I don't avoid them and sometimes I look for them. He likes reading about school but he prefers to read about independent kids like Artemis Fowl. He loves Artemis Fowl - and I think he secretly thinks he can be Artemis Fowl! :)

So let me get this straight...she was not licensed when she could have been, she (I assume) charged money for a medical service, she performed certain "acts" which she knew she was not allowed to do, she carried medications (with full intent to use them) that she was not allowed to administer, and she allowed a high risk pregnant woman to "convince" her to take a risk with her and her baby's life. And she knew all this going in? Yeah, sorry but she did just about everything wrong in this case and while I'm not against home birth at all, I think that if you want to take risks with other people's lives then you have to be willing to stand up and take the responsibility when it all goes to crap. I'm not sure she deserves jail time, but I'd definitely have to hear all the evidence before I could say that for sure. I think if she was not charging money for her services she would not be prosecuted because then she'd just be someone helping out with a home birth. But when you label yourself an expert in something as serious as childbirth and then allow a woman who was told multiple times that she needed a more emergency ready setting to talk her into doing something she inherently knew could go very wrong, well...she should not have been be surprised when the worst case scenario happened. And yes, childbirth is completely natural and has never been safer than it is today, but 100 years ago every 1 out of 100 women died in childbirth. People feel it's natural and safe because, well it is. But that's not because childbirth is naturally safe, it's because pregnancy care and medical care during childbirth have greatly improved. And for the record I refused a C-section and no one berated me or refused to give me drugs or birth my baby.

Yeah, she said fat is a far superior "brain food". Leaving out her comment on glycogen, which is really only used in short term energy bursts for muscles, her comment that fat can be used by the brain is incorrect, as are many other things said in this thread. As far as this HGC diet goes, I'd be willing to bet money that if I got anyone on a 500 calorie a day diet I'd make them lose weight too. Why don't you guys just do the starvation diet and save yourself the money?

You have it backwards. In a ketogenic state your body eats muscle and produces ketones which are a VERY short term energy for brain function. You cannot in any shape way or form convert fat to glucose because the acetyl-CoA made from glycerol or fatty acids enters the TCA cycle and is not able to go back UP the pathway to create pyruvate to form glucose. Biochemistry 101. Fat gives you energy - but NEVER EVER EVER glucose. It isn't metabolically possible in humans.

Wow - that makes me sick. This is why I have no use for this Ham guy. I don't know who he is, or who that other guy is either - but when you must attack others in order to lift yourself up, then you've got a BIG problem. I mean, is it really part of being a "good Christian" to tear apart the life's work of others just because they disagree with you? Because to me, that sounds like the antithesis of Christianity.

I love it! Isn't it nice to just have something FUN in this crazy world. :lol:

He's got 75,000 followers (including me!) :lol:

Ditto. And I'm not really one or the other - I'm quite happy using Christian stuff or secular stuff. And to be honest - I think there are just as many zealots on the other extreme too - which is why I prefer to stay in the middle. But this whole thing is...unsavory. :ack2:

Hmmmm....I'm northeast of Elizabeth I guess I should turn on the local news... (The wind is south east today so we should be fine.)

Are horses expensive? I spat out my soda on the monitor. :lol: But as a horse lover and and English rider, it is worth it. You figure out real fast if this is where your slush money goes or not - because you'll be spending a lot of it on horses and related stuff. When I was a kid I worked at our show barn two nights a week feeding and watering. I got one lesson free and paid for the other. And I got to ride the show horses which belonged to the (rich) kids, instead of the lesson horses, because we were poor and could not afford to buy a horse let alone the boarding fees. It was hard work, especially in the Ohio winters, but I loved every second of it.

Not only that - it is a total write off for taxes.

Pretty much all of Colorado! :D I even enjoy the plains becasue of the antelope and historical significance, but most people prefer the mountains or front range. You don't really need a destination - just drive. It's all breath-taking.

I'd actually LOVE to be a vendor at my state convention since it's right down the road - but unfortunately I am not Christian enough and must sign a declaration of faith. Here's the thing that really ticks me off - I can either lie and say yeah I believe all that stuff, or not go because I have a few disagreements on what they feel I should believe. So I stay home. I've been a homeschooler in Colorado for 10 years and I've never joined a group or gone to a convention because of this and you know what? It's their loss. I spend thousands of dollars on stuff every year and if they don't want my money, someone else does. I do enjoy my HSLDA membership and I will continue to be a member, but honestly I wish HSDLA would point out that not welcoming those who don't subscribe to your very narrow particular belief system is what is hurting them, not those of us who decide to purchase elsewhere. And as far as Amazon goes, hey - if they put it on Amazon they know they won't make any money. It's the trade-off for massive exposure and sales. You make squat. If you don't want your product discounted like that - then don't sell it on Amazon. I always go to Amazon first because I have premium membership and get free 2-day shipping. I pay $80 a year for that - so it only makes sense to buy from them when I have a need. OTOH - I LOVE to use PayPal and since Amazon doesn't take PayPal I will also search out smaller stores that will take my PayPal money before I actually make a decision. So - it all evens out. :001_smile:

My son was an anti-reader at that age too - then we started reading Percy Jackson. He really turned around after that and has read quite a few adventure series about boy heroes. Right now he's reading the fourth Artemis Fowl book. Other books he really enjoyed at that age were: Where the Red Fern Grows Call of the Wild The Alchemist series Alex and the Ironic Gentleman Timothy and the Dragon's Gate Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life

Yeah, I have to go with this too. I think you should celebrate your mom's unique quirks and be happy she's there to enhance your life.