I read your post followed by noting your daughter's age. My gut instinct is that, yes, you are being unreasonable. I do not know what "independence" and "fun things" look like with a fifteen month old.

No. I would put up a fence with a combination lock on gate.

Yes, it would bother me. Guests should be prompt when dinner is being served. Definitely I would not invite them to dinner again, but maybe coffee and dessert instead since those are not time sensitive.

1. I consider my pasty-white skin beautiful and have no qualms about exposing it. In fact, I take measures to keep my skin white by wearing sun-shielding hats outdoors, avoiding swimming during most intense times for UV rays, and wearing sun block. My thighs are flabby and jiggle after rest of body is not in motion. I do not hide them. 2. Go for the classically tailored clothing that never goes out of style. Lands End, LL Bean, and others always have such items in stock. They may cost more upfront, but in the long run it is worth it because of the versatility, durability, and non-trendiness.

No.

:iagree: I have always been suspicious of pet names, sweepingly dramatic overt romantic gestures, etc, particularly when there is not sufficient basis (or time) for those feelings to have evolved past infatuation. Far too many women fail to ask themselves logical questions and simply eat up the fawning b.s. Of course, the b.s. flows in the female to male direction too.

Exactly. To ask for either permission or blessing indicates that asker probably is expecting a positive affirmation. If a couple cannot confidently reach a decision about marriage on their own, maybe they are not ready to marry. Do people really ask for blessing when they expect a negative response? I do not expect other adults, parents included, to "bless" my life decisions about marriage, cohabitation, homeschooling, or any number of lifestyle choices. However, they do need to respect the decisions. If a couple felt the need for advice or input from other important adults in their life, then wouldn't the time for such advice be BEFORE they developed the intent to marry?

Exactly. My perpetually miserable (now ex) brother in law looked up his former high school sweetheart on the internet. Bil had been with my disabled sister for 13 years. Sweetheart had been married 31 years to her husband, who was disabled by stroke 11 years prior. Once they were having their affair, it was all justified because they had "always been unhappy" with their respective spouses. Never had either of them sought marriage or personal counseling. It's human nature I guess to not make a move until you spot greener grass.

We use both the front and back covered porches. My swing along with other furniture is on front porch. My beloved sky chair, hot tub, and patio set are on back porch. We also have a covered porch/balcony on front 2nd floor. Two bedrooms have French doors that lead out onto balcony. It unfortunately does not get used to its fullest potential.

I appreciate your voice of reason and your willingness to delve into analytical detail.

No.

I used to always leave a voicemail for both business and personal calls. However, for personal voicemails, I detected a pattern of the voicemails being ignored. Instead, the personal caller just returned my call. There were a few odd moments where I mistakenly assumed the person had listened to my voicemail when they had not. Eventually I stopped leaving voice mails for personal calls. I have found that texts generally garner a response at far higher rate than voicemails do.

:iagree: Affairs have mostly everything to do with the character and viewpoint of the one engaging in the affair and probably very little to do with shortcomings of spouse. People tend to rationalize their own affairs as pure sacrosanct love and tell themselves that it just happened or that it happened because the were not loved enough by the spouse. Affairs do not just happen, and it is silly to claim unconsciousness. They require careful planning and execution depending upon circumstances. It is always the other person's affair that is tawdry and backstreet. One phenomenon that I find interesting is that it seems that women tend to get a freer pass than do men for adultery.

:iagree: I do not find it the least bit nostalgic or respectable. Personally I find it creepy in the same way I find "pledging purity" to a parent creepy.

The original poster was speaking in generalities. She was not referring to one or even two specifically identifiable situations.

File those thoughts under MYOB - mind your own business. There are so many possible innocent explanations for such a scenario including the male is a relative or friend or cultural differences. I am an atheist and wanton floozy would be the last thing to come to mind unless there was a track record of flooziness.

Sounds like you got standard form letter treatment. I had a similar experience with a hobby group but I did not pursue it further. Hope you get accepted without further hazing if you really want in the group.

An Amish woman of 50.

I am sorry you are going through a difficult situation with your former partner, and I am sorry that he is willing to be an emotionally manipulative s**t.

Can you get to a place where you can overlook those who disagree with your educational views? There will always be uninformed people eager to share their ignorance and biases with anyone who will (or won't) listen. You are confident in your decisions. You could always cut the homeschool conversation short by saying something like, "Obviously we disagree on the effectiveness of homeschooling, and both of us are doing what we think is best for our children. I do not need you to endorse my choice but you do need to respect it. This is not a conversation we are going to have." On a sharper note, you could say something like, "Homeschooling requires talent, dedication, and perserverance that many parents are lacking. It certainly is not for everyone."

Your friend sounds like an intelligent capable woman who can fight her own battles. By interfering, you risk the possibility of your friend being viewed in a negative manner even though your heart is in the right place. Facts: Your friend has dietary restrictions. This was not a surprise luncheon. Opinion: Your friend has responsiblility for handling her own dietary restrictions. There could have been any number of reasons why the HR manager gave a nonverbal no. While sensitivity in HR manager may be a strength, it certainly is not her "job." Additionally, simply because a person is Jewish does not mean that they follow kosher dietary laws. To make a ridiculously broad generalization, Orthodox Jews generally keep kosher. Conservatives may keep kosher only on holy days. Reformed Jews and nonobservant cultural Jews are not required to keep kosher.

:iagree:with the exception that lurkers have no need to be defensive about lurking. If posting was required of a member, it would be stated in the forum rules along with minimum post quota. There would be periodic banishment of non-posting members.

Yes.

A number of authors, primarily identifying as conservative Christians, write parenting books that refer to children in disrespectful tone, calling them manipulators, selfish, and worse. Although they vary in the frequency and intensity of recommended physical punishment with Pearls being most extreme, some of the other authors are James Dobson, Roy Lessin, Tedd Tripp, Lisa Whelchel. I strongly disagree with punitive based parenting, but I cannot reach a personal comfort level with book burning.

I thought "Irish twins" was considered a derogatory term clearly referring to Irish Catholic families who eschewed birth control. Maybe it is one of those phrases that is not considered inflammatory anymore. Or maybe it ultimately depends again upon speaker's intent. I once read that the word cult did not originally have the negative connotations that it does today. My guess is that having two closely spaced babies would be easier than dealing with two newborns simultaneously.