Halloween is my favorite holiday!
And being able to share it with my 2-year-old has been so much fun. But now that he is a lot more vocal about his opinions means I have to do a little bit of planning before heading out for trick or treating.
I know you’re thinking, why would I have to plan for Halloween? Well, I am glad you asked!
Let’s be honest here, as much fun as Halloween is the idea of taking a toddler out trick or treating can be a little intimating. Are they going to have a meltdown at someone’s doorstep? Am I going to have to cut our festivities short? What do I do if they get bored?
Preparing for the holiday can help alleviate some of the stress.
Here are my favorite tips on making Halloween as stress-free as possible.
Prepare for the tantrums
Tantrums are part of the territory when it comes to toddlers. And when you’re out and about with a toddler in their costume it can make them harder to handle.
And tantrums happen more at the end of the day when kids are tired. To help prevent the inevitable tired meltdown try taking your toddler earlier in the day.
There are always a bunch of places that have Halloween activities or trick or treating early in the day. That way the kiddos can have a good time and get their fill of the Halloween magic before they crash.
And if you are working and can’t go earlier in the day, go right when you get off of work. If you have too pack your bag the night before or pick an easy costume that you can put on in a minute. The sooner you can take your toddler out the better time they are going to have.
Bring distractions
I don’t know about you but having a bag full of candy is tempting enough but give one to a toddler who has no self-control, you are in for an interesting night. Toddlers don’t know how to wait and teaching them patience while you are around other people who, let’s be honest, might judge you for your toddler’s lack of self-control (I see you Karen!) can be intimating.
With my little guy only being two we try to find the activity/indoor events rather than actually door to door trick or treating. And waiting in line gets old before we are finished with the first place.
That’s why you need distractions! Sing a song, bring their favorite toy, glow sticks are great for when it gets darker and I don’t know how many times I have done ring-around-the-rosies in line while waiting. Don’t be afraid to try different things.
Snacks!
This tip is for both of you. It’s hard to keep your cool when you are hungry and it’s hard for your toddler too.
That bag of candy is going to be more and more tempting as the day goes on. And I am talking about for both of you. Then if you eat the candy while out and about you’ll have to deal with the dreaded sugar crash.
Make sure you bring snacks. They shouldn’t be elaborate, something simple that you know your toddler is going to eat. Even if it’s not the healthiest of snacks.
Candy is going to beat pretty much anything you’re going to bring so make sure you bring something, there’s just no getting around it. So make sure you bring something that they are usually excited to eat. My little guy loves popcorn so I make sure to bring some with me for when he needs a snack and then there isn’t too much whining when I tell him no to eating all his candy right then and there.
Roll with the punches
The best way to have a stress free Halloween is to just go with the flow. If you aren’t able to go to all the places you wanted that’s okay. They still have many years to enjoy Halloween. Let them have a piece of candy (and you have one too, it’s only fair). It’s not worth losing your cool over.
Halloween is only one day a year so enjoy it!
If you have any tips on having a stress free Halloween with a toddler let me know in the comments. I am always looking for new ideas
Happy Halloween!
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