Halloween with Older Kids: I'm Totally Over It

My husband and I kind of settled on once you're in middle school you have to stop being a candy beggar. Seriously, older kids trick or treating is just annoying. I'll be glad to drive them to the store the day after and they can buy all the discount candy they want.

Last year we got lucky and Halloween was on a weekend, so we went as a family to one of the local amusement parks that has a Halloween themed event. We have passes anyway, and it was a good excuse to stay away for home during trick or treating time. We had such a good time we've decided that it's going to be our Halloween "thing" as a family.

If we get tired of handing out candy on the actual day, I just turn the lights out!

Thanks for the mention! (Amy Mullis at www.mindovermullis.com ( http://www.mindovermullis.com )) Yep, I decided that once they're old enough to ask me to co-sign a loan for their iPod and to shuffle their iTunes cards like it's a deck of Bicycles, they're old enough to bring ME a treat!

(This year we took them & a couple of their friends to a Rifftrax showing of an old Vincent Price movie. The Mystery Science Theatre guys are hilarious and the boys had a ball! And, oh, yeah by the way the elastic is groaning in my stretchy pants, I can tell we ate plenty of candy!)

This is how I like it celebrated.It's more fun.

Turn your light off :)

As the mother of 3 teenage boys, ages 13, 15, and 16, I am quite thankful that they enjoy being at a Halloween Party with 6 of our Best Friend Families and trick or treating as a large group with the Dad's. The Mom's stay at the house and drink wine, of course! Their other option is going to a typical high school teenage party, where I would not be allowed. They take the traditional group photos on the stairs with their Halloween costumes on and crack themselves up at their nerdiness. They will not be kids forever!

Call me a party-pooper, but here's my take on this topic from another perspective:

I’m sorry, but I don’t get it. Did we just win the war in Iraq? Is the Recession over? Are we celebrating freedom?

The country-at-large has been going haywire over Halloween: costumes, candy, pumpkin patches, haunted houses, scary movies and television programs –you name it. I understand the exploitation of the “holiday” for commercial gain; everyone has a gimmick and has to make a buck, but at whose expense? Is it me, or is something off-kilter here?

Are we so shallow as a society that this is what impassions us? Not even for an important historical holiday such as Independence Day or Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, or a sacred religious holiday, is there such a fuss. Besides having our priorities a little distorted, most importantly, what are we teaching our children?

One only needs to step foot outside her front door or turn on her television, computer, or listen to radio ads to be inundated with bloodcurdling images and descriptions of axe-murderers, horrifying phantoms, ghosts, goblins, monsters, witches, mummies, goons, zombies, mutants, and all sorts of creepy creatures.

It’s no wonder that I find myself all day and night explaining to my kids that none of it really exists, and trying to justify why everyone is in such a frenzy.

Another reality for many of us parents with young children is this: we’re awakened abruptly at ungodly hours of the night, consoling petrified little ones that scream out, fraught with fear and anxiety. And even though we’ve assured them a billion times that it’s all for “fun,” (Fun for who? Please remind me,) understanding something intellectually is one thing, emotionally, is another story. The kids’ constant, albeit inadvertent, exposure to such images returns to their unconscious minds to haunt them- literally, and disturb their peaceful slumber.

Some may retort that their children only dress up as positive role models: fairies, genies, princesses, princes, non-violent superheroes, or other do-gooders. However, the rest of the world does not, and we cannot keep our little Dora the Explorers, Diegos and Supermen completely insulated from this unmonitored raging machine vibrating all around us.

I say, come on people, let’s tone it down a little and showcase more the holidays that do instil a sense of righteousness, pride and goodness—in heroic others, in our personal faith, and in our country.

I'm with you, Mir, I cannot wait for it to be over already. So we can all get some sleep around here.

http://www.warriormom.net

I live in a condo complex where all the porch lights are on so we don't get trick or treaters. So I go into the city and hand out candy with my boyfriend. It's superfun and I actually enjoy asking the older kids without costumes what they're dressed as. I usually tell them they can have candy when they can tell me what they're dressed as. They usually come up with a response and it makes it fun for me. We turn out the lights when the little kids aren't coming anymore, usually around 8 or 9.

Maybe 12 but probably 11. By 12 I would have been in jr high and we far too mature for such things. You know...until senior year of high school when we all went in costume.

I love the idea of a Goonies party. Goonies never say die! (And like candy.)

Contributing Editor Karen Ballum also blogs at Sassymonkey ( http://sassymonkey.ca ) and Sassymonkey Reads ( http://sassymonkeyreads.ca ).

I trick or treated through 7th grade, and that year I felt a little silly being out there. I think the end of elementary school should be the end of trick or treating.

I blog about books, life and writing at Check, please! ( http://www.emilycsims.com/blog )

Never book travel without a coupon code ( http://travelated.com/travel-deals )!

I think what killed it for me was last year when a few vans pulled up and spit out over a dozen kids to trick-or-treat - not even in costume, and some probably 17. One actually stared me down when I gave him only one snack sized bar.

I may not even hand out candy this year because my kids have decided they can buy their own. I sure do miss the costumes, though...especially the year they were Kipper and Tiger.

Marianne at Mealmixer ( http://www.mealmixer.com )

No one loved Halloween more than me when our 3 children were small.

That being said, our youngest son is 15 now and lord only knows what he plans to do. Whatever it is, he won't wear a costume.

We used to joke when older kids would come to our door, saying, "Dude, how old are you. Ok, I don't want to see you trick or treating next year." Smiling, and teasing, but seriously??

Just last night Sexy Hubby said, "Do you think we'll get any trick or treaters?" (We live in a new neighborhood, not completely developed, yet.) Then, "Can't we just turn out the lights and not answer the door."

Nuf said.

KT

www.AnAuthenticLife.com ( http://www.AnAuthenticLife.com )

My kids are 13, 11, and 7. The 8th grader is staying home and handing out candy this year. That was his decision, of which I'm glad he made. The 6th grader is trick or treating with a friend, but he'll be in full costume that he came up with. When a teenager shows up with no costume I am embarrassed for him/her. They should know better.

I'm all about creativity on Halloween. The store bought mask from Target just doesn't do it for me. Those people get one piece of candy... a package of Smarties.
Sugar_Mama

http://dailydoseofsugarmama.com

I *love* Halloween! We've had our costumes for a while because there was a festival at school last week. We all dress up, even me and my husband--it's the only time of year it's OK for a grown woman to play dress-up ;)

As for older kids trick-or-treating, I don't let my teenager go out. She's 14 and I told her it was time to stop last year. I'm happy to throw her a Halloween party, but she can't go door-to-door. And, yes! It drives me crazy when teenagers show up with a bag and no costume. At least make an effort, people! My 7 and 3 year-olds love to go out, though thankfully they don't have much stamina which makes our time gathering candy pretty short :)

Tiffiny blogs at The Bake-Off Flunkie ( http://bakeoff-flunkie.blogspot.com ).

our town has had resurgence of trick or treaters, with EVERYONE dressing up: kids, babies, teens, 'rents, grandparents. Houses get decorated, dogs too. It's a full-fledged community even and the older kids do their own costumes and they're quick, clever, and cheap. It's a blast. Pour yourself a glass of wine and answer the door and smile. It's one night.

Kathykate (p/t copywriter, f/t mom)

Diary of a Return-to-Work Mom ( http://www.returntoworkmom.com/ )

Ha! I enjoyed reading your post! I too have LOVED all the Halloweens! Oh my gosh what a fun time, making costumes and all those adorable pictures! My kids are about yours' age now and I think I'm almost over it too. This will probly be the last year for costumes. Sad...the end of an era. But a new era begins...that of them handing out the candy and hiding in the bushes to scare the older kids with no costumes!

Chris
http://absolutely--positive.blogspot.com/

Between my new job, the ongoing move to Connecticut and travel, I completely forgot about Halloween. We'll go to Target tomorrow night before I'm away the rest of the week.

My son wants to be a gangster. Where did THAT come from? It would be so much easier if he were to be a nerdy software engineer. Then he could just borrow a few things from his father.

Trick or treat!

Susan Getgood blogs at Marketing Roadmaps ( http://getgood.com/roadmaps ), Snapshot Chronicles ( http://snapshotchronicles.com ) and Snapshot Chronicles Roadtrip ( http://snapshotchronicles.com/roadtrip ).

I went until... eighth grade? Maybe? But I'm never taller than anyone, so that wasn't an issue for me. heh Also, I ALWAYS wore a costume.

Thankfully, we're never home on trick-or-treat night (which, btw, isn't on Halloween where we live because people are morons), so I haven't had to tick off any teens in non-costumes. My MIL gives them candy even if they aren't in costume because she's afraid they'll come back and trick her.

Contributing Editor Jenna Hatfield (@FireMom ( http://twitter.com/FireMom )) blogs at Stop, Drop and Blog ( http://stopdropandblog.com ) and The Chronicles of Munchkin Land ( http://thechroniclesofmunchkinland.com ). She is a freelance writer and newspaper photographer.

With more towns passing ordinances making trick-or-treat hours stop before sunset (like 5PM) it almost seems a mot point. I don't remember the last time I saw kids old enough to dress themselves actually out demanding candy. By seventh grade I would have felt ridiculous dressing in costume.

Rent some Halloween movies that they've never seen... Hocus Pocus, Nightmare Before Christmas, Goonies. They're not too old for candy? Tell each kid to bring a handful of their home candy stash to share and let them beg each other for candy.

Consider this Halloween the calm before the storm when the day goes from being an awkward fit for older kids to that horrible thing that happens in high school when Halloween is about finding the trashiest costume you can sneak out of the house before your parents catch you.

www.SaraInAkko.blogspot.com ( http://www.SaraInAkko.blogspot.com )

Life in the Middle East, with craft and spice

What a great idea...Halloween for Elementary-aged kids...maybe Halloween parties for the older kids?

Ms. Adventuress ( http://www.msadventuress.com ) is where we honor and inspire the desire to adventure ( http://msadventuress.blogspot.com/p/about.html )...