If you are like the Owl, you may have gotten surprised by how few trick-or-treaters showed up at your door last night. And like the Owl, you may have bought some candy that you like and will definitely squirrel away, and then you might have bought some that you’re not as fond of, thinking hey, then I won’t eat every last piece. And then you are left with a giant orange basket of candy. What is one to do?

If you’re the Owl, you take to the internet for ideas. And before I get to your best local option, I have to include and Owl-ify a list of things you can do with the extra candy (with apologies to this Parenting article):

1. Freeze it. Throughout the year, add it to milkshakes, sundaes, ice cream and plain cookie dough, or just forget about it and find it two years later when you have to upgrade your Sub-Zero because you had nothing else to do with $14,000. Stress eat it anyway.
2. Bake it into cakes. Everything is better with cake. I’m not sure about Skittles or Lifesavers in cakes but maybe decoration. I don’t bake. This is a non-starter.
3. DIY trail mix. I am assuming Parenting means M&Ms and stuff. I don’t have those. Not sure how tootsie roll pops work on a long hike mixed with nuts.
4. Bring it to the Thanksgiving table. Ummmm, what? Well, why not, we’re eating everything else.
5. Pair it with wine. Obviously a 21+ situation, but if someone can tell me how to pair Starburst with wine, that would be great. Who are the folks buying Ferrer-Rocher for Halloween? That you pair with wine. Not Hershey’s.
6. Make homemade flavored vodka. Ummm. No. Vodka and I haven’t spoken for a long long time.
7. Put chocolates into your coffee. Now we’re talking. Might want to skip the full sizes and the Twix bars which get goopy. Ask me how I know.
8. Keep some in your purse. Highly dangerous, in my mind. Squish factor, forget factor, spill factor. Oh and I don’t have a purse. Hmmm.
9. Use it to wrap gifts. LOL! What? Teeny tiny wrappers…let me just glue these around the iphone box (the Owlets wish) or have whoever chuck out the necklace thinking it was trash. I love you Parenting, but whaaaaaat?
10. Make an advent calendar for November. Ummmmmm….does advent not mean December? I dunno. Too much planning.
11. Use it as a counting tool. Ah yes, I am familiar with this one–here’s how it went with my older brother post-Halloween. Two for him, one for me, unless it was Butterfingers and then it was an even share.
12. Turn it into a scientific experiment. At first I thought this means leave it around the house until it grows fun molds, but no, you can re-enact Coke vs Pop Rocks or something. Coke vs Skittles! Hmmm. Well, one of these moms who was not me came up with all kinds of science-y stuff here.
13. Save it for a kids’ party piñata. Actually I kind of like this one. I have two mid-November-birthday Owlets who would have loved this. Alas, they are now giants and the piñata would probably fly mach-3 through a picture window.
14. Use it for a gingerbread house decoration. Yes! This is a good one. Love this one. Do this one…or…

The way we are going to get rid of most of the candy in this house (pumpkin Reese’s are staying with me) is….drumroll… the WCCA’s Treats for Troops:

In Weston, the drop-off location is at the Weston Community Center, 20 Alphabet Lane from 11/1/2022 – 11/8/2022 9am to 5pm.

Give ’em the good stuff, Weston! Or invite me over for that cake.

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Questions about WCCA Treats for Troops? Reach out to Kim Rocco (kimmers.rocco@gmail.com) or Kate Houston (knaszradi@gmail.com) the WCCA Outreach Coordinators!