When the Night Gets Tricky: A Halloween Reminder for Parents
Sometimes the scariest part of Halloween isn’t the ghosts — it’s our own expectations.
The thing about Halloween is that it never really goes according to plan.
Costumes tear. Pumpkins rot. Someone always forgets to buy more candy. The weather is too cold, or too warm, or just wrong. And somewhere between the candy rush and the bedtime meltdown, every parent has that moment — the one where you think, “This isn’t how I pictured it.”
That’s okay.
Because parenting — much like trick-or-treating — is equal parts chaos, sugar, and surprise.
Maybe your child changes their costume idea three times. Maybe your teen suddenly decides they’re “too old” to go, but still want to walk with friends. Maybe your little one is too shy to knock on doors after all.
And maybe, just maybe, this Halloween doesn’t look like the Instagram version.
That doesn’t mean it’s not magic.
The Real Treat
As parents, we carry so much pressure — to make memories, to make things perfect, to make everyone happy. But our kids don’t need perfect. They need presence.
They’ll remember laughing in the cold, sticky hands full of candy, and the moment you said, “It’s okay, we’ll try again next house.”
They’ll remember how you made the night feel safe, even when it didn’t go according to plan.
They’ll remember that home was the place they could come back to, no matter how tricky the night got.
A Halloween Message for Every Parent:
It’s okay if your costume came from the clearance rack.
It’s okay if your pumpkin carving turned into a disaster.
It’s okay if bedtime went off the rails.
You showed up.
You’re doing your best.
And that’s enough. 🍬
From all of us at Candy Apple Advocacy, here’s your reminder that real magic lives in the messy moments — the imperfect, unfiltered, totally human ones.
Have a safe and happy Halloween, parents. You’ve earned your candy. 🍎🎃