I am facing this with my youngest, a girl with a summer birthday. She would never had been ready for ps K at just barely 5, cutoff was Aug 1 in that state. But since we hs, I thought- K, no problem! My oldest has the same birthday, and always been fine (in fact is taking an 8th grade class at the middle school as a young 6th grader). But this kid is different. She only started reading fluently this summer. Her math skills are a little above grade level, but we only just started spelling as she only just started really reading. She is immature and shy. And, most of the kids in 3rd grade I meet are 9 or about to turn 9, not just barely 8. She is truly a year younger than 90% of the kids in her grade. We messed up. She needs to be a 3rd grader again next year. But how to tell her?? We won't, we'll just register her a grade behind for middle school when we get to that point and if we live somewhere she can take classes at ps. There is no testing at the moment for us, but if there was, I'd just order the 3rd grade test 2 years in a row to get an accurate picture of how she is doign compared to her real peers, not the arbitrary cut off of the state we happened to be in when she started school. Yes, if everyone started their kids according ot the dates, we would be with age-mates, they would all be her age. But it is what it is, and it may harm her (and your child), IMO to be the only to be so much younger. Her sport goes by year of birth, but physically bigger is a disadvantage there, so sports is not a consideration at all. This is purely for academic and social reasons.

I've sewed only 1 "trial" leo, but my DD does rhythmic gymnastics and I plan to sew her next ones. I used a KwikSew pattern, but for ice skating costumes, as RG leos are skirted. They are also generally more complicated with applique, etc. If total-beginner me can do it, anyone can! I have no serger, I have a used thrift store machine, that has a zig-zag stitch. I do not know about the regualr leotard pattern, but for the RG/skirted leo, the armholes run very big on the pattern, they need to be adjusted quite a bit. I knew this ahead of time, and adjusted, but the trial leo still has too big arm holes. So if your leo pattern has sleeves, watch those arm holes. Otherwise, for sleeveless leos, it is great! Kwik Sew was the top pattern recommendation when I asked about this on a message board full of very knowledgeable women who have been sewing leos for years.

Bitter, part of one? But some of the definitions are hilarious over there! I have never seen the site before. I could spend hours browsing! So thanks, bitter guy, without you I'd never have found it. :lol:

There was a couple at my church growing up who were 1st cousins!! They were elderly, and got married when very old, because the law was they couldn't have children or something. I don't know the specifics, my grandmother told me about it. The yucky factor was VERY big for me, but my brother always used them as the reason he could marry our cousin Janine when he grew up! He grew out of that. ;)

MY oldest has no real "passion", per se. She never met a class, sport or activity she didn't enjoy, though. I guess its all her passion! My youngest has been obsessed with rhythmic gymnastics since she was 5 1/2. She was previously a kid who hated every organized activity- even Mommy and Me! She preferred to stay home with the babysitter I got for oldest DD and send me to Mommy and Me by myself.:glare:Training in no AC (and soon, no heat!), in a language she doesn't understand, with training methods that are...uh...a bit more energetic on the discipline, has not dampened her enthusiasm, so I guess it really qualifies as a "passion" now. I do wish my oldest had something she really was into, like my youngest. But then again, it could be something totally ridiculous (like, say, rhythmic gymnastics:lol:) and expensive, so maybe we ought to count our blessings!

That is the only plus to having moved to a place where my youngest has private coaching for gymnastics- NO SICKOS!! There were 2 sisters at our old gym who were always sick, and their parents ALWAYS brought them. "OH, Sara just threw up, but I don't think she should go home, I mean, she seems fine now..." WHAT!? And invariably it was my DD who would get the bug 2 days before the big meet, they were over it by then. Of course, the general assumption is that a child should compete, sick or not, so it isn't like they were the only ones. In truth, we were the weird ones for NOT practicing sick. So talking to the coach will possibly get you exactly...nowhere.

MY youngest told me she is "getting to be Korean" because she just peeled off her clothes and changed into her leotard right there in the practice area at the meet last weekend. At the first meet, she wanted to go into the bathroom and change, and there were several changes as she had group and individual routines. We noticed all the other little girls just changed where they were- stands, practice area, hallway. She and her big sister also roamed the streets of Jaechon, Korea with the other gymnasts and siblings at 10 pm while the moms (me included) finished our meal and drank...beer! :D

MY girls have always gone commando in leotards. But, the very light pink, thin ballet leos are too see-thru for that, so they have worn flesh-colored dance/gymnastics panties specifically made for this issue. They sell them at dance stores, or GK (gymnastics wear) makes them, too. Now my youngest wears a flesh tone under-leo instead of the panties under her competition leotards, they have more coverage than just the (often high cut or see-through portion) leotard alone. Regular panties are too thick and loose, usually, even if high cut.

If I had any, I'd show it! Unfortunately, the ribs that show on my chest just somehow do not look attractive. Even when nursing, I had enough milk for septuplets, but wouldn't you know- no cleavage! I did get large lumps on my armpits and shoulders, where there are apparently milk glands. Not exactly the hoped-for effect. :lol: Boat neck tops are my friend.

I use our real names and photos, but I rarely post the family blog address anywhere "public". Like the only 2 places I really hang out on the internet- here and another board for scrapbooking (though I almost never scrap anymore, lOL). It would take about 2 seconds to find the blog though, or us, if anyone wanted to. I could care less, really. We're pretty boring, I don't see us being the stalkers or axe murderers types. :D

Woah, I'm a Cami, and also overseas, but not in Bangalore. In Korea. Kids are far more free range here, and I have happily let mine go, too, thought it wasn't without some angst at first. We live in a military base, so of course they can walk to the store, etc on post. Your regular neighborhood stuff. But Korean kids have far more freedom, and that took some getting used to! Just last night, we were in Jaechon for a gymnastics meet and all went to dinner a few blocks from the hotel at around 9 pm after a late practice. The kids ate and then the other moms gave them some money for ice cream. My girls wanted to go too, of course, but they speak almost no Korean. No matter, off they went. Us mothers sat and finished eating and drank some beer :D, and after an hour left and there were all the kids, playing in the street in front of the hotel (at 11 pm!). I have started letting my oldest go wander around the shops and restaurants by herself while her big sister is at gym practice, if she has to come along for some reason. She doesn't speak much Korean, but has a fabulous time. Since everyone knows us in the area as the "foreigners who do gymnastics at the high school" I am confident that if anything happened, I would know in about 20 seconds.

We had a dog with a super high prey instinct, who killed cats in the backyard (strays), and rabbits, and it was awful. But she never, ever touched OUR cat. Now, our cat was there first, when we got this dog, but she seemed to understand the difference. We ended up having to rehome the dog and it was to a family with no small kids (a must!!) but a CAT. She was fine with their cat, too, because I swear, she knew the house cat was off limits. In a similar vein, our cat is a cold blooded homicidal maniac where rodents are concerned. But when we had 2 rats, and they GOT OUT while I was visiting relatives with the girls, DH wouldn't catch them. He doesn't like rodents, they skeeve him out. Rats lived free in the house for a week (oh, I was so mad, the bleaching and cleaning after that-!) and the cat never once touched them. Again, she seemed to know that THESE rats, that live in the cage in the playroom and are now roaming through the house, are off limits. So I guess my answer is "not necessarily". Labs aren't really known for their strong prey instinct, ours has never killed anything, she even just looked at a bear I met once while walking her in Washington, no bark, nothing. I'd be real careful, but then I'd be careful anyway at first. Probably, the dogs would be fine. Of course, if you are looking for a reason to say no, then disregard!!

Its our enemy, too! I finally had to just say "enough" to it all with youngest DD. She was 6 pounds at birth, she is just not going to be a gigantic kid! Heck, I am on the tallish size but have to struggle to stay above 110 pounds. DH is 5'8", same height as me, and the tallest in his family. I tower over his parents.It isn't like we were going to have big kids with that genetic history! We made rounds of gastro, peds, endos. when DD was a year and 14 pounds. They said she was Failure to Thrive, which of course makes you feel like the crappiest mother EVER. She had severe food allergies as a baby, that didn't help. But she grew out of them, finally ate solid food at around 18 months, and has been a dynamo of energy and health ever since. I just had to say enough, and stop listening to the Dr when they would start in. No more tests, no more worry. We keep her in a car seat (at 8, LOL) with a harness, but otherwise, I am not doing anything differently. She is slowly starting to catch up now, at least in height. She isn't huge, but not so remarkably smaller anymore. And she's the fittest kid I know, so I think we're good.

:grouphug:Praying. I was hysterical practically upon breaking a tooth a few weeks ago. I totally get it.

Shhh...I think zombies might improve Austen a fair bit, too!! :auto: ((runs away))

Right there with ya, with rhythmic gymnastics. The gym is an hours drive in traffic, then only 20 minutes home (no traffic). Practice ends at 10 pm some nights. There is zero fun in the gym here in Korea, she is the only student with her coach so no gym friends (couldn't speak to them if there were), stretching is quite beyond the pale and I have to leave the gym when it is being done, no AC, hard floor that makes me worry so about injuries. Yet, my kid loves it, so-? If she is willing to do it, with all of this, who am I to stop her? Or am I irresponsible to NOT stop her? Where is the line, exactly, how much of this I am feeling is the product of my culture (US sloth :tongue_smilie:) versus Korean culture? I have no answers, for you or me. Only that I understand how hard it is! :grouphug:

My oldest is the Rash Queen. It is always hives.Only once has she had such a bad case we took her to the Dr, and she ended up on steroids for that.Never discovered the cause of that. Another time it was a reaction to a prescription med,for certain, so I did take her for that so it could be documented. But the rest-? I found it useless. We could almost never pinpoint what caused them- a virus leaving? Allergy? Who knows? We just give her Benadryl (which she hates as it makes her sooo tired) and keep on trucking. She knows "Mommy's danger signs" of thick tongue or trouble breathing. Since going on Zyrtec a few years ago every day for dust and mold allergies, the hive incidents have been reduced, but still happen 2-3 times a year. If you don't think its a serious reaction like a drug allergy, and no other signs but hives, I would skip the Dr and just do Benedryl.

Around here, you have to be 6. 8 to shave to shave your legs. :lol: But really, here is how it came it up: rhythmic gymnastics! DD was 6 when whe nshe first comp[eted (USAG rules) and they ALL wear makeup- heavy, heavy make up. So 6 for that. Then we moved to Korea, land of No Body Hair (even on adults). DD felt self concious at gymnastics. I let her shave. So, 8 for that. Oldest DD? 11 and could care less. There is obviously no hard and fast age "rule" around here!

Just one. Lord knows that's enough, some days!

Line (:D), if you need a laugh at my expense, I've been reading your name on this board as "The CRAPPY after schooler". I always wanted to ask if you thought you were crappy, or after schooling was crappy, or what the heck was up with that name.:lol: Reading comprehension...not my strong suit.

:confused: Am I the only one who doesn't give a rat's patootie how my name is mangled? It's Cami, or Camille, but I answer to Tami, Sami, Bambi, Sandy, Amy...anything with an "e" at the end, since there aren't a great deal of us around. My girls have very unusual names as well, though they also follow basic phonetic rules, like mine. They get mangled. Neither girl cares all that particular much, or do I. They will pronounce it for someone who asks, but are well used to just answering to some variation of it, and none of us ever get the least bit upset if it is continually mangled. Just comes iwht the territory, I guess. Names are hard!

We've done a lot of stuff over the years, but at the moment: DD11: Taekwondo and swim team (year round and summer) DD8: Taekwondo and Rhythmic gymnastics WOuld like to add in ballet for both girls, but $$$...always money!

:grouphug: I'm sorry. Praying.

:grouphug: My youngest had food allergies, too, and it was so nerve racking (wracking??) and tough! Dairy was the biggest culprit, but she was also allergic to corn, soy, and wheat. I basically lived on lettuce and free range chicken- no joke. Dairy was the absolute worst to get rid of, and the reason I went to only "pure" foods, ie nothing with anything else in it! Because its in e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. I wish had some advice, but other than see a Dr (which is not always much help, I know!) and watch the diet, I have none. Just my sympathy- I remember bawling my eyes out over her poor diapers and my rapidly dropping weight!

I'm going to have to run and hide after posting this, but.... ...every woman I've ever met who says this is basically trying to excuse their own rudeness and personality flaws as something desirable, "man personality", if you will. Because obviously, a "rational" person (ie, a man) would "get" them and not be offended by whatever rude or selfish trait they have. Its kind of like the female version of men who say "Well, I'm just a tell-it-like-it-is guy. Don't like it, leave!" What they are basically saying is they are an a$$hole who won't come out of their self-centered personality to treat others decently. By deflecting the problem to how others react to the behavior, it doesn't have to be addressed. I am NOT saying everyone on this thread (I've only read the first 2 pages, anyway) fits this, or even anyone, just every woman I've met in real life who says this. I've met enough of them (and the male countertype) that I'm not just pulling this out of my butt, though. Running away now!!