halloween

[chicken12]

are you letting your kids out on Halloween or not and are you going to answer the door 🤔 I live in a high risk area

No. We won't be trick or treating and we won't be opening the door. We will decorate the inside instead of outside and then have a mini party with games to win their sweets, followed by a film.

Not this year, we won't be doing a pumpkin as it normally invites trick or treaters to the door. We are not in a lockdown area (yet)

@44PumpLane

Local lockdown area here and like someone else we have been told we can be fined if we go trick or treating.

In reality I have outfits for the kids, we will go walking the streets looking for decorations and pumpkins and when we spot them the kids will ask me for a teat and ill give them a little something.

We will be decorating the house and then coming home and having a Halloween movie (just got to find one appropriate for nearly 4 year olds..... I'm wondering about Casper the friendly ghost, but may just watch some Halloween episodes of Disney junior shows)!

@44PumpLane

Hotel Transylvania
Monster Family
Littlest Vampire

Are ones mine enjoyed last year. If you have Netflix there’s a series called Super Monsters that they enjoy too.

In our area (not currently in lockdown), a map of houses with planned Halloween displays is being put together. Families can walk around the area with their map and give their kids a treat each time they pass one of the decorated houses.

I hadn't even thought about it until I saw this thread, but there's a silver lining to everything and I think I just found covid's. I think my two are too old for trick or treating now so this is the perfect excuse to ban it.

I don’t have kids yet but the consensus on my village Facebook group is no trick or treating, which seems sensible. Some parents are talking about doing a pumpkin trail (spotting pumpkins round the village) and giving their own dc sweets when they see one which seems like a nice Covid-friendly alternative.

You'll get fined for doing that, in a high risk (lockdown) area.

I wouldn't think in a lockdown area it would happen.
We are not in such an area and live between three schools and usually get quite a number of trick o treaters, and do make an effort to decorate the house, but my kids are too old to go out now. I think we will still carve some pumpkins and I'll get some sweets just in case.

I'm due my 2nd baby at Halloween so no I won't be buying any sweets or answering the door. Plus in a local lockdown city so I dontthink we'll get many calling round.

@Angelofdeath thanks for that (I was sneakily hoping that by mentioning the Casper film someone may be able to say yes or no so we will give it a miss)

@Marmite27 thanks for the film/show suggestions, we have Netflix too so that's helpful!

We aren’t in a lock down area but we aren’t officially trick or treating. We live in a quiet street with 5 houses. All the kids are the same age 4/5 and they play together in the park. We have said we might just trick or treat at each other’s houses with time slots so then the kids can also be home to hand out sweets.

However I will not be answering my door to strangers and no one else due to Covid

@Angelofdeath @44PumpLane the hotel transylvania films are good

No it won’t be happening. Really sad about it as it is good fun in our area. My DD1 enjoys it more than Christmas. This would have been her last year as she will be too old next year. She’s having a friend over and they’re just going to eat a ton of sweets together instead.

Can only imagine Nicola’s reaction to trick or treating here (central belt Scotland, high risk lockdown area). She’ll probably ban it completely.

Shame as my DD missed out last year, being in hospital to get her adenoids out and groomers inserted on 31st. She dressed up to go to hospital though and went to family’s doors the next day.

Grommets not groomers obv

No, we usually have a lot of children and decorate the garden so they know it’s ok to call but won’t be participating this year.

Too much risk given case numbers are rising and technically most would break the rule of six coming to us and we are abiding by it.

I will do something extra special when it’s ok to take part again. This year we will have pizza and a scary film.

No. Will still be carving pumpkins and keeping them inside . Will have a film and treat night with pizza and sweets instead. Going trick or treating is themost egfective way of spreading the virus from house to house and to the most vulnerable. Completely irresponsible.

I'm hoping to be able to treat the kids in a safe way. It's been awful for them and I'm hoping it will he'll bring a sense of normality.

I'm making a giant spider web to stick in the garden. Will make flies out of clothes pegs and use them to clip individual bags of sweets to the web.
Everything can then be spritzed down with dettol and there's no bowl for loads of kids to dip their hands in.

We will be decorating, going out dressed up to look at other decorations, leaving a ton of sweets all over the front of our house just in case, I don’t care, my kids have had a really really shitty year what with one thing and another, we’ve not been able to attend 2 funerals for beloved members of the family, we’ve been banned from celebrating big birthdays (a 60th, a 30th, and 80th and a big anniversary) we’ve not had a party for our oldest, our holidays got cancelled. We are going for it. We aren’t in a local lockdown yet and my 6 year old has clinically diagnosed depression as a direct result of Covid restrictions.
I’m giving my kids the chance to be kids this year. Even if it means it’s not 100% the same, it’s something.

No and I absolutely love Halloween but we aren’t going trick or treating. I’m going to make Halloween crafts with the kids, have a Halloween tea party and watch scary movies (U rated for the younger ones!). Going to hide sweets round the house like an Easter egg hunt.

I hope none of you are, whether or not in a high risk area. Make a face in a pumpkin if you wish, but please no trick or treating.

Anyway, it's a US thing and we are not the 51st state.

I knew there would be many on mumsnet delighted that coronavirus would put a stop to trick or treating.

It's not a 'US thing'- it's roots are in the Celtic/pagan festival of Samhain. Look up 'guising' as well.

Anyway, even if it were, heaven forbid we take on traditions from any other culture!

I do however agree that trick or treating is not a good idea this year- especially because there are many other ways to make it fun anyway. I'm doing a sweet hunt around the house for the DC,, decorations and dress up, Halloween films, possibly a Harry Potter marathon (we did a HP themed party last Halloween).

Local lockdown people, do you get a letter saying what you can and cannot do?

I can guarantee coronavirus won't stop kids trick or treating round mine. I'll be leaving sweets out and will be going trick and treating.