When we first lived here, there were a lot of young kids in all the new homes. Now those kids are adults out in the big world. So many of us are now empty nesters, but even those families with kids make other plans. We are lucky to have 6 groups all night long. We used to have over 200 in the 1980s.

The trunk or treat events have become really popular around here in the last few years, so we don't usually get a lot of trick or treaters. I think people are also taking their kids out a lot earlier now, and we aren't home at 5pm.

Some years we get zero and others we've had parties of children coming to the house up our 213' driveway. I purchased dark chocolate Reeses peanut butter cups just to sample before the big day....they were pretty good!

No, not in years. And esp since we moved to the new place, it's even more sparse. So we stopped doing halloween and we "treat" ourselves by going out to dinner instead.

I like getting trick or treaters. We have a lot of kids in the neighborhood and I hope they take the 2 bags of candy off my hands!

"Tricker treating"......that's so cute! That's new to me.

Ours is one of those neighborhoods where kids are driven in from elsewhere, so it can be overwhelming, sad to say.

Even more sad is that the trick or treaters started getting older and bigger and more aggressive. Many don't even bother with a costume....sorry, a hoodie is not a costume. Once Robert felt like he had to answer the door with me, we stopped participating at all.

We stopped decorating the porch and keep the lights turned off. And we are not the only ones.

I love having them, but, sadly, there aren't as many anymore. I expect between 35 and 40.

Yes we do, at least 100 or so kids stop by. I usually make up goodie bags. But this year, I signed up for a Spanish class and it is meeting on Halloween.

Rhino, we might get a few older kids, but they are respectful. They usually around about their last minute thrown together costume that they have to explain.

It's interesting though. Last year I was thinking about how it is no longer fun for me. When we first moved here, over 20 years ago, my DD's were young and involved in the neighborhood. I usually knew quite a few kids coming to the door. Now, I might know one or two. In a way I am glad I have the opportunity to opt out this year.

No, in my area parents have taken to organizing home parties and trick/treating one another. A few years ago they tried to do a hay bale ride to carry all the kiddos who wanted to t/t but very little participation until it died. It's very hard to promote Halloween t/t while at the same time promoting no sugar/healthy eating.

Yes, about 40 or 50.

We don't get that many kids anymore.....maybe 15 or 20. The last two years we have been away and I think we will just go to dinner this year. I don't know any of the kids now and I don't need the candy in the house!

They say we do. We've only lived there a year and last year, we were at the state championship for marching band. Gone from wee hours until wee hours. The bowl was certainly empty when we got home. This year, we get to find out. We're already trying to plan costumes and decorations. And snacks for sitting on the porch. We'll see how it goes, but I hope it's fun! Our last house, had a block party every year. That was fun.

I've been here over 40 years, and haven't seen even one--that is, until my grandsons came along. Last year I dressed up for them; not sure what I'll do this year.

I grew up in an apartment building in NYC, and our trick-or-treating was limited to the building--which was more than enough.

Not a single one in 25 years but our driveway is about 1/3 mile long and we live out in the woods, so it's not a good place for kids to score big time. I hope they don't start because I don't buy the candy.

Last year zero. The year before 1. I have candy handy in case. I usually end up giving it to my maid for her family. Since we are in the the rv we will not be participating too dangerous for kids to try to come up the driveway around the construction mess.

We don't really get trick or treaters in this neighborhood and DH really misses it, he looked forward to Halloween so much. Growing up on a farm, he didn't trick or treat himself and had so much fun with the kids at the door. Just a few blocks away we could expect anywhere between 100-200 kids, and children who had 'treated' had grown and begun bringing their own children, a real tradition.

We're down a wooded hilly block now and the houses are not that close together. I think we had 12 kids here the first year we had moved in, and last year maybe 4. I've bought a box of candy at Costco but I don't expect it will be a busy night. Maybe I'll send DH to his sisters up the street where he could still hand out candy ;0)

I live out in the country on a dark road so we have never had trick or treaters.

No trick or treaters for us. The churches handle it with trunk and treat.

In addition to the high number of kids in the neighborhood, people bring van and truck loads of kids in from other neighborhoods and its sucked all the fun out of the holiday- so much garbage and damaged landscaping the next morning. :( Neighbors cars have been hit and the people just take off (not all houses in this 100+ year old neighborhood have driveways or garages to get their cars off the street.)

We no longer participate (we dont have children so we dont have to,) but neighbors who give one piece per kid say they go through 800-1000 pieces by about 9pm and then turn their lights off. Kids still knock, even with the lights off. I have to put all of the potted plants on my porch in the back yard or I end up with plants people have helped themselves to pieces of and the occasional broken pot. Two years ago I looked out the window two different times to see people walking in my yard helping themselves to plants- and thats only what I saw.

I make cute little bags of really good treats for the little ones we know and make a point to see them before they head out so we can see their costumes.

Yep, though not as many as when our kiddies were little. I'm delighted to have visiting trick-or-treaters to add to the numbers. If I lived in an apartment or in an "iffy" neighborhood I'd want to visit an established neighborhood too. I especially look forward to the really little tykes who don't really know why the heck they're standing at your door. :)

None at all in the last few years. The streets are dark and hilly and the houses are on wide lots. Some of my closer neighbors have kids but I think they drive them to neighborhoods down in the flats where houses are closer together and there is more activity. That's what we did with our own kids back in the day.

Like Kathy, I live out in the country, on a long dark road that goes thru the woods. Then there is a long dark driveway to my house. Pretty creepy at night! So the only masked kids that come back here demanding treats are the raccoons.

We rarely see children at our door on Halloween. I keep a supply of quarters on hand to give each child $1 worth if any child shows up. I loved it when the post office used to have $1 coins. That was a perfect treat.

My parents live in a neighborhood like some of you have described where van loads of children are brought in to trick-or-treat. My parents buy a certain amount of candy and when it is gone, they turn off the light and stop answering the door. Most years, they will have seen 200 children before 8 p.m.

Our town usually does a "trick or trunk" thing at the community center where people drive and then give candy out of the trunks while the kids parade around in costume.

Yes. The country kids are bused in to my neighborhood by the van-load. I don't recognize any more than half - and we've lived in this town for 20 years.

In CT we had lots of kids but not in TN. We live in a very rural area, dirt roads & no street lights

I saw in our nextdoor forum they are asking for people to not give candy but instead some type of toy or book or something . I think it's called teal pumpkin ? ? I had never heard of it .

Teal pumpkin project for preventing food allergy problems

No, not where I live.

At least 100. Halloween is a big deal in my neighborhood. The neighbors organize a block party that goes from 4 - 6. Everyone brings food and wears a costume. At 6 the trick or treating begins. Kids come from all over the area to our street since it is one of the very few with houses close together. It is getting to be rather expensive. We've had some home break-ins, so I am more concerned about opening the door since I am here by myself. I lock up by 8 p.m.

Back in the '80's we had someone on another block who would take pictures of the kids, then tell them to pick them up next year. That was so nice of her.

We quit participating when trick-or-treaters dwindled to maybe ten a night -- and none of our neighbors had *little kids*. Our neighborhood has lots ranging from one to ten acres.

Our DIL's parents live in Chicago, in a prosperous area, but houses in the city are commonly on 25-foot-wide lots. In addition to actual neighbors, people from other areas drop kids off to scavenge for treats. They go through a thousand pieces of candy per Halloween. It's pretty close to 'intimidation' instead of fun, IMO.

I live in a "starter home neighborhood" with lots of young families and an elementary school down the block, which has a fair number of out of neighborhood kids bussed in. So we have a lot of trick or treaters, including those who don't live here but go to school here or just know that this is a good neighborhood for Halloween. I give out 250-350 pieces of candy each year, or a combo of candy and stickers (kids actually prefer the stickers).

I do notice a few kids who come around twice, and have even had accompanying parents stick their hands into the candy bowl! But the vast majority are well behaved and polite. I don't particularly love hanging out by the front door for 2 hours (the official city time frame) but remembering how much I loved to trick or treat as a child motivates me.

Over the years it's varied a lot. Lots of turnover in the neighborhood. Now it's at the point of very few kids and the last several years the weather wasn't the best for trick-or-treaters so there wasn't a lot of them out there, plus with my own health issues it's limited my ability to participate. And there's a lot of alternative activities for the paranoid. What has bothered me is when I see carloads, vanloads of kids being dropped off at one end of the block and picked up down the block. When I started seeing that, I shut down. If you're going trick-or-treating you get off your butts and walk like I did. If someone is on crutches or in a wheelchair, then fine, but otherwise, get out and walk it. My other problem is when people think putting on a jacket is a costume. If you want something from me, I want to at least see a costume. That's what it's all about. I don't have a problem with late teens, even older as long as they follow the rules.

While I kind of like the idea of the teal pumpkin thing I have a problem with having to worry about EVERY problem a kid may or may not have. I feel more empathy for the diabetic kids. But their problem is how to mainstream yet communicate they can't have the normal candy treats. My sister used to get a bunch of cheap crayons, coloring books and things like that but to differentiate between those who can have candy and who cannot is a problem. She just gave them out to everyone but she gets into Halloween a lot more than I do. Not many holidays I really get into. Never really did all that much especially as I get older.