There was a time when the neighborhood kids did not get Halloween candy from the Atwood family. Instead, we handed out granola bars because we thought it was a healthier choice. We weren’t the favorite house in the neighborhood. Fran Evans down the road beat out everyone. She made cupcakes from scratch and put each child from the neighborhood’s name on top. My daughters still remember those cupcakes with great fondness.

I hope they remember the costumes I made for them with equal fondness because I can’t help but notice that in the picture below, no one is smiling! I’m willing to bet that I was still finishing up that clown costume moments before the picture was taken.

Halloween costume

I’m sure it was the same situation with the Little Mermaid costume I made a few years later.

Mermaid costume

Back to those granola bars. As someone who has been writing about health and wellness for a long time, the expectation might be that it was my idea to hand them out.  It wasn’t. He shall remain nameless.

Which one is Barry Atwood?

I happen to have a weakness for Halloween candy and nothing made me happier as a child than dumping out all my Halloween treats, sorting them into categories based on which ones I liked best, and then digging in!

Diane's favorite halloween candy

Diane’s favorite Halloween candy

Time for that confession

When my daughters were very young — perhaps when they wore clown and mermaid costumes — we put their Halloween candy in the freezer for safe keeping. One year, after about a week, they both forgot about it. I didn’t. Little by little, I ate my children’s Halloween treats. At least, the ones I liked. I put the granola bars back on the pantry shelf. I am so relieved to get that off my chest.

Even though our daughters are now adults and one has her own little girl now, we still look forward to Halloween. We don’t give out granola bars anymore. Now, I make chocolate chip cookies from scratch. We always add a tag to the bag of cookies letting everyone know that I made them and they’re safe to eat. They may not be as personal as Fran Evans’ cupcakes, but the trick or treaters always seem happy to get them, and — confession time again — I’m happy to finish off all of the leftovers.

I hope you all have a safe and fun Halloween and remember, just because I ate my children’s candy doesn’t mean it’s ok for you to do it too!

PS My daughters insist that I never even told them their candy was in the freezer. I feel really guilty now.