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ChristineW

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Posts posted by ChristineW

  1. We planted sugar snap peas, carrots. radishes and lettuce last week. Will plant a small watermelon plant and sunflowers in April for transplant in May. I will also plant some tomatoes--I went overboard on the tomatoes last year and watered them too much but I'll try again this year. The cherry tomatoes were our best producers so I'll definitely plant those. Maybe 2 regular sized heirlooms--depends if I can build another raised bed. I'm also considering an eggplant, bell peppers and beans. Maybe some cukes--the deer ate all my cukes last year so I'll have to get better netting.

     

    Its 70 out today but we had a hard freeze 2 nights ago.

  2. Cupcakes yes!

     

    It's 26 degrees outside and there is a 19 mph wind. I wore jeans with long johns and sweat pants to the barn today and a flannel shirt with a sweatshirt over that plus my coat and a very frumpy looking hat. I would prefer to be here:

     

    (Hope the pic uploads okay. I am not tech savvy!)

     

    Faith

     

    Oh bummer, there was an error. They were very, cute beach themed cupcakes.

     

     

    Not to make you hate me but it will be pushing into the 80s here today. The kids will probably be pushing for me to get out the kiddie pool soon; they already want to go swimming at our gym pool (outdoors but heated). So in some places this thread is relevant.

  3. Living in LA bikinis are utterly normal and not considered immodest. Wearing a tankini, in contrast, would be about as strange as wearing a burka.

     

    Just saying.

     

    Bill

     

     

    I do miss LA. Here in the Bay Area, a day at the beach means rash guards and board shorts even in the height of summer. The beach and water are COLD.

     

    I have no philosophical problems with bikinis and my girls each own at least 2 pairs. Lots of moms wear cute tankinis to the pool but I don't ever see anyone between the ages of 12 and 29 in a tankini.

  4. Parts of Silicon Valley with low crime, a decent commute (under 45 minutes one way in traffic) and good schools (not that most of us need to worry about that, but if you are a smart home buyer you will consider it) are going crazy right now with multiple all cash offers with average time on the market under 15 days. Ones with any kind of charm go way before that. Most homes selling here are well over 1 million for a tiny 1400 sf 3 bedroom single family home. (Tiny for a million... I know my grandmother raised her family in a much smaller home, but they paid closer to $5000 for it. ;0)) We've been looking to buy since we relocated from Southern California and it feels like the 2003 bubble all over again. Ugh. On the bright side, jobs are looking good here. I thought there would be a bunch of layoffs after the election, but it seems like that's a non-issue here. Also, very few foreclosures in the good areas because the homes are selling at peak prices, so if someone is having trouble making payments, they can easily sell it if they need to. I am quite surprised by this, but the inventory is so low perhaps its driving demand up only in the short term? Can't wait to hear about other areas.

     

     

     

    Same here. In our small East Bay (SF) community, we would not be able to afford the home we bought 2 years ago. Just this past month, three homes within a half mile of our house sold for more than 1 mil in the first week they were listed--the homes were larger than 1400 sq ft but not more than 2000 sq ft. We know several families who are renting but cannot afford to buy.

  5. How long has your house been on the market? The market here is robust if a home is in good shape and priced appropriately (a friend had 12 offers after her first open house). However, after the first few weeks homes tend to sit and sit until the sellers accept a lowball offer.

     

    I think it also depends on how much you want the other house. If you found the perfect spot, I would accept the counter offer. There is no guarantee that it would be around when you get another offer.

  6. Hmm. How odd. Everybody else is pretty terse. This is something without a fixed date, so I wouldn't expect anybody to just say,

    "I can't." So, there are four other responders saying, "I can do the 17th, but not the 16th. The 24th would be okay, too." But then, there's the one who's reporting her other plans. It seems unnecessary to me.

     

     

    Maybe its just her family culture? (I take it that she's married to your husband's brother). My family shares many more details than DH's--our emails trying to schedule events share even more than your SIL.

     

    Her plans don't seem that glamorous--its not like she's e-mailing that she has reservations at French Laundry or that they're spending the weekend at their condo in Tahoe. It doesn't sound like she's bragging. Just being chatty. Maybe she specified Colorado plans so that you wouldn't offer another date that weekend?

     

    Christine

  7. It depends on the area. Where we live, the scenario posted is exactly what we saw two years ago when we were buying. Our Realtor friends tell us that its even worse now--there are lots of frustrated buyers b/c housing stock is low and listings are going well above asking price due to multiple offers. If a house hasn't sold withing two weeks on the market, its either significantly overpriced or has something seriously wrong with it.

  8. Around here teachers are no longer allowed to have reading groups with different levels. That screams lowest common

    denominator to me...

     

     

    Hmm. In response to CC, our local 1st grade classrooms have Just Right Reading which is definitely ability grouping (students switch classrooms just for reading based on their reading level).

  9. The kidlets are all artificial food coloring free--they love that they can get almost all their favorite former treats (jelly beans, cheetos, mac & cheese, ice cream, yogurt) at TJs. Cereal is cheap--1.99 for Frosted Flakes and Rice Crispies. I buy milk and eggs (organic) there too.

     

    The kids have started eating the agave sweetened black & white rice rolls--mmmm

  10. It's already an issue in at least 1 Eagle Board of Review. http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/2013/01/review-board-endorses-gay-teen-ryan-andresen-s-eagle-scout-bid http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/08/ryan-andresen-gay-eagle-scout_n_2432564.html I don't know Mr. Andresen personally (even though we are local), but I am glad he is challenging the status quo. If his brave stand and our local council's recent actions have done anything to lead to the end of discrimination against gay scouts then I'm proud to have my son be a member (even if he is only a 1st grade Tiger). We know several families who have been working on this issue and who will be celebrating next week if the Scouts act.

    --Christine

  11. DD1 can't have ginger, mint or lemon. She used to react to peas but hasn't for years; we're becoming suspicious of tomatoes and will have her tested at her 6 year well check.

    DD2 is allergic to strawberries

    We avoid artificial food coloring for all of our children

    The new baby has horrible reflux--DD2 had severe MSPI ( bad enough that two doctors thought she had pyloric stenosis and scheduled surgery before they observed her fully belly during a 2nd ultrasound) so I'm milk and soy free again.

    I get severe migraines from artificial sweeteners.

  12. Is it possible for an 8 day old baby to be showing signs of milk protein intolerance?

     

    For the past two days, my newborn has been especially fussy, arching his back while eating, spitting up a ton, and wanting to nurse nonstop. I have this vague memory of DD2 (who is now almost 4) having similar issues before the projectile vomiting that eventually led to a diagnosis of Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. She outgrew the milk intolerance at 18 months, but still has sensitivity to soy.

     

    At our lactation consultation, the RN noted that I had hyperlactation and that often these kids get more lactose than they can digest and that correlates with a higher incidence of MPI. She advised me to limit dairy. I've tried block feeding and while I still have too much milk, its much better. However, the stomach issues are getting worse. Should I cut out dairy entirely? Anyone else have a baby/child with MSPI? Any favorite resources or recipes? I know that there is much more available now than even 4 years ago. I live less than a mile away from Whole Foods and Trader Joes so if it exists I probably have access.

     

    Thanks,

     

    Christine

  13. Well stated. It is astonishing to me that few here seem to question why the information is needed from a non-student (esp if kid only wants merit scholarship) and what they do with it afterward. I do not care to have my accounts cleaned out by some disgruntled employee.

     

    FAFSA is a federal program run by the US Department of Education.The information contained in the FAFSA is cofidential and protected under federal law. I don't worry about anyone in the IRS stealing my identity based on my tax forms; I can't see much difference in filling out the FAFSA (it even has a cool new feature where you can access your federal income tax return and autofill the tax related info).

     

    I'm not keen on schools using the FAFSA to determine merit aid, but I've seen many discussions on this board about how a poor student with a high GPA and SAT score might be more deserving of admission or a scholarship than an affluent kid with an almost perfect SAT and above 4.0 GPA. I don't see how schools can figure that out without some independent confirmation of the socio-economic status of the student.

     

    Christine W

  14. OP's husband posting here.

     

    After his last year of tee ball, we refused to let him play last spring. We told him the truth: it was because he didn't put any effort into the sport and his inattention on the field was costing the team. The deal was that if he showed us that he'd grown enough to stay in the game and practice hard, he could play this spring.

     

    He hasn't shown us that. I have to practically drag him outside to play catch. I don't know that I've ever heard him ask me to do anything regarding baseball. For two years he's resisted my efforts to help him improve, and now he wants to play. I hate the thought of telling my kid he can't do something, but I hate the thought of watching him fail when I know that if he really wanted it, he could do it.

     

     

    When is registration? I'd remind your son again why he didn't play last year and then give him a limited window to show his willingness to practice. If your son isn't willing to play catch or practice fielding balls at home, then he shouldn't be on the team. It's bad for him, and its bad for his teammates.

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