The kids might be the ones in cute little costumes this Halloween, but I know it’s us Dads that do all the decorating and get everything ready. From cueing up the scary music on the Amazon Echo to changing the front porch light to a creepy blacklight, hanging skeletons on the door to building those mock tombstones for the yard, much of making a home ready for Halloween is a typically dad task.
The bigger challenge that us Dads face on Halloween is one that few people acknowledge: not eating the majority of the candy. Sure, it’s in a bowl and it’s sitting there, just crying out to be consumed, but do we walk over and nosh on handfuls at a time? Did we actually buy candy that we prefer at the supermarket “by coincidence”? Well, yeah, we did, and we do. But there’s still candy left for the cute little munchkins who knock on the door with the traditional “trick or treat!” threat.
You do realize that Halloween is basically the biggest holiday to crime we have, right? Think about it; millions of children taught that by simply putting on a costume, they can shake down the neighbors for free candy! Who came up with this holiday? It’s brilliant!
Anyway, instead of just ignoring the towering contribution that us Dads make to the celebration and success of halloween, why not pick up a gift for Dad to surprise him with a heartfelt thank you for all his work this October 31st! A gift from a place like the aptly named DadGifts.com.
A gift like these four that we checked out, starting with a sweet pizza cutter:
This first one also involved us buying a stunt pizza from the local pizzeria too: such is our commitment to journalistic integrity and great photography. No, a steaming hot pizza is not included with the cutter. In case you can’t tell, it’s in the shape and design of a table circular saw. Very fun, and it worked quite well too, as you can see. It’s called the Pizza Boss. I mean, of course it is!
They also have a fun spherical ice mold that worked really well:
My friend told me the process needed to get ice cubes to be completely clear (it’s ridiculously involved) which convinced me that opaque ice cube spheres the size of a billiard ball are just fine for this particular Dad. Don’t make me work for it! These are really fun ice cubes, by the way, unless you have a tapered glass (like a beer glass), in which case you can get to a point where the ice cube completely blocks your access to the lower portion of the beverage. No bueno.
Then again, you could just attack it and break the ice cube up if it’s blocking enjoyment of your beverage!
Because a multi-tool is always useful to have in the kitchen – or your zombie apocalypse ready pack – I got one of these swanky units from Ted Backer, with wood inlay handles:
Honestly, I’m a little bit skeptical that one of these Ted Baker Multi-Tools would help you during the zombie apocalypse, now that I look at it again, but with all those blades, the pliers, bottle opener and even both a flathead and phillips screwdriver, it’d be darn useful anyway. And the leather carrying case? I mean, surely you have something like that for all your dad tools, don’t you??
The fourth thing that Dadgifts.com sent us to check out was this terrific Coffee poster that’s already on the wall in my kitchen:
This Compendious Coffee Chart poster adds a nice touch of sophistication for when Dad shows up in the kitchen, unshaven, bleary-eyed, and desperate for a first cup of java. Heck, you could even quiz him on the steps needed to make various types of coffee, though I can’t promise that it won’t end poorly if that’s the hurdle he has to clear before that first cup.
And what about prices? The Pizza Boss cutter is $14.95, the Spherical Ice Molds are $10.95, the Multi-tool is $54.95 and the Coffee poster is $22.95, all from DadGifts.com.
More seriously, I know that it takes a family to prep a house – and the kids – for halloween, so I just hope you have a great, fun and safe adventure with the kids, whether they’re little, teens who won’t admit they enjoy the holiday for its freedom to dress up and eat sugar, or even you and your friends enjoying alter egos!
Disclosure: Thanks to Dadgifts.com for the fun gifts. They’re a good addition to this Dad’s kitchen, for sure.