Caramel Popcorn Balls

Trick or Treat everyone. I made up some caramel popcorn balls for a bake sale at church today and I wanted to share the recipe. I hope you enjoy these gooey treats as much as I do.

Caramel Popcorn Balls (double recipe)
½ cup margarine (Note #1)
2 cups light or dark brown sugar
1 cup light Karo syrup
1 can Eagle brand condensed milk
1 Tsp vanilla
5 quarts popped corn (white hull-less is best)
1/2 stick of butter for your hands

(Note #1: This recipe uses both margarine and butter. Cook caramel mixture using margarine, not butter, to help the caramel set up faster so the balls stay together better. The butter is used on your hands to prevent the caramel from sticking to your hands)
Warning: The hot caramel mixture will be poured over the popped corn and may melt plastic bowls. Recommend using glass bowls.

Divide popped corn into 3 large glass bowls. Spread 2 ft long section of wax paper.
In 3-quart saucepan, combine margarine, sugar and syrup. Stir well and bring to boil over medium heat. Stir in Eagle milk. Bring to boil stirring constantly to prevent burning on bottom. Bring to Soft Ball Stage – gets there quickly. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Slowly pour hot mixture over popcorn in bowls. Carefully turn popcorn in bowls, adding more as necessary, to distribute hot caramel. Allow to set 2 or 3 minutes so caramel will not burn your hands. Butter both hands. Make the balls squeezing just hard enough for them to stick together and place the balls on wax paper. Ready to eat. Makes about 30 softball-sized popcorn balls.

Men are so stubborn...

(continued from Facebook)
the grass around the sprinklers is tall again and the lawn starts to brown.

Yard guy tells my husband that the tall stuff is because of the bird feed falling out of the feeder. Huh? Yard guy has to come back an extra time to trim down the tall grass near the patio, $40.

3 weeks go by and now the yard guy thinks he needs to have a weekly service vice twice monthly. Grrrr.

So my husband told him "NO" so then the yard guy says that the sprinklers might be too low and he will install taller ones if we want; $$$. I had one word for my husband "Really?" If he had listened to me weeks ago, we'd probably have a putting green out there.

When you lose your cell phone.....

I drove a friend to a doctor's appt today. While I was waiting for her to be seen, I went down to the lobby to check my mail and messages. I noticed that there was a phone on the bench next to me; nobody else in site.

I picked it up, thinking maybe it was a toy. Nope, it was a real phone, "Jimbo's Phone" was on the front screen. Maybe he left it here on purpose since there is a "No Cell Phone" policy with signage all over the rest of the medical facility.

Nobody was working in security or at the volunteer desk so I started going thru the guys Contacts list and calling his 'friends'. "Hi my name is Linda. Do you know Jimbo?" I got "No" or voicemail from the first 3 people I called, ncluding "Home".

Finally on the 4th try, I got somebody who knew Jimbo and they called Jimbo's wife at work. About 10 minutes later Jimbo's phone rang.

Hmmm, should I answer it? "Hello, this is not Jimbo" is what I said and the guy on the other end started laughing. It was Jimbo. He was relieved to find out that he had not really lost his phone. I left it at the pharmacy at Kaiser for him to pick up later.

Does your cell phone have an emergency contact number in the contacts list?