to change.
And, seriously, my kids are psyched to be able to trade candy for legos. And I’m happy that legos outrank sugar for my little “sweet-lovers”!
October 17, 2011 at 1:42 pm
We do something similar… after a day or two of eating Halloween candy, my kids put their candy under their pillow for the Halloween fairy to find. She trades it in for a toy. I haven’t put a # of candies restriction on it yet, because they are pretty good about not eating too much of it, and I don’t want to have them be telling their therapist in 20 years how they were so deprived by their evil real food mom… but so far, they are happy to cash in with the candy fairy.
October 17, 2011 at 4:45 pm
Great idea! I’ll have to use the “incentive” thing when my lil’ one gets a little older. She’s just turned one year and doesn’t know candy when she sees it. I also don’t get why adults want to load kids up with junk, it seems pretty obvious to me that sugar crashes, whining and fits are soon to come! My babe’s sunday school teacher actually gave her M &M’s, apple juice, cookies, and sugary cereal yesterday. She was a mess when we got home! Not to mention M&M’s are a choking hazard for a 1 year old!!!
October 17, 2011 at 4:54 pm
Sarah– I hear you! Honestly, church is the worst place (as far as junk goes) for my kids! My older ones know that they need to say “No thank you”; however, my 3 year old is loaded up with fruit snacks and juice each week– drives me crazy! I don’t understand the disconnect– it seems simple to me that God created our bodies to eat God-created food!
October 18, 2011 at 8:20 pm
Thanks for linking your great post to FAT TUESDAY. This was very interesting! Hope to see you next week!
This was EXACTLY what I did when mt son was younger — trade in the junk for prizes! Great post!
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