My friendly, federal government sent me some Halloween safety tips that I wanted to share. I would have done a quick summary with a link but the email I subscribe to doesn’t refer back to a web page. Those silly civil servants! You can subscribe to the [1] monthly safety tips newsletter if you are so inspired. Health Canada has a more [2] extensive list of Halloween safety tips as well.

Here is what I’m taking to heart as we’re getting ready for the big day:

*  Small children should never carve pumpkins. Instead, let your child draw a face on the pumpkin. I read a parenting magazine (they run together) that suggested using [3] Mr Potato Head pieces for the too-young-to-carve set. I think that we might try that.
*  Of course, we’ll have to carve something. What is Halloween with clawing stringy pumpkin innards out and watching while an adult attempts to render the intricate design decided upon by a child?
*  Make your house trick or treat friendly, with no dark areas or tripping hazards. We have a great big bush in front of our door that gives privacy but deters kids. I think I might camp out in the driveway.
* Keep candles, jack-o-lanterns, matches and lighters in a place that children cannot reach. I guess we need to be reminded of the boring rules at special occasions.

For the ambitious among you, head over to [4] Make Magazine’s Halloween pages for some ideas that are more complicated than I can tackle (but I read them with an awed fascination). I would caution that the projects are likely not to be in line with the safety theme of the rest of this post.