Honda Odyssey - 8 seater. It's quite comfortable and is roomy enough that car seats next to each other aren't cramped (you can even position the two captains seats in the middle row on the wide setting so there is a bit of space between them and the so center jump seat, which remarkably is fairly comfortable.

That didn't help me feel more sympathy for her. Honestly, if I had to choose between my own child and supporting my husband while he decided whether or not to abandon my child, it would be a no-brainer. My child wins. Every time. It wasn't that long ago that children born with Down syndrome, here in the US, were whisked away at birth and parents were very strongly counseled to put the child in an institution. yet many parents went against medical advice, cultural norms, and even societal/family pressure, brought those babies home, and raised them as they would their other children. I just can't see what this mother had to decide, especially with a husband by her side, wanting to raise their child.

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

Yep, she's a fantastic speaker!

I took the 3 children part as just citing what is necessary for maintaining population. Italy, for instance, is at risk of having too small a working generation to pay for those in retirement due to their extremely low birth rate. I didn't take that comment to mean as Catholics we should aim at having the magic number of three children. (For full disclosure, we have four children.) The rabbit thing ... considering the past comments in regards to Catholics and having large families, I think it wasn't the best way to say what he was trying to say. In terms of the actual teaching, he didn't say anything contrary to Church teaching - prudence should enter into the equation while still maintaining an openness to life, even if that means using NFP to not conceive. I do think, though, he should be more careful with what he says, knowing how often he is being taken out of context, how often sound bites are being flung around the internet, and how often what he says could cause confusion within the Church. It's one thing to see quotes pop up on my FB feed from my non-Catholic friends, or field a comment from someone in real life; but when someone inside the Church is offended or confused over his comments, I think there's a problem. Taylor Marshall had a good blog post today regarding "internal" Popes and "external" Popes and how Pope Francis falls on the "external" side - teaching those outside the Church. But in this day and age, with so many in the media not caring if they have their facts straight or not, it's a dangerous position if you don't think carefully about your words.

I was wondering about food allergies/intolerances, especially food dyes, gluten, and dairy. They can act like speed for the brain.

When I found out that I was heterogenous for the C667T mutation as was my daughter, I just went ahead and switched the whole family over to Thorne (except dd; she has Down syndrome and takes a multi designed for kids with Ds). I need to get us all taking our vitamins regularly though. None of us are consistent at all. I have a feeling my dad was at least heterogenous; he had an aneurism that was caught in time. His mother had a stroke a few years before she died. I wouldn't be surprised if the mutation runs on both sides of the family, though I haven't tried to talk my mom into having a blood test and my dad passed many years ago. I only got myself tested after hearing from other parents of children with Ds and how their children were testing positive. My GP had no idea what it even was, but knows me well enough that he ordered the test. Dd's pediatrician was the same way, and even told me she was negative because he didn't read the results correctly. Does anyone know if there is a blood test/finger prick that will tell you if you are clotting too fast and need. A baby aspirin? I'm hesitant to take one but given family history, think it's probably something in my future.

PS: My dh said he feels like Agent 99 talking on a shoe-phone. ;) He's happy that it fits comfortably in his pocket (no way it would fit in my pocket, but I guess that's why I carry a purse and he doesn't) and hasn't complained about it, so I think he likes his too.

Dh and I upgraded from our 4S to the 6 Plus this Christmas. I wasn't sure at first because it felt so ridiculously big. I love the analogy of a Hobbit with a iPhone. ;) But, I can *read* everything on it, even without my glasses. I don't mind if a kid steals the iPad because I can surf the web and FB without eye strain on the Plus. It's a bit awkward at first using it as an actual phone; it actually felt a little ostentatious the first few times. But now, I don't even notice until I set it down next to our old phones (we kept those to use as iPods for music and audio books). Man those were tiny. In all, I'm quite happy we went with the 6 Plus. Oh, and we went ahead and bought the 128 MB; I don't know if I could ever fill it up, but the camera is so insanely gorgeous, it gives me a ton of room for photos and videos.

You were the one that recommended it to me. :D I can't wait until it's ready to ship from Amazon.

We love MP here. Various kids use various amount of their products, and we don't always use them exactly as written, but I have been very happy with all of it. I have one kids that likes writing his answers in the lit and history guides. He feels a sense of completion, and it's helping him craft better, and complete, sentences. My other two boys don't like that, so like others have said, I use the guides as oral narration prompts and discussion points. I am very excited about the new discussion guides with the grammar/logic/rhetoric sections. I bought the American Poetry and Short Story books to do as read alouds/group discussions, and now am debating adding it to my 8th grader's lit this year. And I can't say enough about their new Simply Classical curriculum we are using with our four year old Ds with Down syndrome.

I preordered t a couple weeks ago when someone recommended it. I can't wait. Must finish the Aeneid for Children so we are ready when it comes.

Just be prepared to have to tell people, "No, her real name isn't ... " and for her to do the same. My legal name is a name all by itself (it's Norwegian). But when I was in high school an English name became popular, which has as its nickname my legal, non-shortened name. My mom had to yell at the class ring people because they refused to use nicknames and told her my name was a nickname. I have a few people in my life that sweetly call me by my non-full name ;) and I don't mind it from them. But on a whole, even though I'd never want to change my name, it gets a bit old explaining to someone that no, my name isn't short for anything.

There are saints for just about any day in the Catholic Church. 😀 Here is a great book that has two page spreads about a good number for kids. It goes chronological from the time of the Apostles and gives the feast date for each saint. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0829417850/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1419209325&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SY200_QL40

According to CNN, they have both passed. :( http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/20/us/new-york-police-officers-shot/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Congratulations three times over!!!

Prayers for you all. :grouphug:

Roman Catholic.

A huge tree a street over from us landed on their house. It was a city tree, so hopefully it's not too hard for them to get everything taken care of quickly. Thankfully here it just meant lost sleep listening and watching the rain for a while at 4am.

It's not you stating an opinion with which we disagree. It's you stating you know more about the beliefs of Catholics and the Catholic Church with which we disagree. As others have pointed out, reading about the church, and given you have not stated that you've actually studied what the Church teaches, does not an expert make. You truly do not know of what you speak. Again, I warmly invite you to attend Mass, read the Catechism (it's available online - I'll link in a moment), read the early Church Fathers. But please stop stating you are knowledgable about Catholicism and then use that "knowledge" to judge those of us that are. Catechism of the Catholic Church - Completely Online

I'm watching the news, and the images out of Camarillo Springs is heartbreaking. Rocks, mud, and even a few boulders up to the roof lines of houses. :(

It's been raining here since about 4am. When it started the wind was going too and I haven't heard such a deafening sound in a long time. It has since mellowed a bit and is just consistently raining. I checked and we've had over an inch of rain in the last four hours.

Your posts read with a great deal of authority on this subject. But what I find interesting is that the church you disparage, the one you question the salvation of its members, is the same one who compiled the Bible you claim disproves it. Before that, there were 300 years, give or take, before there was a compiled set of Scripture. There were letters and oral tradition to pass on the teachings of Christ. "Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours." 2 Thessalonians 2:15 We must read Scripture, study Scripture - but being careful not to apply only our perspective, culture, and bias. What did it mean then, what did God intend, how has it been interpreted from the beginning, who was the audience, when was it written and where ... there is a lot that goes into it. The Gospel of John, for instance, was written after the Church had been established to address heresies that were already popping up. John 6 is teaching the Real Presence as there were already those questioning it. John 17 is a beautiful chapter on Jesus' desire that we be one as He is one with the Father. It makes even more sense following John 6 where people walked away because the teaching on the Eucharist was too hard. We cannot just take the Bible, read it through our eyes and our times and think we know exactly what it says on issues of dogma, let alone on anything else. That is why the church is so fractured today. When I, left on my own, or even under the authority of a pastor, say, of my former church, are left to interpret Scripture, we more than likely will interpret it different than my neighbor and her pastor of a different church. The RC interpretation hasn't changed. To say that those who are members of the RC, the same church that decided which books belonged in the Bible (until Luther and the reformation decided to take some out and attempted to take others out), don't know the gospel is inflammatory. To say it is "not between you and me" when you have made it specifically that by insinuating that Catholics, possibly including those on this board, are more than likely not saved, is inflammatory. Visit a local Catholic Church. Enter with an open heart willing to learn. Attend multiple Masses. Listen to the Bible being read liturgically - a whole new understanding may come to you. But please, don't ever question our salvation.

I had to read through this a couple times to admit I read what I really read. You state that based on what you see, Catholics are cultural and not saved and then say you aren't one to judge? I echo speedmom - have you ever been to a Catholic Mass? Have you ever read the early Church Fathers? Have you ever glanced at the Catechism? To say you don't know if Catholics know the "true gospel" would be laughable if it weren't so utterly ill informed. I am a Catholic convert out of evangelical Protestant Christianity. I, too, have been on both sides.

I'm not sure how bad it's supposed to be by the time it gets to us, but our street is lined with huge trees that the city doesn't trim nearly often enough (city trees on the parkways). We used to have two out on the side of the house, and one came down during a bad El Niño storm when I was little. We've had dangling branches before after rains. I'm a bit concerned about branches coming down. It's also a possibility on the trees that line our other street everything is so dry that cracking off large branches won't take too much wind, especially If they are heavy with rain (neither set of trees drop leaves in the fall).