This post is sponsored by Red Baron but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

 

Halloween is such a big night. The kids are excited, the parents are trying to get everything together, and it can be pure chaos! But it is possible to conquer Halloween Chaos with a little bit of planning.

Planning for a quick and easy meal and having all the costume pieces and safety items ready ahead of time will make for a much more stress free and fun Halloween Night!

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Why is it that no matter how prepared I am, it always feels like a mad dash to fit everything in before Trick-or-Treating time begins?

Are we Halloween pros yet?

We’ve been doing this trick-or-treating thing for 6 years now. The first year, was when our little guy was just 16 months old and he was dressed up as the most adorable giraffe you’ve ever seen. Our little Lady Bug was only 4 days old and spent the night crying with Grandpa while he handed out candy so we could take her brother down the street and back.

The next year, we had a monster and a girl giraffe with the added tutu and bow, and things only got crazier! Each year as the kids got older, they got more excited and less patient, they wanted to go out longer, costume pieces got lost, and it was almost impossible to tame the chaos.

However, I’d like to think we learned a few things along the way.

After many failed attempts at timing dinner correcly, we have now learned to make dinner early and make it easy. We have also learned how to have everything ready ahead of time and waiting for us come Halloween night. Last, we have learned some pretty helpful tips for Trick-or-Treating on Halloween night.

I’m going to share that knowledge with you so you too can be a Halloween pro!

 

When things are chaotic, always go for pizza

Things get crazy on Halloween. Our kids are older now and can stay out later, but it’s always been a struggle to balance returning from school, getting excited kids to rein it in and get ready to leave the house, and fit in a good dinner during all the chaos.

Pizza is definitely the way to go. Is there any other meal that just feeds the excitement of a big day like pizza? Haha! Literally…

Now that we moved, we trek over to our old neighborhood to meet up with friends to hit the busier route.

This year, we need to get out even earlier. We made the mistake of skipping the houses in our new neighborhood last year because everyone is older and we didn’t want them to feel pressured to buy candy just for our kids. However, we had one neighbor flag us down and tell us they had candy waiting on the porch, and we had another neighbor bring over little bags for the kids. Plus, this year we’ve had yet another neighbor asked the kids what kind of candy they like.

So, it looks like we will be hitting our small little cul-de-sac before we stop to see various family members.

Whew! I’m expecting it to be a bit crazy!

Luckily, I have a plan. This year won’t be such a scramble. We’re doing dinner extra early and we’re going with pizza. You really can’t go wrong with pizza. It’s something the kids will actually sit for and enjoy even through all the excitement.

I already have our Red Baron pepperoni pizzas in the freezer ready to go.

So, I know dinner will be a breeze, but what about making sure none of those costume pieces go missing or making sure there is no scramble to find pumpkin buckets, gloves, or glow sticks?

Have everything ready before Halloween night

It seems like it’s always a mad dash around the house gathering costume pieces. Not to mention, bundling up for the cold, Minnesota Halloween weather. On top of all that, the kids are going crazy with excitement and I have to try to get them to eat something before we release them into the night.

In the past, I have tried to gather all the glowsticks, lights, hats, gloves, pumpkin baskets, etc. while the kids are eating dinner. Uh-uh. That never goes well and makes for a very frazzled mom!

While the kiddos are eating their pizza, this mom will be doing nothing but maybe grabbing a glass of wine and getting my booze blankie on for the cold walk ahead. Right, moms?

Preparing all the costume pieces and safety items ahead of time will save a lot of stress on Halloween night.

In Minnesota, we often need to plan for costumes that can be worn over a whole snowsuit. Not kidding… everyone still talks about the Halloween Blizzard of 1991 when we got 28 – Yes! 28! – inches of snow. I vividly remember climbing through waist-deep snow to get to the houses.

We usually haven’t gotten our winter gear organized for the year by Halloween, so it’s always a scramble to locate gloves, hats, long underwear, etc. Having this stuff ready ahead of time will definitely cut down on the chaos!

 

Trick-or-Treating Tips

Along with making sure the kiddos (and parents – hello booze blankie) are bundled up for the dropping temperatures as the night goes on, we have learned some other tips for trick-or-treating success over the years.

This deserves it’s own post and I may just have to do that, but for now a few nuggets of parenting wisdom that we’ve learned over the years…

• You can never have enough lights, glow-sticks or reflectors. Safety is key! We like to use glow sticks or these little tea lights for the inside of their pumpkins, and these tiny battery-operated fairy lights that we can stick right on their costumes!
• When in doubt, always go for a stroller or wagon. Last year was our first year without a stroller or a wagon, but it was priceless when the kids were preschool age and younger.
• Bring extra bags. Carrying a backpack or a few grocery bags in your pocket can really help lighten the load for the kids as the night goes on.
• You’ll never regret having tissues! I mean, we all forget them, but how often do we wish we had them? Especially cold Fall nights when the sniffles will likely hit.

 

There are more and, the more I think about it, I’ll get all of our trick-or-treating tips gathered up for you because I can go on and on!

Now you’re ready to Conquer Halloween Chaos!

With these tips, preparing ahead of time, and always going with pizza, Halloween chaos will be a thing of the past! …or at the very least at the level of controlled chaos!

 

Remember to check out where to buy Red Baron pizza near you. It’s definitely the way to go to get an easy and delicious dinner on the table, and get those kiddos to sit for a few minutes before being released out into the Halloween night!

 

Also, check out some of our other Halloween favorites!

Sugar Skull Color-Changing Bracelets | Halloween Cheese Bats | Witch Broom Class Treats | Witch Broom Class Treats

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