Leaving candy outside on Halloween

*sparky*

Every year we meet up with some neighborhood friends and walk around with our kids in a huge group. Up until two years ago I would leave a bowl of tons of candy on the front step. It was fine the first couple of years but the last two years I did it the bowl was empty and dumped out in the middle of the front lawn. So last year I was a Scrooge and left nothing out. I feel guilty about doing this, especially since my DS is going around trick or treating, so we are just taking candy and not giving.

So now this year I am having the debate in my head again. Even though I'll only be out for a little while with DD, when I come home I will have to get her to bed and not be outside handing out candy. I also don't want kids ringing the doorbell. But DH will still be out wih DS.

So what do you plan to do if you are heading out? Leave a bowl of candy out? Only hand out candy while you are home? It seems dumb to put a note saying "please take only one piece" because I feel like the kids who are dumping the candy bowl out on my yard could not care less about a note. Am I a Scrooge if I don't leave any candy out but let my kid take candy from all the neighbors?

littlesocks

I'll be putting out a bowl with a sign that says "take two"
We've done this in years past and never had any problems with people disrespecting our property like that. I would feel differently if I came home to the bowl thrown across my lawn.
I guess you should try it again this year and see what happens. Hopefully the hooligans that did it before have grown up and maybe aren't trick or treating this year.

Talltrees82

Could you ration what you put out? Put some out when you go out, then top it up when you get home and later in in the evening?

AmberLiz99

I'll take ds trick or treating while dh and dd stay home and hand out candy. Ds is 3, so we will only go to a few streets, once we get back if I'm busy puting the kids to bed I'll leave the bowl out. People do it all the time in our neighborhood with no issues.

LaNorte

Argh, this still makes me so furious... My mom saved my trick or treat pumpkin from when I was little (you know, the really cheap plastic ones they sell at walmart for like $1.00) so my kids could use the same one. A couple years ago, we were going to be busy so I left it out full of candy. Some little asshole stole the whole thing. I figured someone would take all the candy, but never thought they would take the pumpkin too. I still get ragey thinking about it! So now I'm a bitch about it, and instead of being the cool lady who gives out heaping handfuls of the good stuff like I used to, everyone gets one crappy piece.

Dixon813

Uhhhh I didn't realize that people gave out more than one piece?! (Said the country girl who doesn't remember ever trick or treating beside a church fall festival and now lives in the city.... )

ccollins06

You all are making me feel guilty. We have plans during trick-or-treat in our neighborhood and I wasn't planning on leaving anything out. We live in a huge development with lots of families but we're just on a little lane of condos with mostly older people around us. I think in years past I've noticed maybe half of our neighbors pass out candy. We just don't get a lot of traffic on Halloween. Now I'm thinking maybe we should leave a bowl out.

RedDawnsRevenge

We tried leaving a bowl out last year. Right as we worked away a teenage walked up and emptied the entire bowl into his pillow case. So no more candy. We are going to a church carnival down from my parents house.

Twirple

I won't leave out a bowl, but it is mainly because I love seeing the kids in costume.  If they are going to get candy from me, they need to ring the doorbell and say trick-or-treat so I can see them.  I realize this doesn't solve your dilemma.  In the past, if we were not home, we did not offer candy.  

ambarnett1

I thought about it. We will keep the lights off and not hand out candy. We're in a new neighborhood and I don't even know how many kids are here. DS goes to bed pretty early, so I don't want anyone ringing the door bell or anything. I've never had bad experiences with kids being disrespectful, but I just don't want to deal with it. We will go to my IL's for dinner and to show him off to their neighbors. MIL wants to take him trick or treating, but I don't think that's right since he's so little.

mbethmcgill

We live on a street that is a mile loop without any intersecting streets except at each end. Lots of kids are dropped off or driven down our street. We will not hand out while we are out. We will all go for a few houses then DH will take DS1&2 while I hand out with LO. I wouldn't feel guilty if I were you. I don't judge people with their light off.

UnofficiallyLO

We are going to a friends and definitely not leaving a bowl of candy out lol we left our trash can out last week...

*sparky*

@UnofficiallyLO‌ - holy crap! I would definitely not leave anything outside if I were you. Although I bet the bears would stop the hoodlums from dumping all the candy.

Since I will be heading back early with DD this year, before a lot of the teenagers head out, I will probably
Leave a bowl out while we are all TOTing, then bring it in and turn off the light when I get home. Her room is at the front of the house, and I should probably avoid the noise of packs of kids up to the door while I am getting her to sleep.

Pearlvirus

When I lived in a neighborhood I did not have kids, but I did hand out candy. Now that I have one, I won't be home to hand any out. Once the kids are big enough to go without me, I'll hand it out again. I figure, it all evens out over a lifetime. And I wouldn't leave an unattended bowl. As a child I would definitely have taken more candy then the sign said, perhaps the whole bowl if no one was watching me too closely. I can't imagine taking the bowl or just making a mess with the candy, WTF kids? I guess I was only 50% asshole  

ambarnett1

@UnofficiallyLO‌ those are some beautiful bears! Probably scary to have them so close to your home though.

AmberLiz99

My dad took us and my mom handed out candy, until my oldest brother was a teenager and could take us

eireyes

We always had one parent take us trick or treating, and the other stayed home to give out candy. Usually my dad took us and mom stayed home, but my favorite memory is my dad dressing up as the grim reaper and hiding in the shadows on my parents' front porch. He's a big guy (6'4" and solid) so while the older kids were ringing the doorbell he'd step out of the shadows and scare the bejesus out of them. My dad was always pretty straight-laced so it was hilarious to my sisters and I to watch.

This year DH, LO and I will hang out in our garage and give out candy. It's easier to sit with the garage door open then deal with the lunatic dog going crazy every time the door gets knocked on. Plus, it's raining and the walk up the driveway is shorter then the additional trip to the front door.

We walked around when we were the new neighbors and met all the neighbors on Halloween the first year we lived in our house - seemed like the easiest time to do it! 

*sparky*

@LalaMama81‌ - that's the thing. We normally are out the whole time. I will be back earlier this year but have to go upstairs with DD to get her to bed and DH will still be out with DS and all of our friends.