11 things to know before your first trick-or-treat as a parent

Three first-time parents asked us for the same thing: “real experiences from first-time parents to warn us against what not to do as well as what to do.” Here’s ours.

Before you leave

1. It’s over in forty minutes. Every parent with a kid under four told us the same thing: the kid is done long before the neighborhood is. With a baby in a carrier it’s shorter still, and the baby’s part is simpler than you think. Plan a short loop. If you’re going with friends who have older kids, agree up front that you’ll peel off early, so it’s not a negotiation at house six.

2. Go early. Safe Kids found more than twice as many kids hit by cars between 4 and 10 pm on Halloween compared with the same hours on other nights. Earlier is lighter, warmer, and safer, and most neighborhoods are already going by 5:30.

3. Feed them first. Dinner before, not after. A hungry toddler in a costume at dusk is the meltdown you’ve heard about.

4. Bring your own snacks and water. You’re not going to let a two-year-old eat sidewalk candy, so bring the thing they can eat.

The costume

5. Face paint beats a mask. Safe Kids and the AAP both say it: masks block vision, and masks come off. Non-toxic face paint or a hat gets the same effect and stays on.

6. Short enough to walk in. The AAP’s words: costumes should be “short enough to prevent tripping and avoid catching on objects.” Hem it or pin it. Real shoes they can walk in, not the costume boots.

7. A layer under, not a coat over. A fleece one-piece under the costume keeps the costume visible and the kid warm (warmth and fabric, if you’re still shopping). A coat over the costume hides the costume, which the kid will notice and object to. The AAP wants costumes bright and visible anyway.

On the street

8. Carry the light yourself. A flashlight or headlamp on you, and reflective tape on the bag and the back of the costume. The AAP specifically suggests reflective material on trick-or-treat bags.

9. Corners, crosswalks, and hold the hand. The AAP says always go with young children. Safe Kids says cross at corners, use crosswalks, walk don’t run. With a toddler that means the hand is held from curb to curb, every single time, even on the quiet street.

10. Glow sticks go on the bag or the wagon. Safe Kids warns about kids swallowing the liquid. On a small child, clip it somewhere they can’t chew it.

After

11. Sort at home, and sort hard. The AAP: wait until kids are home to sort and check treats before eating them. For a toddler, that means pulling anything on the AAP’s list for babies and toddlers: hard candies, caramel apples, popcorn, gum, small candies, gummies, pumpkin seeds, anything with whole nuts. Wrappers and little toys are choking hazards too. What’s left is mostly chocolate, and that’s fine. If you’re the one filling a bowl this year, here’s what survives everyone else’s sorting.

For the night after, from a dad we know: a white trash can with a cracked glow stick in the bottom and a bag over it. If a kid's going to be sick in the dark, it gives them something to aim at.