I only have one left in the under-10 category, which is almost unbelievable to me. My oldest two are finishing up 12th grade, and my middle daughter will be starting high school in the fall. My younger son (9th grade) isn't homeschooled, but he has been doing school at home this year...it's been quite an experience having all five of them here all the time for the first time!

I guess it depends on what the purpose of the sermon is. In my church (which is part of the LCMS), the sermons are usually based on the readings for the day from the one-year lectionary, but they're also written directly to our specific congregation, because the pastor knows what we need to hear. I don't think a more generic podcast would have the same purpose, because the audience would be much wider, and the preacher wouldn't know the "congregation" in the same way. I do think that shorter is better when it comes to sermons, though. There's no reason to go on and on and on for 20-30 minutes (or more!), often repeating yourself multiple times, when a 10-12 minute sermon will do.

Jane Kaczmarek? Laurie Metcalf?

Leg of lamb, Greek potatoes, roast Brussels sprouts, sautéed asparagus, breaded artichokes, carrot fritters, popovers, and our favorite Jell-O "salad." Oh, and carrot cake Oreo truffles for dessert. It's "just" going to be our family of seven, but Easter is a Big Deal to us, so I'm going all out.

Not seriously enough, which is why we're moving our membership to another congregation within our denomination (LC-MS). COVID-19 won't be forever, but the attitudes that have come out during it helped show us that it really wasn't the best place for us.

I think I'm going to have to replace my stove soon...we've always had Whirlpool, and I can't decide if I should stick with the known, or if I should try something new (better?). Do you have a brand you're particularly loyal to?

I made a French silk pie and a lemon meringue pie...I'm so tempted to break one out tonight!

I can tell you that we have seen changes in our church, and we have already moved our membership to a different congregation. We're still in the same church body, but the idea of changing denominations did come up at one point.

I like cropped, fitted cardigans. The shorter length makes them look less dowdy, at least to me.

I noticed that when I was looking for worchestershire this week...what is that all about?!? Such a bizarre thing not to be able to find!

I really feel everything in this thread, but especially this. The time moving on for everyone else. I just don't even know how to relate to people who act as if nothing ever changed, and I'm so tired of feeling like I've been left behind.

In the winter, we set it to 64 during the day, and 62 at night. In the summer, I try not to set it lower than 73, but most of us like being cold, so it's hard not to give into the temptation. I will turn it down to 70-71 some summer nights, though.

I made pączki for the first time this year. Normally I pick them up at the store, but I'm still limiting outings to once every two weeks due to COVID-19, so I had to bite the bullet and actually make them myself, which I've wanted to do for years anyway. We're watching the Rick Steves' European Easter special this afternoon, too.

I was holding on to the hope of the bolded last year, and we all know how that went... I hate February. Fortunately, I'm too weary to contemplate any major life changes this time around.

There are many posters who I would recognize based on their writing style. I don't post enough for anyone to recognize mine, but one thing I do know about myself is that I overuse ellipses. Just writing this response doesn't look right to me, because I didn't have a reason to include any! 🙂

I had my first pair of piercings done when I was 12 or 13 (I currently have seven in one ear and three in the other, plus a nose piercing). I'm what my obgyn calls a "fast healer," as in, he said that if he hadn't done my c-section himself, he wouldn't have believed I had had one less than a month later, because it healed so well. That seems to extend to my ears, because I have learned not to leave my earrings out for more than a day or so, or I'm going to have to work to get them back in, and that's just no fun!

This is my new favorite soup. It's delicious and looks really pretty!

Most years, our Thanksgiving is just the people in our house (there are seven of us). I always do a full Thanksgiving dinner, plus every member of our family gets to a pick a pie for me to make. Having so much pie means we always have pie for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving! We play parade bingo (not exactly sure what that will look like this year, but we're still going to try), and watch the National Dog Show and Holiday Inn. Oh, and the children make hand and footprint turkeys, which is my favorite annual craft. It's one of my favorite holidays!

You know you've committed yourself to sharing more puppy pictures so the rest of us can live vicariously, right? She's adorable!!!

Does the whole movie have to be about Halloween? I love watching Meet Me in St. Louis at this time of year...it's divided into seasons, and the fall section of the movie is all Halloween.

Being within an hour or so from Lake Michigan.

The Hamilton soundtrack.

I'm sitting here guessing, and I'm pretty sure I'm on the right track, but if anyone wants to let me know just in case I'm making stuff up in my head I'd appreciate it!

Six, not including college moves. Once as a child (I barely remember it), and five times as an adult.

If I was a zillionaire or won the lottery or something, I'd live in the northern suburbs of Chicago (Evanston-ish) near Lake Michigan. And the house would have at least five bedrooms and three full baths, if not more. It's never going to happen, but it's fun to dream!