There are a lot of moms or  parents that get together and have the following discussion; How do you let your kids eat their Halloween candy?  Sometimes we get a opinions from parents, in-laws, other family members, neighbors, dentists or even just random strangers.  So what's the answer?
Do you put it all in one bowl for all your kids to share?
Do you let them try and eat it all in one night?
Do you let each child keep their own candy? To each their own?
Do you eat half of it and claim you don't know where the rest went?
Do you buy it back from them?
Do you make gingerbread houses with it?
There's lots of different ways to do it.  Often I think we place too much guilt on ourselves and sometimes (knowingly or unknowingly) on other parents. What is the answer? There are plenty of pros and cons to all these options and more. What thing do we leave out when we sit and way our options when trying to decide? The kids. That's right the kids. I know you are thinking about what is best for your kids when deciding on a plan. My point is, we leave out the fact that all kids are different when we advise others on this topic. How I choose to parent my kids is different than how you choose to parent yours. There are many different reasons to why this is, but one major factor is because my kids are different than yours. My kids each react differently to sugar, decisions, responsibility and more. So what works best for me and my kids, won't work best for you and your kids.
My point is don't feel bad if you let your kid sit and eat it all in one night. Don't feel bad if you only let your kids have 2 pieces a day. You know your kids better than anyone. It's ok to share ideas and options with others, but lets be careful to how we do it. Let's not assume our way is the best way. Just because it is the best way for your family, doesn't mean its the best for everyone elses!
With that being said, Happy Post-Halloween Candy Eating! Especially if your son brought home almost 8 lbs of it himself. Eat up and feel guilt free with whatever you choose to do with it. Unless you hand it out as candy next year, that's just gross!

Growing up when my mom wanted to make dulce de leche she would put a can of sweetened condensed milk in the pressure cooker. I wanted to make some, but I don't have a pressure cooker. So I decided to try a crock pot recipe. I know some people try this for caramel. If your not picky then your fine, but keep in mind this is not caramel, it's dulce de leche.
What's the difference you ask? Dulce de leche is milk based, it literally translates to sweet milk. Caramel is sugar based. It's cooked sugar and water to a certain precise point. The word caramel is of French origin meaning "burnt sugar."
All I did was put 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk in my crock pot on low for 8 hours. Take of the paper around the cans and make sure the cans are submerged and stay submerged through the process. They usually turn the last hour or so. I left one can in approximately 30 minutes longer than the other and it was a little thicker. The cans will look a little rusty too, no worries they will come out fine. It did leave a slight ring in the bottom of my crock pot. I read on someone else's blog that they put a towel under the cans to prevent the rust transfer to the crock pot.
Here are some pictures.



I used it to dip apples. It wasn't as firm as caramel, but it was quicker and still very yummy!

We decided to do a Wizard of Oz theme for Halloween this year. A few years ago when Kadan was the lion we bought it too big for him. Now since he hardly grows it still fits. Yesenia's old Dorothy costume now fits Graciella. The problem was Kadan kept scaring her in his lion costume.

Then I was the wicked witch and my husband the tin man. I was going to paint my face green but I was afraid it would scare Graciella too.

This time of year is my favorite. I love Halloween. Not the spooky, scary side of it. I love the decorations, dressing up, and candy part of Halloween. Most years we try to be matchy, matchy. This year isn't any different. We are doing a repeat of 2009, only our family has doubled. We are doing Wizard of Oz! Here are a few pictures from the past.




Pictures for 2013 are soon to come!
This week has been madness, so I am posting the winner to the gift card late.

The American Fork Chamber of Commerce is hosting a 5K on October 26th. Besides it being a chance to get out and exercise its an opportunity to support a great charity, and dress up for some extra Halloween fun.

The AF Halloween fun run supports the Autism council of Utah.  "The Autism Council of Utah is an independent council working to foster collaboration, communication, and learning among families and agencies. Our aim is to promote access to resources and responsible information for individuals of all ages who have, or are affected by autism, or related conditions."

The fun part about this 5K is you get to get one more use out of your Halloween costume. They are having a costume contest with several different categories. Even if your not racing you can come participate. If you have a family or group with a fun theme come enter and show it off. Judging starts at 6:30 and all are welcome.

The race starts at 7 pm at the American Fork Recreation Center, 454 N Center American Fork. Check in is between 5 and 6:30 PM.



If you are registering 4 or more email Debby at chamber@afcity.net for 10% off.

AF Chamber is also giving away 1 entry to their 5K Halloween fun run. Use the rafflecopter below to enter. FOR UTAH RESIDENTS ONLY.  Ends 10/20/13 at 12:00 AM. Must respond within in 24 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway