How to do it:

Real food costs a little more than candy, but if you can afford to do it, include kid-friendly real food options and let kids choose — or have a candy bowl and a snack bowl and let them pick one from each! Kids in struggling families have to make practical choices all too often. If you can afford it, give them a moment of “both.”

Items to consider:

• Ramen cups
• single-pack chips or pretzels
• fruit cups
• 100% fruit juice pouches
• shelf-stable chocolate/strawberry milk
• snack-pack pudding or jello-with-fruit
• protein bars
• Mac-n-Cheese cups
• 100% fruit roll-ups/sticks
• Browse an Asian market for extensive single-serve items (check the snack aisle)

Bonus: look for items branded for Halloween. From pretzels to fruit rolls, many brands jump on the seasonal theme for lunch-sized items. Check Costco, Grocery Outlet, Winco etc.

NOTE: do not include items which are not packaged. Fresh fruit is healthy, but is likely to be tossed by cautious adults. These are just the times we live in, unfortunately.