I had a Malaysian roommate in college and there was a woman who did something similar for the Malaysian students: you would call and in very hushed tones place an order the night prior, then the following morning there would be a knock at the door, you'd open the door just a crack, a traditional Malaysian meal in a styrofoam container would be pushed through, you'd hand over $5 and the person would leave. It was all very hush-hush, and no one ever spoke openly about those meals because we all knew it was technically illegal, but my roommate and her friend sure did look forward to eating well on the weekends!

It's not an ordinance, for goodness sake. Just a suggestion, and you're welcome to give out glow sticks and/or let your children outside whenever you'd darn well like!

In our house we all do the chores we least mind. I *HATE* unloading the dishwasher but don't mind loading it, so over the years it has just come to be that I always load and dh always unloads/puts away. The kids are the same way with chores: there are certain things that they don't mind doing, so those tasks are pretty much always theirs to do. We don't bother rotating chores/tasks as long as everyone is pitching in and things are getting done. It's easier for us to just know which tasks are always ours to do and see that they're done rather than trying to keep track of a rotation system. Likewise, I feel like chore charts are too much work for us; just one more thing to keep updated, keep track of, one more thing to do, etc.

That one is very lovely!

My dd is really into fairy tales lately and has been spending hours listening to the Andrew Lang audiobooks. I'd love to get her a book of fairy tales for Christmas, something really beautiful and special, the kind of book that she would keep forever. Think leather bound, gorgeous illustrations, gilded pages, etc. Any suggestions? Do you know of any volumes of fairy tales that are particularly well done and beautifully presented?

As others have already said, I would expect nearly everyone to struggle simply due to lack of preparation. If you told me we were taking a hike I'd probably toss a granola bar, a water bottle and my phone in a backpack, expecting a few miles. I would prepare much differently if you told me it was a 13+ mile hike by bringing a couple extra granola bars or pieces of fruit, extra water, chafing gel, a pair of dry socks, bandaids and moleskin, etc.

My children are younger and I work full-time with a schedule that can change from week to week, sometimes from day to day with no notice. Plus, we have frequently have medical appointments, family obligations (we have several elderly family members and we often have to drop what we're doing and go assist them when there's a crisis) and other things that come up that simply must be dealt with during the day, so needless to say, sticking to a strict schedule just isn't possible. I'm still pretty loosey-goosey and very relaxed with my younger child, but my oldest has what I would consider a fairly heavy load of demanding work. I write out all of his assignments in a planner. He doesn't have to start his work by any certain time of day or work for a minimum number of hours each day, but he does know that everything needs to be complete by the deadline given. He has to plan his time accordingly. When we have appointments or outings scheduled I make sure to note those on his planner and talk to him about them so that he knows to plan around them, and when last minute things pop up we both remain flexible: on my part, I might move an assignment to another day, and his part he might have to plan on doing some of it on the weekend as "homework."

$10-$12/hr., but we've never actually hired a babysitter. When the kids were babies we just took the babies out with us and as they've gotten older we've gone out when they've been invited over to friends' houses.

My oldest started piano shortly after turning 8. My youngest was also interested in playing piano, and I told her that she could start once she could read fluently. I had anticipated it would be 7/8ish and 2nd grade for her, but last year at the beginning of first grade she demonstrated how well she could read and then asked if she could please take piano lessons. She started the following week.

Ds needs his hair cut every 6-8 weeks. If we have to go to the salon it is $35 plus tip, but if my neighbor is available she'll cut it on her front porch for $25. Dd only gets her hair trimmed about twice a year. Same prices as listed above for my son, but just not as frequently. I would LOVE to find something cheaper, but they both have really amazing hair and cuts that I could never replicate at home. The couple of times I've taken them to a cheaper place they've looked terrible and I've had to go groveling back to to our stylist and beg her to please fix it. I've tried taking my dd to several different places just for bang trims and while you'd think that bangs would be simple and straightforward, nope, they're never right and always look "off." Our neighbor is the only person who can even trim her bangs properly. ETA: Despite what it may sound, we are the exact opposite of high maintenance. I mean, we all very much appreciate a GOOD cut, but other than that no one colors their hair, we don't use any hair products on a regular basis, and I buy Suave shampoo. Heck, I currently don't even own, much less wear, any make-up other than an old tube of lipgloss, some mascara that needs to be tossed and a grimy eyeliner that also belongs in the trash. But a good, professional cut? It's our one absolute must-have with regard to vanity.

I paid $35 for a cut yesterday. It's expensive, but my neighbor who works at a high end salon cuts it at home on her front porch, and $35 is much better than $55+ tipping both her and the shampoo girl at the salon. I only get my hair cut about once every 6 months and I don't color at all.

Helping out around the house is definitely an expectation at our house and not optional. That said, I do have to ask/remind the kids to do things daily. Generally speaking, they'll do what they're asked to do, but they aren't going to necessarily just do it all on their own without being prompted first. When we are done eating, I have to say, "DD, I want you to clear the table and put the dirty dishes in the sink please. DS, while she's doing that you can feed the dogs." I have to call for DS and when he comes to see what I need hand him the recycling and say, "I need you to slip on some shoes and run this recycling outside to the bin please." Then I'll call out to DD and when she comes, "Here, DD. Slip on some shoes and take this bowl of scraps out to the chickens. Thanks!" If I'm washing dishes, I'll call out to the kids, "Hey, you guys! I'm going to start the dishwasher. I need you both take a peek in the dining room and make sure there aren't any other dishes on the table and do a quick loop around the house for abandoned coffee mugs please!" Also, I find it necessary to give the children very specific tasks. Something like "Clean your room!" is very vague and overwhelming, whereas "First pick up all the stuffed animals and put them in the doll crib" is clear and easily accomplished. When younger my children also needed me in there working side by side with them.

We don't currently, but we did volunteer at a local food pantry for a couple of years. The pantry has shelves like a grocery store that are kept stocked with whatever is available and people are giving bags to shop the shelves for themselves so that they take just what they'll actually use. Our job was to help stock the shelves, even when the pantry was open. We regularly saw people we knew in there shopping, but it was never a big deal with this particular food pantry. They also have community gardens, kids' cooking classes, gardening workshops, workshops on keeping chickens or making your own bread or home canning, etc that are open to anyone, so it wouldn't be unusual to see all sorts of people from the community in the pantry at any given time for various reasons. My oldest has had a lemonade stand (through the Lemonade Day group) and has donated the proceeds to charity. My youngest has solicited donations to buy a goat through Heifer International and is planning to trick or treat for Unicef this Halloween. As a family we have fostered kittens through the local animal shelter.

I"ve had the the best luck with older vets in established solo practices in the more working-class, blue collar parts of town. They tend to have nondescript offices in long forgotten strip malls, and the low overhead definitely translates into lower prices and a more conservative, let's wait and see approach. The only problem with this strategy is that every few years our vet ends up retiring and I have to start over looking for another older vet in a hole in the wall office space...

My cat is an a**hole. She will not stay out of the tree and has broken numerous ornaments by knocking them off as she climbs. I use fewer breakable ornaments now and will twist-tie the ones I do use to the tree to keep them from being knocked off.

Math Mammoth is a good, solid program and is written to the student, so if she's strong in math she can probably do it fairly independently.

A 30 lb bag of Taste of the Wild is about $45, so only $1.50/lb. It's by far the most affordable grain free food I've been able to find, plus I can order it on Amazon and get free 2 day delivery with Prime. With the higher quality foods they eat less, so it's really economical. We have two dogs and a bag usually lasts us about 6 weeks. It basically works out to only $1/day to feed both of them. Can't complain about that...

Every state is different. In my state ALL public schools have a textbook fee and many now have technology fees for laptops/ipads as well. Additionally, some cash strapped school districts charge bus fees. It has been taken to the state level Supreme Court and the fees have been upheld.

I'm going with the generic "time" also: Time to play. Time to take piano lessons and foreign language classes and nature classes and all sorts of other things they would've have time to do if they were in school. Time to travel. Time with parents and sibling. Extra time to sleep without needing to catch a 6:40 am school bus. Time to work at their own pace. Time to participate in community theater and opera productions. Time to spend all day curled up with a good book. If we're going with investment of money, I'd say their classes and activities are all cumulatively the best investment we've made in the kids. I place a high priority on foreign language, so I'd rather them have lessons from a native speaker. Besides, I couldn't teach Japanese if I tried! The purchase of a piano and piano lessons are also one of our top educational investments, and so far, the WTM Academy class that my son is taking ranks right up there too.

Chaco sandals Hanna Andersson dresses (I buy used, never new) All-Clad stainless steel cookware Le Creuset enameled cookware All-American pressure canners Smart Wool sock (on deep sale) Dawn Platinum dish soap Keens for the kids

We do a lot of running around too. I let the kids stay home if I'm going to be right back and we listen to audiobooks when they have to come with me.

The comments on that story make my head hurt.

Fast, easy, good, and you can use whatever sauce you have on hand: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-boneless-skinless-chicken-thighs-in-the-oven-180140

Yep. This is what I do. I can get them spiral bound for $2/each.

Kindergarten- When everyone's winter coats are stored together in one large cubby, it shouldn't be a surprise when the whole class gets lice. First- When your teacher lets you choose your own bonus words for each week's spelling test, you'll get lots of positive attention for learning how to quickly rattle off the spellings to words like "mononucleosis" and "catastrophe." However, if you choose the name of another little girl in your class who you really want to be your friend, don't expect her to be impressed or want to be your friend just because you can spell her first and last name. She might just think you're weird. Second- If you still are trying to find just one person to call your friend, set your sights on the new girl. She doesn't know anyone else and will welcome your friendly overtures, especially if you decide to take notice of her hobbies and interests and make them YOUR new hobbies and interests too. Third- Boys are cute. Having a best friend is awesome. It's not difficult to fake a bad eye exam so that you can get glasses like your friend. Teachers sometimes leave mid-year for cancer treatments and end up dying, but no one will want to be upfront to the children about what is happening, so you'll be left in the dark wondering what happened to Mrs. Weber. Fourth- Moving to a new school is hard, especially when it means leaving behind your only friend. It's not so bad when you get in trouble for not doing homework and refuse to do anything other than want to read for hours a day. Not doing your homework means you have to stay inside and work during recess, which means you don't have to be around the mean girls on the playground, and you can steal more books out of other kids' desks and from the library when you're left alone in the room. (After all, you've already been prohibited from checking out books from the school library because you are always reading instead of completing your work.) Fifth- Pre-teen year old girls can be cruel, and some people just weren't cut out to play the recorder or flutaphone. Sixth- Unlike elementary school, now you are expected to change into your gym uniform before class daily and all the other girls wear bras!!! Also, if CPS shows up at your home to follow up on reports of abuse and you live in a clean, well-decorated house in a nice neighborhood, the caseworker might be so smitten with the house that she doesn't actually do any investigating or asking of questions and would instead prefer to talk to your mother about interior design as though she was there for a social visit. Seventh- It is not advisable to raise your hand in class and ask the teacher what the word "horny" means unless you want the entire class and the teacher to laugh at you until tears are running down their faces, and you still have no idea what it means or why it's so funny. Eighth- Danielle Steele and VC Andrews books are much more interesting and entertaining than school.