to be annoyed at trick or treaters who get offended when I say "No I don't celebrate Halloween

[CwtchesAndCuddles]

I hate Halloween!!! As a family we have as little to do with it as possible which is our choice. If other people want to have parties etc that is fine, carry on and have your fun, I just don't want to join in.

I do not invite callers to my house, there are no decorations up, so please do not knock on my door and then verbally abuse me for not taking part!!!

Triggles - my ds has autism and people knocking on the door really upsets him too, it's easier to answer and say we don't celebrate Halloween than see him get more and more distressed from repeted knocking and ringing of the bell.

Posters seem to attrack more idiots around here!

I picked up a notice from the local shop, provided by the police, to give to my parents who hugely dislike it. They were grateful, notice is polite. Job done.

He's been wearing his headphones to bed for the last week, just because of all the fireworks in the evenings lately...so I'm going to plunk him down in front of a video game, with his headphones on, hopefully that will avoid a bit of the panic. lol

I hate Halloween too - my mum calls it 'begging with menaces!' and i think she has a point. Why should I give the local children sweets - on one day of the year? I spend the rest of it persuading my children not to take sweets from strangers.

And it's not just the children round here - i get teenagers who stand on the doorstep with their hands out. They don't want sweets, they want money (or beer!) -for not causing damage to my property.

I hate fireworks too - I can't understand why we are allowed to buy explosives .

Round here, anyone that doesn't want you to knock puts up a notice.

My teenager goes trick or treating, along with two of her friends, but they come along with me and my three younger DC's. neither her nor her friends would be allowed out unaccompanied at that time of night. And DD is 14, her friends 13. They go to spectacular lengths with their costumes too.

This year DD's friends (a set of ID twins) are going as Zombie Nurses, DD is going as a Zombie fairy (!), DS1 is going as Ghost Rider, DS2 is going to be a vampire, and toddler DS3 is going as a bat.

Everyone round here goes as a family group, and you haven't got the egg & flour thing for well over 7 years, thanks to the CPO's patrolling.

It's all very friendly here in Norf Essix.

We even have the 'pumpkin man' who wows us with his amazing pumpkin carving skills.

it's easier to answer and say we don't celebrate Halloween than see him get more and more distressed from repeted knocking and ringing of the bell.

It is even easier to stick a bloody poster up surely, especially if it will stop the knocking(ime, it will) and stop your son being distressed. Why are you being so stubborn over such a simple solution to your perceived major problem?

I don't mind doling out sweets, I do mind listening to shite jokes or ghastly songs and poems

I loathe it. We put up a poster, and we STILL get the fucking bastards knocking, egging etc. Our bus service is withdrawn too.

[hbiscuit]

we dont do it on religeous grounds but its up to others if they want to. I tend to put a notice on gate (which gets ripped off and they come anyway) and shut gate and put another notice on door, saying please dont knock, disabled child frightened by noise and images.

Do some people give a fig? by 'eck they dont. i tape up the letterbox inside cos weve had poo and other 'treats' thru the letterbox. and car scratched.

And this is a celebration? those who vandalise and intimidate?

Its just a minority that do that but still....what about those vulnerable and frightened?

sometimes i feel like opening the door and giving them a treat of a book '.what part of no trick or teats, disabled child etc do you not understand?!!!' lol.

Ahh the joys of living at the edge of a village, no street lights = no trick or treaters. Haven't had anyone knock on the door the entire time we've lived here [hgrin]

Have previously had teens knocking and older primary school kids - signs/no lights/ignoring knocking etc never worked. Ended up opening the door chucking some cheap crap sweats at the annoyance and closing the door [hwink]

• Cheap sweets not sweats [hblush]

I don't answer the door, I shut all the curtains and keep all the lights down low so it looks like we are out. When DCs were small they did the pumpkin carving etc and I got in sweets for trick or treaters etc. But they are grown up and so I am done with Halloween.

Much prefer Bonfire night!

I must not eat all the Haribo before Halloween; I must not eat all the Haribo; I must not eat all the Haribo; I must not.. well just the Tangfastics then...

totally agree with everything you've said, Captainmummy.

And Triggles, same prob here too.

When my son was tiny I put a sign out saying "shhh, baby sleeping". Now I put a dish of sweets out and replenish occasionally. Not had knocks for 3 years. How about trying the "baby asleep" tactic?

I do find that any aggressive T-or-T-ers go red & disappear quickly when pretend they are 5 yrs old; hold out the bowl of mini Haribo bags & toddler-size lollies, & say ''oh, go on choose some sweets then, don't you look scary in your costumes, bless''.... [hgrin]

Also my Mum is funny because she ''can't stand other people's kids'' yet manages to visit on each Halloween & tries to race me to the door when the neighbours bring their cute toddlers round! [hsmile]

I have a strict "No Costume, No sweets" rule. I had a teenage hoody come last year that I sent away that came back ten minutes later with a bin bag made into a warlock cloak. Had to give him sweets for the balls of it! cheeky fucker

Same with Christmas Carolers who only sing one bloody line! I Want to be entertained Dammit!!

And so it begins, on the 30th [hhmm]

Just had two knock on the door, ignored it, knocked again..... I answered and said its not even Halloween?!

Ten ish year old in a bin bag and mother dressed as a blonde Amy winehouse said because if you knock tommorow people say, people have been you're too late!

Rough housing estate here, I dread Halloween.

I'll admit a few years ago we had a couple teenage boys in a group that all dressed up in women's lingerie complete with high heels and fishnet stockings. I'm telling you, DH & I agreed that they'd obviously made the effort and gave them sweets.

They were polite and friendly, not menacing in any way. And let's face it, how menacing could they be dressed up in lingerie?

Oh, I never know what to do regarding Christmas carolers. Being American, the whole idea is a bit novel really - as we really only did caroling around care homes and homes of elderly people that we knew (through church, for example) - so I don't really know what's expected from us when they've come and sung at the door.

I'm pretty sure DH's option of "just close the door" is not the expected response.

One year when we lived in a neighbourhood with lots of children, we went out shopping and made sure to buy plenty of kid-friendly bags of sweets etc. We got back to find the little buggers had already egged the front door in retaliation for us not being in, and it wasn't even dark yet! Since then I've been agin the whole thing.

Not keen on halloween here either.

I get sick of peoples attitudes and negativity towards me when I express this - usually when asked or when they come here on halloween. Someone on here has already called the OP a "party pooper" - which to my mind is a negative response to someone saying they dont DO halloween.

I get pissed off that if my lights are on that just no answering the door does not work. They keep knocking the door then the windows! I dont put a pumpkin out the front nor have the outside light on but the fact I dont answer the door just seems to piss SOME trick or treaters off, they stand at the door knocking away and say things like "miserable gits dont want to answer the door" and then keep knocking. FFS.

Whats worse is when you come home at 5pmish and the first round of kids surround my car and follow me up the driveway saying "trick or treat" and despite me politely saying "sorry I dont have any sweets etc because we dont celebrate halloween" they continue to loiter and watch me go back and forth from my car with shopping or whatever. Its almost like being famous - one crowd of kids run upto the car as I pull up and then loads of others must think they are on to a good thing and before I know it - I have a load of kids surrounding my car! .

I have not opened the door and found later or the next morning my pots overturned, flour and eggs on my car, driveway, path outside of house.

My mate in the US thinks its shit how the British "DO" halloween. She reckons out there its a pre arranged community thing - no one knocks on the door of strangers and sometimes its pre arranged what will happen at different houses etc. She reckons the British go around like i quote "begging peasants". She reckons where she lives they go around and its not all about getting loads of sweets etc. Some houses put on games and actvities - it not just a case of knocking on the door with the hands out saying trick or treat.

The one year I did play along and bought sweets etc (for the sake of my kids when they smaller) - not one trick or treater had a trick. Every time I asked for a trick I got a blank face and an Oh. Not 1 single group of people who came to my door had any kind of trick at all. I still gave them sweets but I just dont get it! I just think it is begging in fancy dress.

I had a woman last year knock on the door and thrust her baby at me. She wasn't in costume and the baby was a newborn . She took loads of sweets, I was left wondering if that was the reason she'd had the baby

I'm ready this year - bought loads of £1 mix bags as we're having a party and we've eaten all the nice ones. Crappy drumstick lollies for all callers!