your very outspoken 4yod walks into the bathroom and before you have time to jump in the shower (she never knocks) she says loud enough for the entire house to hear, "MOMMY! I SAW YOUR CHUBBY BUNS!!!" This is then followed by her reaching up to pat your still-there postpartum belly and asking if you are having another baby. sigh I was down to only 15 pounds left to lose but am back to 18 pounds. No motivation at all on my part to exercise and I would rather eat junk than healthy. Blech. I'm looking for some accountability, maybe from someone else w/a new baby and extremely honest dc? :D P.S. This 4yo is the same one who, on our walk the other day, was losing her flipflops and exclaimed, "Mama, mine shoes are running off of mine feet!!" Ah, children. :)

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YEAH! I'm all for putting the billions of bailout $ to those who were responsible and would handle the $ well! Reward those who used their heads, listened to the warnings that were rampant, refinanced to a fixed rate, didn't buy more than we could handle (not even the lovely home on an acre with FIVE toilets!!! 5 toilets...sigh). Love the analogy about the fox and the chickens...very accurate indeed. FWIW, we annoyed our representatives to no end as did most of our friends with absolutely nothing to show for it. The message we were given was, "You don't understand all that is involved...this is the best thing to do." Nothing makes me feel more helpless than talking to my representative and finding out he represents the people not.at.all. :glare:

Oh, this is so true!!! I adore watching my older dc with the new baby, seeing the tenderness and concern (and a bit of bossyness: "Mama, Megan is crying, go get her!!"). I'm not sure if what I have to offer is much of a help because for me the babies can't come fast enough and we tried for so long, went through so much heartache before #5 joined our family. But I will offer this - it is amazing to have her in our family and I can't imagine our family without her...or without #6-8 (and hopefully will have many, many more in the years to come!). Having 5 was no harder than having 4 and, if anything, was even more enjoyable just because of the dc being older and able to help out more. Like 6packofun I felt someone was missing (still do, in fact!), that our family puzzle wasn't yet complete. With each precious life that is added to our family the puzzle has another lovely piece and it just feels "right". Good grief, I'm so hormonal still, I'm sniffling and weepy just posting this. I hope you find peace with whatever decision you make.

1. Use "Mr." and "Ms./Mrs."+ last name when addressing anyone over the age of about 18. 2. Always make way for those older than you (that includes Mama!); don't push past older people or cut in front of them. 3. Go last if possible (especially at church potlucks - no pushing to the front of the line and piling one's plate as high as it can go) 4. Look people, adults especially, in the eye when talking to them or even just passing (love the teens at church who avoid all eye contact with adults...grrr) 5. See what needs to be done and do it without being asked (ie: when leaving the dinner table pick up little sister's plate as well as your own) 6. Send Thank You notes/cards immediately 7. Do not interrupt an adult unless it is blood, flood or fire 8. Stay and visit with company even if they are not there for you necessarily. No hiding in one's room when visitors are present. 9. "Please" and "thank you" said as much as possible 10. Do what leads to peace!

I'm not sure if you are looking for actual parenting books but Dobson's "Bringing up Boys" is my must-read. I love "The Squire and the Scroll" as well as her other book for read-aloud (older boys, not younger). Our sons have been strongly impacted by the movies "Facing the Giants" and "Flywheel" as far as seeing examples of godly/ungodly men. I know the Pearl's are controversial however I've found some "nuggets" from them as well. Sorry I don't have more to offer! I'm looking forward to other's answers! lol, my girls are spaced about the same as your boys...want to arrange some marriages?! :D

lol, are you my secret twin, Battlemaiden?? Your post describes me even down to painting in the garage! Love how our dc are the same ages, too! Good for you for making that memory for them. :001_smile:

For the most part we have a very peaceful house w/o a lot of bickering, however there are times/days that it seems everyone wakes up determined to be offensive or be offended easily! Those days we have a lot of gathering as a family to refocus and I hand out some correction: tying siblings together and having them spend the day "together" (always results in laughter), silent days (the offender can't speak except to answer me), removing time with friends (if they can't get along with siblings then they aren't allowed to play outside the family), etc. My dc hear a lot of, "Do what leads to peace" and "Stop, try that again." The biggest key, for us, is my own attitude. If I give in to my frustration at hearing them bicker then it adds to the tension in the home. If I can redirect them or correct/punish with gentleness and kindness it makes a big difference. One other thing we work on constantly (especially w/my oldest dd who really struggles with arguing) is that while we can't change what another person says, we can change our response. This is an ongoing lesson for all of us including myself. Just this morning my oldest got punished along with her brother because while he said something very unkind, her unkind response was just as wrong.

Well, let me just say that after attempting to read through this book 3 times I ended up giving it away. Like you there were some things in it that just didn't sit right with me Biblically and my dh disagreed with parts of it as well, particularly in the chapter on intimacy. His actual words regarding the book in general were, "Please don't even think about acting this way!" So in the giveaway box it went. Power of a Praying Wife is excellent, though!

oops! Sorry!! I am beyond exhausted from being at the zoo all day with 9 kids by myself!!! Chris Noth - Law and Order guy. That's the only show I allow myself the luxury of watching and like the ones with him on it the best. He also played Mr. Big on Sex and the City. And let me just say that he is WAY good looking IRL! Whew!! :D

While at the stingray exhibit at the zoo today I looked up to see a rather well known actor, his wife and dc come in! I reacted with such poise...jaw dropped, stared openly, grabbed my 12yod and said, "DO YOU KNOW WHO THAT IS?!" (of course she didn't and thought her mom had gone nuts), tried to take a picture with my cell phone as evidence to my dh that I wasn't imagining things, even trailed him to the next exhibit! How grown up of me! But it's surreal to see someone on TV and then have him pass by me just inches away the next day! I managed to talk to his lovely wife/girlfriend and compliment him on his work (he wasn't there, he had his ds on the merry-go-round), and we talked about babies/kids. What surprised me was my reaction for the rest of the day. I thought about how their admission to the zoo was nothing to them financially whereas I had to really weigh if we could go or not. Even paying $1 for the stingray exhibit for each child took some thought. I thought of where they must be staying that night - surely not the Motel 6 we would have to go to! As I thought about it more I got angry. Why are some people paid so much stinking money for acting or being able to play a sport well? These people make more money than I will see in a lifetime and for what? Entertainment??? I think of the teachers out there (homeschoolers included) who struggle to make ends meet. They should be paid the big bucks! I felt guilty for feeling angry because our situation could be so much worse - we could truly not be able to afford a zoo trip, my dh could lose his job, we could lose our house...really my life is amazingly comfortable financially. But it still bugs me how much some people make and all for the entertainment factor. lol, I "entertain" some very important people every day...can I be paid??? I would have no problem whatsoever being wealthy. :) Oh well, I'm off to watch him on TV again, bummed that the picture I tried to take didn't come out well. Should have just asked him to autograph my zoo map or something.

I struggle with this same guilt. A friend who is now divorced wanted me to watch her kids on an ongoing basis, and I said 'no'. I don't answer my phone during the day unless I hear on the machine that it is an emergency. I don't like saying 'no' however I also know that I have my limits and I can't do what needs to be done with my own family while also helping out every friend. I want to be gracious and available yet need to find balance - not something I'm good at as I want to help everyone.

I would get her license plate and, if the law proved that I had the right of way, put her plate # online on those great sites for such things. Right now I'm writing a letter to the editor addressing "flipper" (dubbed for her lovely response to me) reminding her of the traffic rules and pointing out her ignorance of such rules as well as lack of social etiquette. ;)

We were facing each other, street we were waiting to cross had no stop signs. I know she was not there before I was because another vehicle ahead of her turned first, so actually I was there first. I'm still fuming at her reaction. :glare:

I almost t-boned a small car on my way through an intersection this afternoon! We were both waiting for traffic to pass, I was going straight, she had her left blinker on. We both went, I slammed on my brakes as she turned in front of me and then proceeded to flip me off and yell something I'm glad my dc (also in the van) couldn't make out. Had I not been driving a 15-passenger van I would have done a u-turn and followed her! Who was right/wrong? I'd always thought that straight had precedence over turning vehicles - am I wrong? I am so angry more at her reaction than the fact that I was almost in an accident.

We are using Chalkdust and have really enjoyed it! The only thing I don't like is the lack of constant review like Saxon has. The video is fantastic and I really like the variety of application problems included in the lessons - it goes way beyond basic problems as it includes word problems linked to various life applications (mechanics, finance, etc.) as well as Critical Thinking problems. It was worth every penny spent.

We are in Prescott but lived in the Valley for over 5 years. The hs laws are the best! All we had to do was send in an affidavit of intent to homeschool, copy of birth certificate and that was it! No testing or anything required! I don't know anything about the other cities but Phx has a huge selection of housing. As for hot...well, Phx will redefine "hot" for you as will Yuma. It's more like blistering, feel like you just walked into an oven, take your breath away hot. But it is a dry heat which does make a difference...kind of. Right now the weather is beautiful and makes the summers almost worth it. Crime I must say is bad from personal experience. The very first day my dh was at his job back in 1998 the battery was stolen out of his car, his bike was stolen, our van was "tossed" for no apparent reason. We were lucky and never had our house broken into. Not every neighborhood or area will be that way but we lived in a decent area and still had it happen. The best thing about the Valley is the incredible network of homeschoolers. For example there is a guy who's job is to coach homeschool P.E. groups. He goes all over the Valley, charges a very reasonable rate and has a first-rate program. I really miss the support groups down there...but don't miss the weather! ;)

My signature gift is a Kangaroo bib and a plastic tablecloth. The bibs are the absolute best I've ever found (I buy about a dozen at a time online) and the tablecloths are perfect for putting under baby during "airing out" time or under the carseat in the vehicle. I also have bought a big waterproof pad and cut it into squares for diaper changes. If it's a mom who already has those things I get a gift certificate to a photo studio (Sears, Target).

I live in AZ, in a small (but growing larger by the year) town and yes, I can honestly say that every one of my friends and every acquaintance I can think of is on gov't help. Where I went to college 75% of the couples were on welfare. What is disgusting is the gross, blatant abuse of the system, such as my friend who just had #9 and said she couldn't afford to pay the bill, yet they just finished building a huge 4 car garage with a fully-equipped rec room above it. They are on WIC yet manage to buy animals...horses!!! It is horrible, I hate it and it angers me to no end. But that's the way it is here. ETA: Here's an example of how disgusting the welfare situation is here where I live. After #2 (we were on WIC/gov't healthcare for #1 and #2 as both those babies were HUGE surprises we were trying to prevent!) I went to the WIC office and said I was taking us off because we wanted more dc and wanted to pay for our choices - literally. The woman tried to convince me that what I was doing was wrong and actually argued with me, said I was being irresponsible! Same thing when I went to the office to take us off the healthcare program. No one applauded us for providing for our own dc, they tore us down instead. Nice, huh?

I was contemplating the same thing as I read the posts about the octuplets. Literally every one of my friends is on welfare and popping out babies (anywhere from #6 to #10) and have no plans to stop. The only difference is that their babies are coming one at a time. For me the medical costs aren't as big an issue as I feel our government/insurance companies have made it almost impossible for the average person/couple to afford private insurance or pay out-of-pocket for health care costs, so for me saying that someone shouldn't have babies based on their ability to pay for medical costs isn't a very valid reason. What gets me are the other welfare areas such as WIC...when one can't afford to feed their current family the basic food necessities then why in the world is one bringing more kids into this world?? If one wants to continue procreating then that person could have the decency to take themselves off of taxpayer-funded food programs and feed their kids themselves. And they should not expect any handouts simply because of the # of babies they had, including outside help. Your baby(ies), your choice, your responsibility. Implanting that many embryos bothers me A LOT, especially having gone through IVF myself. That was so reckless of both her and her doctor! I don't care if someone is married to a guy making 7 figures, that was a really stupid move and I only hope that women following this story and undergoing IVF themselves won't think that putting back that many embryos and ending up with 8 babies is a good thing. I hope her doctor comes under serious scrutiny/condemnation from the medical community. I know my RE wouldn't even take me as a patient unless I signed a paper that clearly stated his rule of no more than 2 embryos put back, 3 under unusual circumstances. Her being unmarried actually doesn't bother me as much as the other aspects of the situation. I'm not sure why.

Using half of it to pay off the IVF cycle that resulted in our beautiful 4.5 week old dd. Rest of it will go into savings, perhaps for another IVF cycle.

How long do you take off of school after having a baby? I've never taken any time off, usually we're back to our regular routine either the day baby is born or the day after. This time we were already on holiday break and were supposed to start school the day baby was born, so I took the rest of the first week off then started up again on Monday (baby was born on a Tuesday). But this time I just feel like I want to take more time off not because I don't want to do school but for "me" time. I know how fast this time with a newborn will go and I don't want to miss a single moment. I feel guilty, though, for wanting that time. I'm very driven and hard on myself, I push myself and it feels good to be back on our regular schedule (helps with that horrible pp blues, too), but there's that other part of me that wants to take just my new baby and go sit at Starbuck's or walk the mall, to be away from my home/homeschool duties and just be a new mom. I find myself envying my sil who had 3mo off of work to adjust to being a new mom, who had nothing else to do but be with her baby. If anyone has words of wisdom for me I would sure appreciate it. Right now my emotions are on overdrive so I can't seem to make a decision that doesn't have me in tears.

I am known among my friends as someone who can handle any # of kids in the house, so I am the babysitter for all. Today I have a little guy who is easy-going, his mom works one day/week and has offered to pay me $20/day or "If you just want to laugh it off..." as she put it meaning I could just do her a favor. I like that I can do this for her (her younger sister was babysitting and bailed at the last minute) but $20 is a lot for me (I can pay off some of the baby stuff I've bought!). Then there's my other friend who's dh told her to file for divorce, she did, she's got the dc while he does who knows what with his time/life, and she's asked me to watch her 3 dc a few days/week, no pay at all. This sits funny with me because this is a family who was on welfare yet also managed to build a custom home on acreage, have all the "toys" (huge TVs, etc.), and bought enough animals including horses to make a small farm. So her telling me she "can't" pay me just doesn't seem right. My thought is that maybe she and her dh should have thought through the repercussions of divorce and been willing to pay for it (literally) before doing anything. WWYD? I just had a baby and while I don't feel at all overwhelmed with the thought of having more kids in the house, I just don't feel led to help anyone out for free. Is that terrible? I hate that the one friend's kids would go to DES daycare but again, that's part of their choice. Any input? Or advice on how to address the situation without ruining friendships? I'm to the point of avoiding answering the phone because my one friend is waiting to hear if I'll babysit - heck she called when my baby was 2 days old for an answer!!! :glare:

Put themselves through college, hopefully debt free Know what it is like to borrow money and have to repay it (auto loan, house, etc.) Grandbabies might be nice... :D

Glad to see someone else uses these! I really don't read much of Dobson but his "Bringing Up Boys" is a yearly read for me on New Year's Day just to help me refresh myself as I attempt to figure out how to raise boys (girls I "get"...boys not so much :001_huh:).