oooh, he is good looking! We were delayed on our family trip to Italy, hanging out in the airport when I hear this deep, almost creepy voice. Turned to see if someone is sick (then sit someplace else) and notice it's Willem Dafoe and his wife. Catty corner from us was this tall, gorgeous woman hiding behind her sunglasses in a big group of friends. When I heard her speak, we realized it was Tyra Banks. DH was impressed! :P Man, she's really tall and totally gorgeous--even without makeup. You never know how you'll respond until you're in the moment.

Lead, follow, or get out of the way! The rest of us might just jump in your luggage. Heck, we'll live in the shack and homeschool your kids :) A memorable life is filled with experiences, serendipities, and friends and family. You will get all the above in one little expat. Enjoy!

We'll do it through 8th grade or when they finish Spelling Workout H, whichever comes first. However, then we transition to vocabulary. That, of course, needs to be spelled correctly! LOL I have only one poor speller, who is dyslexic--sort of goes with the territory. I like Spelling Workout series, so we'll continue it through the end.

At the risk of sounding cliche', Clinique is sort of elegant and hoity-toity sounding!:D

One of the doctors who delivered my triplets was Dr. Gerard. Gerard is the Patron Saint of Expectant Mothers. :) He told me he'd bring us good luck.

DS went through this at 10-11 years old. He cried more often than any of my girls. Drove me bonkers...but found that taking his issues, which were all a result of being overwhelmed, into small, manageable pieces allowed him to grow into a more mentally organized young man. He would become overwhelmed with one assignment, so I would guide him through the initial process. When he realized the mountain was just a proverbial molehill, he could conquer his problem. He does get frustrated easily, but the tears are infrequent now. We began standardized testing yesterday (IBST) and he initially cried because the time allowed didn't seem to be long enough to accomplish the task. Ironically, it was all attitude. He's finished with ample time. Just work through the initial problem, whatever it happens to be. This is a great chance for you to work with DS on true, meaningful life skills. There is a silver lining ;)

Ima Hogg (pronounced "I'm a hog) was a governor's daughter from a wealthy, influential Texas family in the late 1800's. Just a cruel and unusual name!!!!

Interesting question. DH is white collar something. In this area, it's high tech. SO, high tech exec. Correct. Me: realtor, teacher have been guesses for me. Pretty close! Does that make us a "what you see is what you get" couple? :)

It's probably the best academic series we've encountered thus far. Singing praises from the rooftop over Suzanne Strauss Art's books! My kids are halfway finished with History of Renaissance and Reformation: Rats, Bulls, and Flying Machines by Deborah Mazzotta Prum for the 1350-1600 period. I think it does a good job of incorporating the religious sentiment of the period fairly without emphasizing religion in general.

DD's former classmate's name was Princess--real name, not endearing nickname. Student names "Pajama". No, it's not what you wear. It's pronounced "Paj-uh-muh". Big difference. LOL Another student was "Sparkles", which really did fit her effervescent personality. Weirdest name, though: Sergeant in the USArmy legally changed his name to "Y". That's it, just Y. Does that make his future bride "Y Not"? :lol:

Who does DS play for? Is it academy (pre-select) or select teams yet? Maybe we've passed each other at games!

I think many Germans speak better English than our own American students. Our second exchange student was from Gerlingen, a suburb of Stuttgart. His family came to visit and only one of the nine didn't speak perfect English. I would move there in a New York minute. Outta here, baby! Can we tag along, just for grins? ;) Like you, I'd prefer to get rid of the household items. A GF and her DH left the US indefinitely, traveling and settling twice over a decade. They kept their stuff in storage. It's hysterical that items which look circa 1985 are in pristine condition and work beautifully. She said it saved them tens of thousands of dollars to do it this way. They didn't have the replacement cost, which was almost double what was initially paid due to inflation. If you do relo, I'll try to connect you with Johnny's family if interested. It's always good to know someone when you begin a new journey.

One of the downfalls of organized sports is the expectation that you look like a cloned version of your teammates. Not a time to highlight one's individuality. The league *should* allow him to play, as it's by their current rules, provided he covers his hair if they find it offensive in some manner. This sort of rules-for-rules sake drives me bonkers. Good luck! (btw, go with elegantlion's option of dying your hair for solidarity :)) btw, my son decided to not join the boys' gymnastics team when he was told the boys were required to have very short hair (buzz cut). He has pretty blonde hair and this was a deal breaker!

:lol: Too funny!

Parent Trap is our fave, fave, favorite!

:thumbup: :thumbup:

Wow, a mom who enjoys and embraces motherhood. Whodathunkit? I find this board refreshing for that very reason. It's full of moms who want to be with their children while they're still at home. This isn't the prevailing attitude any longer. Typically once tikes are ready for MDO, mom is supermom--shopping, lunching, working, pawning kids off to the nanny/day care provider. Y'all are bucking the system! :lol: And then you really ruin the bell curve by homeschooling your little cherubs. Sheesh! (jk, really) I wanted to be a mom more than anything. This is a short phase of life, just like the dating, engaged, newlywed stages that I so enjoyed. Eventually I will lead my "own life" (as if I'm held hostage now by my children??), and embrace being a grandparent. We're in such a ME society that it's baffling to those who watch others who don't focus solely on themselves. Good timing, RE-mom, as it's been 'one of those days' and I needed reminding of how much I love and enjoy my stinkpots. :banghead: Really.

The name Kindle makes me think of a revolution, igniting our love of learning. Using this device enables us to save trees, which eliminates the ability to use our literature as kindling. Just my crazy little mind working...:001_smile:

Wash, wash, wash. I prefer scented detergent to mask the stink. It will eventually fade and then go away completely.

I second ebay option. I spent $30 and got 5 outfits, and coordinating shoes, baseball/glove, etc.

DS loves his sliders. It's sports underwear with shorts to wear during soccer. They're called sliders because when a boy slides, he gets bruised. DS,10, doesn't adjust himself there while wearing the sliders. Regular underwear drive him bonkers. Plus, there is a snack pocket in the front of the sliders. (DS thought it held snacks for the game. It's actually for the sports cup!:lol:)

DH did his undergrad at NU 82-86. He remembers David Schwimmer (FRIENDS character Ross) from school.

We have friends who went to the USAFA and majored in psychology! Another friend did ROTC and majored in social sciences. Yes, even history majors can have a place in the military :)

Sounds like private school, is it? It's practically immoral to have such obscenely high costs for higher education. If we supposedly value education, why is it practically out of reach for the average American? Otherwise we laden our children with the unbearable burden of hundreds of thousands in student loans (assuming they also attend grad school). Some kids have chosen to attend university overseas because it's cheaper and only 3 years for most undergrad degrees.

CONGRATS! :party:CoNgRaTs:party::party:CONGRATS!