The candle will be set in about 30 minutes. Let candle stand for another hour or two until most of ice cubes are melted. Pour off water. Peel off carton. Place candle in a tray or on a plate to catch rest of water from ice cubes as they finish melting. Let candle dry for a day or two.

The candles I have made with a single piece of string only burn for an hour or so and burn quickly enough so that most of paraffin remains intact. To use paraffin again, melt candle and pour wax into other containers to make solid candles.

~ Solid Candles ~

To make solid candles, select several glass containers. Pint or half-pint canning or jelly jars work well. For wick, measure out a few more inches of string than is needed to reach bottom of container. Tie string around a pencil. Put pencil across top of container to hold wick in place. When paraffin and crayons are melted, pour liquid wax into container(s). When candle is set, snip off wick about a half inch above wax.

~ Scented Candles ~

To make scented candles, put three or four teaspoons of vanilla extract into bottom of double boiler (or coffee can) and then add paraffin and crayons. When wax is melted, pour into containers.

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Stay centered and manage your own grief process. Take care of yourself. Massage is good at such a time, as such grief is beyond words.

If this is one of your children’s first major loss, it’s going to be a tremendous growth process for them, as you know. Be there. Don’t demand they feel one way or another. Don’t try and “fix” them. Process when you can with them as a means of sharing adversities of life. Adversity builds resilience, and difficult as it is, they’re part of life.

Seek comfort and help for yourself – friends, a minister, a coach, a therapist. Take care of yourself and model this for your children. You can’t share whole experience with them because they aren’t having same experience as you because they are they, and you are you.

I’m sorry for your loss.