I'm dreaming of a white Christmas Chestnuts roasting on an open fire It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas Silver bells Mary did you know Oh come Emmanuel Silent night Have a holly jolly Christmas

I'm adopting the four gift rule for my five kids this holiday season: Something you want Something you need Something to wear Something to read I've got the something to read already bought (through scholastic flyers from my kids schools - you can't beat these value packs - 8 magic tree house books for $16, 15 I Survived books for $30, etc.) I'm stuck on the something you need. My kids don't really NEED anything. I'm thinking a bag of toiletries, socks and undies?

Elaine Tabitha Loraina (my great grandmother's name) Alice Ruth Naomi Mavis Betty

I love American Eagle. I'm 5'2", 160 pounds and I wear a 12 short. They are very flattering and slimming. My favorite are the Artist Flare, in the dark wash. I have four pair! Two dark, two light. https://www.ae.com/women-artist-flare-jean-purssian-dark/web/s-prod/1435_9969_935?cm=sUS-cUSD

I live in Louisiana, and I get a lot of "what do you use". When I say, lots of stuff!, they get so confused. They want you to say, Abeka, or Connections Academy, or something all in one. Now that I'm just homeschooling my youngest, I say Father's World and leave out all of the add ins.

This a great idea. I am really considering pulling my fourth and first graders from ps. They have NO science or history/social studies texts. They use the Scholastic Junior news magazines for their science and social studies. It is ridiculous.

This is exactly what my 4th grade daughter is doing in public school. It's ridiculous. I was teaching her the "traditional" way - the NORMAL way, of knowing your facts - and her teacher told her not to do that, to draw the dang circles and skip count the multiples. It takes so long to do one problem. She forgets the steps she's on because she's spent five minutes skip counting to God knows what. I hate it.

Our grocery store is doing something neat right now. You can buy a bag of food for $5 that they donate to the food bank for Thanksgiving. It's a simple way to help, and I don't mind adding an extra $5 to my grocery bill each week.

Once I got a "You're MRI showed cysts on your ovaries. Also don't freak out, but...we found a small mass on your right lung." Turned out to be a 9 mm granuloma that I had to get checked several times that year, but it hasn't grown or changed, so they say it's harmless. But what kind of doctor says don't freak out? Obviously, I'm going to freak out.

A few of my fondest Christmas memories: Christmas music playing throughout the house from the day after Thanksgiving until New year's. Hot chocolate and old Christmas movies. Our candlelight service at church.

Family.

I did this yesterday at Walmart! I found a cute, Rose colored long sleeved top, and then bought one in olive, roo!

I use Tidy Cat and it works really well. Our litter box never smells. ðŸˆ

We don't celebrate Halloween in any way, so I guess I'm "depriving" my kids. It is for religious reasons as well as personal.

I dream of Jeannie - my kids love it. I have the entire series on DVD. Bewitched. Bonanza. Not too funny, but my boys love it.

I started my 12 year old son in 7th grade this year and it has been fabulous for him. He is playing football and starting wrestling, has tons of friends, has straight A's and is well liked but teachers and coaches. It has worked well for him. My 14 year old daughter also started in 9th grade this year at the same school. She has one really good friend that is a girl, a few good friends that are guys, and that's it. She also has straight A's and is playing basketball, but she told me last night that she feels left out quite a bit. Many of the girls are mean to her and she only has one class with her best friend and not lunch. She likes going to school, but it hasn't been a great experience for her so far. So I think it depends on your kid, the school, and a host of other factors. For my son, starting football practice before school started helped him to meet some guys and feel more like he belonged there. Football has given him a core group of friends that he really likes. They all goof off together and get along really well. Being part of a team has been good for him. My daughter is playing basketball for the first time, but the girls shun her, ignore her, and laugh ay her when she makes a mistake. She is determined to play and not quit, which I admire.

We live half a mile from the school, but there is a lot of traffic in the morning. No sidewalks for most of the way. I drop mine off and pick them up. It takes me less than five minutes each time.

I preread every book I give my kids. If it's not age appropriate, I save it. If it is, they usually want to read it because they saw me enjoying it. It makes them feel like it's something they GET to read, lol.

I've never had it. Never wanted it.

Try the Advil and some rest. Put on a movie or read a favorite book and try to relax. I don't have bipolar but I do have anxiety. I usually try to treat the physical, and it helps me with the mental aspects, too. Praying for you!

Oh yes they have! We saw them in almost every store when we were at the mall shopping two weeks ago. My kids are like, What in the world... Thank goodness they wouldn't wear that!

80s for hubby and me

I just want to add a funny little story. Earlier this year, my nephew brought home a picture of Martin Luther King, Jr. that he had colored at school. He had colored MLK every color of the rainbow. His mom told him she loved how colorful he had colored him. My nephew looked at her and said, "Well, the teacher told us he was a man of color." :-)

A good example of reverse discrimination.

My sinuses actually DO put pressure on my right top teeth. I have gone to dentist with tooth pain, had X-rays taken and it showed that my sinuses were seriously pushing on my roots.