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Non-candy treat: Halloween-themed erasers

in: Holidays & Special Occasions

Amazon: Spooky Ghosts, Witches, Pumpkins Halloween Treat Party Erasers - 12 pc SetThe Dollar section at Target can be a dangerous place, but Tracy's found a fantastic deal there that keeps a bit of candy out of kids' trick-or-treat bags and is cheaper than candy as well:

You know the Dollar Spot at Target… well, every year during the cycle before Halloween they always carry a 60-pack of Halloween themed erasers for $1.  We pick up a couple packs of these erasers, put 2 in every bag and voila…. a cheap, sugar-free Halloween hand-out alternative.

I found the Halloween eraser set pictured here at my local dollar store. But it contains only 12 erasers…if you can nab 60 for a buck at Target? Great deal!

Related: Another non-candy Halloween alternative: Glow sticks

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About Asha Dornfest

Asha Dornfest is a writer, parent, and insistent optimist living in Portland, Oregon. She is the author of PARENT HACKS, co-author of MINIMALIST PARENTING, and co-host of the Edit Your Life podcast.

Comments

  1. Kate says

    October 17, 2011 at 11:37 am

    We give Books for Treats. You can find information about the program at http://www.booksfortreats.org.

  2. kirsten says

    October 17, 2011 at 11:59 am

    last year after halloween I happened upon boxes of halloween ‘tattoos’. at like 75% off, they were a steal. we also have several jumbo packs of tiny cans of playdoh that we stocked up on, but my kids no longer like – so it’s a non-candy halloween for us, too. sometimes i wish more people did that, esp. as my son has dietary issues, but at the same time it’s a bunch of junk.

  3. Viv says

    October 17, 2011 at 4:06 pm

    I love Halloween; it only comes once a ywar, and while I understand wanting to budget, I wouldn’t have wanted a couple of cheap erasers when I was a kid trick-or-treating! My kids would honestly rather have an apple–but again, it’s only once a year, so I give out candy.

  4. Me says

    October 17, 2011 at 7:07 pm

    I always wondered why the candy from Tracy’s house was so chewy…

  5. Jeri Dansky says

    October 17, 2011 at 8:47 pm

    I do Books for Treats, too. This will be my third year.

  6. Asha Dornfest says

    October 17, 2011 at 10:07 pm

    Viv: I hear you — someone on Twitter said something similar. In my experience, the ratio at the end of the night is 2-3 non-candy items in a full bag of candy. My kids love the novelty of getting silly skull rings or little toys, given that they also get about 10 lbs. of candy.

  7. Ami says

    October 18, 2011 at 7:18 am

    In my experience, those erasers don’t actually work very well, and end up in a landfill quickly. I like to still give treats, but ones that aren’t nasty chemicals from China or chocolate that encourages child-slave labor in third world countries. You can usually find bulk packages of single-serve all-natural fruit leathers at the warehouses (right now, Costco has some good ones, and then they even have all natural fruit roll ups with a coupon). Target had 30-packs of single pouch Pirates Booty on sale last week… (Yeah, I know, the single serve wrappers don’t do much to solve the landfill problem. Sometimes, I just have to choose my cause/my battles. Sigh.)

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About the Author

Asha Dornfest is an author, optimist, and mom of two. She started the Parent Hacks blog in 2005, and turned it into a book in 2016. More about Asha »

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