Handling Halloween Temptations

Ahhh!  That lovely candy-filled holiday!!! It can and will wreak havoc on ANY progress you have made lately.  Now, this is a girl who loves Halloween!! I know many people avoid it, but I have always had fun with it.  Dressing up, visiting neighbors, handing out goodies to all those cute this monsters.  So much fun!

Henry and Milo absolutely LOVE to give out Halloween candy to Trick-O-Treaters.  We have had some great Halloweens!

painting was safer than carving..

We always do something crafty for Halloween, like painting pumpkins or making cookies.  This year we are going to use pine cones and decorate them with paint and glitter.  Anything to keep these boys busy! 


And even though all that sugary goodness that comes along with the holiday is not my biggest temptations (hello, birthday cake!!!), I do find myself snacking on it when it is in front of me.


So, I wanted to share some things that we do at our house to reduce the temptation and undoing all that hard work that we have accomplished.  

Temptation everywhere!

1. Buy It and HIDE It!!!! This really is for two reasons.  The first is to keep it out of sight so Matt and I don’t get into.  The second is to keep it out of sight so the boys don’t pester me daily asking me if they can eat it!  I bought candy early this year and actually left it locked up in my office at work.  If it’s sealed and not open for me to pick at one by one, I am less tempted.  So far so good!


2.  Buy Candy You Don’t Like. Simple, but very effective.  If you don’t like it, you won’t eat it.  For me, I don’t like gummies or flavored candies.  Good old chocolate is my favorite!

Seriously, so gross!

3. Mix in other treats with the candy.  Sam’s sells huge pails of individually wrapped pretzels.  I like to buy those to pad the candy stash so that we are not just handing out cavities to every child in the neighborhood.  They may not eat it, but I see my kids reach for the pretzels a lot instead of the candy, so this gives me hope! Another good treat to mix in with candy is those little stick on tattoos.  Kids go crazy for those things!






4.  Pick Small Treats.  So I would be totally lying if I said I don’t eat any Halloween candy.  I believe in balance and treating yourself occasionally.  And even though sugary candy is not my thing, I do love a mini Snickers bar.  And thankfully, Halloween candy comes in very small portions.  Set a limit, allow yourself some goodies, and stick with your limit!!! Your waistline will thank you the day after!


5.  Make Healthier Alternative Snacks.  Popcorn is really high in fiber, and if you don’t cook it with a ton of butter, it’s really not that bad for you.  That mixed with a few of those Snickers bars goes a long way in hitting my snack fix on Halloween night.