ToT complaint & not complaint...

[Carrie12345]

...for the same exact thing, lol.

This was our last ToT in our current development. It mostly takes place on our main road. The rest of the development is allowed, but nobody braves the hills and bigger gaps between houses. Not sure why because EVERYONE DRIVES the main road anyway. And our private roads are narrower than public roads, and lined with drainage swales. So 75 - 100 cars with kids jumping out of trunks and idiots trying to squeeze between them all is a nightmare. Attitudes are also not pretty about it. I hate it.  
We park and walk the extra lap back.

But, we also went over to our new development to get a feel for their Halloween and drop by a friend’s house. It’s another must-Drive neighborhood, but it was a MILLION times better. There isn’t really a main drag so, even though it’s a smaller place, there wasn’t anywhere near as much “clumping”. And it has wider public roads with swales that are a good 5’ or more from the street.

I thought it was the overall concept of driving house to house that pissed me off so much, but I guess there are a lot more factors at play.

I can’t wait to do our new house next Halloween!

[EmilyGF]

Wow, I've never heard of driving ToT.

Emily

[mommyoffive]

10 minutes ago, EmilyGF said:

Wow, I've never heard of driving ToT.

Emily

People drive into our neighborhood and then drive house to house watching their kids or letting them jump out.  We live on tiny lots .25 acre or less.  

[Scarlett]

Our town had a big uproar over whether TOT should be sat or Sunday……well we forgot to pay attention and both sat and Sunday had to tell cute little kids we do not do Halloween.  Big fail. 

[Jean in Newcastle]

2 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

Our town had a big uproar over whether TOT should be sat or Sunday……well we forgot to pay attention and both sat and Sunday had to tell cute little kids we do not do Halloween.  Big fail. 

I just don’t answer the door 

[TABmom]

There were two golf carts that were driving their kids around- the big 6 seater kind. I found it super annoying because they were not going any faster than we were, so they kept pulling up right behind me as I was waiting in the street while the kids ran up driveways.

[Annie G]

24 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

People drive into our neighborhood and then drive house to house watching their kids or letting them jump out.  We live on tiny lots .25 acre or less.  

Our neighborhood’s lots are about an acre and everyone drives. It was crazy.  If the lots were small like yours it seems so much easier to just walk.  I like seeing parents and kids come together!  

[mommyoffive]

2 minutes ago, Annie G said:

Our neighborhood’s lots are about an acre and everyone drives. It was crazy.  If the lots were small like yours it seems so much easier to just walk.  I like seeing parents and kids come together!  

Yep, I can see driving in neighborhoods with big lots over an acre.   But yes driving on ours is kind of nuts.  We have never done that.  I mean I guess it is better when it is always cold and raining.

[Scarlett]

29 minutes ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

I just don’t answer the door 

Our glass front screen door was open and our porch light was on.  And the dogs were going wild.it was quite embarrassing.

[Dmmetler]

In my neighborhood, most seem to park at the school and walk. I got a few cars late that I think were coming back from the church events(there were at least three within a 1/2 mile of my house) and noticed I was still out (I set up on the driveway).

[TechWife]

In our neighborhood people walk from house to house. Our lots are tiny. People who drive into the neighborhood park at the clubhouse & walk from there. There were two groups of teens on golf carts, driving safely. One was decorated like the Scooby Doo van. I think if people drive to tag their kids it would drive me bananas. Most of the fun is watching the kids parade up and down the street. 

[Carrie12345]

7 hours ago, EmilyGF said:

Wow, I've never heard of driving ToT.

Emily

I have hated it for 17 years.

7 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

People drive into our neighborhood and then drive house to house watching their kids or letting them jump out.  We live on tiny lots .25 acre or less.  

 

6 hours ago, Annie G said:

Our neighborhood’s lots are about an acre and everyone drives. It was crazy.  If the lots were small like yours it seems so much easier to just walk.  I like seeing parents and kids come together!  

It’s so weird (to me) because most of the area is acre+ lots, with a bunch of empties in between, which is why I’ve had 2 trick or treaters since living here. And why it’s logical to drive to the main area, which is a mile away for us, more for some. But the actual “spot” is full of 1/3 acre lots or smaller. It would be lovely for walking without all the vehicles in the way!  
There are 2 parking lots available. My phone said I did about 6,000 steps by parking at one end, covering the whole stretch of the most active area, and doubling back.  The other parking lot could have made it shorter if we wanted. I don’t think that’s a whole lot for Halloween!

New neighborhood is all acre+ lots with no central parking at all, so I had been wondering if it was worse. I was pleasantly surprised.  I think I’d be less satisfied if I still had much smaller kids, but I don’t, so there is that!

 

[Farrar]

We were at a friend's last night and the final ToT'ers bringing up the rear of the crowds were looking for their car. They'd drive to the neighborhood and gotten lost. When they described where it was, our friends ended up offering to drive one of the adults to go get it because it was NOT close. But they turned us down.

I can sort of imagine a driving ToT because I grew up rural, but it would be so weird here. It strikes me as really strange and lazy for a development. I mean, when I was a kid, that's why we would sometimes drive to a development and park and WALK. So we didn't have to drive.

[theelfqueen]

I never drove my kids. It could be -5 with a foot of snow... if you want candy, you've gotta walk. (I did walk with them for a long time). The driving makes me crazy. 

We didn't have many trick or treaters last night - sitting just below freezing and raining most of the day and into the night, eventually turning to snow. I dont begrudge the driving as much when it's wet. LOL but... the little kids and their parents were out walking ... and the teenagers were out walking... it was the older elementary kids getting rides. Weird. 

[J-rap]

I think it's changed, like everything else.  When I was young, we always stayed in our own neighborhoods and walked.  Now I see a mix of things.  I do see some parents driving to a variety of neighborhoods, and they stay in the car and drive along while kids walk door-to-door, before they all get in the car and drive to another neighborhood.  Or I know of families who choose to do door-to-door ToT (walking) in grandparents' neighborhoods, especially if they feel like more family-oriented, safer neighborhoods.  I know of other families who don't do any door-to-door ToT at all anymore, and instead go to planned community events that feels safer to them I guess -- like shopping malls, churches, etc. 

My dad was telling me that when he was a kid, in the 40's, ToT was usually on Halloween Eve, the night before Halloween.  I thought that was interesting!

[history-fan]

Has the time of tot changed?

I was doing yardwork around 2:30 and saw parents in costume pulling wagons with little kids going around the neighborhood door to door. There were  4-5 different groups that I saw at this time then at 5:15 large groups of people out.

In the past it was usually around 7-7:30 when the first groups would go around.

We haven't had any tot for past 3-4 years so wasn't  anticipating any this year,  I kept  lights off, and still had groups coming to the door, but at 5:15 they probably  couldn't tell the lights were off. lol

[Carrie12345]

1 hour ago, history-fan said:

Has the time of tot changed?

I was doing yardwork around 2:30 and saw parents in costume pulling wagons with little kids going around the neighborhood door to door. There were  4-5 different groups that I saw at this time then at 5:15 large groups of people out.

In the past it was usually around 7-7:30 when the first groups would go around.

We haven't had any tot for past 3-4 years so wasn't  anticipating any this year,  I kept  lights off, and still had groups coming to the door, but at 5:15 they probably  couldn't tell the lights were off. lol

When I was growing up in the suburbs, it wasn’t unusual to take little kids out early, especially on a weekend. And then kids who didn’t need to be escorted to doors tended to come out later. (80s and 90s.)

Now, here, Halloween gets scheduled, during the daytime in most places. Even so far as changing the date.

 

[Annie G]

1 hour ago, history-fan said:

Has the time of tot changed?

I was doing yardwork around 2:30 and saw parents in costume pulling wagons with little kids going around the neighborhood door to door. There were  4-5 different groups that I saw at this time then at 5:15 large groups of people out.

In the past it was usually around 7-7:30 when the first groups would go around.

We haven't had any tot for past 3-4 years so wasn't  anticipating any this year,  I kept  lights off, and still had groups coming to the door, but at 5:15 they probably  couldn't tell the lights were off. lol

Our town always set hours for TOT, usually like 5:30-8:30.  We live somewhere else now but still didn;t see any before 5:30, and they were done by around 8.   
 

When I was a kid (1960’s) we didn’t go out until well after dark, so probably at least 6:30. Plus we had to eat dinner before we went out and dad didn’t get home until 5:30 or so. 

‘While I understand the appeal of daylight TOT, I don’t particularly want it to last from afternoon until 8.  

[rebcoola]

We had one group of early birds at 4.  Most came around 6. Last group was 7:30.  I figured it would trend a little earlier being Sunday. Don't have to wait for most parents to get home from work and be done at reasonable time for school the next day.

[kiwik]

On 11/1/2021 at 1:53 PM, mommyoffive said:

People drive into our neighborhood and then drive house to house watching their kids or letting them jump out.  We live on tiny lots .25 acre or less.  

.25 acted is tiny?

[Carrie12345]

39 minutes ago, kiwik said:

.25 acted is tiny?

I don’t know mommyoffive’s neighborhood, but that’s tiny here.  .33 is on the low end. 1 is about average. Septic mounds take up a ton of space.
It would be large in my hometown.  My brain laughed at me when I learned my childhood home was on 0.1 acre. It had seemed so roomy, lol! But its septic field was level, not mounded, and used as regular space.
Perspective is funny like that.

[vonfirmath]

On 11/1/2021 at 10:44 AM, history-fan said:

Has the time of tot changed?

I was doing yardwork around 2:30 and saw parents in costume pulling wagons with little kids going around the neighborhood door to door. There were  4-5 different groups that I saw at this time then at 5:15 large groups of people out.

In the past it was usually around 7-7:30 when the first groups would go around.

We haven't had any tot for past 3-4 years so wasn't  anticipating any this year,  I kept  lights off, and still had groups coming to the door, but at 5:15 they probably  couldn't tell the lights were off. lol

We had families with small children start trick or treating about 5:30p. And the house were closing up by 8p.