I’m going to be honest, I love candy especially chocolate, it’s just so delicious! Unfortunately it does me no good other than brings me pure joy, but who needs that when you are trying to stay fit?   I particularly like the snack sized candy because in my mind I feel better only eating a small piece of candy rather than a regular sized candy bar but when you are eating 10 snack sized candy bars at a time, that mentality is just plain ridiculous.

Am I the only one that thinks this way?

Halloween in my house is a pretty big deal with 5 little ones.  We love dressing up, carving and painting pumpkins, and the best part, trick-or-treating.  So as expected we make out like bandits with the goodies having 5 kids hitting up the neighbors for treats, all sounds good right?  NO, because then mommy is left with 5 buckets of candy all day while the kids are at school and I’m supposed to ignore it… it just doesn’t happen!  Ugh, where is my self-control?   Not only am I indulging in copious amounts of sugar (yes I’m that mommy that steals their kids Halloween candy, sue me) but my kids want their hard-earned candy and ask for it multiple times a day.  My kids are a handful on a good day, give them candy and it’s like adding fuel to the fire. Quickly I become the “meanest mom in the world” for not giving them their own candy but for eating it myself…WOW mom of the year right here!

So I decided to fix the problem and get rid of the culprit that ruins my good mommy status and my waistline. Even this mean mom thinks its pretty extreme to just throw all the candy away (which I would love to do).  I guess the kids did walk through several neighborhoods to collect the candy and it would be such a waste to throw it away.   I found another solution…the Switch Witch!!

Have you heard of her?

Last year was our first year she visited and it was such a hit with the kids; they are excited to have her come again.  The night of Halloween, when the kids have come down from their sugar high and are finally asleep you take their candy (maybe leaving 4 or 5 of their favorite pieces for an occasional special treat ) or if you are brave enough and you think your kids are willing, you can to talk them into leaving their candy on the doorstep for the Switch Witch to come and take.  Leave the Switch Witch letter and a small little toy, book, or puzzle, it doesn’t need to be an expensive toy…lets be honest, it’s cheaper than the dreaded dental bill.   When the kids wake up in the morning they find their new toy and the candy is gone.

You would think taking the candy away would cause some devastation but they really are happy to see a new toy and quickly forger about the loss of their candy.

You can find Halloween candy buy back or exchange programs where you can send the candy to troops, such as Operation Gratitude at operationgratitude.com or you can find local dentists who will buy the candy by the pound.

I have made a printout of the Switch Witch poem by clicking on the Switch Witch link        –> switch witch  You can also search for the Switch Witch online, there are many sites to get the poem and even a book and a doll (reminds me of the elf on the shelf) if you want to get super fancy with it.

Happy Halloween and I hope your children enjoy having the Switch Witch visit as much as we do!!