Do you meand Diane Rehm? I listen to her, too. I like when she interviews authors.

None of the above. I also primarily listen to NPR.

I don't generally label myself with the term "liberal", but I certainly lean to the left in political ideology. Doesn't mean I agree with or condone any actions of those in office who claim to be liberal.

Dh's mom is not my favorite person on the planet. In fact, if I never had to see her again, I'd be happy. However, dh's step-mom is awesome, and I can honestly say I like having her for a MIL. Dh's dad was married to his mom for 13 years and to step-mom for 24 years, so dh is very close with her.

Ours is 50 items per library card, including DVDs, CDs, etc.

No. I also request books on hold all the time and ILL. I would be broke, too.

I had a similar vision. :D I really can't imagine it. I would have definitely made a mess, too.

My nephew is long and lean, too. My sister says Old Navy pants work best for him.

I agree with whatever type of punishment you want to dole out to your OWN child, as long as it is not abusive. I do not think a few swats on the butt is abusive. I do NOT think a total stranger has the right to swat any kid who's misbehaving. Maybe an aunt or grandma, but certainly not a stranger. I don't think a stranger has a right to touch my child in any way. I almost assaulted a little old grandma who picked up my 6 mo. old baby out of the shopping cart while I was putting groceries into my cart. I know she was just thought he was cute, but WTH? Sorry, but you do not have the right to touch my child without asking me.

:lol::lol::lol::lol: But, seriously, WHAAAT? Why on earth would anyone think that's okay?

Having been a grad student who taught beginning level French classes, I do not expect a teacher to never make a mistake, especially when writing on a board in front of people, while talking. I do expect teachers to proof read any papers they are sending home to parents, so that blatant mistakes are corrected. I expect teachers to be communicative with parents and patient and caring with the students. I expect them to be knowledgable in their subject matter and to have clear ways of explaining things. I expect teachers to be flexible and open-minded. I don't expect teachers to be able to accomplish much, especially in a lower grade with as many students as they currently insist upon putting in a classroom. I don't expect to attract the best possible candidates into the teaching profession with the paltry salaries most of them make. I don't expect a really good teacher to be as effective as possible when they are forced to abide by certain rules and principles and theories that they may know do not work. I don't expect them to be able to really teach a subject, when their main goal is to get students to pass some ridiculous state test. I would hope that teachers would be enthusiatic, energetic and life-long learners themselves. I would hope that they use creative and imaginative ways to encourage students to excel. I would hope that they would love their jobs.

About time! Hope it goes better from now on.

We used Luvs on both boys, but that was quite a while ago, now. However, I'm pretty sure they were not plastic on the outside. I think they were more fabric-y.

I'm reposting this because I don't think my title of the original post makes it clear that I would like recommendations. It sounds more like I'm giving recommendations!;) I'm going to start working on spelling with ds6 after school, because they don't start spelling tests for a while, and from what I've seen in his spelling book, he could spell all those words two years ago. Before I start looking through spelling programs, I thought I'd get some recommendations here. I don't know what grade level his reading is, but he can read Boxcar Children books by himself. He understands most basic phonics rules, too. TIA!

Sorry to say, but I don't think it's worth it to go if everyone's not feeling their best. You will enjoy it so much more when you're all healthy again. Bummer!:sad:

The moms looks great in the first one!

If I can get them to take the Mucinex, I give that to them and also lots of fluids. I keep the house moist, too.

Narcisstic Personality Disorder

Just had the following phone conversation with my mother (abbreviated somewhat for length): Mom: "Why didn't you answer the phone last night? I called at 8:00 and 9:00." Me: "I didn't hear the phone at 9:00, and I wasn't back from (ds)'s cub scout meeting by 8:00." Mom: "What?! He's joining cub scouts?! I'm very upset, very upset. School and Sunday school and soccer and now THIS? I'll never get to see those kids. They won't even know they have a grandmother. I'll have to move closer to (other grandchildren)." Me: "Okay, bye." Not exact words, but pretty close. P.S. I just told her the other day that we were coming to spend the whole day with her this Saturday. She lives about 45 mins. away and we see her all the time.

Well, I have an appointment with the teacher next week, but I don't really expect it to yield much. Maybe dh can come with me, although I planned on having him watch the kids while I go. After I showed dh the paper on which ds had to separate farm animals into columns of 2 legs or 4 legs, he brought up the whole grade skipping thing again. However, ds is already one of the smallest kids in his class. I took ds to an informational meeting to join cub scouts last night, and the pack leader had all the 1st graders stand up front in a row, and ds was at least half a head shorter than all the other boys. I'm not sure putting him in second grade is the best plan, either. I once again asked dh to read the at least the first two chapters of WTM, but he somehow became "too busy" last night. He is just so set against homeschooling in his mind, but I truly think it's the right way to go with this child, in particular. I wouldn't mind keeping the younger one in Kindergarten this year. He likes his class and his teacher, and I think they are learning quite a bit. If things change for him, I would pull him out, too. I'm just so frustrated.

Congratulations! That's awesome.

I've never really been a girly girl. I really don't like shopping for clothes, I don't wear anything but tennis shoes, unless I have to go to a wedding or something. I tried wearing make up once, but it just made my face feel dirty. I couldn't even tell you the names of fashion designers or different handbags. However, plop me down into a library or Barnes & Noble, and I'm in heaven! Or a scrapbooking store :D! My friends and family are all amazed at my addiction to scrapbooking because it seems like such a girly thing to do. But, I've always needed some kind of creative outlet, and this hobby lets me be creative and preserve memories for my kids at the same time. So, I'll gladly be girly for that!

I feel like that sometimes at 40, but it came about more gradually, I think. My joints creak and crack, periods seem to come more frequently instead of slowing down, energy levels are definitely plummeting, and I have trouble switching from focusing my eyes on something up close to something farther away. If you feel like these things happened to you suddenly, maybe you should get a check up to see if there isn't something specific going on.

I have to agree on Chocolat and The Holiday. Definitely need a box of chocolates, though, or at least some hot chocolate, if you're going to watch Chocolat! Pride and Prejudice also gets a vote, but only the version with Colin Firth. ;)

I did not think it was that bad, either. My mother had told me it felt like your breast was getting run over by a Mack truck, but I just found it slightly uncomfortable. I've heard, though, that the smaller you are, the more pulling on your breast, so it might hurt a little more.