Would there be something wrong with "stripping the membranes"? I realize there is an issue with breaking the bag of waters, but do those same issues apply for stripping? I know that for me, when I was close, my midwife stripped the membranes and I was in labor within 12 hours. It was essentially a slightly "rough" exam, but was far from painful. There are ways for dh to help you with that, if your midwife won't.

Drinking raw milk only affects the person drinking it. It does not, in any way, interfere with your rights. Many of your examples are not valid. Most of them do affect others and possibly their pursuit of happiness. My drinking raw milk does not one thing to another soul, except me. It doesn't make me drunk that would potentially harm someone else. I assure you that the ones who are doing the regulating are not doing it out of my (or your) best interest.

I find it appalling that we cannot buy and consume raw milk without having to jump through crazy hoops (if it is even allowed at all), when we have absolutely no say whatsoever in what is put into the foods that they are expecting us to buy. Did you know that many, many dairy farmers will dump chlorine bleach (straight, household bleach) into their holding tanks to lower their bacteria count? No one talks about that. My in-laws had a dairy farm and truthfully, I would not drink their milk. To my knowledge, they didn't use the bleach, but their cleaning practices were disgusting. And, what about the containment lots where these dairy cows are placed while waiting to be milked? Also, we all know about the GM soybeans and corn. It is so incredibly difficult to find a food that does not have one (or both) of those two ingredients in it. Uhhh!! It makes me so mad! I do enjoy drinking raw milk (and making butter) and have never had a bad experience at all. I don't appreciate that I am a half-step away from committing a crime. Sorry, I could go on and on....

I appreciate everyone's views and opinions, but I have to whole heartedly disagree with this sentence. I did not seek my parent's blessing because marrying my dh was something that I shouldn't be doing. I sought their blessings because it was extremely important to me that they be honored by being included in the biggest decision I could be making in my life. Yes, I was an adult and could have made the decision without their blessings and approval. But, as a daughter who had both parents involved in my life, I felt like it was a gift I could give them, as well.

Now that you mention it, that is exactly what my dh did too. He talked it over with his own parents first and they gave him their blessings. I was not part of that conversation. But, they knew of his plans before he asked me or talked with my parents.

I was very close to my mother, but still felt like a burden had been lifted when she finally passed; she had colon cancer and battled it for 3 years. As for how you handle the current situation - you shouldn't put too much pressure on yourself to handle this in a way you feel uncomfortable. Acknowledge and "own" that the relationship was what it was. You cannot change that he treated you badly and that you had a difficult upbringing because of his actions. If I were in your shoes, I would be kind and compassionate; help your mother as much as you can emotionally, but don't expect that the relationship will heal since he is dying. It might, but it probably won't. I am sorry for the situation you are facing. It is so hard and the past feelings associated with it make it so much harder.

It is, since it is your story :) I know most would look at our story and think, "how boring!". But to us, it is a wonderful and romantic memory. I would not trade it for any other.

We are just coming from different world views, I guess. I am not trying to bring you over to my way of thinking; and, I realize you aren't trying to convince me either. I am also trying to organize my thoughts on why I believe this is the right path for our family, so it helps to hear all sides. I agree that the child will be an adult by the time they wish to marry. It is just that no matter what age that is, there is still a lifetime with the family that can't be forgotten. Do the parents not deserve any acknowledgement for their dedication in helping guide the daughter in her life path? Whether or not we want it to, the examples we have set as parents and in our marriage will help shape my daughters in their marriage. My husband has worked diligantly to be an example of a strong, capable, and compassionate leader of our home. I am also a leader of our home. I don't defer to my husband for every decision; we make them together, (and most of the time, when the girls ask my dh a question, he says, "go ask Mom") :) so I don't fear that my girls will see me as a weak and powerless figure. Again, thank you for your perspective.

I understand your positions. I guess that in my mind, I have confused the "asking for permission" and showing respect. I agree that asking the father if he can marry the daughter (in an arranged marriage kind of way or the man having given no kind of indication of his intentions to the daughter) shouts of the daughter being viewed as property. But, as a mother of all girls, I really would love for a man to come to us (my dh and me) when each of our girls begin having a relationship and wish to be married. Not neccessarily to ask for permission to marry her - I agree that is her decision (as was mine, when my dh spoke with my parents) - but more of a way to acknowledge our life with our daughter and as a way of honoring how we have tried to raise them to be the women that they willl become. Again, I am just thinking more than trying to prove a point. Thanks for your replies.

This is kind of a round-about spin-off :) but that thread made me think of the movie, "Courageous", that is out now about fathers stepping up to be the leaders of their homes. There were some very poignant moments in the movie where the fathers were asked who will be the ones to lead their home and be the Godly examples for their family...and the fathers said, "I will". I think that is so powerful! In my opinion, the example of asking fathers for their daughter's hand in marriage is more about showing respect to the position of his role as leader of the home. Traditionally, this practice may have come about because the daughter was "property", but that is not the way it is in our culture; it seems to me to be more of an idea of respect and honor to the father and family (as well as an acknowlegment of the relationship between father and daughter). Now, granted some fathers may not be worthy of that respect, but there are many times when it is important to respect the position, if not the person. Anyway, that movie just got me to thinking that if more fathers would "step-up" and be the man and leader to their families, would there have been less responses saying they didn't want or need the father's blessing. I don't know....just wondering. And, for what it is worth, my dh did ask for my parent's blessing and received it :) .

It annoys me when the servers from Chick-fil-A say "My pleasure" every time I say thank you for something. They don't particularly look like it was their pleasure, but maybe it was. I don't know. It annoys me. Maybe I just go to Chick-fil-A too much. My husband would certainly say that it is true.

Thank you all for your replies! We go back to the dentist tomorrow, so I need to make up my mind :) With my co-pay, it is only $8.00, so after hearing from some of you, I am very thankful that it is that reasonable.

Are sealants for my dc's teeth worth it? The dentist recommended them for my kids teeth, but I wonder if it is worth the money. $8.00 per tooth for 4 kiddos. They are only doing the back molars, but it would still be an expensive trip to the dentist.

A swift pop to the bottom is a very easy solution to try before you try an elimination diet. It sounds like to me that he is asking for clear guidance on his behavior and is being rewarded for bad behavior. You snuggle him or hold him or try to love him through the tantrum, when really a clear signal of "no" is being asked for. Pop his bottom. I absolutely do not endorse beating or excessive spanking, but one or two quick swats on the bottom is very effective. When my children were little, we would have issues for about three days, where I would consistently be on top of every issue. If they set about trying to challenge my authority like your son is doing to you, they would quickly get a swat on the bottom every single time. Within a few days, my authority was no longer being challenged and we had a wonderful, harmonious relationship again that we could all enjoy. He is asking for you to establish your authority, in my opinion.

:iagree:

Please tell me what you know regarding FLVS. I know they use K-12. I am considering enrolling my 7th grader for 2 subjects.

I just thought I would mention the book by Dr. Raymond Moore, "Better Late Than Early." It gave me tremendous comfort when my then-9 year old dd was struggling with any type of reading. She is now 13 and has just within the last year started reading on level. It sounds like to me you have a very bright son. After our experience with our dd and seeing the truth of the "better late than early" approach, I would not worry at all about your son. Just keep plugging along and doing little things as they interest him. Continue helping him with his stories and enjoy him. I firmly believe that it will come. When I asked for this same advice for my dd, I got it. But I could not and would not believe that there was not something "wrong" with her. As it turns out, she just needed a little more time that most of the other kids. As a 13 year old, she is reading every thing she can get her hands on. I would never have believed it if someone had told me that even a year and a half ago. If I had it to do all over again, I would relax so much more and take the pressure off of her and myself. I think you are doing a great job. Keep up the good work!

I ordered my buckets from Bread Beckers and they shipped it to me in a couple of days. I also use the gamma lids that ordered from BB's.

Thank you for the replies. I am not really sure what some of the other information some of you posted was pertaining to, but it didn't seem like it was about Parelli. I have found Pat Parelli's website very informative! And, yesterday, I was able to see how Parelli works - there is a girl at our barn that is a 3 Star Parelli Professional who agreed to work with us - and it was amazing! The things that she is able to get her horse to do and the relationship between her and her horse was simply awe-inspiring. So, I am now convinced that this is the path for us. Through my research, I have seen that there are tons of folks who are opposed to Parelli and the way he approaches horse training, but I sincerely think they are not understanding his method at all. He does ride his horses with bits - he is not against them at all, but feels that there are gentler ways of directing and guiding the horse than yanking on a bit. I agree. Now that I have seen firsthand how it can be, I will not train our horses in any other way. I am excited to get started!

What do you think of Parelli Natural Horsemanship? I am very interested in learning more about this and would like to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

I have used Barton Reading and Spelling System with an older child and I really believe in it. You can look it up and see if it is something you think would work.

Funny! It would be me that had to chase it, for sure. Or, it would wake the kids up that early and they would be chasing it, too. Oh the chaos! :lol:

Yes, unfortunately, I told him pretty rudely this morning. I am one of those personanilities that doesn't say anything the first 30 times something bothers me and then completely explodes the 31st time. So, poor dh got blasted this morning. Thankfully, he is coming home for lunch so I can apologize for my outburst. We do need to figure out a way for us to both be happy with our morning routine. It didn't matter so much during the summer, because I could go back to sleep after he left for work since we take the summer break. But, now that we are homeschooling full throttle, this situation is not going to work any longer.

We have done that and now he just gets up 4 times to push the snooze and gets back in bed. Then he puts his cold feet on me :)