 Halloween Candy
Okay – so how many folks have made their lists already (as discussed in my previous newsletter)? Or has "making your lists" only made it to your “to do” list?
It's October out there folks. The Halloween decorations and candy are all over. How many of you have already bought some candy, eaten most of it and now have to buy more to give out on Halloween? You know that's why they put it out there so soon, right? You don't need the stuff for almost another month, but those lousy candy pushers have no mercy!
So, let's talk about this year's Halloween and some of the potential problems.
First of all, if you haven't looked at the date yet, Halloween is on a Friday this year. That usually means more kids and more candy to purchase, so keep that in mind.
Halloween Tip #1 – Don't buy your candy until Thursday, October 30th. It's even better if you don't buy it until Friday the 31st. This will also save you money. Most of the stuff is at least 25% off by then. Save your receipt.
Halloween Tip #2 – Buy only candy that you don't like. I haven't met a person yet who likes ALL candy, no matter how sweet their tooth is. If you are going to be a really stubborn candy lover, then buy the kind of candy that you can most easily resist.
Halloween Tip #3 – Open the bags one at a time as needed. At the end of the night, pour all of the candy that's left into an opened bag, give it away, take it to work, throw it away, whatever you need to do to make it “go away.” For all of the unopened bags, get that saved receipt and return them. It should be readily available if you just purchased the stuff that day or the day before.
Halloween Tip #4 – If you've got kids of your own then you now also have bags of other people's candy that they brought home. Okay, be honest, how much of that stuff do your kids really need and how much of it do they typically eat anyway? When you sit down together to go through it for unwrapped stuff, have the kids make two piles with what's left: stuff that they like and stuff that they don't. For all of the stuff that they don't like – get rid of it (see Tip #3). For all of the stuff that they do like, make a small and reasonable pile for them and put it in a container that you can't see through (again, get rid of the rest). Now – it is THEIR candy. They have quite thoroughly inventoried it and should have a pretty good idea of what is there. If, even now, you know that you really can't trust yourself, have another adult in the house take charge of it and put it somewhere that you won't find it. The kids can then go to that person when they want their treat.
Halloween Tip #5 – Don't deprive yourself of having a little treat if you'd like. There is no reason that you can't enjoy some of the fun too, but you don't want to overdo it either. Decide right now how much you will indulge. I suggest a particular calorie amount or perhaps a certain number of “fun size” candies. Somewhere between one to five, eaten slowly and enjoyed over the course of an evening should be very satisfactory. Indulge on the one day, and then party's over – back on track November 1st.
Do you have any suggestions or pitfalls that I missed? Send me an email and let me know so that we can share and help each other make it through this year's holiday season without the usual holiday season weight gain.
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