a candle burning in the dark

Candles have long since been used by people to to provide light, and more recently to help a home smell good. There is nothing like the wonderful smell of a well made candle to bring back memories. However one of the drawbacks to candles is that they create soot which can dirty your home, and they a have a flame which can be a fire hazard if they get knocked over.

A great alternative to regular scented candles are candle lamps that instead of burning the wax with a flame, use heat generated by a light bulb to warm the candle and release a scent. There is no soot, and no fire hazard. Also, you candles will last much longer.

Our vendor Denise’s Candle Lamps offers a wide variety of scented candles, and several different candle lamps to suit your style and flavor.

People love the warmth of a fireplace on their skin, however sometimes putting in a real fireplace is more of a hassle than it is worth. For one thing, you need to build a chimney stack into your home. And unless you’r home was built with the idea of later adding in fireplace, you are going to have to tear up a lot of your home to do it.

To get around this obstical and for other reasons, people have traditionally turned to gas fireplaces. However, if you don’t want to hassle with a gas line, another alternative that is less well known is electric fireplaces.

Electric fireplaces have gone a long way in looking authentic, and they are perfect for people who are unable or unwilling to tear apart their home to install them.   They are also perfect for those who rent.  They are also, they are very clean.

6 cups popped popcorn
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
½ cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup margarine or butter
2 Tbsp. Honey
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
1 10 oz. Pkg. Bear-shaped graham snacks (4 ½ cups)
½ of a 5.4 oz. Pkg. (3 pouches) animal-shaped chewy fruit snacks

Place popcorn and peanuts in a buttered 15 X 10X 1 inch baking pan. In a small saucepan combine brown sugar, margarine or butter, honey and cinnamon. Cook and stir over low heat till boiling. Boil gently, uncovered without stirring for 4 minutes. Pour over popcorn and stir to coat.

Bake the coated popcorn mixture in a 300 degree oven for 20 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl; toss in bear shaped graham snacks. Cool mixture completely. Add fruit snacks. Store in covered container. Makes about 10 cups.

Have a costume or tea party and serve this fun snack.