The Great Pumpkin

We survived Halloween thanks to the mysterious, wonderful Great Pumpkin. Susan thought it up last year and this year we perfected it. She puts together a bag of small presents and safe Halloween candy and hides it. As a family, we canvass the neighborhood trick-or-treating and while we are out, our neighbors deliver the package from the Great Pumpkin.

Having the neighbor deliver the present while we are out adds to the excitement and mystery. How did that happen? None of us were in the house, but magically the present appeared.

It works great; Harry is excited to go through the mystery gift while I sort through the trick-or-treat candy. Then before he goes to bed, we bag all the candy he can't eat and leave it out for the Great Pumpkin in exchange for the gifts. We don't know exactly what happens if we don't pay the Great Pumpkin with candy, and we really don't want to find out. So we instantly wrap up the candy, put it in a bag and stick it on the porch. Again, another mystery, the bag is gone in the morning.

The Great Pumpkin allows Harry to fully participate in Halloween including eating the goodies. While trick-or-treating we carry the Epi-Pen with us and his costume includes gloves, then the present from the pumpkin completes the safety set.

Since this is my first post, I know no one is reading this, but if anyone ever does - how do you handle Halloween for kids with food restrictions? Do you plant safe treats and friends' houses? Do you skip the trick-or-treating completely?