I want to comment specifically for jeans. I live in jeans. I am short (5'2") and carry all of my extra (195 lbs) weight around my waist- skinny arms, torso, hips, thighs, and lower legs. I found these at Kmart (where I bought them), but I think I saw some at Walmart the other day. Great, cuz I need another pair. :) http://www.ridersbylee.com/Catalog/WOMEN/jeans/jeans/157H597 well, any of the slender stretch- ashley no gap waist boot cut

We use sween cream. google it. it is actually a lotion for wound care.

Really stupid question, I'm sure, but my only daughter is 6yo and I've never had to deal with this. When I was a child, it was only Barbie. Are they all "interchangeable?" Like with clothes, accessories...? And especially all the different theme-Barbies? I would assume they are, but I dont really know. Thanks

We took pictures today, but are scheduled to go tomorrow morning and order. I just want to know to expect. thanks

Few thoughts- 1. Imitrex- makes your jaw hurt when you take it. Don't know why, but it always worked for me. Does make me sleepy. 2. Magnesium. I had 2 nights ago (hormone related) and it went away. 3. DO NOT become dehydrated. Drink ice cold water until you are sloshing around. 4. I always panic when I get in that much pain, but I have ingrained this mantra in my head when I hurt- Get cold, still, quiet, and dark. I will turn the A/C down to 65 and freeze everyone out. Get in a position (preferably laying down) where you DO NO have to move. Obviously, quiet helps- but her quiet yourself. My kids know that if they talk to me during a migraine, I will not speak to them. I can usually feel throbbing more with more noise. And I have a really nice sleep mask that I use- even if I'm not planning on going to sleep. 5. Lots of oxygen helps. Whether you go for a walk, jump on the treadmill, or just take really deep breathes. It helps. 6. Counter-pressure. My husband will put his hands on my head from ear-to-ear (over my head) and push like he wants to crush my skull. It will immediately go away. But the second he lets go, it comes right back. Reserve for the moment you seriously considering taking a drill to your temple to relieve the pressure. 7. Heating pads have never helped me, but made it worse. Ice cold does it for me. I out an ice pack on my head in the same place as I would counter-pressure. 8. When I was walking for 45-1 hour a day- every day- on the treadmill, my migraines almost stopped. But I got out of the habit (ran out of TV shows to watch) and they came right back. 9. When I started using OTC Progesterone cream (Emerita), my migraines changed. They started responding to the above MUCH quicker and were much easier to get rid of once they started. I am also 35 and had a tubal 5 years ago so I don't know if that would be right for you. I stopped having to use the Imitrex and only do #2-#8 above now. HTH

Duh. It didn't even occur to me to do some and not some. This makes sense.

I can't even remember if I've received (or cared if I did receive) Christmas cards with computer-generated address labels. I have a spreadsheet and can easily create them. I will write inside the card. What do you think?

My opinion is coming from someone who had a "demand/request for my children" from a "concerned family member." I don't think it matters if a family member is justified in asking/ requesting that or if it based on misinformation- the response and impending damage to the relationship is done. It brings out this defensive "momma bear," "you aren't gonna take my child," fight-or-flight, defensive response. If there is really a problem, call CPS. It doesn't matter if you or anyone thinks there isn't enough "evidence" to warrant involvement, let them at least step foot in the home and make that determination. Tell them everything you have told us here. Believe me, they will take all the information whether important or not- and look at the picture as a whole. (When we were reported, the fact that we only had 1 bathroom for a family of 6 made it into the report like it was neglect.) If the determination is nothing, then you have done all you can do. I know you want the best for the child, but that just takes the whole family dynamic in a really ugly situation. Just my 2 cents.

This is a great idea. At the very least, maybe a cape (possibly hand made if you are creative).

This. This "no contact" isn't a reaction to pain they have caused my husband and myself (although it was massive). It was a direct attack on our family and I believe put our children in danger. There will always be that possibility of happening again if we have contact with them (more so if it is face-to-face). This isn't about punishing them (I hope we would be mature enough to get over ourselves) but about protection. We just cannot open ourselves up for that kind of danger anymore. I just wish I had a backbone and could remember this is for everyone's own good.

I just want to know if my kids are going to hate me or if, when they are old enough to understand, they will value the decision we made to protect them. I know there is really no way to tell.

just a vent. I posted about my family dramas earlier this year. As a result of those events, my immediate family (self, hubs, and kids) are not in contact with my side of the family (live away) and are in strained relationships with his family (7 blocks away). I just do not know what to do anymore. My kids are suffering. They don't (really) understand what happened and want us all to live happy lives together. That is impossible and isn't up for debate. I have even thought about opening up lines of communication with these people (well, my family really), but that simple thought sends my brain into fight or flight mode- literally. I can feel my arms get this tense warm feeling like I'm preparing to be attacked. Sounds crazy, right? I just feel so sorry for my kids. I've been reading all the "kids christmas gifts" threads and, while I honestly don't care about the amount of presents my children get, I feel sorry that my kids don't have all those extended loved ones around them. I'm sure my husband is sick of hearing about it (although he always offers a listening ear). that is all.

starting about 1-2 years ago, we began to have these roller coaster responses to medication. He had been on it for years, no side effects. Somewhere between 10-11 yo, we had these fluctuations in response- sometimes from day to day. He would go from zombie to unmedicated (:willy_nilly:) in his reactions. It seems to be leveling out with only a slight bump in dosage- he is almost 12. It maybe this age group- 10-12. The beginnings of puberty, body composition changes- all lead to a change in reaction to normally effective meds. We just held on for the ride or we would have been changing dosages every other day! Maybe this age combined with any dietary issues he has is just sending him over the edge.

My son is having an extremely difficult time deciding what to "be" for Halloween. He had thought about a ninja, but doesn't like anything he sees. Nothing Star Wars. I think he just might be growing out of it. Any ideas?

My daughter is going to the audition tomorrow evening. She is in the youngest age group. Do they have to wear something specific (colored leotard, colored tights) for it or can they wear whatever they have? I just assumed they can wear anything, but the picture on the website shows a row of little girls on all black leotards and pink(?) tights. Thanks so much!

Let's keep this going, please. We are in the same boat. We are in Tampa Bay area, FL and I HATE the weather here. We are only here for father in law. When he is no longer with us, I am making a bee-line for somewhere with decent weather. Husband works from home, so very easy for us to move. I have been researching since we moved here (2 1/2 years ago) for where to go next. I want to hear about everyone's weather.

We are in the same boat here. Only husband & I are covered on it though. We are going to try it for a year and see. I like that fact that the deductible isn't use it or loose it. It carries over and any balance later in life is treated like retirement savings (don't know really how that works). His employer is also dumping 1000 for the 5000 deductible. The premium is a SIGNIFICANT drop for us.

Tampa Bay, FL- our is still on and will be on for a while. I hate living here. :glare:

Same here. We have 2 nights a week that we are out til 9pm. No stressing, freaking out to get home and get in bed. I just let them sleep til they get up. I've noticed the older they are, the later they wake up. Sometimes not til 9. Now, my husband works an odd shift where he doesn't start til 1130 am. So, we have our evening time with him in the morning. We do lunch then school all afternoon. II myself am not a morning person, so it takes me forever to wake up. It works for us.

That is awesome! I was worried I wouldn't even be able to find one this year. They aren't on TRU's website. This is the first year we have ever done Lego Advent calendars. Yes, I'm going a little overboard- 4 kids- 4 different calendars. But we are such a lego crazy family- all 6 of us.

I went ahead and got the Amazon deal, but I also found the Friends set on ebay for 45$. It looks like there are 3 left at that price. I swear this isn't me. http://www.ebay.com/itm/LEGO-Friends-Advent-Calendar-FREE-SHIPPING-/330811666198?pt=Games_US&hash=item4d05e96f16

Has anyone ever seen them for less than 30$?

This is exactly what happened in our house. My first child has always struggled with math (the reason we started HSing). I should have been an accountant myself. We clashed tremendously, it was such a stressful situation for ME to be teaching him math. So, I took myself out. We now use ALEKS.com for math. He is completely independent in it. All I care is that he is making daily progress in at least 1 area. It is adaptive, so I don't have to be on top of him myself- evaluating and reviewing and hovering. The system literally does that for him. It works for us.

Definitely :grouphug:, first of all. I also wanted to add that I ended up in the ER about 1 1/2 years ago with chest pain. It was the craziest thing. Never had heart problems, nothing heart attack-ish in my life. I woke up in the night with pain in my chest and I felt an awful feeling that I cannot describe, but I absolutely knew something was not right. It ended up being my appendix. I was definitely :huh: & :confused1:. That is just the way it presented in me. Just fyi. After several rounds of that Nitroglycerin and a nice pounding migraine to go with it, they finally did some kind of scan and caught the appendix. It was out the next morning.

I don't know that I understand most of your details, but my experience from renting apartments has been this: If my lease is up and/or I'm not on a lease and I want to move, I have to give my notice on the first of the month (30 days notice). If I wait a day, a week, or over half way through the month (like we are now), then I am stuck with the entire next month. They will not pro-rate on the end of the lease, but they will on the beginning of the lease. I don't know if that is common practice, or I've just seen that on my leases from the past. I think this protects them from being stuck with interim weeks with no tenants. Most tenants move in/out on the 1st/30th of the month. Now, if someone moves out early, most likely they are paying double for those few weeks in the old and new apartments (maybe to have time to move and clean- this is what I usually did), and the landlord can let someone move into that apartment early, but prorate that week (or however long) at the beginning of the lease. You may not be under a 12 month lease, but you do have some kind of lease agreement you signed and it probably states something about not prorating at the end of it.