Every year the kids come home from tramping the neighborhood with a mother-load of candy.  Since they’re young, cute, and smile brightly, they seem to suck candy to them like magnets to metal.

If they’re to avoid showing off bright smiles to the dentist as he drills their mouths full of holes something has to be done about all that candy.  But what?

Last year we came up with a plan, and it worked well.  When the kids get home, and after the peanut-contaminated stuff has been removed from their bags, they spread their candy out on the floor. 

They look it over very carefully [no rushing this part!] and choose out 2 candies per year they have.  So my four-year old gets eight, and the nine-year old gets eighteen.  Those candies they take, and eat however they like.  Before dinner, as a snack, all at once–it’s their choice. 

The rest the candy goes into a communal pot that belongs to the whole family.  I pass it out at my discretion, and when we get sick of old Dum Dums and Jolly Ranchers it can be turned into a funky decoration for Thanksgiving or given to my single brothers.  Not a perfect system, but it works for us.

Good luck with your sweet binge tonight, and happy trick-or-treating!