One of the most infamous, commercialized “special days” of the year has fallen upon us – Halloween. We have spent at least the past month hovering over the dinner table on during the morning and evening commute to and from school discussing with our blessed children what type of costume they desire to wear on the grand day, October 31st. After weeks of contemplating whether the ninja costume that looks exactly like the one from last year will beat out the Spiderman or Power Rangers suit. I swear I have the same conversation every year – and I have three costumes to prove it. Nevertheless, I stood in line with about two incidents of tug of war with an aggressive customer before she decided to give up because of a heavy bladder she couldn’t ignore. I drove to school for a classroom party, passed out cupcakes and stacked 23 party bags in the back of the truck before heading home to prepare for the evening adventure of going door to door, begging for more candy.
Five hours later, and two boisterous side cramps of over indulgence, I stand in the foyer hovering over mountains of candy that I fear will either haunt me at night or end up in a couple gift bags for the eighth and joyous holiday of the year – Christmas.
So here’s a question – what should we do with all of the candy that our crumb snatchers have forced upon us? As responsible parents, we can’t allow their little teeth to be subject to an impending downward spiral of decay and numerous dental visits; by allowing them to eat all of the contents of school party bags, neighborhood party bags, farm festival goodie bags and of course, the door-to-door treasure bags. The only logical thing to do is figure out how to enjoy the leftover candy and be guilt-free.
Personally, I’m a chocolate lover, so I can find a way to turn the bite sized chocolates into a refreshing choco-tini cocktail, which is always a guilt-free pleasure — especially after a month of stressful planning.