Is your house Candy worthy?

As a kid we knew exactly what houses had the best candy and that school of thought has not changed much over the past 35 years. I love Halloween and my kids love Halloween. I want the kids to come to my house. Therefore....."buy it and they will come". Candy is expensive and it's easy to go down the cheap route when you are looking at supplying candy for a 100 or more Trick-o-Treaters. Couple of guidelines I go with....

What do my kids like
What do I like......because if it's pouring down rain you will be stuck with a whole lot of it.
How far in advance should I plan to buy candy. If you buy it too soon you will ultimately be buying more because your family will have picked through it.

Kids- They do not like everything, even in the candy department. Chocolate, Sour, and gummy seem to fit the average. Stay away from hard candy. It's tempting to swing by the Braches station because you can get it for $1.49 a pound. Most of it is hard candy and most parents don't let their kids eat it.

What do I like- Chocolate. Outside of mounds I will eat most anything in the chocolate category. But my favorites. Reeses, Whoppers, and plain Hershey's. Luckily Gavin can't have Peanut butter so I usually end up with quite the stash the day after YAY!

When to Buy- Candy will never go on sale before Halloween. It may look like it's on sale but really you are not getting any real savings. They can hold the product all the way until closing Halloween and not loose a profit. The best place I have found to buy is Oriental Trading Co. You have to buy in advance but you can get some fun unique stuff that's on sale or fairly inexpensive. They also provide free shipping when you purchase $50 or more. I know you don't want to spend $50 on candy but when you are looking for costumes, party supplies etc. you have just made the $50. You can also buy from Wholesale companies like candywarehouse.com and candydirect.com . If you don't want to ship another way is to buy a package every time you go to the grocery store and hide it. Start when you first see the candy displays. By the time Halloween gets here you will have a good stash and it won't feel like you spent an arm and a leg.

How much should you give- There has always been some internal debate about how much candy you should give a kid. One piece, two, a handful. As a kid I loved seeing the handfuls drop into my bag. Now putting on the Mom hat it makes me cringe knowing all that candy is coming home. Don't feel bad handing two pieces (you are not the only house they are going too). I think that's also why I love the novelty candy. You only have to give them one and they are excited because it's something different. My favorite novelty, Candy sticks. Buy in bulk you can get an 80ct mixed box for $16. Or you can buy in color or flavor for a little more.

Do you need to give Candy- Absolutely not. There are so many different things you can do. Stickers, Tattoos, pencils, spider rings, rubber bouncy ball. Again, orientaltrading.com is the perfect place to find non candy items.

Have fun with Candy

 I put together special bags or treats for the first 25 people to come to the door. If I have time, I will make special treats for neighbors. Neighbors are nice because you can give homemade treats since they know you. You can give special treats for the First Ghost, Vampire, etc who visit your door. Get creative, Halloween is a time for fun, celebration, and any thing goes.