Keepin' It Real Wednesday

We decided to deal with the Halloween candy just a little differently than last year. To try and cut back on the amount of candy consumed, Chad declared that the kids could sell as much candy as they wanted to him for 5 cents each. All of Colin's cheapo gum, jawbreakers, and Smarties quickly became Chad's property. Gabe, who is not a chocolate fan, immediately sold all of his candy bars, much to Chad's delight.

Their buckets were still pretty full, so Chad egged them on, talking them through each piece one by one, asking if they really wanted it. Colin's capitalistic flame was fanned by his father, and he ended up earning $6.65 - enough to buy those handcuffs he had been eyeing at Walmart and three items at Dollar Tree. Gabe had enough for three items. They both had enough candy left to last them a 'til today.

And Chad? He ended up with a bag full of pretty quality candy to take to work and give away. None of us need that junk! We fist-bumped each other over our achievement. Our kids were eating far less candy than they normally would have, and we didn't take away any of the "magic" of Halloween or fight them on it.

Chad stashed the bag of candy on top of the fridge, out of the children's reach.

Unfortunately, not out of ours. All the chocolate was gone before the night was over.

Happy parents, not-so-healthy-habits.