Halloween... fun or scary?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

The Princess is so excited for Halloween this year. She is old enough to "get it" and has been wearing her costume almost every day for the past week or so in anticipation. She also realizes that with Halloween comes candy - which can be a little tricky (and scary) with a peanut allergy. This is the first year we have really had to worry about it since she wasn't old enough to care in years past. I talked to a few different friends whose kids also have peanut allergies about what they do when it comes to trick-or-treating. I was very interested in the variety of responses.

So, what is our plan of attack? I will be taking The Princess trick-or-treating to a few houses in the neighborhood, than we will look through her candy bag and decide if any of it can 1.) be kept and 2.) be eaten by The Princess. Luckily, all the candy we bought to hand out is peanut (and egg) free. If worse comes to worse, we can sneakily switch out the candy in her bag with the "safe" candy from our trick-or-treating bowl.

When Brother #1 and Brother #2 come home from their rounds of trick-or-treating, we also have to go through their candy bags. Anything containing peanuts or PB is immediately confiscated. Last year, we hid it all in a high cupboard and my husband and I would sneak it out at night and eat it over the sink. We are so mean, we wouldn't even let the Brother's eat it. The trouble we have to go through now just to eat a Reese's PB cup!  Anything that "may contain peanuts" or "is processed in a facility with peanuts" is put out of The Princess's reach. Brother #1 and Brother #2 are allowed to take it to school or eat it when The Princess is down for her nap.

This year, since we are trying to be healthier, we will be letting the kids pick a handful of their favorite treats (without peanuts)  and the rest we will "sell" to a local dentist who pays cash for candy. Brother #1 and Brother #2 sometimes complain about not being able to eat the candy containing peanuts and PB. "Selling" it is a great way to get rid of it while still letting The Brother's get some benefit (money).

Since we are still relatively new in dealing with food allergies at holiday times, I would love to hear any feedback with how you handle the holidays.

And in the meantime, I hope you have a safe Halloween!

Jana