I might have mentioned this over the years here, but still think it is a cool idea other people might want to start in their area.
Quite popular here, it is when parents drive their young kids to some really large parking lot (school, closed business area, wherever) and everyone parks their cars, opens up the trunk of the cars (where they brought Halloween candy) and the kids go from parked car to parked car, getting their candy.
Great for parents (no need to walk 24 blocks on a cool/cold night), the kids are all together and having fun looking at each other’s costumes, no need to worry about traffic, etc. and I believe these usually only run from about 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM and it is over.
Kids get lots of candy, parents had it easy, safe, large turnout and everyone has a good time.
Just thought it was a cool idea, worth passing on.
I agree with some people! No wonder kids are so obese these days, they need to walk up and down the stairs and earn themselves the candy.
I have only heard of it growing up as a kid where it blizzarded (or footballed) on Halloween such that the next night (or the next weekend), trick-or-treating occurred at a mall (or other large) parking lot.
I actually just read about it on line today. To me, it kind of ruins the spirit of the thing. I liked taking my kids around and I enjoy the kids coming to the door trick or treating. I don’t think I’d be inclined to spend two hours in a parking lot hanging out with other parents but that’s just me.
Hey kids, no need to go out into the real world, we’ll just drive you to a parking lot where you can mill around under our watchful eye and stuff yourselves with sugar, and then we’ll drive you right back home again!
We have Trunk-or-Treats in my area. We went to them a few times when my children were smaller and not as fun to trot around the neighborhood. They were fun, and I am so grateful to the churches and groups who volunteer to hold them, but they felt more like a candy grab than trick-or-treating. We have a lot more fun going door-to-door now. Trunk-or-treating is a great option in places where door-knocking is not an option. I did get a kick out of seeing everyone’s car decorations – very creative!
It’s usually done in areas where they don’t have ideal neighborhoods for trick or treating. (Which was the case when I was a kid). Fortunately I used to go with my cousins.
I don’t see why that’s such a big deal – it seems like a good idea, in fact.
The worst part of Trunk or Treat is that the name is just stupid…
trick or treat is so named because if you don’t give them treats, you’re going to get tricked (vandalized).
So what does this name mean? The kids are going to trunk you if you don’t give them treats? Or, do you have the option to stuff the kids in your trunk?
I used to live in a very rural are of NJ. The kids in the neighborhood would be able to hit maybe 5 houses before they were exhausted. Trunk or treat was a good way of doing it in town. The kids loved it because they could run around with their friends. And it was usually the weekend before Halloween so we could take them into the nearest town to go door to door on Halloween.
We went to our first one on Saturday. My initial reaction was purely visceral: WHHAAATT?!?!? You want to teach my child to approach strange vehicles and accept candy?!?
But after I calmed down I realized it was kind of nice. The local swimming/racket club sponsored it, and it was a way for their members to get together on Halloween without having to drive around to all the neighborhoods. They also made the whole neighborhood welcome, which was kind of them.
Most of the folks had done really creative decorations and tricks - you wouldn’t believe the spiders jumping out and the fog machines etc. It was all quite cool.
There were also some veteran tailgaters grilling hotdogs for everybody. And the group had set up a bounce house for the kids; and a clown was making balloon animals and hats.
I really enjoyed it, and have been daydreaming about my decorations for next year. . .
Spoilering complaint about the behavior of some political stumpers:
The only really dark spot was the Romney campaign trying to bogart the event by sending a huge pick-up truck with a lighted sign on the back. When the organizers asked them to leave (the sign was so bright it was spoiling the mood) they parked outside the entrance and set up yard signs for people to take as they went by.
Now, of course I realize these were one or two enthusiasts and Mitt didn’t personally send them. But truly, it was intrusive and inappropriate and not one yard sign was picked up that I could see. I don’t think they did their candidate any favors at all.
I wouldn’t want it to replace the annual trek around the neighborhood; I really feel it’s the last bastion of neighborly interaction. Without that I don’t think we’d ever have met the folks on the next block! But as a pre-Halloween outdoor party it was a treat.
It’s partly an outcome of nothing being age appropriate any more. There was a time when children didn’t trick or treat, until they could walk and talk, and be trusted to manage, from the curb to the door, alone. Kids were even sent out unsupervised.
Now parents are so anxious for their child to have this experience they do it 3 times before the kid’s old enough to remember a thing! (Like the parent who buys an EZ Bake oven for their 3 yr old, because they loved it so much and can’t wait. Ignoring that they were 6 and able to use it, successfully, and relatively unsupervised. Unlike a 3yr old, who will find it frustrating and uninteresting. By the time she’s old enough to ‘get it’ she’s indifferent to the thing, and the pieces have gone missing.)
Trunk and treat isn’t a bad idea for little kids to mill about and have some fun away from traffic, I suppose.
Our church does a trunk or treat every year on the Friday or Saturday before Halloween. It’s fun because the grownups have a contest to see who can have the best decorated cars, and the kids enjoy it as well.
Having said that, I think at least 90% of the kids who come to trunk or treat also go out on Halloween, so they get introduced early to the concept of double dipping.
We don’t have any kids, but we always pass out candy on Halloween. It’s part of living in a neighborhood. But leaving the house and going out in the cold to stand around looking at kids to whom I am not related? The only way I would do that is to give the dogs an outing, and so many parents are freaked out about dogs that they probably would give us the stink eye.
I just learned about it today… as they are having one at my kid’s daycare. It sounds like a neat idea for the little kids to get dressed up. And he is certainly WAY too little to go door to door. I think most of the treats are of the non-edible variety. Mostly I’m just excited to see my 8 month old in his “Hulk” costume.
The Baptist church in my neighborhood does it. At least one of the elementary schools in town does as well.
The kids are brought to the church to get their candy, then they all go around my perfect for ToTing neighborhood and get more candy. I like it because we don’t have many kids in this neighborhood and the church’s trunk or treat brings them all in for us to see. They’re wicked cute.
