Also- eating healthy/low carb at chains like Applebees, Olive Garden, Chilis, etc. is pretty much impossible. All that food is just glorified fast food. It's all junk. They don't have "chefs" at these restaurants- they have cooks, who reheat frozen, prepackaged food. Almost everything is premade at a main facility, then shipped to them- so asking them to leave this off, or that off- usually can't happen.... The steaks are coated in chemicals, the vegetables are coated in chemicals- everything is coated in chemicals, laden with sugar in some form, frozen and reheated when you order it. We prefer fast casual places, like Chipotle, Nandos, etc. Or nicer restaurants where actual chefs are in the kitchen, preparing actual real food.

I've had gestational diabetes twice, had pre-diabetes, and even official diabetes for a few months. So I've momitored my sugars a lot.... when going out to eat, I almost mever order salads- way too many carbs, not enough protein. No pasta. No rice. The meals that don't make my blood sugar go overboard are steak, baked potato and veggie type meals. Usually I just get the steak and veggies- but sometimes I can get the potato. So yeah, some kind of sauceless protein (steak, grilled chicken or fish) and veggies are the best way to go. Add in baked potato or mashed potatos if you need some carbs. Also, I am having extremely good luck kicking my sugar habit with the 21 day sugar detox by Diane Sanfilippo. I've lost 5 lbs. this week, just by cutting out carbs and following her plan. And you don't eat like that forever- just 21 days- after that, you have ended (hopefully) the sugar cravings/withdrawals and are able to make better choices from then on out. I love it- it's the only thing that has ever worked for me.

I'm so excited that you are looking into Monterey :) Did you check out the betterbidding.com website, to see what kind of prices you could hotel rooms for on Priceline? I remember researching which hotels are frequently used for Priceline bidding- and they were all good ones...

We used Priceline bidding, and got a room at The Holiday Inn at The Fisherman's Wharf, and it was fairly cheap... I don't remember how much, but it was less than $200 a night... There are forums you can join that help people to know what hotels you are likely to get when using Priceline bidding- I have found them very helpful... though I can't remember the names right now, lol... ETA: It's www.betterbidding.com I used this site a lot a few years ago, because we went on several trips in a row, and I really needed to save money... I was nervous at first, but we got really nice hotels for cheap. I learned about it from my husband's cousin- I was talking to him about all the great trips they take, nice hotels they stay in, etc. (I see their pics on Facebook) and he confided in me that he became a "pro" at Priceline bidding, and the only way they could afford to stay at those places, was because he got them dirt cheap through Priceline.

Sorry, just saw you asked for budget ideas- we went for our ten year anniversary ;) But, it can be budget friendly ;) Especially in March... There is an Embassy Suites in Seaside that my inlaws always stayed in when they came to visit us... I think Big Sur or Pacific Grove would be the most budget friendly... or downtown Monterey... You could also use Priceline bidding for that- I've had good luck with that...

The Monterey Peninsula is *EXACTLY* what you are looking for, and one of the most beautiful and fabulous places ever ;) We used to live there, got married there, and just went back a few years ago. Staying in either of these towns is great: Monterey, Pacific Grove, Carmel, Big Sur You can explore them all, no matter where you stay. March is prime whale watching season, if I remember correctly. We stayed at The Spindrift Inn, in Monterey, and oh my was it heaven!! Wood burning fireplaces, wood floors, big comfy beds, and continental breakfast brought to your room every morning on a silver tray :) There are lots of rustic cabins in the woods, and yurts overlooking the ocean, in Big Sur. Eat at Nepenthe when you go down to Big Sur. Eat at Roys, at the Inn on Spanish Bay when you drive down 17 mile drive... our favorite restaurant in Monterey was/is El Toritos. There is a fabulous breakfast spot near the Monterey Bay Aquarium, I think called "Awakenings" or something... lots of walking paths throughout Monterey- walk down to Lovers Point- so beautiful!! Hike at Point Lobos State Park (please Google this to see the beautiful scenery!!), go to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park and hike to McWay Falls (please google that too!).... lots of hiking and smaller Redwoods in that area. *sigh* If I won the Powerball, I'd move there tomorrow....

Also, our next stateside vacation will be to Oregon and Washington State- just waiting for youngest to get a bit older.... We are going to stay in a treehouse resort in Orgeon, do some river rafting, hiking, horse back riding, etc. Dip down into CA to see the giant redwoods, then head up the coast to Washington State.... however, we have 3 weeks for that... For one week, you could stay in the Treehouse resort and do everything there, and just visit Crater Lake. ETA: www.treehouses.com

You could stay in a yurt overlooking the Pacific Ocean, in Big Sur, Ca- one of my favorite places ever. www.treebonesresort.com It's so peaceful there... not crowded, tons of hiking, fishing, kayaking, boating, scuba diving, etc. It's very close to Monterey and Carmel- which are just as gorgeous... lovely weather in June. *sigh* Now I want to go....

Oh wow, Costa Rica! That would be cool! I want my next OCONUS vacation to be in Costa Rica :)

Thank you! After looking around, I am mostly interested in UK Universities, for purely selfish reasons of course, I would LOVE to HAVE to visit my kid in Scotland :) But also because DS is definitely a Math/Science/Technology guy- and not at a foreign language guru, so classes in English would be a plus... ETA: Wow, so, that looks pretty cut and dry, with not too many hoops to jump through.... sweet! I hope overseas students are still in demand 7-8 years from now... I'd also really like DS to take a gap year, I'm guessing they allow for that?

Gotcha- we have a very large homeschool community here, so I'll ask around...

So, can anyone take AP exams, or do you have to be enrolled in an AP class to do so?

Oh wow- I didn't even think about that!!

That thread about college made me look into sending kids off to college outside the US, and I have some questions I was hoping someone could answer- can we chat about this? So, if you homeschool your child(ren) all the way through- are they able to go to college abroad? How do European countries deal with homeschooled students who enter University? What about countries like Germany, where homeschooling isn't legal? How do they treat HS students? Do they even consider them? What about if your child does dual enrollment at community college Junior/Senior year and graduates high school with an associates degree? How would they go about getting a Bachelor's degree somewhere abroad? My oldest is halfway through 6th grade, I'm not even sure if he will choose to go to college... he's VERY smart, but has ADHD- and neither of us are very interested in "traditional do what everyone else does" things. I could see him joining the military (like his parents did), I could see him going to trade school, or that college in Charleston that combines learning a trade with a degree.... I just don't see him being very happy going to a traditional 4 year college (because I sure wasn't!), especially if it means paying out the nose for the "privilege"..... BUT- I could see him dealing with 3-4 years of college if the adventure of living in a foreign country was attached to it- and I would *LOVE* to do the same- so I would *LOVE* for him to have that opportunity, so I want to look into it. Have you or any of your children done this? Tried to do this? Know of someone who did/is doing it? Do you know of any neat resources you could pass along to someone who only just started considering this as a possibility? Thanks!!

We got to ride on those trams 5 years ago :) We had an awesome tour guide (who spoke 50 languages) who took us on them so we could go get more Senate chamber tickets.

I just read from somewhere in the internet, that taking activated charcoal can help with stomach flu.... I ordered some to have on hand... just in case...

So, all of this hateful rhetoric and callousness towards refugees has propelled me to get off my butt. I signed up to attend a volunteer orientation meeting at my local World Relief office. The meeting is free, and only lasts two hours, and after that you are eligible to volunteer with them as needed/wanted. Our office has a Facebook page, and is constantly posting pictures and stories of the refugees that are resettled right here in my area. They will post things like, "We have a family coming in tonight, and we need a wheelchair, does anyone have one?" "Is there anyone available to tutor some refugee children in English once a week?" "We have some newly arrived women who are illiterate and would like to learn to read, can anyone help them?" "We need help moving furniture into an apartment quickly, can anyone help?" "Or, a family is arriving tonight and their apartment isn't ready, would anyone be willing to open their home to them?" And you would not believe all the positive responses they get! :) Church groups, ANY group or familiy (I think) can "sponsor" a new refugee family for the 4 months that they are in the program, and you just promise that someone will visit them weekly, help them with settling in, filling out forms, where to shop, doctors appointments, questions, etc. and maybe even have a meal together, play games and just make them feel welcome. So, if you have a World Relief office nearby, some of you might be interested in volunteering :) Especially if you live in a place where the whackjobs are interfering with funding for resettlement... https://worldrelief.org/us-offices This is their Mission Statement, that I'm sharing, because I'm just so happy that a group like this exists, especially in this current climate- and I never knew it existed until Ann Voskamp posted that blog about helping the refugees: "We believe God has equipped the church - the most diverse social network on the planet - to be at the center of these stories, leveraging time, energy and resources to join the vulnerable in their time of need. We practice principles of transformational development to empower local churches in the United States and around the world so they can serve the vulnerable in their communities. With initiatives in education, health, child development, agriculture, food security, anti-trafficking, immigrant services, micro-enterprise, disaster response and refugee resettlement, we work holistically with the local church to stand for the sick, the widow, the orphan, the alien, the displaced, the devastated, the marginalized, and the disenfranchised. In our own backyard and around the globe, we stand with individuals and communities through the process of healing, reconciliations, transformation and empowerment."

How timely!! I have a story too!! My DH ordered two sweaters from Kohl's because they had size "Large Tall" in a style he liked. When the box came, it was huge, which I thought was weird for two sweaters..... yeah, it had ONE of the sweaters, and two other different orders in it- a few items for someone in Connecticut, and a few items for someone in Philadelphia (we are in Maryland). I called the number and did get a very nice lady, who canceled the order for the second sweater, and asked if I wanted to re-order it, which I did- and she gave me free next day shipping, plus another 25% off the sweater. And then she asked me if I would bring the items I was shipped by mistake into any Kohl's store, and I said I would... she didn't ask the order #'s or names or anything for the other orders. This was on Wednesday, and I haven't had time to bring them in- the only two Kohl's near me aren't near anything else I do, and I have been swamped- but I'm hoping to bring them in tomorrow- but I just keep thinking about those people and wonder if they are wondering about their stuff. Yeah, I will never order anything from Kohl's online again.... I never really shop there anyways....

We were stationed in Hawaii for 3 years, my husband and I were both Army, my oldest was born there. The public schools are awful. All my military friends hated them. Many of them asked relatives back home to help fund private schools while there, some pulled them out to homeschool. I had a SGT who was African American, who was a single mom. Her kids were treated so horribly in the school system that she actually sent them back home to live with her mom and sister for the remainder of her tour. The school they went to was majority locals, and they treated her (black) children about as bad as a school full of KKK. It was THAT bad. They were both teenagers, one middle school, one high school. There are some parts of the island where, as a non-local, you should NOT go because the locals are so hostile towards non-locals, especially military. Your husband will be informed of the spots when he is in-processing. As a matter of fact, my very first experience with this hostility occuree within our first two hours... we were sitting in the USO, waiting on transportation to Schofield and heard two airport workers talking outside... one was local, one was white. The white girl was talking about wanting to take hula lessons, and the local girl just went off on her- I can't remember the exact words, but she was clearly upset about people messing with "her" culture, and thought that non-Hawaiian people should leave them alone and stop trying to take their heritage, or something along those lines. We went to church with a lot of locals, and became friends with some of them, and they were apologetic about these feelings of hostility, and did try to explain it... and I understand/sympathize a bit; but at the same time, *I* am not personally responsible for the actions of my past government, ya' know? Anyways, I suggest that you read up on Hawaii, and the History surrounding it's colonization and statehood- the imprisonment of the Princess and all that.... I think it helps. I remember one lady talking about it, and she was just saying that a lot of locals are just really angry because this is their native home, their ancestors owned the land, and had it pretty good- as a people, they were happy. But now, a vast majority of them live in poverty, and their land is being destroyed and built up. Many of them have health issues because they have to buy low quality food because they can't afford healthy stuff, nor the land to grow their own. Those who do have land still, have to pay sky high property taxes, which often means several generations living crowded together- while us military folk come in and get put in "nice" housing, and everytime our BAH goes up, rents all over the island go up to match it- but locals don't get BAH, so they just get worse off.... "If it wasn't for the way things went down, we could be living off the land and taking care of the land, and our families, like our ancestors, and be happy and have a better quality of life." So, it's just something to be aware of. All that said, we absolutely loved our time there :) We lived in Kapolei and used to swim at the Lagoons at Ko Olina often... it was a great time. And you just seem so far away from the mainland, and all the international "troubles" of the world, and time really did seem to slow down, and the weather was fabulous 95% of the time... and the FOOD!!! Definitely choose housing based on where DH will be stationed- if you are in GA, I'm guessing he'll be at Kunia/Schofield??

Yes, this. Also, (excess) estrogen cause tumors to grow, and eating too much sugar can lead to insulin resistance/diabetes, which affects your hormones, and can lead to estrogen dominance. So, no, I don't believe any specific diet can "cure" cancer.... but eating REAL food and staying away from soy and sugar can definitely make your body less susceptible/hospitable to cancer, and hopefully prevent it, or at least delay it for a while. I have told everyone, but I got the "21 Day Sugar Detox" books by Diane Sanfillipo and I *love* them. It's a way to eat that is sustainable and wholesome, not full of frankenfoods and imposter health food- and it explains "why" it's good. It really really worked! I had SO much energy! I beat my sugar cravings, I lost 10-12 pounds... and I wasn't starving. I fell off the wagon after going to Disney World for two weeks, but I plan to get back on after the holidays. If it were me, I would help her follow the low sugar/low carb lifestyle, just to be proactive.

My "wow" item is an ice cream maker :) In the past, it has been Le Creuset pots.

I'd really like to spend time at The Omni Bedford Springs.... that's where I, personally, would go.

What about Philadelphia?

...

Artichoke gratinata, recipe by Giada de Laurentiis FABULOUS dish, and super quick and easy :)