We're like that. No teenagers though. And I'm the only who has grandkids now. And it's a small extended family. My parents, myself, Dh, kids, in laws, one unmarried BIL, and my brother and his wife who come in from out of state on holidays when their busy schedules allow. Everyone gets along. If things have to be done on a different day then so be it. Last Christmas we had lasagna, salad, garlic bread, cheesecake, and warm apple pie with vanilla bean ice cream and caramel sauce at 1:00pm, so everyone who had to work the next day could get home on the earlier side of things. No tension, some sadness this year, but there's never been drama. We're like that for now, ask me again in 10 years.

Maybe an issue of Wired, National Geographic, the Smithsonian, or Scientific American. Not a subscription necessarily, but just one if any of the cover stories look interesting.

Did he ever like Firefly/Serenity? They just came out with a comic continuation. I think it was only 6 or so comics and there's now a compilation book.

Barnes and Noble had stocking sized logic puzzles which I think would fit the theme considering the deadline. I've been called nerdy for enjoying the following items, it might be stretching but you are down to the wire! Sudoku book plus pen or crossword book? a game like Set? a book of grid based logic puzzles Character themed boxer shorts. I bet you could find something at Target. I am positive I saw Mario Brother's boxers at our Target recently.

I would get the book since it explains every game and has variations for many of them. I haven't used the videos yet, but I think the book is really helpful.

Crisp. Or crisper than I've gotten with metal pans.

I hate coffee, but watching Gilmore Girls always makes me want to try it. The smell keeps me away though. Come to think of it, I usually want a cocktail or some wine while watching that show if there's a Friday night dinner involved.

My parents and in laws both see the kids about once a week on average. My parents and in laws are all in the 56-58 age range. My dad used to take my son hiking, fishing, to the splash pad, to Chuck. E, Cheese, and to the kids museum at least once a month but now he's been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's and so those things take more planning as he no longer drives. I take all of them now, but it's always a special "papa trip" as far as my kids know. He still likes to play hide and seek with them. My FIL likes to take the out to lunch, to the park, and to go shopping. My MIL likes to do craft projects with them. My mother is the best cuddler and the most patient for listening to their never ending stories. Better than me, that's for sure. For now, they usually have a once a month sleepover with each set. They are pretty willing baby sitters if I'm sick, need a date night/mom's night out, have an emergency or whatever. They are the only grandkids on both sides of the family... I have no idea how much time I'll spend with my grandkids.

Dd2 -Very Little Red Hiding Hood and The Napping House DS 5-getting the Discovery Channel Sharkopedia and the National Geographic Kids Big Book of Dinosaurs(titles approximate). Neither kid can read. On Christmas Eve, we get a box with a movie, board game, Christmas book, pajamas, and snack. The book this year is The Jolly Postman Christmas.

Myy daughter loves, loves, loves pink, princess-y things, sparkly things, and dresses up in her favorite tutu and sparkly shoes to climb and hang out in a tree....yeah. Still, there's no point in flipping your lid if the item does not exist. Or is sold out, too expensive, or whatever. I'm totally in the princess(who wants to climb trees and play drums)loop and what you witnessed was nuts.

I was in a Target one time when someone just lit into a cashier about a sale item not being in stock. The cashier, at first, tried to explain that it wasn't a guaranteed in stock item and that the sale had been going on for 5 days now. That didn't matter. The customer was livid and began demanding the cashier call every single Target to find the item and get it to her. It wasn't near a holiday, so presumably just a person doing their best to be a garden variety jerk. I had a small child and no wish to confront Ms. AngryPants, so I noted the nametag of the cashier and just called the store manager later that day to heap praise on the cashier and let the manager know if she got any complaints, it wasn't the cashier that was the problem. Not as satisfying as a confrontation, but it seemed like the least bad option at the time.

I don't get it either. I love Christmas. We buy too many gifts, make too much food, and I plan special Christmas activities for almost every day in December and still, I've never lost my temper with a store clerk about anything. There's no point in getting worked up, it ruins the fun. I really don't get it.

My 5 year old boy who loves to build and my 3 year old girl who loves little toys and to build both adore Wedgit blocks. My son is younger, so I don't know how much help this will be but he also loves science things and nature. He likes DVD sets of nature/animal shows he likes(River Monsters is favorite), loves Snap Circuits, magnifying glasses, playing with my phone or digital camera to take pictures of animals he sees on our hikes, would love a good sturdy bug net and bug house for observation, and one of his favorite gifts has been a family pass to the aquarium. For your guy who likes active play, do you have yard space for a slackline or zipline? One year my brother got a unicycle for Christmas. He spent hours learning to ride that thing...

My son, almost 6, loves Castle Logix. I bought Camelot Jr. and Equilibrio for Christmas, so we'll see how that goes. He plays Rush Hour Jr. on the iPad. We actually started with the games and are just now cracking Lollipop Logic, but I can not plug the logic type games enough. He's flying through Lollipop Logic and I'd almost rather spend another year with the games before buying another workbook.

My son is not that great at puzzles, so I don't know how helpful this will be. He likes those large Melissa and Doug floor puzzles. He really loves the ocean and outer space ones, but there's several of them. He also likes the Lauri foam puzzles with a lot of pieces but an outline on the tray, but the floor ones are a clear preference.

Not really, DS was assigned to make a Valentine's Day box which he would have needed significant help with if I wanted to look nice. DS is not into crafts. As it was he helped me cover a shoe box with construction paper and I handed over stickers. He stuck 5 on and walked away. He had trouble writing at the time, so I ended up signing his name to the 20 or so Valentines we bought to hand out. We had to decorate a paper turkey feather and he wanted it glittery, so I pulled out the glitter and glue and let him go. It was covered in glitter! The teacher talked to me about taking a more active role and I told her that I thought the process of creating was more important than the outcome and that DS had a blast and was proud of his creation. I probably said it in a tone suggesting she could cram her active role suggestions sideways. It seemed like the school expected that these would be more of a parent project or more parent directed so they looked a certain way, but that's dumb so I just ignored their expectations. I was not a good preschool mom.

I know a few. Some who are politically conservative, but not the least bit religious and a few who are not all that conservative but would prefer civil unions to marriage for gay people. Small group overall, but they do exist. To the people canceling reality shows, you keep your hands off The Amazing Race or we are going to have problems.

Things my 5 year old likes and can do by himself include the miniLuk hidden picture books(with a picture key-he can't read) Starfall insta snow a "chemistry" tray with baking soda, vinegar, water, food coloring and pipettes(my 5 year old is mess averse and is great at following directions-I could leave him alone with this stuff at 3. I can't do that with my dd!) water beads an magna doodle or etch a sketch maze book an actual tape measure a shovel and our dirt pile of a backyard puzzles a digital camera and instructions to find certain things(cool bugs, different colors, portraits of the dog, whatever) Wedgits

I'm no longer a conservative Christian. When I was more conservative, the wedding cake issue didn't bother me. I looked at it as similar to the Muslim cab driver and seeing eye dog/duty free alcohol issue. I thought, and still think, bakeries should just make the cake. I don't think it shows any kind of approval of the event.

We haven't used this title, but my DS 5 is a huge fan of other books in this series. http://www.amazon.com/National-Geographic-First-Space-Little/dp/1426310145/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417988968&sr=8-1&keywords=national+geographic+space

I get asked frequently and I say no frequently. It doesn't bother me at all, same as being asked if I want stamps, ice, or re-usable bags. I've never had a cashier act rude about it. Honestly, I've never had a cashier act like they care at all. And really, what the heck would I care if a random cashier thought something negative about me based on one transaction? That's on them, not me.

I grew up in a large suburb outside of Kansas City, Kansas. I was about 7 when I first remember meeting a black person and that was the one black kid who went to the elementary school I did. I took the test. I got little to no automatic preference for either.

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Cast iron is also great for making a good Chicago style pizza! I have to yet to make a great Chicago pizza at home, but I have made several good enough for now with no access ones. :)

I get my best results using a pizza stone. I like this dough recipe well enough, http://moneysavingmom.com/2009/02/homemade-pizza-in-less-than-30-minutes.html It's not the best ever, but it's very convenient and done quickly. Also, the dough is easy enough to work with that my kids can help make it. I like to dock my dough(poke holes in it with a fork, particularly if I'm pre baking, it just gets less puffy. I love sprinkling oregano over the cheese before baking and, if I'm feeling really indulgent, I'll brush the crust with olive oil and sprinkle garlic salt over it when it's right out of the oven. Too many toppings can make the crust soggy, but you can alleviate that somewhat by pre baking. If I am are making pizza for several people who all are particular about toppings, I make the pizzas in 8 or 9 inch cake pans. The crust isn't as crisp as when I use a stone, but it's tasty. BBQ sauce, bacon, browned hamburger, and cheddar cheese can make a really different, but tasty pizza. My kids and husband love chicken alfredo pizza or pizza with a garlic butter sauce instead of red sauce. I like to roast tomatoes, peppers,and garlic and put it on a fully baked whole wheat crust that I spread cream cheese or thick seasoned yogurt cheese over. Pesto as a sauce with grilled chicken and some feta and mozzarella is fun too. That's also really easy to do on pita for a quick lunch.