(credit: Thinkstock) If you’re like most parents, then safety is a concern for your kids when the Halloween season rolls around. There are so many ways in which your children can put themselves at risk, especially when costumes, candy, decorating and visiting strangers’ homes come in to play, all in one night. However, with a few important safety tips, your kids can enjoy the fun of the Halloween holiday while remaining safe and secure. Here are a few tips that will help your family celebrate Halloween safely. Costumes The costume your child selects needs to be fun, creative and should express his or her personality, however you also want to ensure that it’s the right size and fits well, to avoid potential trips or falls. It’s a good idea to give your kids glow sticks or flashlights when they head out for trick-or-treating, which will help drivers see them at night. Luckily, the warm weather in California means that they won’t need to cover their costumes with a jacket, so be sure to decorate that costume with some reflective tape or stickers, or try to stick to lighter colors. Lastly, it possible, use makeup instead of masks that may obscure children’s field of vision. If that Batman mask is a must, tell your child to always take it off before crossing the street. Candy While reports of actual problems with Halloween candy are extremely rare, it’s still important that you thoroughly check the candy your children bring home. Even the Los Angeles Police Department recommends that you should never allow your children to eat candy until you’ve examined it. You’ll also never want to allow your children to eat anything that isn’t pre-wrapped or that is homemade, unless you know the people that made it. Decorating Covering your home for the season is a tradition in neighborhoods all over California. However, there are a few things that happen during decorating time that can be considered very dangerous. To start, never let your children handle sharp knives, and keep a close eye on the kids when carving pumpkins. It’s also a good idea to use glow sticks instead of live candles in pumpkins, to avoid any fire hazards. If you’ll be decorating with anything that hangs or dangles in a doorway, make sure that everything is properly secured, and tape down any loose wires, that way the kids won’t run into the danger of tripping on any of your decorations. Lastly, be sure to read the directions on all your decoration packages, as many things are only meant to be used outdoors (like fog machines or other similar items.) Follow those package directions carefully to ensure a fun and safe Halloween. Deborah Flomberg is a theater professional, freelance writer and Denver native. Her work can be found at Examiner.com .

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Protected: Halloween Safety Tips – Kids, Candy, & Decorations

(credit: wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock) It has been a tremendously difficult fire season for California, as more than 117,000 acres of wildlife has been scorched this year—that’s more than double the recent five-year average for a typical California summer. With all this talk about fire prevention, drought and fire safety, it’s important to educate yourself and your family as to the proper procedures for prevention. Coming up, you’ll have the perfect excuse to talk with your children about fire safety, as National Fire Prevention Week is the week of Oct. 4-10. As you prepare to discuss this week with your family, here is a quick safety checklist to make sure your home and your family are properly prepared. Check smoke alarms The first thing to do is to ensure you have a working smoke alarm on every level of your home (basement included). In addition, the NFPA recommends that you have a smoke alarm inside every bedroom and that you test your alarms at least once per month. If you’ve never tested your alarms, get the kids involved so they learn what your alarms sound like; that way, if the alarms ever do go off, the kids will know right away how to respond. Be sure to check the date on your smoke alarms as well, since any alarm more than 10 years old really should be replaced. Plan escape routes The next thing to address with the family is the best escape plan , should a fire start in your home. You’ll want to go over this plan with the family and you’ll want to make sure you can find two ways out of every room in the house. It can actually be a fun game to play with the kids, as you challenge them to find the different ways out of each room. Once you’ve identified your plan, be sure to include a meeting place that is located outside your home, but that is far enough away that it will keep the whole family out of danger. Practice fire drills Once you’ve identified your escape route and meeting place, it’s time to have a fire drill with the family. Test the alarms, and have everyone run the drill as though a fire was actually happening. One the family is safely at the agreed-upon meeting place, be sure to go over the next steps, which include calling the fire department and making sure everyone else is safe. It’s also a good idea to have a fire drill twice a year, that way your whole family knows right away how to respond, should a fire actually happen. Think your family is ready? Take this fire prevention week quiz with the kids to ensure everyone knows how to stay safe! Deborah Flomberg is a theater professional, freelance writer and Denver native. Her work can be found at Examiner.com .

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Protected: National Fire Prevention Week – Safety Checklist

Another U.S. community left grieving and asking difficult questions after a mass shooting at a college, as Russia appears to tweak its Syria offensive

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This Morning from CBS News, Oct. 2, 2015