Things

I hadn't spent much time with the kids lately so I decided to make set a nice table, complete with a candle center piece and a full eggs, bacon and toast breakfast. We all spent a bit too much time around the table so with haste my children jumped on the bus and I hopped in the car to start my morning errands.

Within a mile or two of the house, I had this strong compulsion to turn around and go back home. I tried to brush off the urge, but nothing doing. I could not brush off this urgency so within 2 miles I had turned around and was heading back to the house - post haste!

Didn't know why - I just did. As I climbed out of the car, irritated at the strange inconvenience of it all, I heard my smoke alarm coming from the carport. I thought the battery to the alarm was dying but boy was I wrong? My wood kitchen table is burning in full hellish glory!

By the time I ran to the bedroom and grabbed the favored quilt off the bed, the chairs were joining in on the flame party.

After extinguishing the flames by quilt suffocation and and a bucket brigade of one, the house was spared.

What caused the fire? Candles. I had forgotten to blow out my mood setting breakfast candles before leaving the house. They had burned down to the glass tray - the tray had cracked and the wax spread - igniting the table.

Today I only use flame less candles.

Maybe you have never heard of them.

Flameless Candles are fire safe battery powered candles that have been created, using ingenious new technology to give them the look, feel and smell of the real thing.

Flameless Candles are made with a real wax shell combined with a flickering LED long lasting bulb which will require a close examination to prove they are fakes. Now I burn to my hearts content, not worrying about combustible tables or forgotten hot wicks.

If there is a candle you like more times than not you can now find a flameless one similar to it. There are tapered , votive, round, square, molded, some even include timers to preserve battery life. Others are even submersible.

The safety value obvious based on my true story. I kept the charred table on the deck for years as a reminder of my carelessness and God's grace. That said, these candles have fantastic home design applications as well.

Use flameless candles for your seasonal arrangements. Thanksgiving and Christmas are the peak holidays where candle accents come out in full force.

So many flower arrangements and table center pieces incorporate the use of candles to celebrate a family gathering. Many of these arrangements include dry or silk flowers. By using flameless candles Not only will you avoid the risk of fire, but you will protect your furniture from dripping wax or blackend spots on walls.

You will no longer have to clean your glass sconce of smoke residue or messy and difficult to remove wax spots.

Use them for weddings, anniversaries, party decorations. The make wonderful gifts, especially for the college bound young lady who loves candles.

The remote control candles are really snazzy. Now you can display them in those hard to reach places above the front door or over the alcove or in any area of your home where it's just to difficult to light and extinguish.

They can be used indoors and out, rain or shine. Use them in wall scones and chandeliers. Eliminate the need for unsightly cords and rewiring when you want mood lighting.

Find a theme candle to use as a night light in your child's bedroom. There are a variety of solar candles that can be used out doors in the shape of Tiki torches, lanterns and sconces.

And for the more chic among us there are color changing candles great to use at cocktail parties and art gallery affairs.

The best part of all? They create the same beautifully subtle ambiance as their original wax counterparts.

Be prepared for the next holiday season by shopping for flameless candles today.

The only disadvantage of the flameless candles is that they require batteries to operate - free option.