I don't consider myself Christian. I consider myself agnostic. I don't know if Jesus actually existed, and haven't seen proof that convinces me of his existence. I'm not sure there is a god (or multiple gods, etc). I would expect a Christian to believe in a Judeo-Christian definition of God, and that Jesus was a real person. I would expect them to have a decent understanding of the Bible, but I don't necessarily expect them to use a literal interpretation of the Bible. I used to expect a trinitarian belief (because that's how I was raised), but I've learned that there are denominations that don't strictly believe this, so I excluded it from my definition. Those are my big generics for "Christian." Within that umbrella label, I expect that people who then use clarifying subsets of Christian (United Methodist, LDS, Jehovah's Witness, LCMS, whatever) to know the finer points of their particular belief system - what makes them different from each other, or if they don't know about all the other system they know enough to say that "the United Methodist church believes...." or whatever. I also, honestly, expect that if you're going to wrap yourself in the label that you personal adhere to the beliefs of your denomination and run your life as such. As an agnostic it's a little confusing for me to deal with "cafeteria" believers - people who say that they're a certain denomination and then when asked about a specific tenet say basically, "Yeah, that's the rule, but I don't follow it."

FWIW, I know there have been (civilized!) discussions here about the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed - I know there are some denominations that do not use them because they aren't in the Bible as well as other reasons. I found this article: http://www.trinityfoundation.org/journal.php?id=108 that explains some of the reasons behind some denominations/churches opting to not use the creeds mentioned. FWIW, I think we recited both of them in the United Methodist church that I attended as a child.

"Leave the cat alone" (I really thought the novelty of the cat would've worn off now that she's been here for nearly a year, but no such luck) "What should you be doing?"

I like sweet potato quesadillas, so I'd be fine with the sweet potatoes and cheese.

Also, you can kill some time with the kids watching the "Will It Blend?" videos from BlendTec: http://www.willitblend.com/

Costco has both: http://www.costco.com/CatalogSearch?storeId=10301&catalogId=10701&langId=-1&keyword=blender in case you want to see what they offer and how it compares. I'm a fan of Costco's return policies :)

I think it's perfectly okay to pick another song. It's a new stage in your life - this new song starts the next 25 :)

When my old neighbor found out we were godless, she still let her kids play with mine but apparently shared with her son about what she'd learned (the boys were under 10 at the time). I don't know what she said, but i was driving them to the zoo one day and heard Friend ask Son if he was worried about burning up in a lake of fire because he didn't have Jesus in his heart. Friend wasn't worried because he DID have Jesus in his heart. So, we're going to burn in a lake of fire, but until then, I'm a great playdate hostess. :001_huh:

My grandmother made a baptismal gown for my mom out of silk my grandfather brought back from Japan. I wore the same gown (and it's possible my brother did). My older son was baptized in that gown, too. I've heard the tradition about the wedding dresses, but it was easier to just keep using the same gown for us. So, yes - in lots of families there is a "recycling" of the gown/dress and it's perfectly lovely.

The honey baked lentil recipe (it's all over the internets) is really tasty and not sweet - the honey is treated more like a seasoning. Lots of people seem to serve it over rice, so I would imagine it would also be good over cornbread. another option would be to season them like tacos

That said, what about these: http://www.reclaimingprovincial.com/2011/10/31/chai-iced-pumpkin-cookies/ :)

if you have a health food store that sells bulk items, they may have bulk spices, too. I've found that's the cheapest way to buy them. And it means you can just buy a tablespoon's worth when you're trying something new.

Look up your state's HSing laws. Look up what is required to withdraw your child, and if you need to file an intent to HS letter with the state/county/district/whatever. Then, just do the paperwork. The IEP is a legal document the SCHOOL is obligated to follow. They are supposed to be doing the things in that document as long as she is a student at that school. Imagine you were withdrawing her to enroll her in a private school. Would you care about her IEP (other than to get a copy of it)? Would you do anything other than request that her records be sent on to the new school? You're enrolling her in a new school - at home.

I have seen suggestions for charities ("in lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to ABC Charity or group") and I've seen trust funds set up when a parent of minor children dies ("donations to the Jane and Sally Doe trust fund can be made at any ABC Bank location"). I think it would be great to come up with generally acceptable gentle language for "if you'd like to help the widow/children cover the costs of the funeral and other expenses, here's what you should do."

Clearly we have different definitions of "short." My "short" is a chin length bob. :) Mine is currently just past my shoulders which is long for me. I wish I could be bothered to learn how to braid it because I'd be more interested in keeping it long. DH doesn't really like braids (it's too "little girlie" for him), so he's surely not going to learn and do my hair. I've been lazy about getting it cut, but I need to because this "all ponytail, all the time" business isn't terribly flattering for me.

NO it wasn't. You maybe had to consult with some people, and you maybe have a life - the people right in front of you are more important sometimes than the text. It's okay. I had a great sense of relief when I decided I didn't always need to answer the phone, even if I knew who was calling. Sometimes a kid is screaming. Sometimes I'm driving. Sometimes I just don't want to talk to other people. That's what voice mail is for.

Was it this thread: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/showthread.php?t=405989&highlight=married? You had another one about cake vs pie in case you wanted something else to search, but this one looked more like what you needed.

Funny story - a friend was out to lunch the other day and on the sidewalk was a man shouting that he needed to see someone's phone because he KNEW people were talking about him on FB, but he didn't even HAVE a FB, so could someone PLEASE give him their phone so he could see what people were saying about him. Police ended up removing him from the area. She posted about that as a status, and I replied with something like "See? he's not paranoid. People ARE talking about him on FB!"

I wonder if you could use the paper slip to pay for plastic gift cards? For example, if they do slips for Starbucks, could you then take that slip to Starbucks and use it to pay for a GC? Then you could still end up wiht GCs for B&M places. https://coinstar.com/freecoincounting.aspx - this talks about "coin to card" - do you have to have the GC to start with? Because I might be VERY interested in this for starbucks (as much as I should avoid them.... sometimes it's lovely having some chai after a big shopping adventure).

My boys are doing some things together and some things separately. I'd skip the together things depending on what it was. For example, they do science together. If we need to do an experiment, I'm skipping that when one is sick. If it's writing definitions or summaries or something, the healthy kid can do those.

http://aynrandfunfacts.tumblr.com/ - there are citations, in case anyone is interested.

It's my understanding that NONE of the hotel rooms in Vegas have coffee makers (well, perhaps the "whale" rooms do, and some other ones, but we looked at nearly a dozen hotels on the strip and none mentioned coffee makers). I've heard that from everyone I know who has been. It's intentional - how are you going to gamble if you can have a slow cup of coffee in your room? Better to go to the lobby and hit the StarBucks or the breakfast place and maybe pass a slot machine and give it a try or 10. There are places online to find free things to do around Vegas (like the Bellagio conservatory/arboretum which is gorgeous, or the fountains, or the volcano at the Mirage). I will tell you that the Pirate show at Treasure Island is full of "pirates" in bikinis and the like. If you're going to go to shows, check with your concierge or online to see what the full price is and what the seating arrangement is. The half price places aren't all half price (but they do restaurants as well as shows), so it can be good to know how much your saving. Or if you'd be happy in the "cheap seats" thru the theater rather than the reduced price "great seats" that might be more expensive. Definitely check to see if your hotel rate includes wifi. I'm sure lots of people get the "deal" we had, but without it, wifi was like $15/day or something. Our online booking included wifi, a free drink somewhere, a reduced buffet, etc. Stuff most of the hotels will give you if you ask, but you have to ask.

I found the blog easily enough. I think the author might have good intentions (and some of her other "finishing school" posts aren't bad - basic table manners, polite conversation topics, etc - and might be useful for some people who've simply never intuited these things or need them spelled out more obviously. I have a kid who sometimes needs basic social "rules" explained to him), but I think that unless she's moving in circles that will all have either read this blog or who are getting "handshake lessons" elsewhere (is that something that gets covered in things like Cotillions or Coming Out parties?), she's going to end up meeting a bunch of men who have no idea what to do with her down turned hand other than try to grasp it oddly and turn it into a "regular" handshake. Knowing the overall "theme" of the blog.... is this something that's trying to gain a revival in some Christian circles? I found myself wondering if the Bateses or the Duggars (two very public, traditionally CHristian families I could think of) use this kind of etiquette? Quick - someone start watching and make note of handshakes!

Spanish with a drawl is interesting, too. I did a semester abroad in Seville, Spain and was friends with several students from Mercer University who were in the same program as I.

There are certain meds my grandmother has to take as "brand name" rather than generic because the coatings are a little different. The active ingredient is the same, but because the coatings are different they can break down in different places (which is fine if you have a fully intact digestive system, but she doesn't). I'd initially blame the coatings or some inactive ingredient. Maybe one has soy and the other corn or something and you're reacting to the "filler."