My boys are all older now, have jobs, and really don't need anything. This year we opted to pay for their lift tickets for a ski trip and we went with the "4 things" idea (something to wear, to read, want, and need). So far I have the wear, read and some of the want taken care of. The most fun I've had so far was to get them all a pair of Tommy John's special Testicular Cancer awareness underwear. They are kind of pricey but it's for a good cause. And having all boys, well, this is something close to my heart :) And the awesome commercial (on their website) sealed the deal. #SupportYourBalls https://www.tommyjohn.com/?gclid=Cj0KEQiAg7ayBRD8qqSGt-fj6uYBEiQAucjOweQEt50TAp5zCUQ7QSfz5DpcfU9H66J4Ai26YGdKUCAaAsy98P8HAQ

Stick-Lets- VERY COOL! http://odditymall.com/stick-lets-build-forts Nerf stuff - anything, really, anything Nerf Bow and Arrow for the olders - along with a hay bale to shoot into Legos - always loved soccer ball and goals lawn bowling set rip sticks (if they have a nice concrete area) pogo sticks for the olders hockey set (if they have a concrete area) microscope - my boys were always finding stuff outside to look at under the microscope Backyard Ballistics - with a gift card to Lowes for necessary supplies (for the oldest 2)

I have purchased 2 homes that were in foreclosure. They are being used as rentals. The best advice I can give is to pay for a home inspection from a well known inspection company. The one we use gives us a 90 day warranty. If they say the water heater is fine and it goes out within that 90 days, they pay for the new one. Sometimes it is frustrating to work with the banks holding the foreclosure, but you just have to deal with it. Example: we made an offer with closing to be at date X/Y/Z. The bank had several things that they had to remedy - which came to light during the process - and asked that we move the date back about a week. That was fine, but it really hacked me off when they added the clause that we would pay a penalty of $X for every day we delayed closure after that. LOL! We weren't the ones delaying closure, but we couldn't ask for a penalty from them. In the end they delayed closure 3 times :laugh: I'm currently in negotiation for a home in foreclosure on a "short sale". That's even more frustrating. However, we weren't really looking for another rental but this one happened to pop up and our offer is about 40,000 under market. We made the offer the first part of September and they are still deciding...we get weekly updates...the last one said we were in good position to be accepted. We should know something by the end of next week hopefully. The date we submitted for closure is 12/1. My guess is that won't happen. This home has been on the market for almost 2 years. The last offer was made July 2014 and it was finally refused in December 2014. So "short sale" homes can hold you up, but you often get a great condition home for a good deal...if you are willing to deal with the hassle of the banks. The homes I purchase must fit certain criteria...so we have very little renovating to do before putting them up for rent. If you are willing to put some time and effort into a home (painting, flooring, sheet rock repair, etc.) you can get some great deals with foreclosures. I would encourage you to add foreclosures to your list.

This is very true!

Over the years I have been asked that question by many people and it made me think about my reasons and learn to distill them (because they were many) into one statement. That statement is : Because no one cares more for my sons' success, in all areas, than I do. And as such, I will put more effort and focus into seeing them successful than anyone else. The practical side of this was that homeschooling fit the model for the above statement for our family. The public schools near us are academically below average and are rife with drugs/violence/sex. The private schools are excellent academically but rife with drugs/sex and are quite a distance from home. Homeschooling allowed me to give the boys an academically challenging curriculum and to tailor it to their individual needs (one has a learning challenge). It also allowed us to have a more involved family life and we were not subject to someone else's schedule. As such, we were able to travel and engage in other extracurricular activities much more easily. It turned out pretty well :) I truly enjoyed homeschooling. If I had not enjoyed it, I would certainly have found another way to accomplish my "mission" statement.

I, too, have larger bOOks and find that v neck tunics look the best.

Yes, over 40 is fine, and IMO over 50 is as well (that's where I'm at). I like JJill as well as TJ Maxx and Nordstroms Rack. Ann Taylor and Talbots are good as well, but I always wait for a good sale there. Don't go too short on the tunic/shirt or it will seem like you're going for the college co-ed look :)

Not really their boss. I'm the supervising pharmacist - and I'm just part time. This is a very small hospital (40 beds) and both my husband (physician) and I work there. These techs have been there for years so it's a bit like an extended family situation.

Interesting! This fella does march to the beat of a different drummer. He is very creative. A while back he lamented that living on campus was a problem because he didn't have a place to do all his hobbies :) It is fun watching him move through life.

My pharmacy technicians are ladies over age 40. They are not well off by any means. One lady just started raising her grandchildren. My first idea was to get them a froo-froo kind of gift (like a Kate Spade travel tumbler) but I'm wondering if they would prefer something like a gift card to a local grocery store. While I would like to get them something they would never get themselves, I wonder if a more utilitarian gift might be more appreciated. Ideas?

I got him that last year lol! He likes them when he's home and has plenty of room to lay out items. I think this time around I want something that will go in his pocket or backpack. I found so many cool doodles on the edges of his papers or in his notebooks. I've tried to pull them out when I can...

Oh yes! I had no idea what Zentangles were until I Googled. This is what his doodles are often like! Perfect!.

Wondering what a doodler would think is a cool gift. I'm looking at pencils and pads. He isn't into painting or drawing in an organized fashion, iykwim, but likes to sit through movies and doodle. Ideas?

Yeah, that's what I've had to do. I still have messenger which is working fine.

Yes. I re-installed several times, but the last few times I've tried to get the app, the Play Store tells me that the app isn't compatible with my device. But I can't find another app that is compatible. From what I'm reading it seems that there are a lot of the S6 Actives having the same problem. I guess I'll just open in the browser and wait for a fix.

Yes, FB did have an recent update. It seems, from all the other S6 Active users, that the problem occurred after that. I've had the phone for about a month now and only just started having the problem a couple days ago. Weird. Other than that, I love this phone. The S6 is a totally different phone from the Active from what the Samsung folks have told me.

I've been having trouble with FB for a couple of days. I've deleted it and re-installed it. The latest "message" I get when going to install is "Your device isn't compatible with this version". However I can't find another version to download. On the FB app site, there are a lot of S6 Active folks complaining of the same problem. Is there something we need to do on our device to make it compatible? I've Googled and can't seem to find an answer.

I always have to spell "Cynthia" so I usually just use my nickname which is typically a male name. It's easy to spell - only has 3 letters :) Nickname courtesy of my dad who had no sons. I was the last child (3 daughters) and he was determined that I would be the son he never had. So I grew up with the nickname and it probably fits my personality more than my legal name.

Thanks, all. I ordered a couple for Christmas.

LOL! makes me wonder if they didn't start the whole silly controversy themselves for the free advertising ;)

I have yet to see a post criticizing Starbucks, but I've got a newsfeed where every other post is criticizing those who are critical of Starbucks. Makes me wonder if someone dreamed up a lovely marketing strategy to send business SB's way :)

I'm with you. I raised 4 sons and have had a husband for 32 years now and it seems that I spent more than half my days in the kitchen...doing something. I cooked, I cooked from scratch, my boys think I'm the best cook they know. Breakfasts were a big deal; i tried to make lunches more simple, but they really liked hot lunches. Now that they are all out of the house I'm in a complete cooking funk! I have NO desire to cook. My husband is being very patient with it all and has taken to cooking and cleaning up himself. If I cook, he will clean up. But I just don't care that much about food...he on the other hand lives for a good homecooked meal. I'm working part time now so that means we often meet up for supper at a local restaurant (of which there is not much variety in our small town) I hope this is just a phase. I have to admit that I did enjoy cooking to a degree when the boys were home. They were always so appreciative and complimentary of my efforts making me want to do more. I want to want to cook...I just cannot get interested right now :(

The thing that keeps me out of the kitchen is prep work. So if the prep work can be streamlined, I'm more apt to want to cook. For that reason, I like gadgets that are helpful in all areas of prep: A good food processor (makes quick work of chopping/shredding), a good set of chopping knives, this veggie chopper has been a huge time saver.

Have any of you read these books? Would they be fun reads for a 20 yob?

Would these be good for a 20 yob who loved the Eragon series?