I don't get why Hallowe'en can't 'happen' this year

[BabyLlamaZen]

I know a lot of people hate halloween, so this isn't about that!

For those who find it a bit of fun, especially with kids, I dont get why everyone is going on about how it's ruined and cancelled?

Isn't the whole point doing up your house all creatively and spooky then going for walks around your neighbourhood to have a look? I.e. your daily walk. Ok so we won't be going inside other houses, but did you ever? My plan was to leave individual paper bags of sweets in a basket on the front step with some sanitizer. People take them at their own risk, like every year? 🤷‍♀️

How is it worse than going to eat in a cafe next to strangers? We know it's mostly airborne. Am I crazy?

I never do the rummage in a bowl thing anyway - someone always grabs half the bowl with surprisingly enormous hands for such a small child. I just drop a couple of goodies into each proffered bucket. I find it hard to get worried about that as a means of transmission.

For goodness sake, have people really never experienced or learned to cope with mild disappointment? What charmed lives.

Walking around in a family unit just looking is very different to trick or treating. Too much potential for spreading germs going from house to house. Not to mention it would put some households over the rule of six etc or break the non socialising rule.

I love Halloween but won’t be impressed if parents let their children knock this year.

I'll have a tub of sweets just in case anyone comes, we barely get any anyway but I dont see how picking a few sweets out of a tub is that big of a deal
It depends whose picking out the sweets. If just one person handing them out fine but many little hands then No.
We won't be doing Halloween this year other than a small party for the 4 of us.
I think it is madness the virus won't slow down with so much socialising.

I saw on a local FB page that somebody suggested putting a glow stick through a bag of sweets, and a one way system in her garden, for kids to go in and find one.

Personally, I have never liked TorT so have always managed to keep DD busy with a local party or being on holiday, but this was the first year she was going to dress up properly and go out with her friends, so she is a bit sad about that.

We are now having a "party" just her and 2 friends, and I have bought ceramic pumpkins to paint, and lots of sweets and they will play WII games etc. So they won't be going out at all.

@Annasgirl

But DS was all upset again when he found out he could not go for the walk with all of his friends .

Unless you are in Scotland then children are meant to be socially distancing anyway, 2m between each surely wouldn’t have been doable unless only one friend.

I also dont get it. We can go to get a takeout where people hand us bags of burgers, we can go shopping and pick up dozens of items and bring them home, I can eat in a cafe where people prepare my food, but a kid cant pick a packet of sweets out of a bowl?

Because those who work in food venues or retail etc adhere to certain hygiene standards which minimise covid concerns. That’s not the case when you are going door to door unless you are thoroughly washing your hands after each occasion - and the odds of every child and adult doing that are very low.

It’s not that a kid can’t (at the moment anyway) it’s that it’s not sensible and potentially not safe.

I’m not decorating the outside as I don’t want to encourage any trick or treaters, although I doubt there will be any this year you just don’t know. But I’m getting some balloons and doing a ‘sweet hunt’ for my children, they’ll dress up and watch some films. I don’t want to take them for walk as I read something about people wanting to display a pumpkin and do a local pumpkin spot which sounds cute but I think there will be will a lot of people out and about that night.

Im unsure what to do. I think we may not go out ourselves, but am happy if anyone knocks at the door. We are in a small village so almost all the children are at school in a bubble together anyway. I don't see much difference in them having sweets from us, or running around a playground and sitting in class together!

My plan was to leave individual paper bags of sweets in a basket on the front step with some sanitizer.

It depends on your area.

The first lot of kids round here would nick your sweets, nick your basket, your sanitizer and probably your front step if it wasn't concreted down 🙄🤣

Our area is doing a pumpkin trail and we'll carve a pumpkin for that but the front gate will be locked and we wont be handing out treats. Parents will have to provide their own sweets this year.

• HerRoyalNotness I saw a good idea for the sweets. Packets Taped to skewers an plunged into the front lawn. That way kids can take one from there. I have mulled over the sharp point stick aspect so I’m still unsure whether to do it*

Some of the kids round here would take every skewer, eat all the sweets and throw the skewers at each other like javelins. There’d be carnage.

Isn't the whole point doing up your house all creatively and spooky then going for walks around your neighbourhood to have a look?

I have never heard of anyone doing this, and I’ve never seen it. What would there be to see? I’ve never heard of anyone decorating their house for Halloween, unless just for one evening for a one-party.

@Doubleyikes. Small children rummaging for sweetie amongst sharpened sticks in the dark, what could possibly go wrong ? Maybe put up a "washing line" or spiders web with sweets pegged to it instead?

We're toying with the idea of a drainpipe from an upstairs window.

That or a catapult, keep them as far away from the house as possible.

My kids are going to trick or treat each other in their bedrooms on the landing....It might sound a bit lame but they're quite excited at the prospect of controlling who gives each other how many sweets! We'll do some games, listen to a "Halloween playlist" (10 year old obsessed with making playlists at the moment....), and dress up then watch the addams family as well. They only really like trick or treating for the volume of sweets they get given so if we have plenty at home I don't think they'll mind too much tbh!

I'd be hesitant to go TorT, but people stick their grotty hands all over groceries in the supermarket. What's the difference?

It is unless you plan on skipping a day

I would be okay with your suggestion OP.

It relies on the children not being little arseholes however.

We're going to just have fun at home. I think trick or treating is a very bad idea.

We're having a Halloween evening at home - decorating the house, spooky food etc, but I don't understand why people are willing to take their children (or even groups of teens) to other peoples' houses in the middle of a pandemic. While most people will just be content with picking up something from a doorstep, there are always some who will knock the door and make a potentially vulnerable person answer. It's stupid. Halloween isn't cancelled, it just needs to be different.

I'm going to arrange a hunt around our house with lots of clues eventually leading to a bag of goodies for my DC (sweets, glow sticks etc). They aren't bothered about not being able to go trick or treating this year, and tbh I'm quite glad as it's always so cold and wet. Instead we will stay home, watch some Halloween films, order in a takeaway and do pumpkins etc. I reckon they will enjoy it more than other years

We normally do Halloween in a huge way. DH decorates the entire front of the house and garden as well as the cars! We're not doing it at all this year. Our house is known in the area for the decorations and we normally end up with masses of families congregating in the street and on our path. We usually have around 200 bags of crisps to give out and they all go, so that will tell you how popular our house is! There is absolutely no way we're encouraging it this year.

@Nottherealslimshady

I'll have a tub of sweets just in case anyone comes, we barely get any anyway but I dont see how picking a few sweets out of a tub is that big of a deal

There's this virus thing that might kill the child or their parents/gran.

Google it perhaps?

We can go to get a takeout where people hand us bags of burgers, we can go shopping and pick up dozens of items and bring them home, I can eat in a cafe where people prepare my food, but a kid cant pick a packet of sweets out of a bowl?

A takeout where one authorised person wearing gloves and a mask hands out food is rather different from successions of children, some no doubt with dubious hygiene standards rummage around in the same bowl. It's the rummaging that is the problem. Plus people in cafes usually take a lot of trouble not to come close to you.