I wouldn't rule out anything nature and I am terrified of snakes. Blue Springs is a beautiful park about an hour from Orlando. They have alligator warning, but I have yet to see one and have been there many times. Gemini Springs is in the same area and is another pretty place to go and walk. I've never seen alligators or snakes there, but of course it is possible. Driving around Cape Canaveral National Seashore is beautiful and they have lots of scenic roads with real slow speeds. Driving at sunset is neat because you can safely see the alligators from your car if you desire to do so. A good seafood place near there is Dixie Crossroads. You can rent a pontoon boat or kayaks near Hontoon Island. It is a beautiful area. I'll come back and add some more as I think about it.

I am looking at it from the perspective of my 9 yo niece. It would be very difficult because she is raised so much differently than how we raise our dd. I love her and she is a sweet girl it would just be very difficult to parent the way her parents do and it would be hard for her to adjust to our parenting. I wouldn't do it if my IL's were going to be there, that would be a disaster. I would ask your dh what is really expected. How different will it be for your 3 yo niece? Do you have the same parenting styles? I think a 3 year old would be easier to do this with than a 9 yo. I don't have any easy answers for you and hope it works out well.

Yes, I use money dance which works better on mac than quicken does.

I have been having pretty bad allergies for about the last year. Benedryl helps, claritin, and I started using Lavendar, eucalyptus, lemon, and peppermint essential oils under my nose and on my cheeks. It helps and yes a hot shower helps as well.

Sandwiches or wraps (peanut butter and jelly or lunchmeat) Take a crock pot and do BBQ over potatoes or sandwhiches Chili BBQ chicken or roasted chicken Microwave popcorn

We searched online to figure out what the particular vehicle was worth. Ebay, dealers, etc. We then call dealers that advertise having the car that we want, confirm that they have it and then ask what their out the door price is for today. You have to be willing to buy today for that to work. They are much more contrary if you go into the dealership before getting a price.

I talked to a really nice lady several years ago. We were staying in an extended stay hotel because dh was working and we were staying with him. The job was not long enough to get an apartment (it only lasted 4 months). We were bringing in lots of money and living on very little. This really nice lady ended up loosing her job and her house and her son lost his house and job because of major medical problems he was having. He had just been cleared from his medical conditions and was starting a new job and the only thing they could afford was an extended stay. She felt really bad about being poor enough that they had to live in a hotel and I talked to her some and said explained that we were living in a hotel because of good pay and work that was away from home. We had a really nice chat and talked several times over the time we were there. We have friends and family on both ends of the financial spectrum. We like them for who they are and try to be considerate on plans that we make to not stretch anyone to thin.

We didn't have children until we were old. I worked more than 10 years in engineering with the last 1 1/2 years doing contract work in a high paying field. We had our house paid off and a good amount of savings when I quit working. Dh still contracts as an engineer in that high paying field. We are discussing both of us working for the next year on opposite shifts so one of us can be home with dd and so that we can maybe buy sailboat and take some time off to cruise. Dh does work away from home and we travel with him.

At a big family dinner my MIL said my dh was a bad dad because he made himself a plate and didn't make dd one. I said he is a great father and she said it again and said she can pick on him about about it because he is her son. I turned around and said again he is a great dad. It is not what I want my 4 year old dd to hear you know. My dh loves my dd and would do anything for her.

Dracula Deconstructing Penguins Reading Anne of Green Gables to dd.

Happy New Year!

Does anyone have suggestions for a 4 year old that is going to be baptized? She has a children's bible and a necklace with a cross already. I am looking more for gift that she will have for a long time rather than something like a T-shirt.

My vent, I went through dd's stuff this fall and got rid of several things like 25-50 piece puzzles that she is beyond and picked up some 100-300 piece puzzles for her. The 100 she can do with a little help and the 300 we do as a family. Dh knew this and went shopping with my MIL. She bought her 7 or 8 of the smaller puzzles so that she can have something "fun" to do for a time or two before she gets bored with them and then we can get rid of them. Dh was with her to shop for dd's birthday gifts and she came up with stuff that they figured would break and we'd get rid of in a few weeks. I am sure most of you know how hard it is to get stuff away from a 4 year old. Even if they don't play with it, if they see you getting ready to get rid of something, it is nooooo don't get rid of that. I want that. I really wish dh would have encouraged his mom to get something that she could enjoy for a while and it was kind of awkward the number of puzzles she got. (I ordered our puzzles a few weeks before Christmas and dh knew that when he took his mom out to shop.) I love my dh but sometimes really wonder what he is thinking and yes his mom can be persuaded fairly easily, if he would have made suggestions.

We don't do Santa. We do stockings and today waited until the afternoon because grandparents and an aunt and uncle came for breakfast and opening gifts and got here before dd got out of bed.

Earlier this week, our pastor asked our 4 1/2 year old dd what she was looking forward to the most about Christmas. Her answer was celebrating the birth of Christ.

:grouphug:

Alice, hope your family feels better. I have a cold my FIL has Bronchitis and Pneumonia, and my MIL is sick as well. We are going to try and have an easy day for everyone here tomorrow, but who knows.

The only gifts dh wraps are mine and I have been known to wrap a few of mine that were boxed because things were crazy. Dh is an engineer and doesn't care how I wrap as long as it gets done. I figure when dd is old enough to do it by herself he will ask her to wrap my gifs. Do you have similar things that you could wrap together so that there would be a few packages per person instead of just 1?

So Alice, what has happened?

If you go all the way to Charleston, SC you might add Savannah, GA to your list as well.

What do you do with the family records of your loved ones that have passed away? I came across a box of stuff that I have and don't know what the best way to keep it is. It has birth certificates, death certificates, marriage announcements, death announcements, high school diplomas, etc. I don't think I really want to scrapbook it. Some of it is single sheets of paper and some are paper booklets and some are books.

No additional advice just more :grouphug: .

http://www.landolakes.com/recipe/1527/star-cut-out-cookies-gluten-free-recipe This is the land o lakes recipe. We tried it last week and got all but a couple decorated without breaking them. They were pretty good.

It's hard, I have been married 20 years and for the last 15 or so my mom has worked retail. She can't take off any time before Christmas, we have spent lots of Christmas days with IL and a few by ourselves. We often get together with my family after New Years or in Feb. It makes it nice in some ways because all the craziness is over. Things will change as kids get over. I wouldn't give up the time with your mom on Christmas morning yet.

We are expecting to see them again. Hopefully it will be my dh. He is not afraid although respectful of snakes and knows how to use a shotgun. I know how to use a shotgun, but I am more than afraid of them. The thought of more alligators....just ah!