Thank you, everyone!

Starts, not started. Stupid iPad!

And yes, he is very,very cute and comical until he started rounding us up!

Albeto, thank you. We did use "leave it" with our lab and have used it some with this dog. It is the one command he is really iffy on because he is food motivated. But if i can work with him and our 6'yr old, that would be a great way to train him to be more reliable around children. And because he is passive, the eye contact would surely help.

P.s. To both of you, Is play fighting okay? My husband used to play fight with our lab, but only my husband did it. Our lab only mouthed him, never bit down. He knew my husband was in charge, so they were having fun. This puppy likes to play like that with my twelve yr. old. He sounds very ornery and sincere, but if you watch him, he never bites down and stops immediately when told to. It is interesting that he doesn't play like that with our 10 yr old daughter or anyone else. The dog knows our 12 yr old is in charge. Still I told my 12 yr old to stop playing like that because I was afraid it would encourage negative behaviors. This was a fairly recent development. I would ask our trainer these ?s, but we had to postpone classes because our dog got whipworm. He's better now, so we need to go back.

You know I keep thinking this little guy still acts like a pup. I guess that is good because he is still learning and hopefully more impressionable. I already talked to my boys about what Pawz4me said. My kids took a training class with him when he was about 5 months old and he did really well because he is food motivated and loves his kids. However, the one thing they have a hard time with is heeling, so we will get strict about that as you mentioned. And maybe we better get back to daily training. He's such a smart little guy that it is fun to train him. We do already implement some of the methods from the above website. He knows to sit when he wants to come inside after going potty and he is starting to get that he can't jump on people. We have worked HARD on that one. I wonder how far is too far to walk him. Maybe there is a chart somewhere. What kind of dog is Izzy? Partly I'm feeling sorry for myself because we can't seem to get an easy dog. I know,they exist because my dad has one. My brother does as well and we had the best collie growing up. My parents didn't do much training at all. Poor us. Haha!!

Thank you for the recommendation. We seem to have a knack for choosing rescue dogs with behavior issues, despite our efforts to identify a good fit. My 12 and 10 year old just love him and he is dedicated to them, so we will keep working at it. It is tiring after having our lab for 12 years. He had dominance issues. This guy is passive, but fearful. Add in the breed behaviors and he's a whole lot of work. I do appreciate your help.

There are so many knowledgable people here, so I would love some advice. Our mixed breed dog (1 yr old) has so many different breed behaviors that I don't know what is in him! He uses his paws like a boxer, runs like a greyhound, and prances like a toy breed. He does have dachshund and supposedly lab. He's about 23 pounds. Anyway, he herds like crazy. If the children are trying to play with him and they start to run, he will bite their pant legs or shoes. Sometimes he just randomly runs up to people and bites their shoes. He's very persistent. Occasionally he will stop when corrected verbally, but usually someone has to physically stop him. He even had me stuck in the yard one day while he bit at my legs. He isn't being viscous, but it is obviously annoying and makes me worry about little children visiting. When he does it we tell the children to stop running and tell him no. The funny thing is that he got out one day and started herding our chickens, but never open his mouth to bite at all. Also, he growls at my youngest. ( 6'yrs old) We have worked on this quite a bit. However, recently my son was near the dog when a piece of food fell on the ground. My son bent over to pick it up right when the dog went for it. He bit my son's face. Again, not viciously, but he snapped at him. It didn't break the skin. We corrected him and put him in his crate. We had worked on food issues by having our son feed him and walk by him while eating and throw a treat near the dog. (To give him the idea that good things happen when you are eating and people walk near you. ). Apparently that wasn't enough. Any words of advice? Thanks!

Personally I think Rachel held Evans is an authentic voice providing thoughtful discussion points. I'm not sure how to say the following without sounding antagonistic, but I will try and would like a logical answer to my question. What I don't understand is how you can repeatedly reject the opinions of those who have had very different Christian experiences than you and then turn around and try to influence someone with a piece written by a Christian. What I mean is that you have said over and over that all Christianity is on this continuum that encourages abuse of women. If that is so, why should anyone trust a Chrisitan writer who addresses these issues? If one believes all Christian doctrine is flawed and dangerous it makes no sense to point someone toward Held-Evans, even if the person you are trying to influence is a Christian. The fact is you and I cannot know the complete experience of everyone in Christianity and we also cannot completely understand the heart of God and the Word of God. I am genuinely sad and sorry for the pain you have experienced. It must have been agonizing to go through that process. But I do know this, Jesus loved women, he loved those who were seen as outsiders and He rejected the self-righteous, he loved children, and He loved the despised. Just this morning as I was thinking about racial prejudice I have experienced I was thinking of the verse that says, "if I understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to move mountains, and have not love, I am nothing." That is a familiar passage, but so powerful when really considered by a Christian. As I've said before, I attend a very conservative church and yet our elders are always examining scripture to make sure their traditional beliefs line up with the true meaning of Scripture. I was so pleased that my pastor took an unusual stand on divorce after considering what the Bible really says about it. Also, I recently spoke with a former elder who spoke with compassion about a member who is gay. Love is how we will communicate the Gospel. Truth about sin must be spoken because it is wrong and destroys lives. But the Gospel message is about conquering sin and the love God has for His people. And for the record, I think of the whole sinner/sin thing more like, "Love the sinner, of whom I am one, and forgive the sin as I hope others will forgive me."

Just saw the above request. The show is centered around a local judge who has an adult daughter and who was divorced after the death of her son. Her story line about falling in love again is the primary, and her friends and family each have side stories woven into the show. It is set in the PNW. I believe it is on an island that receives little influence from "modern" American culture.

I watched the 1st season on Netflix. I liked it ok, but the main character, Olivia, drove me crazy. She acted so timid and unsure of herself, almost dull in her personal life and then on the bench she her demeanor changed. It's a Hallmark show and that is the feel from the pace and the story lines. Sometimes I need a break from shows full of mystery and issues, and Cedar Cove provided that.

Celia or Eva would be lovely with your other names.

Absolutely. Praying for Roger!

I just have to guess. Zoe, Zander, and Zach. The new baby will be Zelda or Zion. I'm channelling Bill Murray as Bob here.

I understand you are talking about a patriarchal "system" that is inherent with these beliefs. I want to address two points. First, I adhere to these beliefs because of my understanding of Scripture. I think the idea that it is so harmfully patriarchal is ironic in our situation. I cannot remember one time when my father, husband, or any Christian male friend commented on my clothing choice. If I ask my husband for his opinion about a particular piece of clothing he most likely will go for more cleavage and shorter hemlines. 😄. Also, my husband has never said a word to my adult daughter about her clothing. From the time she was little until now I can't think of any criticism for being immodest or otherwise. Also, I attend a church in which this modesty view is taught. In our church we have women with long skirts and very high necklines and women with very short hemlines and/or quite a bit of cleavage. The fact is, it is up to each woman to decide. We have young men with buttoned up polos and saggy pants (my own sons have been in both categories.) They are all valued and loved. They all have opinions that are considered. The fact is, in the end it is that person's personal relationship with God that should dictate how he/she conducts himself/herself. Other people can give opinions, but it becomes legalism when others impose their beliefs of modesty upon you. That doesn't mean the teachings about modesty are invalid, it means it is a choice for you to make as you walk in your faith. Lastly, the church we came from years ago was all about "grace" and acceptance. Coming out of that church I was pretty judgemental of others choices. Now I am in a church with more conservative doctrine and I see much less judging and much more love among the members. It is truly full of grace and our congregation is noticed for the uncommon fellowship we have. The word patriarchal gets used so much, but there are distinctions between patriarchal society, patriarchal churches, and patriarchal families. Those distinctions matter and I don't like being lumped in with the likes of Pearl, Gothard, and Farris. Nm

My mother-in-law tried to resuscitate a wild baby mouse. I'm an animal lover, but that was a bit much. My MIL is a sweetheart, but I do have that story. M Oh, and now that she is getting older I thought she would love Facebook since she enjoys keeping up to date with everyone. Boy was I wishing I hadn't said that. For quite a while she was posting almost daily memes about mothers and children, especially guilt inducing ones about adult children paying attention to their parents. ðŸ˜

How about, "Love you so much and will always be rooting for your best!" Or "So proud of the hard work you are doing and good decisions you are making. Love you always! "

Praying.

You speak directly to the problem some have with your assessment. Not all Christians who think it is a virtue to be modest are of the patriarchal ilk. In fact, a person can be a thinking, intelligent, conservative Christian that sees value in modest dress without adhering to unbiblical views of male/female relationships. You made reference to the patriarchal extreme, but many of your comments indicate you believe the same of anyone who values modesty. The Bible does speak about modesty. As a Christian any way we dress or adorn ourselves that makes us the center of attention is immodest.

You are very brave to open yourself up to questions. I can't imagine how the last 10 years have been for you. My only question is, do you have supportive people surrounding you? I sure hope so.

I totally agree about the texting, but may I just say, it's the moms and dads as much or more than the teens!! I'm tired of all the blame on teens( from media) when I regularly see older people doing the same.

We have a mutt that looks a lot like that and is the same size, different color. The shelter said dachshund/lab mix. Ours also acts clownish and uses his paws like a cat, so we think some boxer might in there as well. The vet said he sees Brittany in his markings. He stinks like a hound. All that to say, ours is a true mutt, but it is fun to guess! Have you googled doxador?

Rosie, what a beautiful boy, and he sounds like such fun. I'm so sorry for your great loss and am praying for you.

AFTER I wrote this out I realized I was turning the thread a different way. I'm sorry about that and would cut and paste to a new thread if I knew how. I'm sorry, but the above quote just isn't true. We have adopted through 3 dog rescue organizations. The first dog was great with our family, but went ballistic around men with deep voices. He obviously was not safe. The second dog (a labrador) was a puppy that came from a family that couldn't handle his puppy ways. However, after dealing with his severe dominance and aggression issues as a puppy I tracked down the breeder and he told me the dam was the same way and he almost gave up on her. Instead he bred her and sold the puppies. The rescue had access to this information, but did not seek it out. Again, they did not ensure he was safe. (We had decided we would not give him away before we got him, so we worked hard on his issues and he turned out to be a good boy. He did have dominance issues his whole life, though.) Our current dog is from the SPCA. He cost $375. When I questioned the cost they said he had his shots, was wormed, and fixed. We got him home and he had he had worms and needed another shot. He was not ready. Also, in our most recent search I asked various rescues about background and behavior. Many times they told me they didn't know much. I asked about testing temperment and it became clear that I should not assume that had been done. Some rescues do check temperment, so it isn't all bad. I'm very impressed with the Humane Society in this area. They work hard to rehabilitate animals. Lastly, it appears rescues will "save" dogs from county animal control. I found one that was a great match for our family. When I called animal control they said a rescue was on its way to get him. So I asked why, was he in danger of being put down? No, he wasn't. So, even though I was willing to drive two hours to see if he was a good fit, we lost that opportunity to a recue that got him already altered and vaccinated for $25. They then turned around and "adopted" him out for a boatload more money. I have determined that breed rescues,animal control, and the humane society are the only ones I will trust. I'm sure rescues are full of wonderful people that love animals, but the policies and money making in the name of saving animals has gotten out of hand.

In a similar way at ktgrok described, I give the other person excuses. A friend once said she imagines a mom driving erratically because her child dropped something important on the floor in the back seat. Maybe the mom made the wrong decision to fish for a paci or M&Ms because of the child's piercing scream. Or the customer service rep just stepped on a tack, but is trying to do his job anyway. My mother-in-law posts guilt inducing memes on Facebook? She was neglected as a child. (True) The next door neighbor never shovels the sidewalk between your homes? They had pneumonia for a month and her husband leaves the house really early. Or the referral scheduler at the Dr. Office who never gets the times right? She has dyslexia but doesn't know it; she keeps shaming herself and trying harder to stop making mistakes. Some of these may seem far fetched, but the possibilities help me with my perspective.