20 awesome last-minute Halloween buys you totally need this week

If you’re like me, Halloween week is one of those weeks that you’re hitting stores far more than usual, whether it’s for last minute treats, decorations, or that one element of your kid’s costume that gah, you totally forgot about. Even though it’s been on your to-do list for weeks. Because, life.

So one of the reasons we’re glad to welcome back our fantastic partner the Amex EveryDay Credit Card, is that they help parents make the most of those kinds of everyday purchases. In fact, if you remember to use this no-annual-fee credit card instead of cash or a debit card — even for the little stuff — then every purchase will earn you Membership Rewards points. That’s smart, because when you hit 20 of those purchases in a billing period, you’ll get a bonus of  20% extra Membership Rewards points. Whoo!

And boy, do I like my points. Which is partly why I’ve been an Amex member since forever.

Member since forever. Proof!

Of course I also like Amex because they turned my children into cartoons. But that’s another story.

So if you’re trying to hit your 20 with the Amex EveryDay Credit Card, here are my suggestions for 20 Halloween purchases you can knock off your list this week. In fact, maybe you’re already halfway through the list if you’re like me. Because when it comes down to it, I really really love Halloween. When I slow down and see all the joy it brings to my kids, it’s like stopping to smell the #EveryDayMoments.

1. Big bags of Halloween candy. Before it runs out and you’re stuck giving out raisins.

2. Raisins, so you’ll feel 16% less guilty about the kids eating Halloween candy all week.

3. Construction paper and crayons for some homemade door decorations.

4. Scotch Tape, because even though you have 16 rolls of it somewhere in the house, it always seems to disappear the second you need it.

5. Printer ink so you don’t run out before printing a bunch of free printable Halloween lunch box notes for the kids. (These from Create, Craft Love)

6. A bunch of mini flashlights for trick or treating.

7. AAA batteries for the flashlights. Because that’s another thing you can never find when you need them.

(Speaking of which, I need to remind my kids not to put the dead batteries back in the good battery drawer anymore.)

8. Peanut butter or sun butter, crackers, skinny pretzels, raisins and cream cheese so you can be the cool mom who makes the cool Halloween snacks for playdate friends this week. (These delicious spiders via La Jolla Mom)

9. A Halloween weekend streaming movie rental, whether it’s Hotel Transylvania, Gremlins, or something for after the kids are in bed.

10. Zombie Spray.

11. A full tank of gas. (In case the Zombie Spray doesn’t work.)

12. The world’s best trick or treat bags the kids can reuse for life, because from now on, your good pillow cases are staying on the pillows. (This one via the Seeker of Happiness shop on Etsy)

13. More Halloween candy because darnit, you ate the first bag. Grrrr.

14. Teal spray paint to help support the Teal Pumpkin Project and alert kids with allergies that you have non-edible treats for them.

15. Stickers, temporary tattoos, or little toys to hand out.

16. A crazy wig, because that counts as a costume when you’re a parent, right?

17. A Halloween t-shirt after your kid tells you that no, the wig alone does not count as a costume. (This one from TEEdictive on Etsy)

18. A magician’s wand, sword, tiara, or cat tail on an emergency run to the costume store, to help stave off the OH NO, I DON’T HAVE A WAND/SWORD/TIARA/CAT TAIL last minute freakout from the kids.

19. More candy. You already know why.

20. Brand new toothbrushes the kids can start using, stat. Hint: they’ll use them more often when they’re cool electric Star Wars toothbrushes  like these.

Thanks so much to our amazing sponsor and partner, the Amex EveryDay Credit Card, a no-annual-fee credit card designed for multitaskers — and what better multi-taskers are there than parents? 

You earn 2x the points at groceries stores in the U.S., and 1x for every dollar you spend anywhere else. Like all the places you see here! Plus you get a bonus of 20% extra Membership Rewards points after making 20 purchases in a billing period. Wow, that’s easy this time of year.

Another awesome thing: Amex EveryDay comes with Return Protection, refunding the entire purchase price of an item you have to return, up to $300 per item, if the merchant won’t take it back. Please note, this does not count for half-eaten bags of Halloween candy.