I woman I know stayed with the man because she didn't want to lower her standard of living. Seriously. Her oldest is 17 now, and what a mess that girl is. The boys are following in dad's footsteps. I don't understand, I don't think I would stay. Fortunately, I got myself out of a relationship that could have let to emotional abuse. Whenever I see the guy's wife, I think there but for the grace of God go I.

Just curious- why did your husband make a decision about your child's future based on a "reality" TV show? I hope he wasn't basing his decision solely on that. It would make me wonder if he believes everything he sees on TV. And I did watch the show last season. It was like watching a train wreck- once I started I kept watching. I'm not going to watch this season though. I started feeling sick for the poor girls.

I am currently working 3-8 Monday through Thursday. I make two days worth of food for Monday and Wednesdays, and have left overs on Tuesdays & Thursdays. Here's what I've done: Anything in a crock pot Any casserole Meatloaf Roast chicken (oven on time bake), something with left over chicken the next day Crock pots and time bake are your friend! Prep the veggies and have dh steam them, or toss together a salad.

(I'm assuming that your in-laws living with you.) Do you think your in-laws are *unable* to responsibly take care of their medications, due to their medical conditions? In this case, you or dh should take control of all medications. Or maybe the problem is that they can't keep the pills in the original containers, because they are too difficult to open (this happened to my mil.) In that case, I would ask if I could put their pills in one of those days-of-the-week pillboxes for them. That way the dogs would not get into as many pills if there was a problem.

I would ask if I were you, but I would not be surprised or upset if they said no. You knew when you signed up for class that rowing and dance were 35 miles apart. The dance studio did nothing wrong, so they don't owe you a refund for your scheduling issues. But if they're nice and understanding, they will oblige.

I don't know why people are crazy for Disney. Last time I was there (long story- free tix with a convention,) younger dd & I left after about an hour. I was physically ill, she didn't want to stay (she was maybe 5 or 6.) Older dd and dh stayed all day long. So I think it's just a matter of personal preference.

I tip 20% off the pre-tax amount for standard service. I will tip more or less if the service varies. I tip more if I go to a fancy restaurant for dinner, because I don't usually drink alcohol, and that reduces my total bill (and thus the tip) significantly. I heard a news report once that wait staff will make more tips if they appear to be overworked than if they make their job look easy. I thought that was interesting!

If a young adult's family has the financial means for the young adult to have access to a car, and can pay the insurance, I assume that a 16-yo has a license or will soon. My older dd drove to school by herself the day after she got her license (a day after her 16th birthday.) I'm sure my younger dd will do the same. If I didn't think a child was ready for the responsibility, I would not do that. But I would expect a lot of questions as to why, because people are curious.

I recently read a (fictional) book about exactly this scenario. One Second After. Turns out this is a possibility, with an Electro-magnetic Pulse. The book is not that well written, but it brings up a lot of concerns.

I think it's great! Gives me new ideas, reading everyone else's. Based on your goals and what you like, I would suggest option 2 for you. I like to lift weights, so I lift weights 2 days on, one day off. I do easy cardio (walking) for an hour 3-4 days per week, and half an hour on a stationary bike twice per week. I embrace my bulky muscles;). However, I do throw in Callanetics every now and then, just to mix it up and confuse my body. I find doing this really helps me. So, I would suggest throwing in something you don't really like (Jillian Michaels?) maybe once a month. I do change my plan every 2 months, and I find it helps. If you don't want to do that, I would suggest planning something that is completely different from the usual at least once per month. Long hike/bike ride, take a kettlebell class, etc. Good luck!

Well, you brought some sunshine to my morning! I get that a bit as well. As for everyone saying Merry Christmas, I just pretend they are saying Krismus. It's a cultural event. Glad Yule, Mergath.

Really? I understand that you believe the bible is the true word of god, but do you not see the the problem with this argument? Just because 4 books have been written about something does not make it a fact. I also don't understand why a religion should need proof to back up its claims. Isn't religion about faith?

I'm sure this is exactly how my mother felt about me. She was always trying to get me to read Anne of Green Gables, because she chose Anne (with an "E"!!) for my middle name because of that book. I think she was envisioning all the shared conversations and shared love of books. There is hope- I read all the Anne books as an adult, and I love them. I haven't read Jane Austen, but I like some of the movies made from her books- that's as close as I'll get there I think. I do think a good literature study will include books that she doesn't really like, just limit them to really good examples of literature. I like the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld. There was a thread on the high school board about future dystopian novels- lots of good suggestions there.

You are a fantastic host. I am planning to eat dinner at home before I go to a dinner party, because I don't want to starve if there's nothing I can eat.

And think about the rest of the wedding party. My bil told his ex she could be at his new wedding, because his kids wanted her there- but had to rescind the invite later because mil would have freaked out. Doesn't sound like this applies to you, just be thoughtful of everyone. I think it's great that you are willing to support your children in this way.

I would have taken on a religion if I was in love w/someone to whom that was important. As long as it could be more as a community to me than anything else. I have told my daughters the same thing. (Limiting one's search for a spouse to atheists is rather limiting.) I have also told them they don't get to try to "save" me if they become religious themselves.

I have done this on-and-off throughout my life. I tried so hard to believe! The funny thing is, I was introduced to my (late) husband by a woman in my church group. He was an atheist also- but church group lady didn't know about either of us. She just thought we were a good match. (She was right!) I get along well with extremely religious people. Seems like my morality lines up better with theirs than with most atheists I've met. And as long as they get to know me before they find out I'm an atheist, they like me too. After they find out, they usually just assume I'll come around to their way of thinking sooner or later.

I cry at just about anything. But I don't like movies that are made to be tear-jerkers- like Terms of Endearment and Beaches. (Probably because I can't really watch due to the flood of tears.) I cry at Lonesome Dove. I sobbed a few nights ago at Gran Torino. I LOVED The Help, but cried through it. I also cry at the Olympics. Some contests are so emotional! Don't even get me started on award ceremonies...

My older dd looks just like my sil, only with my nose. My younger dd looks a bit more like me, only with different coloring. They do look like sisters. Their temperaments are very different. My brother & I don't look that much alike, but our personalities are quite similar.

I'm thinking she won't appreciate a bible quote, if she's essentially "living in sin" now. I lived w/dh before we married, and I would have seen the above gift from a cousin who did not approve of my lifestyle very passive-aggressive. (I would have found using the bible for a passive-aggressive stab very amusing though.) They might have sent save the date cards to all relatives so people won't feel slighted. I tend not to see things as people begging for gifts though, so she might very well be doing just that.

My brother visited my one June. I thought he would be impressed by the lush green spring we were having... but he's from the midwest. He said, "Wow, it's really brown here..." Just depends on your perspective.

For my family, that would be overkill. Plus I wouldn't want to take the time to set it up and take it down. But I guess it depends on what kind of camping one does. I would never leave the food out overnight, though. Even if there are no bears in the area you are camping, you will still get racoons.

Ditto for Colorado. On all counts except low cost of living.

Remember that every school is different, and every teacher WILL make their world views known in high school. IB is exaggerated in this area, because the teachers have to be trained by the IB governing body- but I have found that at least 75% of the teachers in my conservative town are pretty liberal. I do a lot of discussion at home about my world views, and why I hold them, to counter act this. Just want you to be aware that it's not just the IBO that holds these strong opinions, it's the education establishment as well.

Well, that's totally different. She's passive-aggressive. Yuck.