When it comes to Halloween safety, the first thing that comes to mind is the safety of our children. Often we overlook another important family member, our pets! HomeAgain came up with various tips for their October newsletter on how to keep your beloved pets safe this Halloween.

1. Keep the candy for the kids.
Although chocolate is a well known pet-safety hazard, artificial sweeteners and other candy ingredients are also dangerous for your pet. If you want to give your cat or dog Halloween treats, ones from the pet store are just the trick.

2. Watch for escape artists.
On Halloween night, you’ll probably be opening your door for trick-or-treaters every few minutes. Make sure to check that your dog or cat stays inside after each visit.

3. Make sure your pets are clearly tagged.
It’s easy for an animal to escape on Halloween night, so make certain that your pet is wearing a collar with contact information on it. Brighter colors are easier to see! Don’t have a collar tag? Buy one, now!

4. Consider your pet’s temperament.
If your animals are frightened of strangers, loud noises, or children, keep them in an area of the house that’s away from the front door. The sights, colors, and sounds of Halloween can be stressful for even the calmest pets.

5. Keep your pets close to home, particularly the black cats.
Unfortunately, Halloween brings out the dark side of some people who may use the holiday as an excuse to torment or otherwise injure an animal they find lose on the street. So keep your cats well feed with some tasty canned cat food and keep them inside.

6. Think about the children.
Even if your pets are good with children, not all children are good with pets. It may be a good idea to keep your pets away from a child who could startle them into an aggressive or defensive attack.

7. Avoid costume drama.
Make sure you choose a Halloween costume that’s safe for pets. Avoid strangulation hazards and parts that affect vision or movement. If your dachshund looks completely miserable dressed up as a hot dog, then let him out as soon as you’ve taken a few photos.

8. Be careful with the decorations.
A Jack O’Lantern with a candle or glow stick in it may be beautiful for you, but it’s also fascinating for your pet. Reduce the risk of singed whiskers or poisoned bellies by keeping dangerous decorations out of your pets’ reach.

9. Minimize stress while you’re away.
If you plan to go out for a party or other Halloween fun, leave the radio or television on. The noise can mask loud noises your pets hear from the outside festivities.

10. Remember to keep it fun.
Whatever you do, don’t let worrying about pet safety ruin the evening. With a few simple precautions, there’s no reason why you and your pets can’t have a boo-tiful holiday full of frightful, and pet-safe, fun.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

Boy do we have a treat for you! This smoothie is not only delicious and nutritious but has a “surprise” in stored for the drinker!

How to make a Halloween Eyeball Surprise Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 8 leaves romaine lettuce or two cups baby spinach
• 1 cup frozen peaches
• 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries
• 2 cups water
• Stevia to sweeten ( a little goes a long way!)
• Red or green grapes, add after pouring into cups, these are the eyeballs!

Instructions:

Place all ingredients except for grapes in blender and blend well. Pour mixture into cups and add grapes for the “eyeball” affect. To make the smoothie thicker, add les water or add 2 TBS flax meal before mixing. Enjoy these spooky treats for breakfast or anytime on Halloween to counteract the other, less than optimal treats!

Recipe contributed by Maria Rippo, founder of www.TheGreenSmoothieChallenge.com

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

We want to have a HUGE shout-out to HolidayLEDs since they are helping us promote a greener Halloween this year and “help people commit to reducing the environmental impact of their Halloween celebration” by holding a contest called the Green Halloween Pledge! All they ask is for people who are planning to commit to the Green Halloween Pledge to do at least 5 actions from the following list:

1. Swap costumes with someone rather than buying a new costume. This is a great idea and one of our favorite Green Halloween Tips.
2. Purchase your costume, or its components from your local thrift shop.
3. Use LED Halloween lights to decorate instead of incandescents.
4. Collect candy in a reusable container rather than a disposable bag. Or better yet, make a fun project for your kids by having them make their own Halloween bag out of reusable or recyclable items you have around the house.
5. When trick-or-treating, walk, instead of driving door to door.
6. Carry a shakable or hand-crank LED flash light instead of one that is battery powered.
7. Make your own Halloween face paints.
8. Give away one piece of candy instead of handfuls.
9. Purchase an organic pumpkin.
10. Buy your pumpkin from a local farmer.
11. Purchase an edible variety of pumpkin and paint, instead of carving the pumpkin. Then bake and eat the pumpkin when Halloween is done.
12. Roast & eat your pumpkin seeds instead of tossing them.
13. Use 100% beeswax or soy candles in your jack-o-lantern instead of paraffin candles.
14. Give away healthier alternatives to conventional candy.
15. Compost your leftover candy.
16. Donate your leftover candy to troops overseas.
17. Compost your pumpkin.
18. Make crafts out of candy wrappers.
19. Pack décor away carefully so that it can be reused next year.
20. Text “Boo 5” to 27138 to donate $5 to support the Green Halloween® initiative.

Participants of the Green Halloween Pledge will be automatically entered in a random drawing. One lucky participant will win a $150 gift certificate redeemable at HolidayLEDs.

So what are you waiting for? If you haven’t taken the Green Halloween Pledge yet, do so now! Visit HolidayLEDs’ Green Halloween Pledge page for details and step-by-step instructions for entering the drawing!

Everyone here at Green Halloween is immensely grateful for HolidayLEDs for holding this contest and we’re so glad we were able to inspire others to be more conscious of environmental waste during holidays.

SPECIAL NOTE: Just in time for Halloween! Save 15% on LED Halloween lights at HolidayLEDs.com with coupon code GHWEEN15 now through October 31st.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

We are blown away at this beautiful DIY Halloween mantle created by the talented Regina of Creative Kismet. She made it by taking random objects in her storage which goes right along with our philosophy of recycling and re-using to celebrate a greener Halloween! Many kudos to Regina for following this philosophy while creating such a lovely piece of decor for her home and hearth.

It’s not too late to look around what you’ve been storing up in the attic or the garage to see if there are treasures there to make your very own Halloween mantle piece. You may never know what long forgotten objects are awaiting to be used by your creativity!

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

Guest post by: Jennifer Crawford, Founder & Owner at Gaia’s World Fun Center (www.gaiasworldfuncenter.com) and host of a National Costume Swap Day event in Federal Way, WA

I found Green Halloween^® on my own journey with Gaia’s World (a seed company working to build the first Eco-friendly children’s play center in our region).

When I learned of Corey and Lynn’s concept for a costume swap, I believed this was an awesome project that followed the Gaia philosophy of reducing waste, reusing and recycling items to improve wellness and our impact on the environment.  So I JUMPED at the opportunity to help in the National Costume Swap Day campaign.

With Green Halloween promoting the event nationally, all I had to do was register my own swap, find a location, and then tell lots of people about it.  I found the Federal Way Farmer’s Market was a perfect spot at The Commons Mall, and the owners of the market graciously donated booth space for our swap.

I was so excited about the concept I made fliers and handed out at networking events, elementary schools (after getting permission), anywhere that would take them.  I also posted on all my social media outlets, advertised in our community paper and calendars, notified local PTA’s, Girl Scout troops, and other organizations.

The day of the swap came and despite the weather, we had a great time and a great response.  Most families found this program beneficial financially and loved the ‘green’ education that complimented the swap.  My troop helped with our booth signs and made a board showing all the healthier choices parents can use to promote a greener Halloween.  We had crafts and handed out treats for every swap, and the joy on children’s faces to see their next ‘character’ they will portray this year was simply priceless.

People were so excited about this event I was asked for an encore the next two weekends.  I plan on meeting that demand and doing the same thing next year since this was such a success.  Even my own children, who helped at the booth, couldn’t make up their mind what they wanted to be this Halloween when they saw all the options they had. My daughter swapped her costume four times and my son twice as their imaginations lead their choices.

My only recommendation to others interested in hosting a swap would be to make sure if you can get help to get the word out, do so.  I was able to do much of this alone, yet I still needed others to share and spread the benefit of this event.  I can only imagine how much more we could have done for the families in our community if I was able to reach farther and truly saturate our area.  It does take time and some money to make fliers, the boards, and coordinate games or crafts, but if you are creative to find a means to do this without expense to yourself, the better.

As for Gaia’s World, we hope to continue to partner with Green Halloween in the future as we both believe our children can “Grow Green through Laughter, Knowledge, and Play.” :-)

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.