Someone stole all the Halloween treats 😡

[Usernamqwerty]

I went out around 4pm for 20 minutes to pick up the kids and we come back to discover everything gone... I put out a pumpkin on top of a plastic storage box (rain protection) with two bowls of miniature packets Cadbury chocolates and some selfish git has swiped the lot...

Why are some people so selfish?
AIBU to not bother next year? 😭

Why did you leave it all outside and expect it not to be stolen?
That's fairly unusual, I think. People do occasionally leave them out in our village and all the children are respectful and only take one. Although most like to be home and answer the door.

What I mean is, if they have to pop out they often take the sweets in and a 'back soon' sign.

Loads leave bowls out here while they go trick or treating themselves or don't want to answer the door. It started like that in covid when we weren't allowed to answer the door to them and it's stuck.. I just accept some kids will be greedy and take a few packets and the parents might not stop them.
It's shitty taking the whole lot though, I hate it when the teens ruin it for the little ones

I'd have to disagree with your first sentence. I trick or treated up until I was about 14/15. I'd struggled for years to have friends and only really developed a strong social circle when I started high school, so dressing up, going about with my friends and (respectfully) collecting goodies are some of my fondest memories from that time. I don't think anyone should feel "too old" for innocent fun, as long as they're considerate of others.

I appreciate that some people are out with their kids trick or treating, but doesn't leaving a bowl out rather defeat the point? Do trick or treaters just go from house to house picking up a sweet from outside the doors and never seeing anyone?

(We don't get trick or treaters where I am.)

Yes it does a little but I can't keep getting up and opening the door and they don't seem to care they just want sweets. The more nervous kids like it as they don't have to knock.

Next year I'll just put all the sweets out later (it's the early ones (not the toddlers though)who seem particularly grabby imo) or if they all go in five minutes channel my inner Elsa and let it go.

We had our first knock quite early..opened the door to an amazon delivery,he said trick or treat and did an evil laugh! 😈 I offered him some sweets because it cheered me up and made my kids laugh.
All the children who came that only took one sweet I told to take two more!

It is nicer to answer but I am out trick or treating with my own kids so don't want visiting kids to miss out, when I get home I take the bowl in and start answering the door so I/they can enjoy that bit. Best of both worlds!

Not the OP as I get that because they went out, but I don't understand "leaving a bowl out" so that you don't have to answer the door.....

surely the fun of Halloween is seeing all the children dressed up in costumes??

That would've been so disappointing for me as a child, and DS I think.

I leave a bowl out while I'm taking my DC around trick or treating. Single adult household, so if we stayed in all evening to open the door and admire the costumes, my DC wouldn't get to go.

When we're back in, the bowl comes in too and we answer the door.

Just wanted to point out to pp up in arms that people aren't properly entering into the spirit of Halloween by leaving the bowl out. It's not always for antisocial reasons!

Our bowl didn't get emptied for the 40 mins we were out getting drenched last night, thankfully

This is why I refuse to leave any out, one group took everything in the first five minutes last year!

I was up and down answering the door most of the evening. I put the very last in a bowl outside on the door step all gone within an hour. Many large groups about though so hoping they all got a fair share. Some will just swipe the lot though!

Could be Worse
Halloween 2017
Somebody liked my cousins Pumpkin so much, they picked it up and ran off with it

I bought the same and lollipops. Also had kids, mostly the older ones especially teenagers, taking handfuls

That's awful. We often leave ours out and it's not been nicked. Lots of people had left it out last night, it's very usual round here as it gets v busy and I guess people get sick of answering the door.

We left a whole tub of treats out yesterday whilst we took the children trick or treating. We came back and there was still plenty left. Children of all ages were overall extremely considerate and well behaved! We topped up the bucket when we returned. We were astonished to find out that shortly after, a lady without a child came and took the whole bucket and put it in her handbag! So it may not have necessarily been a child!

We live on a friendly estate and I know this happened to someone here yesterday

Ah well!

You live and learn

I have 2 dogs and I don’t want them barking all night so I leave sweets outside. I’ve done so for the past few years, starting in lockdown do we didn’t have to engage with the disease ridden little horrors (joke!). We usually wave through the window. Never been an issue, they take a bag or two of sweets each. However this year our first visitors (3 teenagers) took over half the box full. About 50 fun size bags. Greedy little bu99ers. It meant when some of the little ones came round after the rain had stopped there were none left. I bought and put out over 100 bags. Next year I will put less out and top up as the evening goes on.

DH was answering the door to kids and for the most part they were polite and well behaved. He asked a girl from one group if she had a joke. She responded 'no!' rudely before snatching sweets out the bowl DH was holding and running off the doorstep. The adult with her told her off and demanded she give the sweets back. DH said she could keep them but v entitled behaviour, thankfully the adult was on it.

We had debated just leaving the bowl outside the door as I have covid but glad we didn't now, DH was certainly having fun!

People often leave bowls out here (London) and they don’t get nicked. We’re a very popular area for trick or treating but it tends to be only younger children with parents. Can’t see why teenagers would bother.

We also answer the door and give them their treats. I don't know why anyone would be surprised if they all get nicked if you just leave them out. A few years ago, we decided that rather than get annoyed we would enter into the spirit, buy a tub of sweets, dole out to all the groups, then eat what was left. First group arrived at the door. About 5.00pm so 4 or 5 younger children with parent at end of drive. Made a rookie mistake. Took the lid off the tub, held it in front of the kids for them to help themselves. 10 little hands shot forwards and hoovered half the tub of sweets up. They now get what we give them.

Lotta doom and gloom in this thread about it should have been predicted but
www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-11377569/Heartwarming-moment-trick-treaters-away-sweets.html
the kids are alright

Cracking up at people saying you shouldn’t leave it out. I’ve been a parent with a trick or treating child for 12 years. So every year for 12 years we decorate, light the pumpkins, leave a big bowl of sweets for trick or treaters and go out trick or treating ourselves. In 3 different houses, in 3 different areas. Not once has it all been gone when I’ve arrived back 1.5/2 hours later sometimes!!!! It’s absolute madness that we can’t leave a bowl of sweets out for CHILDREN to trick or treat with. And it’s just not true. We can. The people who took the sweets are in the wrong here, not the lady who wanted to give to children and partake in the fun even though she wouldn’t be in.
crazy comments on here 🤦🏽‍♀️

I left some out last night because the dog goes mental when I answer the door (she love the chance to lick visitors to death) plus we were taking our daughter to do her own trick or treating. The kids round here are usually really good (we even had some left last year). I was stood by the door waiting for her when I heard a lads voice saying to empty the full bucket and the others agreeing. Now usually I would have opened the door and had a stern word. But since I was dressed as a witch, in full green make up I thought it might not have much impact. So instead I flung the door open and jumped out at the little fuckers, doing my best cackle. I was expecting a laugh but instead got a bunch of twelve year old kids run off screaming. And my daughter mortified because they were from her school.

I'm not even a bit sorry 🤣