trick or treat

[devonshiredumpling]

aibu to take my son trick or treating for the first time this year he will be five in nov but will only take him to people we know

Some people are basically miserable bastards who don't like the idea of other people having fun. Fair enough if you want to put a sign on your own door saying no trick or treat, it's your house, your rules. But the sort of bucketheads who want it banned just because they don't like it, completely ignoring the fact that quite a lot of people do like it and decorate their houses and stock up on sweeties especially, well those people should be told to go and fuck themselves.

We didn't have any trick or treaters last year. I was a bit .

I too put a pumpkin out to show that we're open to it. I didn't realise it was a universal code, I just thought people might get the hint, and generally they seem to.

I wouldn't take my children out to do it though.

Personally, I loathe it, but am persuaded to decorate the front of the house and have sweets on offer. My DCs rely on trick or treating to keep them in sweets until Christmas. I do offer to just buy them some sweets, but that wouldn't be the same.

Just go to the houses which are decorated. Once we've run out of sweets, we just turn the lights off and bring in the pumpkin.

I never used to get worked up over halloween and trick or treaters, but this year, I'm furious about the whole thing. In my area the kids start coming round from the 2nd week in October, they don't dress up and one kid didn't even look happy about doing it (on his own, no costume, looking as miserable as sin - where were the parents?) My husband and I just tell them politely that we don't have anything at the moment and they should come back closer to the time. Then I start thinking about how they have behaved towards us and our property and feel positively threatend into giving them stuff just so they don't damage or steal anything. Last year when we were actually out the day before halloween, we had all of our brand new bird feeders stolen. During the course of the year, some little tike smashed up another brand new bird feeder for no reason what so ever. I have seen them playing in our plants and in and out of cars on our own driveway, even after requseting that they don't as they are going to cause damages. They have shown no respect for us and I just feel like, why should I reward this behaviour with sweets? Some of the kids are good and well behaved and I have discussed with my husband that we just drop some sweets round to the parents to dish out and just not take part in the whole door to door thing. My husband worries that we'll get egged or worse still that someone will set fire to the house. It's a real concern for us and we're a young couple, I can't even image how the elderly feel.

Where I live you need a portcullis and a couple of murder holes for Trick or Treat!

Really, for the most part... Brits get it all wrong at Halloween!

In my 6 years in the US , I have seen how it should be enjoyed.

Don't mean to sound rude...and all that!

YANBU, I love to give out sweets to the children,and to see them in their costumes. We don't all hate Halloween,and there are many of us who'd be disappointed to receive no trick or treaters. You and your ds would be very welcome here.

I hate Halloween and refuse to answer the door to the stream of child muggers that knock.

That said I would have no problem with children I know coming so YANBU. 5 is a sweet age to dress up.

Another one here who is a "buckethead" [hhmm] who hates it.

No problem with children enjoying themselves, and yes, I am perfectly prepared to acknowledge wearily that in America it is done properly with hordes of rosy cheeked moppets sharing candy on the stoop with adoring neighbours.

Unfortunately, rightly or wrongly, I've personally experienced vandalism and intimidation when I didn't take part, I have elderly relatives who find it terrifying, in our area, some of the bus services are withdrawn because of rampaging feral bloody teenagers, refuse collectors and street sweepers are attacked, and so on. So, what's not to like?

YANBU, I'm really hoping we get trick or treaters this year! Didn't get any last year :(

Halloween is actualy a peagen festival that has been taken over by big companies.

I hate trick or treating, I never did it as a child and my DC's don't either.

We do however go to the light festivals and the DC's have a party at home with a few invitees. Only reason the party happens is DS1 got bullied about not trick or treating.

DH takes DD1 out, and this year DD2 will be old enough too :) They only go to houses we know or that have jack o'lanterns/decorations out. We live on a council estate with its usual number of ruffians but we never get any Halloween riots. If teenagers come to the door in regular clothes I just say "No costume, no sweeties!" "or "Who have you come as, N-Dubz/[insert latest uncool band]".
DH dresses up too- he is a LARPer and has a troll outfit which makes him about 4ft wide and as he is already over 6ft tall he looks quite impressive :o

It's not a tradition I like - as long as you all take the hint that our house with the curtains drawn over all the windows is not looking hospitable and leave us alone - do what you want.

What I don't like is the fact the local police force's no trick or treaters here posters look so snazzy and attractive they're very likely to give the exact opposite message to those kids who can't (or can't be bothered to) read - lots of ghosts, pumpkins, TRICK OR TREAT in big letters and "no thanks" in tiny letters. I await the inevitable crossed-wires.

Ok I'll have to sign up for the 'miserable bastard' club then, as I also hate Halloween. Luckily where we live now we're very rarely bothered, but our previous house (on an estate with lots of bungalows for reitred people) was seen as a target by the local yoof because they felt that they would get loads of stuff (they would just ask for money) from the elderly residents because of fear of repercussions. (Got this gem from the Police when they came round to see the terrifield lady round the corner from us). This is a small market town in East Anglia.

So forgive me for not loving Halloween.

DejaWho - those posters sound like poor communication waiting to happen, what a shame!

Sorry for typos in my first post - must find my glasses!

I hate trick or treat. Think I'll make my own poster this year.

DD usually makes us a poster 'just in case.'

She asked us about Trick or Treat a few years ago, and found the idea so odd that she's never wanted to take part.

I think it's a shame when people don't want to be community spirited with this kind of thing. Yes there will be the occasional idiots who spoil it for everyone else but mainly it's just young dc dressing up and going round the neighbours. I'm not a halloween fan as such but I am a fan of creating community, therefore our house will be lit up, pumpkin in window and sweets at the ready :) We are buggering off to a Light Party for some of the evening however.

So OP YANBU...wish we could have more things which would bring people together.

What you mean by "I think it's wrong people don't want to be community spirited" is "I think it's not fair that some people don't want to have their evening disturbed by the door constantly going and have to hand out sweets to my kids cos I WANT THEM TO."

And yeah - the police posters do look like someone's had an acute case of clipart overdose and will have exactly the opposite effect this year.

My dad's birthday is on Hallowe'en, and I always went there - it also Samhain, and as we are Pagans we'd have our ritual & celebration too.

I used to return home to find my house egged, and twice windows broken - to those who think that I therefore now refuse to participate - due to the vandalism I now associate with it - makes me in some way 'miserable' I'd respectfully point out that you are off your rockers!

When I reported the eggs incident to the police (it was on all my windows, my door & worse the brickwork - which proved impossible to remove. The police gave me a poster to use the following year - one of the times that the windows were smashed.

Of course it wasn't young kids who were responsible, but the same scum that did this also did it to elderly people - who would never know whether a knocker was a young child having fun, or an abusive, blackmailing, anti-social teen.

I also don't want to take part, as for me it has a strong religious aspect which has been used to exploit by some, and as another commercial enterprise by big companies.

I have a tip for deterring trick or treaters - get loads of choc and sweets in. No one will come. For those of you who love them-get nothing in. You will have loads. Have inadvertently tested it both ways. Recommend the former for the choc fest afterwards

Something I should have added earlier...

Here in my US town there is a designated time ,ours is 5-7 -after that its done!

In think that would really help in the UK.

The other thing is, more cute costumes here...it makes it a much cozier and friendly experience for the younger ones (and for vulnerable homes)

I hated it in the UK ,tolerate it now (because 2 of my kids like it) but thats only because I have seen how it can be done... better :)

feminie myexperience of it in the UK has been what I hoped it would be when I first watched ET and decided I wanted to move to the States (never did get there!), like you say, it seems to be cuter in the town my folks live, everyone's involved.

The trick or treating is done by 8pm, then the babysitters arrive and all the adults go down to the local pubs in fancy dress.

Devonshiredumpling if you're not keen on the idea of taking him to stranger's houses, just find about 3 or 4 friends you can call on. Also at 5years old he'll be just the right age for a party, we're visiting Devon next week (from Cheshire) purely to attend a playbarn/soft play halloween party at the weekend (and the trick or treating on actual Halloween).