I've really got a bug in my bonnet over this because of a bad experience dh had taking dd to the bathroom. Shouldn't men be able to make the best "bathroom choice" for their daughters without being treated like ogres? Women are caretakers for elderly and disabled men, and vise versa. What should they to do when there's no "family restroom? Warning: Some of the poll options are a bit facetious because that the mood I'm in. LOL!

This is exactly why my dh let a stranger take dd to the ladies room once. Now he's more afraid of my reaction, than the cops. Who is a 3 yo safer with in a public bathroom, a strange woman or her own father?

I don't really disagree with anything on this list, nor do I have a strong desire to go to the bathroom with a dude around. But (beating a dead horse here) I still don't feel that the needs of dads with daughters and caregivers of the elderly or disabled are addressed by this argument. I keep drumming this point because I cannot always be present when dd needs to use a public bathroom. Sometimes her father MUST take her. Once when she was 3 yo we had a rather lively "discussion" because he let a strange woman take her into the ladies room. He was so self conscious about taking her himself and felt the men's room was too dirty. (Rest assured. After our "discussion" he will never do this again.) It's really a shame that a father can't feel comfortable taking care of his daughter's physical needs in a public setting. Yes, there should be "family" restrooms. But it's unrealistic to think that every mall, grocery store, gas station, and golf course is going to spend the money to install them.

:smilielol5: First of all, every time I see this expression it cracks me up. Now what if that man was escorting his young dd to the bathroom? What about a man with his elderly grandmother? Will you make a scene and have security throw them out? Family restrooms are not available in MOST public places, and often toddlers and seniors can't "wait" for a caretaker to go out of the way to find one. On the other hand, what about some guy leering at your son in the men's room? Girls aren't the only potential victims of sexual abuse.

Oh Yeah! I've got a stash of those right now. Nothing else will do.

When I was kid I watched a lot of old black and white movies on TV. Lots of them used "man in the ladies room" as a gag. Inevitably, the women would run screaming from the bathroom as if they had seen a monster. I always thought it was pretty stupid, and I guess I still do. Don't most men and women use the same bathroom at home? Does something evil come over the average man in the bathroom, turning him into some kind of untamed, sex-starved beast? I really don't see how a guy waiting to use a stall, or discreetly using a urinal is a great threat to anyone. As for pedophiles, they are just as dangerous in single sex bathrooms as they would be in unisex ones. After all, they already molest boys in the men's rooms. Maybe all kids would be a little safer if we had the watchful eyes of mothers in all the bathrooms. My big concern here is the fact that there just aren't enough "family" restrooms in public places. Logistically, what is a father supposed to do when he has to take his young daughter to the bathroom? What about caregivers of the elderly or the disabled who don't happen to be the same gender as their charges? These can still be very awkward situations, and that is a terrible shame in this day and age.

Thanks!

Thanks. But I don't have the actual necklace, only a picture of it. One day...

Thanks for this resource. I just signed up.

:rant: CONVERSATE. It's not a word. Hearing that non-word is like listening to nails on a blackboard. It inspires a deep, irrational hatred in me which can only be relieved by shouting, "It's not a word! It's not a word! Say 'converse!' Conversate is not a word!" Oh, did I mention that conversate is not a word?

Bumping this up for the evening shift!

Karen, did you do Remedia Outlining first, or did you do it concurrently with HO?

How well would a reluctant writer who hasn't yet learned outlining do with this program. My ds's writing is coming along at a slow but gentle pace. We are using IEW with good results. But I'm afraid he would be overwhelmed by all the writing in HO. I am thinking about using the Remedia Publications materials to teach outlining. Does he need to complete the whole book before he could sucessfully outline a passive from Kingfisher or the Story of Mankind?

Judomom and others who use this method, I hope you can answer some questions for me. How many days does it take you to complete a full loop? If it takes 2-3 days, does that mean each subject is done 2-3 times a week? Are there any subjects you require to be done daily like math, grammar or Latin? If so how do you make this work? I recently made my own loop, and I admit to finding it a little overwhelming. Maybe it's too detailed. I can't really see anything to cut, and I'm sure I've forgotten something. Any thoughts would be welcome.

:iagree: I wouldn't send a 4 yo and a 6 yo to a public bathroom without an adult. Besides the problem of the 4 yo needing help and the 6 yo being too young to assist, it's just plain dangerous!

Three-time loser here. I need to get back on the wagon.

Maryland blue crabs steamed by the bushel, covered in Old Bay Seasoning, served outside on a newspaper covered table with wooden mallets, melted butter and cold beer! :drool:

We are accustomed to the alpha male. The alpha female is acceptable as long as she doesn't act like one. It's like one of my favorite lines from The Color Purple, "Folks don't like to see a woman being too wild or too free." Men in power are rewarded for being forceful and demanding while their female counterparts are still criticized for being too pushy and abrasive. Any person who looks in the mirror and says to himself/herself, "Hey, I really I SHOULD be President," has to be extremely driven, demanding and arrogant to some extent - even abrasive at times. I think it would be difficult for some one to aspire to high office without a certain degree of these "alpha" qualities, though some are better at masking them than others. I sure wish we could get past these double standards.

Ooo, Ooo, Ooo! I know this one! As soon as you harvest your cucumbers cut off the stem end. After a few minutes you'll see some clear gelatinous stuff. I don't know what this is, but if you scrape it off right away it will draw the bitterness out of the cucumber. Honestly, I was skeptical when someone first told me about this method. Now I'm a believer!

How about playing the Shakespearean dozens: "Your mama is a yeasty common-kissing hugger-mugger!" "Your daddy is a paunchy milk-livered mammet!"

I'm having DJ withdrawal.

Erica, we are part of a charter school in California. Out here there are quite a few for homeschoolers to choose from. I have to say my experience has been wonderful, excellent and very good! I know that many homeschoolers consider me a traitor, but it works for me. I figure I'm paying taxes to support public schools. I see no reason why my children shouldn't enjoy some of the benefits. There's a lot of scary hype surrounding these government homeschooling programs. Some of them don't work well at all, and some of them work for certain people. Just weight the the pros and cons for your family. If you think it will work for you, give it a try. Join us on the darkside. :coolgleamA: Here are the facts in my situation: -My charter allows me to choose my own curriculum. I am never forced to use any book or teaching style. -I get $1500 per year per student to spend on curriculum and/or classes. I cannot use the funds to buy religious materials, so I buy my Rod and Staff books with my own money. -I meet with a teacher once a month to turn in an attendance sheet and six work samples for each child. She is also a homeschooler, and is a great support to me. We meet at my local library. In fact, she meets most of her families at a local park day. She's not a government spy prying her way into anyone's home. LOL! -We do have to do standardized testing once a year because that is mandated by the state for all public schools. (I like the idea of an "objective" snap shot of where my kids are in math and English, so I see the testing as a good thing.) Of course, YMMV. -As Ellie said, non-consumable items must be returned when I'm finished. My school keeps a library of all the non-consumable items which families can check out free of charge. This lets me use my instructional funds for consumable items and music classes (which I could not otherwise afford.)

Try knittinghelp.com videos. They are very helpful and FREE. Also, it's much easier to pick up dropped stitches with a crochet hook. Anyone who says it's easy to learn at first is faking it. Like any new skill it takes practice. Don't be discouraged!

I can see the logic behind making it a local/state issue as opposed to a federal one. The problem is that state boundaries are open. There's nothing to stop someone from buying guns in Virgina and selling them in Oakland, New York, Chicago, DC or LA. I spent my summers in VA with family when I was a child. All my relatives there had guns, and I even shot tin cans with my cousins. Growing up in Baltimore, my father kept a pistol for protection at his store which was located in a rough area. So I understand the utilitarian nature of firearms. Yet, people are dying still. Fathers, sons, mothers, daughters, brothers, sisters and friends - 900 murdered last year in LA county. Thug or not, every one of them was somebody's child. I am just rambling at this point. Frankly, I don't know what the solution is, but I am frightened and sad.

Yes. Guns, like knives, are tools used in very different ways depending on where one lives. Of course, I would never wish any of the negative things you described on your family. However, my reality is not the same as yours. I'm sorry if you feel that my opposition to gun proliferation is threatening to your way of life. It isn't intended to be. But I have a family whom I love, and property that I try to protect as well. I live in Los Angeles, motherland of Crips and Bloods. In 2007, over 900 people were murdered in Los Angeles county - the majority being black and hispanic males. A large percentage of these killings are committed with guns. (See the Los Angeles Times Homicide Blog.) Many or these guns are stolen from law abiding citizens like you and me. No one is hunting deer in LA. No one is using handguns to slaughter livestock in my neighborhood. In my vast city one killing begets another, then another, then another. The cycle of violence is never-ending. Stray bullets kill innocent bystanders and thugs alike. And the saddest part is that most of the killings are ignored as long as one of "them" is killing another one of "them." Nobody cares. (But let me tell you, if 900 dogs were shot in LA county last year the people surely would rise up and put a stop to it.) Geography and culture are definitely factors in this debate which cause people to talk at cross purposes. Like you, I am frustrated because it seems that those who live far away from big cities do not understand how urban gun violence affects us. It cannot be dismissed with let "them" kill each other, or my kids are safe because I have a gun. It's so much more complicated. I simply stated in this thread and others that I don't enjoy living in a society in which I am surrounded by guns. They do not make me or my children one bit safer. That's a fact I feel rural gun advocates ignore. I do not presume to make any choices for anyone other than my family. I do choose to speak out on the issue, and to refrain from adding more guns to the deadly equation. Believe me, I am well aware of the kind of world I live in, and I am dogmatic about preparing my children for it. Although we are fortunate to live far from the worst pockets of violence, my boys still run the risk of being mistaken for gang bangers by actual gangsters and by the police. They are in danger of being shot on all sides. So, I can assure you that my eyes are wide open, and my children are being taught the cold reality of gun violence in our world.