The Candy Fairy

It’s fun to come up with costumes, paint your faces, get your imagination going, and head out trick-or-treating. It’s even nice to have some sweets around for a while. But who decided that it would be a good idea to keep sacks of candy lying around the house for months and months? Kids spoil their dinners, they get cranky and sleepy when the sugar high crashes, and their parents gain a few pounds. That’s no fun.

Sure, but try to explain that to your kid, and you’ll either be in for a tantrum, a long list of excuses, or the simple but effective “no fair!”

Instead of trying to steal away your child’s candy piece by piece or reason with him or her, tell the story of the Candy Fairy. {Make up story here.} You can weave a tale about a beautiful princess who made the world a little sweeter by visiting trick-or-treaters the day after Halloween and taking their candy to sprinkle in the darkest areas of the globe. You can encourage your child to help others by talking about a superhero who uses kids’ candy to save the universe. As long as you can convince your kid that he will receive something fantastic in return, you might persuade him to relinquish some candy.

Instead of bribing your child with toys, encourage her to share her candy in exchange for some creative treats. Perhaps the Candy Fairy will leave her a kit to transform toilet paper tubes, paper, and foil into her own make-believe candy sweetness. Even a young toddler will appreciate some imaginary candy to add to her collection of play kitchenware.

Whether you craft the candy and give it to your kids or have the Candy Fairy provide all the materials for your child to make the candy himself, it will get a lot more use than real chocolate (and will cause fewer cavities).

How to Create Simple Play Candy from Toilet Paper Tubes:

  1. Fold in the ends of the toilet paper tubes to create a pillow box shape.
  2. Cut pieces of paper into 2” x 6.5” rectangles (or print out some free candy labels
  3. Decorate the paper with marker, crayons, colored paper, glitter, etc.
  4. You can leave the toilet paper tube as is, paint it brown, or cover it with aluminum foil.
  5. Wrap the candy label around the tube and secure the end with tape.
  6. Play with your toy candy for years without gaining a pound!

Kids can bring their Halloween candy to a playdate at Tmuffin on November 2 at 10AM to exchange it for materials to make their own make-believe treats. Kids will decorate treat bags and make all the pretend candy they can take home. Visit Tmuffin.com for more information or to register.