Mighty Mommy, Halloween Fun

Hey there! You're listening to The Mighty Mommy's Quick and Dirty Tips for Practical Parenting Today's Topic: Halloween Fun Tips to Have Even More Fun During Halloween Before I start the show, I have to take a moment to thank my wonderful husband, Dan, for filling in as the Mighty Daddy last week. My voice had gone on vacation while I was sick in bed. Dan did a wonderful job and I am extremely lucky to have him! Dan talked to you about Halloween safety last week. I'll continue talking about Halloween, but I'm going to focus on some interesting ideas and tips that may be as new to you as they are to me. I've been receiving a lot of new tips and tricks about Halloween this year and I thought it would be fun to share them. My first tip is about treats. Although, some older kids might think this is just a trick to make them eat healthier! Last year I did take my kids around the neighborhood to collect treats. They mostly received the usual candy, but I was delighted to find single-serving bags of pretzels, graham crackers, and fish-shaped crackers as well as single mini-cans of Play-Doh™ in their buckets. This year I'm going to have two different bowls of treats to hand out. I'm going to have a toddler bowl and candy bowl. The majority of treats we received last year could not be enjoyed by my children. Most of them were simply choking hazards. I think my husband ate most of it, but I'm sure I had more than I needed. This year I'm going to give age-appropriate treats. There is no rule stating that treats have to be edible. You can also consider handing out stickers, temporary tattoos, crayons, fun-colored erasers, and as I mentioned earlier, small tubs of Play-Doh. Of course, individual budgets will dictate what treats are the best option for you when planning to pass them out. My tip for staying within your budget is to buy what you can afford and turn out the porch light when it's gone. Remember, it isn't your duty to give out treats. You should only do so if it's something you really want to do and can easily manage. Decorating is not one of my personal strengths, but I learned a couple of decorating tips that I'm actually excited to try out this year. The first idea is called a window jack-o'-lantern. You can pick up some orange tempura paint at a craft store and use it to paint a large orange pumpkin shape on your window. When you fill in the pumpkin, leave the eyes, nose and mouth areas unpainted. When the lights are on inside the house, the light will shine through the face creating a candle-inside type effect when viewed from the outside. This is a great idea especially for second-story windows. If you like the real pumpkin-type jack-o'-lanterns, but want something steadier, I learned a great tip that was new to me. Instead of cutting the stem off your pumpkin, cut off the base. Using a good knife, cut straight across the base of the pumpkin and scoop out your seeds. Be sure to save your seeds for baking. They are easy and delicious. I'll post a recipe link in the transcript. After you carve your pumpkin as usual, you can place it on a plate or baking sheet over an electric light, glow-stick, or votive candle. If you do use an actual lit candle, please use a candle holder or other heat resistant surface.

We've finally come to my favorite part of Halloween. I love dressing up and pretending to be someone else! Have you been to the stores lately? The costumes I've seen in stores seem to be so cheaply made. The materials are thin and the prices are high. Sewing a complete costume from scratch can be time consuming and expensive unless you are already fully stocked with supplies. The most economical, and sometimes original, costumes can be made with things you already have or can obtain for little to no money. Body-suits and sleepers that still fit your toddler can be adorned with felt, buttons, glitter, or fabric paints to create simple costumes. If you have a yellow sleeper, you can paint black stripes to create a bumblebee. A red sleeper can become a ladybug by hot-gluing black felt circles on the back. Any color sleeper can be adorned with a ruffle around the neck and some fluffy yarn pompoms down the front to create a little clown. Plastic headbands can be converted into ears or antennae with some hot glue and some felt or Styrofoam balls painted with glitter. If you aren't the crafty type, you might consider gathering your fellow parents for a costume exchange. Everyone brings gently used costumes from previous years labeled with their names and the size of the costumes to a central location to trade. After the holiday, wash and return the costumes to the rightful owners. This is a great excuse to have a pre-holiday party too! Second-hand clothing shops are also great places to find gently-used costumes. I've noticed the used children's clothing stores around here have a lot of costumes in stock. Many costumes are only worn once or twice before they are traded in, so you can often get a great deal on a costume that's still as good as new. That's it for now. I hope you enjoyed the show. The comments section on the website is a great place to share your Halloween tips, decorating ideas, and even recipes. I know I'd love to hear any suggestions you'd like to share! If you would like to request a topic for the Mighty Mommy you can e-mail mommy@qdnow.com or leave a message at 206-222-9148. Also, if you haven't already done so, please take a moment to post a review at iTunes. It would be greatly appreciated.

The Mighty Mommy's Quick and Dirty Tips for Practical Parenting is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips network at quickanddirtytips.com. This week Grammar Girl is talking about misusing the words “so” and “very.”  So be sure to check out her podcast!

This is your friend the Mighty Mommy wishing you happy and fun parenting! Music – “Golly Gee” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons "Attribution 2.0" http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/