I checked with our counselor on 1/28 and she said that she didn't have them yet. My son made an online account, but it wouldn't give him scores with just his student ID# and stated that an access code could be obtained from his counselor. He asked the counselor for the code, and she replied, "that is one you" to come up with. I'm not sure what that means. Is it on the test booklet? I should have mentioned that this is my formerly homeschooled DS who is now at a STEM magnet high school. His younger brother is still being homeschooled.

I feel fairly confident in my understanding of basic grammar, but I am at odds with the answer key today and could use some help. Here are the sentences in question: "The answer should have been found by now." "The answer will be found in two days." The answer key indicates that "found" is not part of the verb phrase. As such, I'm assuming that the authors are considering the word "found" to be a past participle functioning as a predicate adjective for the subject "answer". The rationale is not given. I would have considered "found" to be the main verb of the passive verb phrase with the agent (the one doing the finding) simply not stated. Opinions?

We have this very thing happening at our house. This poor mama kitty "belongs" to a family down the street according to neighborhood kids, but last year she was wild, almost emaciated, and hanging out in our yard with an old collar that was so tight she couldn't eat. We worked with her to accept being touched and finally got the collar off. She went back to wherever she'd been hanging out and we didn't see her much for a few months. Apparently, during that time she had a litter. I guess her family isn't feeding her anymore, because she's been living in our backyard for weeks now and is very preggers again. It's so hot and she has a raw bleeding nose like another cat is attacking her at night. So, I just gave in and made a place for her in the laundry room. I'm hoping we can find a vet who will make us a deal on getting her and the kitties fixed when they're old enough so we can find them homes. Some mama kitties are very persnickety about where they want their babies, and, if they don't like the place you pick or they feel it's too active, will move them. We had a house cat a few years ago who wasn't fixed yet, and she got out and got pregnant. She would move those kittens every few days to the craziest places: under beds, the top shelf of a closet, dresser drawers that were left open. I kept moving them back to the designated spot; eventually, I won, but it was stressful for both of us! :)

How about "Blinded by the Light" by Mannfred Mann's Earth Band . . . I had to look it up to find out that it actually says, "Revved up like a deuce." I always heard, "Wrapped up like a douche." :) Tee-hee! Makes a little more sense now.

I haven't lived in Ft. Worth, but live "nearish" (about 2.5 hours away) and go to the metroplex often. The climate is going to be warm from March to October and can get quite hot in the summers. Winters here are mild. Ft. Worth, Dallas, and many surrounding "bedroom" communities conjoin to form a very large metro area where you can find all the culture, dining, family activities, and retail therapy a person could want. Medical care there is some of the best in the state, particularly for children's diseases and trauma. Texas leans conservatively as a whole and is probably more "churchy" than either of the coasts, but in the DFW area you are going to find every political, religious, economic, and social group. Although you may have to seek it out, you should be able to find a circle of like-minded friends. I don't know how the cost of living compares to Orlando, but if they are comparable, and it was doable with my life circumstances, I'd certainly give it a go for that kind of a raise.

I'm not terribly savvy in these matters either, but Minecraft is a big "to do" around here with my guys. I believe that a server is the computer that hosts a world for other users to play on. My sons have a group of peers from church who all play so one of the fathers created a server on his computer and hosts a world for them. His is a private server/world, and he must add anyone who wants to participate. This way the parents know precisely who is playing and "server dad" has established rules of civility for both play and chat. This is the only way my guys are allowed to play. Hope that helps. :)

I have no idea where my boys came up with this one, but they call this function "being scientific". My ds10 is often heard proclaiming across the house, "I'm being scientific again!" Oddly enough, my very proper mother use to call people "f@@twhackers".

We had one of those rainy, got-the-don't-wannas days, so we watched history channel, made cookies, and did projects. Last year, we were all book work and no projects, so we're dedicating 1/2 a day per week to projects of choice. Ds13 built a mini-catapult out of craft sticks and rubber bands which shot a ball of clay the entire length of our hallway (25 ft.), and ds10 built a mini-crossbow out of pencils, a pen tube, and rubber bands. So, good day, but now I have to kick it into gear for making dinner and evening commitments (both of which I dislike). I totally agree with the hating-cooking-dinner-thing!!! Why do they keep eating?!:tongue_smilie:

DH does most of the grocery shopping, but we also use it for date time fairly often.

I asked her for more clarification; I'll cut and paste her answers below. ". . . before getting pregnant, testing to determine whether the parents are carriers of certain genetic conditions/gender-linked conditions. Prenatally, testing to see if the fetus has any genetic conditions or is predisposed to any conditions." I asked, for purposes of the debate, if this would be for the purpose of selective abortion. "Can be but not necessarily. That's a big part of the argument surrounding it. Finding out about a serious genetic condition could lead to abortion or it could just provide parents with more time to prepare to care for the child or have more time to find closure if the child is going to die shortly after birth." Please keep in mind that this is not a personal stand she is taking, but rather an assigned group debate where students had no say in which side of the argument they had to take. She's studying to go into family counseling/psychology and genuinely wants to understand all sides of these issues. Thanks to anyone who is willing to share their ideas/viewpoints. I know that these are sensitive issues and don't wish to fuel any dissension on the hive; this is purely an informational request.:001_smile:

My college student dd has been assigned to a debate group that has to form arguments to support mandated genetic testing/counseling and parenting classes. While some of the students in her group support these ideas in part, they are certainly not squarely in this camp. They feel like the ideas they've come up with are "flimsy" at best and Orwellian at worst. So, she asked me to ask for hive wisdom! :) Without starting any debate here, would anyone care to offer their best arguments in favor of mandated genetic testing/counseling and mandated parenting classes? TIA :001_smile:

My ds10 fell on his hand/wrist at the skating rink and continued to skate, but came over and complained of pain several times. We just got home and I had a good look at it. The outside edge of the wrist near the little bone that juts out is slightly swollen and the outside edge of his hand just above the wrist has turned slightly blue/purple. When it's stationary, he says the pain is at the outside edge of his hand near the wrist, but when he moves it he says the wrist hurts as well. He is playing a computer game and is able to manipulate his fingers on the keyboard, but isn't moving the wrist at all. I generally take a "wait and see" approach before heading out to the minor emergency clinic (we have great insurance, so it's not a big issue), but the discoloration worries me a bit. What do you think? Also, as a child, I seemed prone to hairline fractures; one from this very same scenario.

I know that I couldn't share a house, but I love the idea of semi-communal, compound style living. I'd love to have several homes encircling a large play area with a communal garden and a small "community" building for gathering for potluck meals.

Thank you for this thread. I'm one of those didn't-do-their-baby books-don't-have-any-video-past-baby-number-one moms. I, too, didn't enjoy them enough when they were little. I was stressed out by life (it's a personality bent, and I'm conquering it now in my 40's) and wish I had enjoyed them more. Looking back makes me too sad because of regret; I did my job really well, but I didn't know how to have fun doing it. Looking forward makes me sad for what will be gone. So, I'm learning to enjoy the moment, because it's really all we have.

I was going to say moth larvae as well. The only other pantry bugs that I've seen are what my grandmother called weevils. They're brownish-black after they hatch out and they leave a little "skin" behind. With either one you just need to check all of your unsealed dry goods and may want to wipe the shelves down.