I would say that this is the philosophy of our ortho and I tend to agree with him. I really don't see the point of full braces at age 9-10 and full braces again years later. Our ortho also charges sometimes thousands less than others. He also saw my youngest at age 9-10 and turned her away. That said...My oldest had braces with him at age 10. It wasn't a full set, just headgear for an overbite and four brackets to close a forming gap in the front teeth. She wore the headgear for a year at night, then a retainer until she outgrew it (9 months maybe). He told me then that she would need full braces later to finish the job. My youngest had her full braces at age 11, but all her permanent teeth were in, and that's the only reason he considered it. She had bite issues (different bite issues), and just a few crooked teeth on the bottom. She will only wear braces once and be done early...woohoo! So, at ages 12.5 and 14.5, both girls are in braces and should be done in the spring! I didn't read all the other posts, but read a few of the last ones and wanted to add some comments... My oldest had an overbite that really affected her profile...it was definitely a cosmetic reason. I think my youngest had an open bite, it was cosmetic and physical. My youngest is also in a pre-professional ballet school, auditions for film/theater and hopes to be in musical theater at some point. She really needs that smile! ;) I do think society looks for that perfect toothy smile, but look at Keira Knightly...she said she thinks her teeth are "wonky" but it works for her.

You know, Shannon, I think I may have come across snarky, and I didn't mean to sound that way. :) I'm just frustrated with this guy, my husband and I are disagreeing about the way it should be handled, and I just got offended at the moment. My apologies.

I don't want to get out of paying...I just don't want to pay for more than my share. His estimate includes sheet metal repair. I honestly don't think that was a result of my bump. I was slowly squeezing into a spot. My beef with all of this is that the damage seems to have suddenly grown from the first day to three days later. He had a friend with him and they both blew it off when they saw it and walked away. Now it's a first class crisis for this guy. I wish I could post the pics he sent. I'm just scared that the guy is trying to make me pay for additional damage through my insurance. We wanted to pay without using our insurance, which we have a right to do.

I hear what you are all saying... Actually, he wants my insurance to pay for it...at his place and his rental car. His exact words are, "Isn't this what insurance is for?" Well, not if you are a homeschooling family living on one income with a 14.5 yo counting down the days until she can drive! :D I do realize that he doesn't have to go to our place, but he refused anything on our part and said he would just have it buffed out. Just like someone said, it was a couple days later when he realized that the damage was more extensive than he initially realized. Plus, he thought about it more, and since it is a lease vehicle, he will have to pay for any damage and wants it repaired NOW, ASAP. He even said that 11 days have passed already and nothing has been done. Well, he emails from work, no contact on weekends, doesn't call, and has been out of town for almost a week. It's not that our insurance will raise our rates per se, but we will lose our safe driver discount. That will increase our rates. My husband is teasing me, "You couldn't just walk away?" Oh, and I had a stinkin' camera phone with me! I was in a hurry to meet my husband and the guy said it was no big deal...I guess I'm naive.

I'm not sure how pertinent this will be your situation, but I have noted through the years that for myself and others, October and February seem to be hot "burnout" months. Is it possible that you have just hit a speedbump in the year? When I question "if it's worth it", I write down all the reasons why I'm doing this and then re-read them on those hard days. I've had to adjust weeks plenty of times, and even extended into planned vacations.

This whole thing is frustrating. When the guy sent the estimate from his body shop, he said that the shop is good as he has worked with them in the past. It did make me think for a minute, LOL! I don't know why the insurance wants to raise our premium so much. We have had no tickets within something like 10 years and have had no claims...no accidents EVER! They said that our rates would go up because we would lose our safe driver discount.

I put '99...I remember the pre-Y2K days, too. Do you remember when the all the posts read 1900?

About two weeks ago, I bumped a car trying to squeeze into a parking space. I was driving a white Volvo wagon and bumped a red SUV. As I got out and looked at the SUV for damage, the owner happened to walk up. Well, being a honest person, I explained to him what happened and offered to exchange insurance info. He declined and said it wasn't a big deal. I gave him my business card anyway. He has now decided that since it's a leased vehicle, he wants us to repair the damage and wants our insurance info. My husband checked with the insurance co and it would increase our premiums $500 next year, plus I have a teen driver coming up. Since there is no dent, my husband knows a body guy at the place he works who said he would buff it out for us, or fix it, whatever it takes, and at a highly discounted rate. The SUV driver said it is too far to go to our place, and submitted his own $500 estimate, not including a two day rental car that he wants. :glare: Now, I am the kind of person who takes responsibility for my actions, but the pics he sent of his SUV damage seem a lot bigger than what could have happened. Apparently, he came back to my car and took pics. On my car there is a red mark that is 2 inches long and about 2mm wide. There is a scuff mark below the bumper line that my husband says has been there for years (The car is 11 years old), with no red paint. This guy is showing a picture with a big scratch with white paint that covers a section that is about a foot long and at least 4-5 inches high. It seems that in order to do that kind of damage, I would have had to scrape along his car. All I did was bump it (I barely felt it in my car), then back up and get into the spot. When we looked at the bumper together, it was covered with white dirt splash from the wheels and nothing was visible, not even when he brushed some away. He contacted me 2-3 days later when he decided that maybe this was a big deal after all. When my husband talked to a police officer where he worked, the officer said that we really don't have any responsibility since the gentleman declined a police report and insurance info on the spot at the time of the incident. I'm afraid of being taken advantage of and I have a very guilty conscious and a husband who is not thrilled with me. What would you do? By the way, husband is handling all communication with the gentleman.

I found it and posted there...thanks, unsinkable!

Sophie, you once said you enjoy this sort of questioning, so I hope I'm not bothering you!!! I have a 6yo Aussie that had TPLO surgery for a ruptured CCL last May. His recovery was fine, but x-rays showed he already had a bit of arthritis in that knee. He was just coming off exercise restrictions when he had an accident and ran full blast into a big wooden cage outside one night. Now he's limping badly and back on exercise restrictions. X-rays show some fluid around the knee, and the diagnosis is soft tissue injury. He has complete recovery from the surgery and the two are not supposed to be related. This poor dog has gone from running half the day, catching frisbees, and getting ready to train for agility, to now being leashed to my living room table in an effort to keep him quiet. He seems OK during the day but at night, he is barely weight bearing on that leg. I've already spent between $4-5K on this one issue and I'm at my wits' end. I don't know what to do next. I really can't afford to keep going to the specialist. He was on Deramaxx, short-term, maybe he needs a lomg term dosage? We've also switched his food to one with glucosamine. Any suggestions?

My 14yo and I both loved them, and know my 12yo has started Twilight and loves it. We don't think they are exactly great literature, but fun to read. At first I had misgivings about the relationships, but since I'm on my second read of the series, I like it. It's their first love, they are abstaining, he's a gentleman...it's refreshing. As for the movie Edward, we remember him from Cedric Diggory in HP4. He's English and may be trying to stuff in an American accent. I'll have to check out the new trailers. :001_smile:

I used to flush mine until I read a post here years ago. I can't remember how it went, but the conclusion was a flooded septic field with lots of little white things al over the yard. *shudder*

I did on the old boards, but it was vulgar spam.

There is also a product called Forbid that is sprinkled on the food. It is supposed to make feces bad tasting and break the habit.

I watch in spurts through the years. My favorites would be Martin Short, Dana Carvey, and Mike Meyers. I let my kids see pre-approved skits since they love the opening political skits and the weekend update. They love Amy P____. I'm also enjoying the lady who plays all the really weird characters this season.

This is fun!!! high school/college: drive-thru restaurant hostess waitress (least favorite) dry cleaning clerk telemarketer (OK, that's the least favorite) veterinary technician veterinary receptionist medical research lab assistant animal caretaker for that researcher position after college: respiratory therapist (hospital, SNF, home health) science teacher wildlife educator (my favorite paying job) I love, love, love taking my critters to schools, parties, and community events.

Ouch, I just came to read the thread. But as a Republican, that really hurts. I'm not going to debate, either, but I really don't think the majority of Republicans are racists.

I think this is a situation of "walk a mile in their shoes." I enjoy my teenager. Sure, she's moody, mouthy, and sarcastic. She's also funny, polite, fun to be around, and has a great sense of humor. The only thing I think that has made a difference is that she knows I really care about her no matter what, and I back that up by staying interested in what she's interested in, listening to her, and spending time with her. I've always been like that. When she needs boundaries, I'm firm. When she needs space, I give it to her. I trust her and she hasn't given me a lot of reason to distrust her. She likes the trust and doesn't want to lose it. About the Nebraska mom...that's a tough one. My brother was a real toughy from the get go. Maybe she wasn't a perfect mom, but she was a single mom and had to work a lot, too. By the time my brother was 14, he was on drugs, stealing money, running away, and getting arrested. My mom took him to counseling, to court, begged the judges for help with residential places, anything. She could not keep him in the house and he would threaten her physically and just walk out. Yet, the courts told her that she was 100% responsible for him because he was a minor. She asked to leave him in juvenile detention so he could face some punishment, but they would say that she *must* come pick him up, and then just slap him on the wrist without any consequences for his actions. Now, I don't think my mom could have abadoned him (then again...), but after witnessing that scenario and many others in juvenile court, I can understand why a mother would want to.

Yes, I did see, since it's right around the corner. I have my theory about what happened, and I'm not exactly sure it was a premeditated thing. I don't think the body will be found. :( Very, very sad, is about all I can say.

Definitely a punker, turned headbanger in the 80's. Now that my dd likes the emo music, I'm finding that I really dig the emo punk scene again. Only the music, though, no more funky clothes and hair. She laughs to think I was an 'emo' in the 80's.

Yes, because of the color of both players. I'm not saying that I agree, so please don't read that into my post. I'm answering the OP who asked if anyone thought that riots were possible if Obama loses. For some people, this *is* a race issue. I know of Democrats who will not vote for Obama just because he's AA. I won't vote for Obama, but that's because I'm Republican. I would have absolutely no problem voting for a Republican candidate of any race or gender. I just want to make sure that this post is not a reflection of my personal opinion, but what I observe around me. Because race issues have strong emotional charges, I do believe that the possibility for small scale riots is there. Editorialists are already writing about such things in racially charged cities. When I mentioned the first OJ trial, I was trying to remember if small scale riots did indeed break out. The threat was there, much like people are speaking about this election. This was seen by many as a racially motivated trial. Here was an AA man accused wrongly of murdering two caucasians. Racially charged statements were made and crowds reacted. People are more involved in this presidential election. If Obama loses and people start insinuating that it is racially related, our history demonstrates that crowds react by rioting in some cities. This is not a right wing propaganda line, just an observation of our history. Riots are so illogical; it's hard to try to discuss and predict them from a logical standpoint. They are based on emotion, passion, and loss of inhibition. While it may seem like the two events are not related, they do have a common thread. They link the perception of AA's in the US as not being given a fair chance, and the emotions that come into play with that perception. Since I am not AA, I am not going to speak as if I have experience in that arena ;) I can only speak as an outsider.

Strange...but good. This is a different season and I feel as if I'm more of a manager than a primary homeschooler. My 12yo goes to a classical co-op on Mondays that assigns her work for the week. I oversee her assignments and teach math. She loves the program with the structure, grades, and expectations. My high schooler is almost completely independent of me. She takes Alg I and Web Design on-line, English and Bio in class, and Bible and French independently at home. I just plan out her week and check up on her progress. This is working well for our family, and I'm excited for my girls and the progress they are making. :)

I really wrestle with this because I have a techno kid. She has two classes on-line (one is Web Design), and does Rosetta Stone on the computer. Her passion is web design and digital media, so she uses her pro digital camera and then uses Photo Shop and video software to do...whatever she does. She has a vlog. She has a couple of related message boards she likes and one chat she frequents (we know and approve). She also writes fan fiction in Word. Her sister spends 12-15 hours a week at the ballet studio, plus physical therapy, plus daily stretching at home for her passion. Add another 3 hours a week at her agency for acting and singing and auditions a couple of times a month. How can I then tell the other daughter that she needs to limit her time? It seems like a double standard, because this is her hobby/passion. She's learning about her field of study, and we supervise. If I feel that she's been on too long, then I tell her to go read a book or walk a dog. ;) Otherwise, we talk a lot about what's going on, and we have rules in place about usage.

Did you ever read any of the Love Languages books? They have neat ideas and talk about finding ways that speak to others in their 'love language'.

Hmm...You guys have all the good conversations while I'm sleeping! I have heard (but not read the whole editorial) of columns written in big city newspapers that speak of potential riots if Obama isn't elected. This is not campaigning on Obama or McCain's side, but editorialists' comments. The comments made are that if the election is close and Obama loses, it will be because of race and King-like riots could occur. Sadly, sometimes it is a race issue, but not always. I am not voting for Obama because I don't agree with his political views. Personally, I applaud an African American man reaching this level of political achievement. I definitely think we could have an AA president. Unfortunately, I have family in the deep south that disagree and will not vote for him because of his race. I also think he and Hillary would be HUGE assasination targets if either were elected president (McCain also, but on a smaller scale and for different reasons). Yes, I believe that riots have the potential to break out if Obama loses (maybe even if he wins). This is a heavily charged election and it is a strong issue of race for all kinds of people. If I remember correctly, didn't small scale riots break out over the first OJ trial?