Our youngest runs a fiber farm and, although I consider it a hobby, she reminds me that she makes a lot of money that pays her share of tuition. The summer is her chance to get the farm back in order and clip, shear, spin, dye, etc. In addition to this, she will do a part time internship in her major to keep her resume going.

When the inside thermostat reads 80, on it goes! We keep our house rather warm in the summer, set at 78 during the day. But, at night, it is set to 73. I like it colder when sleeping.

A very easy cream cheese/coolwhip/pudding in graham cracker crust pie. Chocolate? Butterscotch? Vanilla? Maybe all three! With berries. Simple and popular here.

All wonderful! Congratulations and blessings to all of you!!

Exactly, you can thank us, Terabith, not your dryer. We lost our firstborn’s sock on the drive home from the hospital...that has a higher value. You are welcome!

As a youngster hearing ‘Slip Sliding Away’ by Paul Simon. I could totally relate. I mean, it was about a slide on a playground, was it not???

I call this composition, “Living with an Upright Piano,” rather than, “Decorating with...”

The look is over... because it was all the lost/found gift certificate, I went with a customizable eShakti dress - always wanted to try them. I chose a plum knit knee length. Changed the sleeves to bracelet & made the v high neck, because that looks good w/my every present scarves. And...pockets!!! Hopefully it will look casual enough with my booties... https://www.amazon.com/eShakti-Feminine-Pleated-Cotton-Dress/dp/B07NJMG1CG/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_3?keywords=eshakti+feminine+fx+knit+dress&qid=1554521434&s=gateway&sr=8-3-fkmrnull

Love pockets here & yes, grateful when people give sizes with a review!

Great tip! That is a wonderful program, didn't know anything about it - Thank you!! And, MercyA, I just looked up other items from that company (Belle Poque) and, you are exactly right...cute things!!

WooHoo! I just found an Amazon gift card from 3 Christmas' ago! They state that they never expire. The Hannah Andersson knit dress I purchased on eBay for my NYC trip is a good fit, except HA is way too obviously narrow across the shoulders for me. It is just a plain old knit dress. - dropped waist, knee length. Have you had any success on Amazon with dresses?

I think I get it. The anticipation of his arrival causes you not to be able to fall asleep easily. If you do fall asleep, you wake with a start, mind rushing immediately, wondering, "Is he home yet?" So, if he is not coming in at all, those issues are nonexistent, and you sleep just fine. This is why I am glad (although my heart weeps) that our young adults have (mostly) gone away for college, it is so much easier to allow them to transition into the freedom of adulthood without either of us (YA or me) having to deal with MY adjustment issues. It is your house/your rules, though, but this is what we have done: 'give me an idea of ETA, text if that changes, be quiet upon arrival'. We consider that a courtesy of adults moving around in same house together, but we are only the recipient of the info from the absent/arriving adult, we do not mandate curfew or anything, ETA is their decision. I consider the difficulties of dealing with the 'anticipation' my issue to handle.

Ohhh, I really like WPA projects, thank you! That is reassuring about the ferry! One day we will just have to do our own things...I cannot wait to walk down and window-shop along 5th avenue, which he would abhor, and he can do his own thing in the financial district. Along the lines of the 'Top 10' DK NY book someone recommended, I googled "unusual stores in New York" and found all sorts of store lists...wow...what a crazy place!

I think that is a wonderful idea. Ds would surely like to do something more active. (as if walking miles/day isn't active enough=) And, now we have an extra day because 4 nights just wasn't enough!

So, about the ferry. Does one get motion sick on a ferry? I am prone to that, sigh! As I plan, I am getting so ridiculously excited!! Trip Advisor, Airbnb, Google Maps...the trip itself will be at least half the fun=)

My ds is a mathematics/finance geek, so he would spend all week there LOL,He is networking to have coffee w/a quant (gasp! All those years of preaching that, he is a now a committed networker), visiting the museum of finance, and just hanging out there. From katilac's posted list, I think there will be more to do in that section for me than I had thought. The history and restaurants will keep me busy when there. Thanks for that wonderful list. Got me motivated to spend more time there than I had thought! I am such the Country Mouse now!! LOL Once in a city, the City Mouse in me usually comes out...When I was growing up, an elderly neighbor sent me weekly on an errand to the nearby large metropolitan city via bus. And, my parents had no problem with this. I was in 5th grade! She wanted a pound cake from a department store. I would carry that poundcake in it's cardboard box wrapped with string back on the bus weekly. Good memories!

There are great old threads on NYC! But, I still have questions... Visiting with young adult in May who shares my desire to just enjoy the locale. Plan to spend time on Wall Street, take a food tour, and do a show. Want to walk the high line. I do not think DS will want to go into the Statue of Liberty, but will we regret missing it? He plans to spend time on Wall St. Any tips there? And, we're considering Brooklyn for cost and quaintness. Is safety, returning at night from shows, a concern? We plan to walk and take the subway everywhere. Thank you!

Just an FYI: If you have a convection setting on your oven, you do not need an air fryer. I did some research, because I really knew nothing about airfryers until this thread. Reading reviews on Amazon led me to understand that these are simply small convention ovens. (I guess I thought they did some ‘magic’ in there=). I hopped on over to Wikipedia to learn more. Some models agitate the food, but, generally, these only afford me a little energy savings, and it’s small size made it a little more efficient. So, if your oven has a convection setting, wiki taught me that one simply needed a tray called an ‘Air crisper tray’ to get about the same results. Maybe also an oil mister. With those being only $20 that is quite a better deal if you have that feature on your regular oven, and you can make enough food for a crowd. ETA - @Just Kate has a great idea...what a handy portable oven, though!

So, how quick is quick? Quicker than an oven, because it does not need so long to preheat or quick like a microwave? And, along those lines @Just Kate how long did you need to cook your Brussel's sprouts? I do mine in regular oven for 30 on 400.

We use Spend Tracker, but it does not link, so it is not what you are looking for. Love that it does not link to accounts as I only wanted to track certain spending (DH's, grocery, clothing, gifts, etc) which are more controllable. It provides the visual accountability that I was looking for. It is only as good as the information put into it, but I was looking for something simple, a substitute for taking cash out of an envelope and handwriting purchases on that envelope -- the low-tech method I used in the past.

I do not know if it is possible for me to understand, but I will tell you what question I ask myself when I read this type of comment: Not societally or culturally, but just pure and simple fact: isn't gender all about s*x? I mean, the biological reality is that gender is tied to s*x organs that are biologically made to provide half the chromosomes in reproduction. Does this not have any meaning to young people anymore?

I just wanted to express my concern and assure you of prayers. So sorry you all are going through this — you are a loving mama, an intelligent woman, and a good steward of your gifts — everything is going to be ok.

Yes, when I explored Amazon (and was overwhelmed) the spin-offs did seem the best for avoiding the why/why/why’s. And, these templates are excellent - thank you!

Goodness!! Finding books with practical, basic plans & recipes is hard. I do not want to read about the science or theory behind different nutritional plans, just how to incorporate them into our cooking/eating. Personally, my intention is to feed myself & my family more variety and less grains. That could be in Adkins, Paleo, Keto, Whole Food 30, etc, etc, etc. Although, I am not anti-grain, anti-fat, anti-gluten or anti-Dorito, I think there is so much to glean from many of those dietary regimes. So, I could benefit, and so could others, from your nutritional finds. Share your favorite books, either cookbooks or dietary plan books that helped you feed your family better ... whatever 'better' means to you.

My understanding is the training for soft-mouth will not rehabilitate a dog who bites. I have been reading many old threads regarding dogs. And, have stumbled upon some that deal with biting. When I have seen dog biting issues, the overwhelming majority recommend getting professional help. To find old threads, this is how I google (since the search on here is not the best IMO): Google: "site:forums.welltrainedmind.com ____________". Placing 'dog biting' into the blank gave me a lot of results. And, I am bumping mainly so someone else with current advice may chime in. Best wishes!