No expert here, but as an adult who's never had chicken pox - I've asked my doc about this several times (FIL and a friend have both had shingles). Take what I say with a grain of salt though, since it's been a while and my memory could be slightly off. If you've had chickenpox or the vax, you should be okay. I have no idea if the vax needs a booster. If you've had the vax, you could get a mild case, but not as bad as you might have otherwise. If you have not had chicken pox, I'd probably go in and sanitize. (I'd do that anyway!) For me, I have a compromised immune system, so doc told me to stay away from anyone with Shingles. A vax is out of the question for me, so we just do our best. Maybe call DD's doc to find out if a booster is necessary? Crossing fingers that none of you get sick!

Treated by an allergist here, with the support of a pediatrician. Diagnosed by the allergist, though it was suspected by the pedi. Daily maintenance meds, and an albuterol inhaler 30 minutes before exercise. Plus as needed. Totally agree with staying hydrated, too. DS also has allergy induced asthma - are you positive that's not an issue? Daily allergy meds make a huge difference in his life.

It's the same adoption attorney! This is so unethical.

I think it depends on the state's laws. From one of the articles I read, it doesn't sound like it's legal in OK, where biodad is. But if the adoption was finalized in SC (I think it was SC?) it would depend on SC's laws. In VA, it would not be legal. Absolutely not. Medical and legal expenses related to the adoption, yes. But nothing else. Not even holiday gifts (in one article it mentioned that the adoptive family had given gifts to the other children, etc). Absolutely nothing that might be construed as a material or monetary gift, that could influence a birthparent's decision. CA seems to have more liberal laws re: material and monetary gifts. What a mess. That poor child. :(

Sing it, sister!

(Sing with me?) A neighbor gave us a gigantic bag of beautiful peaches. It is a huge bag! I love peaches. :) But DS has OAS and can't eat them unless they are cooked, DD (2 years old) won't eat many, and DH won't eat them at all. What can I do with all of them? They are perfectly ripe today. We are gluten free, nut free, dairy free. Any ideas?

What a crummy attitude. Glad she's not teaching my kids, too. FWIW, a good friend majored in ed, and got a job dodging bullets in a very urban school, teaching what your acquaintance would have called the dumb kids. She did a great job, got her benefits (I think there was a loan forgiveness program), and she didn't call them the dumb kids. (Ok, she might have said a few choice words when promising kids got pregnant and dropped out, or when another promising boy got pulled into gang activity, she was frustrated because these were kids with potential!) She now teaches at a magnet school, and is the director of the gifted program. :)

Rose, :grouphug: I'm so sorry you're going through this. Our lives turned into a bad Lifetime movie a few years ago, due to a situation with birthfamily, and it was an all-consuming nightmare. I hope that you can find a small space of peace every day, a time when you can just be you, without the agony and stress this is bringing into your life. :grouphug: I agree with this completely (and many other posts above). Maybe you can call social services today and talk to someone. They should be aware of this new development.

DS takes 1 mg at night and has for years. Recommended by the pediatrician. His other doctors all know about this as well (allergist, asthma doc, neurologist, and his alternative med doc). We have discussed it with each and every one of these docs, either in depth or as we were going over his daily meds. We have met with no raised eyebrows, no opposition to it, and no mention of it being problematic. But I will probably ask again. :)

My mother self administered allergy shots, too. She did it in the early 60s. She has some funny stories about working at summer camp and how the other counselors and campers reacted to the shots - they thought she was using drugs and ostracized her at first! I think at that time they didn't realize that there is a serious risk when administering allergy shots, thus the reason we stay for 30 minutes in the doc's office now.

DS did a year of shots when he was 6/7. They don't hurt as much as other types of shots, which helps. Do something fun afterward? Plan something to anticipate. :) I don't know, if he's very stressed, I'd hesitate to fight the battle, if it turns into one. But that's based on my experience with DS ... A year of shots and no results! Aaack. FWIW, DS's allergies and asthma are severe, very severe. He sometimes reacted to the shot so we'd have to backtrack and he never made it to a maintenance dose. We switched allergists, and his new one has recommended against doing it again now - maybe when he's older. But really, the shots weren't bad! DS was happily surprised by that.

Coffee snob here. :) Shade grown organic rocks. Go with freshly roasted - always check the roast date. A few good ones: Camano Island Roasters. They will roast it then ship to you the next day. Counter Culture does the same. K Cups are not freshly roasted, not to mention the waste. Try lots of different blends. Branch out. Don't stick to French roast. Personally, I like chocolate undertones. :) No advice on mugs. I pre warm the cup with super hot water and drink espresso.

Home. :wub:

Oooh! That just went into the trusty Amazon cart! OP, if your kiddo likes that kind of stuff, maybe check out Horrible Histories - you could even do the show. Not the animated one on Netflix, though (the original is much better). It's on iTunes.

We have a similar age difference. :) ...And at about the same ages in our own lives. First, your kiddo sounds amazing. He's going to be a great big brother! I'll share our experience, if it helps. Just to be clear though, we also have a 21 year old in the mix. He is my stepson, and lived with us half time until going away to college. He was 12 when DS (now 9) was born. They've always been super close, and great together. The love hasn't diminished with DSS going to college, either. :) But that aside... DS is 9.5, and our DD is 2.5. (DSS was not at home anymore when DD came along.) ...DS and DD are great together! DS always hoped for a little sibling, especially a little sister, so there's that to factor in. They are super close, and so sweet together. They play, they talk... They team up. I am amazed. I can't say that they will always be this close - but I hope so. We did the usual prep before DD arrived - we had DS help out with decorating, and he made special gifts for DD, that sort of thing. It has impacted school work, I have to plan more carefully. You'll get lots of advice about that here. Congratulations!

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: There are not enough hugs here to wrap you up in love the way we'd all like to do.

I think we live in the same area, and that is So. True!!!!!!!!

Do you have a Wegman's? Ours has a small section in the bakery area that has some specialty items. The contents may vary by area, but ours has unfrosted gluten-free, dairy-free cookies. There are also some options in the gluten-free aisle (try the freezer section there). Best bet is to talk to the girl's mom. In fact, I would suggest you do that before purchasing anything. She may have options for you, or she may be like me and always bring a safe option. When I know ahead, I try to coordinate the theme, etc. :)

Hoping that social services was able to be of some help. Sending warm thoughts and strength. :grouphug:

Going to throw this out there... A different scenario: our oldest DS does not know our income. I should say he's my DSS. He knew several years ago but he does not know the specifics now (they've changed). Neither DH nor I think he needs to know, especially because he tends to share the info freely with friends and very extended family (actually, his extended family, not ours). He is a young adult, finished with college. There is no need for him to know our income, nor is there a need for him to share the info (as he has in the past). So we keep it private. I do think it's important to teach kids about budgeting, about managing money, about household and life expenses. I even think that in most cases it's fine to share basic financial info with kids. If that is out of the question, then sample budgets and hypotheticals could come in handy. The downside to DSS knowing our info through his teen years (he had the knowledge, and he had our thoughts on budgeting, etc, but he had another influence about money in his life obviously): he had unrealistic expectations based on knowing numbers without understanding budgets and life expenses. For example, he expected to have 2 cars given to him (one from each household - we had 50/50 shared custody). Based on knowing his grandparents' financial info, he expected that he would never have to work or have a job (!!!!). I could go on here, but you get the idea. He still struggles with money issues. So yes, I think it's imperative that we give our kids a foundation in how to handle money, where it goes, and how to manage it. We haven't decided how to approach this with DS and DD. Clearly it's time to start making a plan. This thread is full of great ideas, and I'm glad you started it, Q!

We go to the beach for our annual Not-Back-To-School-Vacation. Usually it's a full week, but this year we have to delay it. Bummer. So we need to plan something fun for the first day, too. I'm thinking a scavenger hunt for some fun goodies - some for school, some for fun - and lunch out. We'll do some minor school stuff, mostly just looking at our new supplies and talking about our plans for the year.

[sigh] This thread has made me notice that our trim could use some touching up, errrr, re-painting. Will be brush shopping asap!

:lol: Me, too! Thumbs Down for them. They will go away.

Yes, banana allergy can be linked to latex allergy. We have both here. :( Kiwi can cross react, too. Not fun. We have had to break out the epipens due to bananas before.

Not a book, just an idea... I will be watching this thread for book ideas! My DS has emotional attachment to old toys also, and we've found that it helps to use the toy library system. We packed up the toys he wasn't using, put them in bins labeled "toy library" and he knows he can check them out again at will (trading in a different toy that he has out currently, I'm sure you're familiar with the system). The up side to this has been that he sees that there truly are toys he doesn't play with any more. If a toy has been languishing in the library for years, it's easier to pass it along. I also find he's motivated by the idea of a garage sale. DH and I are not garage sale people though, so we've offered him small amounts of cash for old toys. It's not as appealing as a garage sale, but it is a bit tempting. Hoping for some book leads. :)