Happy Halloween: Do over

With Halloween in front of us all, I thought I would share a few tips of things you can do once the candy has been brought home.  With the events of Hurricane Sandy, donating to help others is a big need.  I haven’t seen a way to donate candy to them yet, but you could consider a few of the following ideas:

• Candy Buy Back Programs: Many dentists offer a buy back program for unopened Halloween candy.  I had heard of these programs, but never really knew what the dentists did with the candy once they have it.  Many of them actually package it up and send it off to programs that support our troops!  What a great way to share Halloween with others!
• Family Project for the Troops: If you are interested and don’t have a dentist that participates in the program, why  not make it a family project?  Operation Gratitude actually as a section in their “How Can I Help” section that provides the address of where you can send Halloween candy and how to send it.
• Donate to a local shelter: Consider women’s shelters or other local programs to share the extra candy you may have.  Be sure that it is unopened.  You can find a shelter in your area by checking out http://shelters.welfareinfo.org/

• Reuse Candy for new Treats: There are usually the same treats left in the bottom of the bag that few eat – Smarties, Mary Jane Candies, Dum Dum suckers.  Why not try something different?  Smarties Confetti Cupcakes – Mary Jane Caramel Apples –  or create a Dum Dum Topiary Tree to set by your entrance to share with guests.  There are many recipes available if you search the internet.
• Candy Science Experiments:  There are actually some pretty cool experiments you can do with your kids using Halloween candy. Did you know that you can make some Lifesavers emit light in the dark?!

Of course, these only work if you can pry the bag of candy away from the kids and convince them that eating everything they collected is not necessary.  Good luck with that! Happy Halloween everyone!