DP

This is a genuine question...no traps, I promise. I do have to leave for a while, but I'll be back to participate. I just wanted to post the question during a time when many were likely to see it. Our family identifies as Christian, although we don't currently attend church. My husband was raised Catholic, but he isn't "practicing." I was raised Methodist. We don't actually identify with any specific denomination. That was just background info about us. Not sure it really has anything to do with my question, but I thought I'd give full disclosure. Now to the question. My 17yo actually asked it, and I have no answer. I tried to google, but only came up with some pretty extreme fundamentalist sites which weren't helpful to me. So, where better to turn than the Hive? So, she asked this: If, according to the Bible, the Jewish people are God's chosen people, and, if, Jesus is, indeed, God's son, come to save us, then why, with the exception of the Jewish people who are Messianic, do they not believe this to be so? In other words, if Jesus is God's son, and the Jewish people are His chosen people, wouldn't He have taken great pains to see to it that they understood this to be true? Understand that I'm not disputing whether the Jewish people are God's chosen. If one is using the Bible as one's source, that fact is clear. The problem she's having is why God would allow His chosen to misunderstand who Jesus is, if, in fact, He is God's son. I have no answer. If I haven't explained this well, please let me know how to clarify. Any and all input is welcome. I realize this is likely a charged topic, and my intent is to seek to understand. I am not trying to start discord. As I said, I do have to leave soon and will be gone for a while, but I'll be back to participate. I sincerely appreciate anyone's thoughts on this topic. :)

This made me laugh. Not at you, because i feel your pain regarding lousy parking practices. I laughed because i thought of Dh who has serious parking skills. He can, and does, back anything into any spot, in one, try perfectly. I'm amazed. I, on the other hand, will be sticking to pulling into spots the conventional way, for my sanity, as well as for the safety of all surrounding vehicles. :D

With my youngest, I had lots of early u/s because of my previous pregnancy complications. At 6 weeks, we only saw what appeared to be an empty yolk sac. I was terrified, but my ob reassured me and sure enough, all was fine. That was the pregnancy that resulted in my now super healthy 7yo. So, it's definitely possible that all is well. :)

Ottakee, I "liked" your post, but now I feel compelled to qualify that I didn't mean I "liked" the outcomes you mentioned regarding your MIL and FIL. I'm very sorry for your MIL's transplant need, and for the loss of your FIL. I only meant that I agreed that a top notch urologist is essential. Pediatric is key in this situation, in my opinion. We saw the Chief of Urology at a stellar children's hospital. I didn't want my "like" to seem callous or cavalier. If I offended you, I am very sorry.

Dh and I can, as can our 3 oldest children. Our 7yo cannot, bit I don't know if that's because he can't or because he's still too young to really understand what he's supposed to be doing.

A simple in office culture could miss an infection, especially if it has already gone to the kidneys. Did they do blood work? Send the urine for a more advanced culture? The following is not a flame in any way. Just our experience, and an encouragement in your consideration regarding traveling to see someone else. :) Dd17 had stage 4 and 5 kidney reflux as an infant. She suffered kidney damage in spite of long term antibiotics and surgery to repair the reflux. Obviously, I'm not familiar with the specifics in your case. I realize that you mentioned there is only one urologist in town. To me, it's very important that you see a pediatric urologist. If possible, travel to a children's hospital in order to see the best of the best. Recurrent kidney infections can cause damage. I'm not being critical at all, just trying to stress the importance of making sure you're addressing the root cause of the issue. Long term antibiotic use isn't to be entered into lightly, but it was life saving in dd's case (your situation may be different, I realize). We gave lots of probiotics and eliminated sugar from her diet in order to combat the negative effects antibiotics have on the gut. She had other medical issues, and spent lots of time in the hospital, but regarding her kidneys, I feel the most crucial factor in her care was seeing the best pediatric urologist available. I had to fight our insurance company in order to do so, but it was so very worth it.

For an institution, I obey all rules to the best of my ability. If I'm not willing to do that, then I simply don't join the particular institution in question. The only law I can think of that I don't always obey is the speed limit. In towns and neighborhoods, I obey the speed limit in all cases. On the interstate, sometimes I exceed the speed limit, but that is generally during high traffic times when everyone else is speeding. I'm not following the "if everyone else is doing it, it must be ok" line of thought. I'm doing it because drivers around here can have serious road rage. I would rather exceed the speed limit by 5 mph and risk a ticket than be a victim of that road rage. It may not be the right thing to do, but it's an honest answer.

What a sweet picture, and how cool that your dh officiated! Many blessings for them and for a lifetime of happiness together. Congratulations!

Congratulations!!

We have unlimited texting. My teens are 14 and 17. The 17yo just graduated from public high school, and 14yo is homeschooled exclusively. We've never set limits on texting except for meals, or special occasions or events. If I saw evidence that texting had affected my 17yo's performance in school, we would have explored limits, but her grades were stellar, so there was no need. My 14yo generally uses his phone for rides, brief communication with us or with friends, and his fledgling lawn care business, so it hasn't been a problem either.

When ds14 was little, he was the master at finding things that were not his and partially drinking or eating them before we even knew what happened. Off the top of my head, I remember a partially eaten pb&j sandwich he found under a picnic table at the pool as I was setting out our snack, an open soft drink and an open water bottle both discovered at oldest dd's rec league basketball games. We weren't negligent parents. He was just stealthy and fast. He never got the plague...or even a minor illness. I'm sorry this happened though; especially when you're already stressed. I remember the ick factor I felt when it happened to us. Hugs.

Congratulations! You are honestly inspiring.

I voted 'other.' We live in the south, so for friends and social acquaintances, our children address adults as Mr. or Mrs. First Name. However, for an instructor or other person of authority, they would address them as Mr. or Mrs. Last Name.

He's just darling...a total cutie!! Congratulations to all!!

Happy birthday! Hope it's amazing! :)

Happy birthday! Hope it's wonderful! :)

I don't know how to link on the iPad, but my kids liked Colorforms when they were toddlers. Regarding magnetic toys, there are quite a few options. I'm not sure whether you're looking for building type toys or something else, but doing a search for "magnetic toddler toys" at amazon or fat brain toys turns up quite a few different possibilities.

We use.the cap erasers mentioned upthread. We also use hand held erasers, but not as often as the cap type. I can't bring myself to throw away a good, serviceable pencil. Ticonderogas and Black Warriors stay, but any pencils I don't need or want are given to one of the local schools, along with a cap eraser if necessary. If it's a really sub-standard pencil, it's thrown out. No mercy.

Haha...this made me laugh. I can't say we necessarily hate the smell of Cheerios, but we definitely think they smell weird. We actually call them "Meatios," because they weirdly smell vaguely of some unidentified type of meat. Strange. I completely understand your aversion.

Oh my! He's so sweet! What a handsome little man. :) Enjoy being a grandma. I can't wait to join you as a first time grandparent sometime in late July/early August. Congratulations to all!

Canned green beans. Also, the canned corned beef hash fil makes for his lunch sometimes. Oh, and any type of microwave "meal." I literally smell the chemical cocktail, and it will drive me from the house if I can't get the windows open fast enough. They are also fil's lunch foods of choice.

Happy birthday to your precious little blessing! I hope the day was wonderful for all of you!

I completely agree. However, what bothers me even more, I think, is that the lifeguard chose to continually shoo them out rather than refuse them entry in the first place, kwim? At the very least, the lifeguard should find the parent, remind the parent of the rules and wait while the parent escorts the children from the spa. Rules are rules. Sometimes I don't agree with the policies in place at our facility either, but I abide by them because they are part of the contract I signed when becoming a member. It doesn't matter what I think. I follow the rules out of respect for the facility and the other members. I'm sorry you had a stressful experience instead of the relaxing one you needed.

So what? Well, you are correct that we cannot change history, but that does not mean we should romanticize or imitate the atrocities that occurred. Slavery is not something we should seek to recreate for the entertainment of others. It was an abhorrent practice. I cannot imagine in what scenario one would find it acceptable to hire people to dress and act as slaves for anything other than an historical reenactment. You also mentioned hiring 'oriental looking men' for a Pearl Harbor themed wedding. I assume you are referring to Asian men, more specifically Japanese men in the context of Pearl Harbor, but the whole reference boggled my mind. World War II was a horrific war (as all wars are), and the tragedy of Pearl Harbor was, well, I don't have the appropriate adjective at the moment. To each his or her own, I suppose, but I can't fathom how that "theme" would fit with a wedding or any event of the sort. Nor could I imagine hiring Asian or Japanese men for such an event. A 1940's era theme? Sure. But that would be an entirely different affair. I disagree that we are becoming "a society of prohibitive censors because of political correctness." In my opinion, it is not censorious to observe the parameters of respect for honoring the rights of all of humanity to be treated with dignity. We have made mistakes so large that I don't know if they can ever truly be repaired, but one step in the right direction would be to avoid repeating them...for any reason, and certainly not for the "entertainment" of others, for goodness' sake.