Safety Tips for a Happy Hill Country Halloween

Taking the youngsters out for some fun and fright on Halloween is a past time enjoyed by many parents. The costumes range from cute to scary but the goal for each family is always the same, to have a little fun together. As you hit the streets and neighborhoods rumored to have the best loot, check off theses few safety tips to make sure you have a great time from start to finish.

1. Double Check All Aspects of Everyone’s Costumes

Photo: Gratisography.com

No one wants to spend All Hallows Eve in an emergency room due to someone taking a tumble off a porch because of a faulty costume. When it comes to your spooky getup, make sure check a few things before leaving the house:

1. Make sure the costume is “flame retardant”. Because long sleeves and trailing ghost tails may be close to a jack-o-lantern at some point.
2. Make sure everyone has on shoes for traveling. If you’re walking through neighborhood after neighborhood, the princess shoes may have been cute down the first block but someone may be begging to be carried the rest of the way home! Pinterest has great alternatives to actual costume shoes by retrofitting your child’s current shoes with something decorative that can be slipped over the top, leaving the tread ready for the streets!
3. Leave the full face masks at the store. They are usually ‘one size fits most’ which may mean that they don’t fit anyone just right. Any mask or partial mask needs to leave enough space for your child to see where they are walking, how close they are to others, and their general surroundings when crossing the streets.
4. Props are fun but make sure the princess wand, sword, or witches broom is the proportionate size for your child and flexible if possible. Running in hot pursuit of the next house offering candy may mean a fall or two. It’s important to make sure the prop they are carrying doesn’t do any damage to your child on the way down.

2. Keeping the Trick or Treating Festivities Safe

Photo: Picjumbo.com

Most tips seem very basic when it comes to trick or treating safety. As Halloween falls on a Monday this year, it’s easy to miss some basic precautions as everyone is hurrying home from work and school and hitting the streets for the candy roundup.

1. It is highly recommended that kids under the age of 12 are accompanied by an adult; however, each parent should use their own discretion for their own child at any age, the area the child will be covering in one night and if the child will be with a group.
2. Flashlights or glow sticks are a must. It will get dark faster than your child realizes and having a part of their costume light up or be reflective will keep them even safer as they go house to house.
3. Make sure everyone knows the plan of attack in case anyone gets separated. No matter if your child is sticking out on their own or with a group, make sure you know the path they plan to follow and that they have a means of contacting you, i.e. via cell phoneor walkie talkie.
4. Walk, don’t run! As fun as it may sound, running from house to house is asking for trouble. Children often have on cumbersome costumes and are carrying bags of candy. When you factor in running, you’re asking for someone to trip and tumble, losing all of their loot and possibly getting injured.
5. Save your neighborhood from the sugar high and opt for non-candy treats. Stickers, small toys, glow bracelets, fun pencils, or coloring books are a great option for your neighborhood or church trunk or treat.

3. The Halloween Sugar Aftermath

Photo: Pixabay.com

Sugar will be consumed! In great quantities! This is just a fact, but a fact you can control best you can. Here’s a great few guidances offered for all that candy that makes its way home with your little trick or treater this year.

1. Empty your children’s candy bags, checking all treats for anything that looks open, torn, spoiled or homemade by someone you do not know. Throw anything out that looks suspicious.
2. Fill your kiddos’ bellies’s before they even head out. If they’ve already had a filling meal then they will be less likely to fill up on candy and be sick through the night.
3. Store the candy somewhere you can regulate. Or separate it to candy that can be consumed right away and put the majority aside to enjoy over the next week or two. Candy stashed away in bedrooms may be forgotten and draw in ants, pests, or your family pet!
4. Look into the “turn in” options that many children’s dentists offer during this time of year. Many dentists offer special programs that allow their young patients to turn in some candy in return for fun toys. Check with your local pediatric dentists to see if you can unload a few pounds of candy their way. There are also several organizations that will take your children’s candy to send to a soldier overseas! It makes for a great opportunity to share the fun with someone far from home.

Source:

Kidshealth.org