Yes, lots of acquaintances/superficial friendships, but just a few close friends. My 'close' friends are family (my sister, but she lives in another state). When my dad died suddenly a few years ago, I called my cousin (was my roommate in college) first. We hadn't talked to eachother in a few years (d/t kids/busyness; no fallout), but she was there for me. Locally, my close friends are from church. Even in high school, I had only 2 or 3 friends that I considered 'close.' LOTS of acquaintances. And then....I have to give a shout out for my current BFF, my husband. :-) I'm sorry you're in this situation right now. I work in healthcare, as well. I understand what you're saying about the drama and gossip. It comes in waves, and I try to stay out. My friendships at work are sincere, but I tend to keep the scope limited to work. My husband and I also frequently work opposite eachother, but we do have a great daycare provider (for the days/nights we are both working). She is our 'adopted' grandma. If we have an emergency and need someone to watch the kids in the middle of the night we can call her. We know her from church. When I worked full-time, it was harder to develop new/close friendships (outside of work)--even at church, b/c I wasn't as available (and when I WAS home, I was catching up on housework, errands, kids, etc, etc. any extra time was, like you said, family time). B/c of this, I relied on my husband/family. The one person I could alway connect with or vent to outside of my family was our daycare provider. Hugs!:grouphug:

Specifically addressing return to work--I think it's too early :) It's really great that you have such a supportive, reliable husband. He can help with the kids, but you have to take care of your body. This is not your first delivery. You're a multip now, and each delivery takes a little longer to recover from. (But then again, you know how well/soon you have recovered). Factor in your age as well. I agree with impish about the risks of increased clotting and possible hemorrhage if you push yourself too far. Plus, assuming you're doing 12 hour shifts, I wonder how much pain you will be in. I still remember perineal and vulvar pain up to 3 weeks out just from going grocery shopping. If you have to work, maybe you can try doing half/partial shifts to see how you can handle it. What has your group/employer done about covering your absence? (given that it's not a surprise). Are there not any EPs at any of your area's hospitals that want/need extra shifts? Locum tenems? I'm so sorry you're in this situation. I wish you the best and congratulations!! :grouphug:

I don't ask him to rewrite anything. I ask him to proofread it before I grade it, then we go over it together. I ask him to correct any spelling or capitalization/punctuation errors that I catch. (Depending on the mistake, I say "there's an error in this line/sentence," esp. if I know that he should know it). Then we talk about the content together and grade it against the rubric/examples. Sometimes his sentences don't 'sound' right to me, and I can't explain why. He fights me on it, so I search an online grammar check, plug in the sentence, and then we talk about it. I have to say, though, I haven't found a site I absolutely love yet. He needs a lot of typing practice. So I type his 'corrected/proofread' (not re-handwritten) composition into this program: http://www.sense-lang.org/typing/tutor/lessons.php?lang=EN&lesson=16 (Click on "Practice your own text). Then he types out the corrected composition.

Are you kidding me?? Wow...I'm speechless....seems kind of manipulative to me. BIG group hug! :grouphug: So sorry!! My in-laws are luke warm about us hsing; my mom is very supportive...she regrets not hsing us. Although my inlaws don't really say anything anymore, when we put my oldest back in ps for a short while, my MIL broke down crying in RELIEF that we had finally decided to do that...she was so WORRIED about him. At some point I came to the place where I decided I didn't need others' approval for our choice. (Mind you, it is sometimes hard for me to maintain that kind of emotional independence....and it would definitely be harder if my mom wasn't so supportive). Also, although there is sooo much wisdom to gain from our elders, I do take their opinions about the need for ps with a big grain of salt, since their era of psing was different from ours in so many ways. I just don't think they "get it" (the changes) if I can be so bold.

what is MFW??

the spleen and part of the colon are on the upper left side. The liver and gallbladder are on the right upper side. The pancreas is in the middle. Does your son have any pain radiating into his shoulder? I know he's ten, but you could ask him if his bowel pattern has changed at all. It is kind of odd for him to be fine during the day, and then vomit at night only. Hopefully your doctor will be able to help you find some answers...

Sweet corn...and freeze it (we have a large summer garden 30x100 feet) most of the area is used up in corn. We grow three successive blocks of corn. I blanch the corn, cut it off, and throw it into the freezer in plastic quart size bags. We use it as a side dish, and I also make a sweet corn soup with it. Lasts from October till June. Potatoes...same as you :-) keeps all winter. Spaghetti Squash...wow--these are KEEPERS! They last a good 10 months. I pick them, rinse and dry them, and set them in a corner on the kitchen floor to 'cure.' Then I put them on a shelf in the kitchen. It helps me remember to use them. Beets....we're still playing around with these. We live in Western oregon, and the ground gets very wet. Last year we kept them in the cellar and they went bad (not enough moisture, i think). This year we put them in an unused raised bed, and covered them with dirt. They've held up so far, but it's just the beginning of the 'storing' season. Tomatoes--canned. Make lots of tomato soup. Green beans--canned. Garlic, hot peppers, and onions also. Swiss chard, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce--we grow this, too, but only really get to eat it in early to late spring as opposed to 'year round.' Along with our sweet corn, we occasionally grow dent corn, or grinding corn. We like the different colors as it's fun when it comes time to use the corn flour/meal. We are a family of 6.