Too funny! It's a 2009 Jetta. :)

We are about as far away from you as we could be within the 48 states. :) We're in VA. It would be great if we were closer! Will you get the car checked out? (Or, wait, you said your DH did that already?) ...I think if you do that, and just do your homework on the paperwork... You'll be fine. I hope you are just getting a great deal!

You could ask that he meet you at the DMV to change the title over into your name, etc. We did that once for a young couple - they were buying our car, and it was their first car. English was their second language and they were unsure about how to do it. We were happy to help them out. So meeting at the DMV is not totally unheard of. In your case, it would make me feel more confident that the title, etc is authentic. FWIW, we are selling a car right now - it was a company car for visiting colleagues of DH's, but is no longer needed. We're going to put it on the market as a screaming deal because we just want it out of our hair. Reading your post made me think that someone is going to think it's too good to be true and post on some other board asking if it's shady! :lol: We are too far from you, but it's only got 26,000 miles and we're going to ask under $10K. It's going to make someone very happy, if they can get past wondering if we are for real!

Yes, I share those concerns, too. I agree with contacting an attorney, and I'm not sure I'd be putting my DS on a plane. But I don't know the whole story.

Right there with you. Gluten free, dairy free, peanut/tree nut free. Sometimes coming up with high protein options is crazy-making. I will be watching this thread with interest. :) Can you do sunbutter? We do sunbutter on gluten free toast (Rudi's bread) or rice cakes. DS also likes sunbutter stirred into oatmeal with melted chocolate chips (Enjoy Life's mini chips are dairy free). He adds a bit of sugar, too. Eggs? Not an option for us, but maybe for you? Leftover dinners? DS loves burgers, if we have leftovers. Anything that we've had for dinner is fair game, but often not appealing. Chicken wings are always gobbled up, too. Are tree nuts an option for you? (Not for us, but maybe for you?)

Whoa. What makes you think this will end up in court? That's a genuine question. I hope, for OP's sake, that this doesn't go there. Certainly, the birthmother has no legal standing, unlike a noncustodial parent. ETA: I think that my, "whoa," came across as aimed at BlueTaelon, and it wasn't. It was "whoa" of "oh, I had not thought of that!" ...Are you thinking that the birthfamily will try to regain their parental rights? That is a frightening thought, but I don't think they can do that at this point.

Best thread in a long, long time! :hurray: No modesty here. I go for comfort only. If it's a no make up day, that's because I feel that way. Sleeveless, shorts, bikinis... It's all fair game. Looking down when meeting strangers sounds like something out of Clan of the Cave Bear, blech. I grew up in an artist community, what can I say? There are some less than modest paintings of me out there floating around. I do believe more than my shoulders were bared. My name is not attached to them, and frankly, even if it were, I would have no regrets. I went to college in the desert. It was hot. My field involved hiking out in the desert - and I dressed for comfort [gasp!]. Hot springs are best enjoyed in the moonlight, without sweaty clothes, after a day of hiking. DH and I have vacationed at a clothing optional beach. I'm not saying which option we chose. :tongue_smilie:

:grouphug: Have been wondering how things were going for you and DS. Hoping that this turns into a positive in some way. And hoping that there is a clear and comfortable plan for purchasing that return ticket. One small thing... very small, and it might not apply, since it is from my experience with a non-RAD kid... DSS would often get crabby and irritable before going to see his biomom. He would misbehave and pick arguments. Our family therapist explained that it was easier to leave mad, than to just leave. Does that make sense? So if DS is irritable and picking arguments, and things are not rosy, that might be part of the reason. For our non-RAD kid, we waited for a moment when he was not upset and talked to him in a general way about it, not really putting the onus on him, but in a general sort of way. He got it pretty quickly, as he was fairly emotionally astute. I'm not sure you have time for that conversation, or that it would be appropriate right now, but thought that it might help you not to take things personally while he is stressed and getting ready to go. He may be trying to create a situation in which leaving is preferable to staying. You probably know that already, though. :)

DC area here, too. It's a pain, but nothing like what OP describes. I think I'd hide in the house, too! As it is, we just avoid the peak traffic times whenever possible, and invest in a good audiobook collection for when we can't.

:grouphug: I hope she has good support, and an excellent Lyme doc. I was exactly where she is, with a young child. It was awful - my mother and MIL really stepped up. If she can keep treating, hang in there, it will hopefully get better. I have some "souvenirs" from the bad days, that will never go away (POTS is one of them), but for the most part the worst is over. Even the neuropathy is mostly gone, and at one time, I thought it would be here forever. I hope she'll get to that point, too.

I hate grocery shopping. Less processed foods, no more coupons (we don't often find coupons for items we use). More shopping at the local farmer's market. Local eggs. Grass fed beef in the freezer. Last year we were part of a CSA, but not this year. More specialty shopping online for items we need for special diets/allergies. Online shopping at our local grocery store is the biggest change for me - it is a $5 flat fee for them to shop, bring to the car and load. For $5, I love it. Love it, love it, love it. Did I say I hate grocery shopping? ETA: I love my new meal planning app - Food on the Table - it matches up sales with recipes. Meal planning is a huge change for me, too.

Good movie. One of the people whose story is told is part of my support group - or was, years ago. She is a great person. :) We watched it on early release, and I cried. It took several tries to get through the whole thing. Lyme and co's took my 30s away. There is no quick description for what our family endured as a result. I am lucky, literally, to be alive. Lizzie, your daughter will win the fight. She is fortunate to have you in her corner.

4 more boxes outta here! Woo hoo! Our kindles are singlehandedly giving us back so much square footage, it is amazing how free I feel to let these books go now, knowing that access later is easy if I change my mind. I am keeping things that are sentimental or that I know I will reread soon, but otherwise... Out they go. The empty shelves in storage are glorious. Doing this inside the house, with more recently acquired books will be harder, but this is good practice, right? :)

I released 6 boxes of books yesterday. It was liberating. To be fair, these weren't books from the overflowing shelves in our rooms or halls though. These were the surplus that had migrated into our storage area. They've been there for years, sadly. I have another 15 - 20 boxes in storage to sift this week. Then the fun of sorting books in the house starts! Aaaagggghhhh. Ours went via freecycle. :)

Thanks, that is good to know. DS wants to know what they will do differently from a regular eye doc? Any quick explanations there?

DS has an appt to be evaluated. The appt is about 2 hours - what can we expect? Anything I should tell him ahead of time? Thanks!

We are grieving here, too.

We have the square OXO containers. Tons of them. I used them for everything, and got some kind of nerdy pleasure out of seeing our organized pantry. And then... And then... (wait for it...) DS developed severe allergies. Aaaack! We now have to keep the labels on everything. We have to check/double check ingredients. Aaahhhh! So we have dozens of those pop top OXO containers. Dozens. And no use for them. Sometimes I ponder putting art supplies in them. :) If you lived nearby, they'd be yours.

shahrazad, I can't imagine anyone ever being put out by your answers. They are always well thought out, kind, and understanding of others' good intentions in asking. At least from what I've seen here. :) I love reading your posts for that reason. Sometimes a shorter answer is more appropriate, sometimes people aren't looking for a discourse, or for thoughtful answers. I do think, sometimes, my nieces and nephews probably lament the day they ended up with an ethnologist as an aunt. DH's Catholic family feels the same way! Over the years, thankfully, I've learned to curb my impulse to ask questions with some people, though, as I know that the asking makes them feel uncomfortable, even though my intent is usually just to understand and get to know them better. I think the last time I asked a question that warranted an answer along the lines of, "It's the Law," my sister's kids were really in transition to a stricter lifestyle. I think they were probably adjusting as well, and since they were really leading the transition, I know they had strong feelings about it. (For the sake of reference, they had never ridden in cars on Sat, but the moment when my niece panicked at the thought that nephew would accidentally touch our running car as we dropped something off really opened my eyes to the ways they were changing their lifestyle, and I asked...). Now I just do my best to accommodate any needs I know of, and love them. Differences make us a better, stronger family, and I don't have to understand the "whys" for each one.

Have gotten rid of 6 boxes of books [gasp!] and a boatload of toddler toys today. Also several boxes of miscellaneous stuff we no longer use. It feels so good to reclaim some square footage! Now for the kick... What was I thinking?? I found our oldest son's copy of a practical joke book and gave it to DS9. Now he is walking around with the most ominous smile. :sneaky2:

And now I officially feel old. :leaving:

:lol: My sister's family must cover their elbows (the girls, not the guys). 3/4 length sleeves are as high as they'll go. They have rules regarding the ever-erotic collarbone, as well. They are OJ. I have asked the reasoning behind various rules, but the only answer I get is, "It's the Law," so that's that. I don't know why, and asking further only makes them feel they are being put under a microscope by the anthropologist sister/aunt/SIL. So I don't ask much anymore. FWIW, when I go to their home or to events with them, I try to dress as they do, out of respect. My other sister, though, tends to ignore the dress code, which makes for some entertaining moments.

This thread gives me the heebie jeebies, too. We have 3 turtles. 4 years old, and they are still growing. We are working toward dinner plate size. The thought of a dead turtle makes me ill. I just hope someone else deals with it, when that day comes.

:lol: We've been known to have pets in the freezer, too! Aaaack. Be thankful for good labeling in the freezer, right? At the moment, we only have a baggie full of frozen ticks. Ick.

:grouphug: We have a similar situation. I haven't read all the replies, and suspect that most of what I'll suggest has already been mentioned. Plus, we've done so much that it's hard to say what really worked. So I'll just mention a few things: our kiddo has greatly benefited from getting the dogs groomed every 2 weeks. We found a great mobile groomer who gives us a hefty "frequent flyer" discount, and it's affordable for us. But you could just bathe the dogs if that's not an option. Our groomer has done a lot of research, and came back from a dog show with some good options for allergenic (for humans) dog shampoo. We did replace flooring, but I wouldn't do that to your elderly pup. We waited till our older dogs left us :( to replace flooring. Maybe you could just do DS's room, as an alternative? The air purifier is a great option - make sure it's rated for dog dander. Just giving DS clean air for 8 hours a night will help. If he has other allergies, working to reduce those will help, too. Lower his overall allergy load. For us, DS didn't really show great results until he gave up dairy and wheat, the dogs were groomed every 2 weeks, and some supplement changes happened. This all happened at the same time, so it's hard to tell which thing had the most effect. We've spent several years working hard on cleaning up our space (lowering VOCs, etc), but this spring we saw the most dramatic effects.