Any kitten that I've ever had has already been litter trained. I think most kittens learn how to use the litter box from their mom before they are ever adopted out. We've always just shown the kitten where the litter box is and there has never been a problem.

I used to have bouts of anxiety when I would try to fall asleep at night until I started listening to a meditation cd. It works like magic for me and I usually fall asleep within minutes of starting it. I think it helps me stop the cycle of anxious thoughts and I focus on something relaxing. As for natural sleep aids, I have also tried valerian root in the past with some success and while I haven't tried it, I know that melatonin can help with more restful sleep. Hope you figure something out that works for you! Lack of sleep stinks!

I'm originally from the Central upstate NY area, but now live in Western upstate NY and I do not understand that "Boss Sauce" on hotdogs. It's quite strange! I will have to disagree about the salt potatoes though!!! They are awesome! You missed the key to salt potatoes and that is the melted butter that you smother them with! And Wegmans is the best! I have been to other grocery stores (in NY and down south) and there is just no comparison to Wegmans!

Here is our Boston Terrier, Olivia. She is 2 and such a fun dog! The kids adore her!

You can make falafels with garbanzo beans. I've made this recipe: http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2010/12/falafel-264-recipe-030-serving.html. Then I make this tzatziki sauce for the falafels that uses greek yogurt http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2010/05/tzatziki-greek-yogurt-sauce-225-recipe.html. It's a simple meal and my husband loves them (my kids feel so-so about falafels). That website has a lot of budget-friendly recipes.

My husband is a lefty and DS2 has always seemed to favor his left a bit more, but within the past year or so he has definitely been going back and forth. I'm glad for all the advice here since I wasn't sure whether it would be better to have him pick a hand and build up strength in it or whether we should just let him figure it out. Seems everyone agrees that letting him figure it out himself is the best approach and after reading all the responses I agree too! I do feel like he is a bit behind with his fine motor skills since he's not really strong with either hand. He also has a hard time with silverware and looks kind of awkward using either hand. Is there something else I should be keeping an eye on with that? I kind of assumed it was more of a problem of going back and forth so much that he hasn't built up enough strength and skill yet. That said, my husband had/has learning disabilities and ADHD so I'm always on the lookout for any possible issues.

My 4.5 yo is starting pre-k with me this summer. We are having a bit of trouble figuring out if he is left or right handed. He just switches back and forth and doesn't seem to be really strong with either hand. He also alternates feet when kicking a ball, etc although I think he has been picking his right more often lately. What should I do--make him pick a hand and stick with it or keep letting him alternate back and forth? I know he's still young, but he likes to write certain letters lefty and other letters righty so he is always switching hands back and forth while practicing any handwriting. Any thoughts or ideas are appreciated!

Thanks! This looks great!

I agree 100%! I love Oswald and the show is so relaxing!

I love this song! 100% fits the category of a beautiful and sad. Katie Melua: I Cried For You

Is this what you're looking for: http://www.knowitall.org/instantreplay/content/LanguageIndex.cfm We are trying the French program this year.

Thank you! Great info!

For the Straight Talk service, it includes internet too. You can always check out their website. I think it's run through Tracfone, which I think runs on either the At&t or Verizon network.

My husband has the Straight Talk unlimited pay as you go plan for $45 per month. I think it's even less if you buy 3 or more months in advance online. He hasn't had any issues with it and it's a great deal. I don't know about the Verizon deal though.

It's so hard because GMO crops are even finding their way into the organic food crops. This is what I choose to do for my family and myself: 1) the best is to grow it yourself, but obviously that might not work for a lot of people, but even a small garden is a great start! 2) try to buy as much as possible from your local organic farmers--some farmers can't claim organic if they haven't been certified, but you can ask at local farmers markets to see whether they use organic, sustainable farming practices 3) when those choices aren't available or feasible then try to buy organic food from the grocery store At the grocery store, I especially try to find foods that say GMO free or NonGMO Project Verified. I am also very careful about choosing foods made from corn, soy or canola since Monsanto owns somethings like 90% of those crops and it is harder and harder to find non-GMO sources. I did hear recently that Whole Foods, Organic Valley and Stoneyfield Farms have allowed/not been able to stop the introduction of GMOs into their "organic" foods. We no longer buy those products. There's a lot of murky ground, unfortunately and it's something where I just have to accept that I am trying to do the best that I can for my family with the information that is available. I hope that helps you a little bit. I'm sure others have more info, but this is our approach at this time!

We are trying to do that now too. I am not even sure what to trust in the organic section of the grocery stores anymore. Eventually, we are hoping to buy a house with enough land that we will be able to grow more food. Until then, we are learning how to garden and trying to help our local farmers that are striving to save our food supply!

Very cool! I bookmarked it so I can check it out further when I get a little more time. Thanks for posting it!

Wow, great lists! Thanks!

Doesn't it seem reasonable to have long-term studies to determine whether there are any adverse effects before testing it out on the people? I prefer my kids and loved ones not be the guinea pigs for a very immoral corporation's GMO food. They have shown nothing but disregard for the safety of humans or the environment so far and I doubt they care one bit what happens to any of us. I wish there was more mass hysteria over this topic, but most people don't even know or care where or how their food is made anymore. An article that discusses the results of a Monsanto GMO corn study and how it causes organ failure: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/12/monsantos-gmo-corn-linked_n_420365.html According to this study, Monsanto tested it's corn for 90 days! Who could accept this as a sufficient amount of time to determine the long-term safety? Oh right, the FDA. Oddly enough the senior adviser for the FDA also happened to be the vice president of Monsanto. I bet he's unbiased, right? He is also the same person who was Food Safety Czar at the FDA when genetically modified organisms were allowed into the US food supply without undergoing a single test to determine their safety or risks. I am very passionate about this topic and all I ask is that people take a minute or two to look around at some of the information out there. I guarantee that as soon as you do you will probably realize just how corrupt and dangerous this whole situation is. We at least deserve labels so we know how our food is being grown.

I'm actually surprised that Walmart wasn't already selling this corn. It is absolutely disgusting that our government is in the pocket of such a reprehensible corporation. Monsanto is the same company that has introduced things such as Agent Orange, Round Up, DDT, aspartame, saccharine, etc. They are also responsible for over 56 Superfund sites and have been sued multiple times for damaging the health of its employees or residents near its Superfund sites through pollution and poisoning. At the very least there should clear labeling of GMO products. There is not enough research to determine this food is safe. Can you really trust Monsanto to provide a healthy, beneficial food when their record shows they seem to be on a mission to poison the world with their chemicals?

We have cabbage farms around here. In the fall and spring when the cabbages are rotting it's very stinky when driving near one of the farms. Other than produce rotting, I have no idea. Hope you get it figured out soon!

Thanks for all of the advice! My son says that he really likes RS so I think I will reorganize our schedule to include it, but it will not be our main math program anymore. Maybe we'll do it a couple of times each week and see if that makes it easier for me teach. I think I'm more of a textbook/workbook learner and this program is just a bit outside my way of thinking/learning so it's harder for me to teach it. I do feel better now that if I am just too unhappy that it will be okay to drop it altogether and he'll still have a good foundation with another program.

I started RS A at the end of last year with my 5 year old and it just doesn't seem to appeal to me. I really want it to work! We also do a little bit of MEP and Singapore Essentials. I have more fun teaching MEP and Singapore. I get really frustrated with RightStart and I'm just not sure it's worth continuing it. I feel like I must be doing something wrong with RightStart because everyone else loves it. I do like using the abacus a lot, but some of the other stuff seems like either overkill or too tough for a kindergartner. We just did a lesson on the value of money where I enter an amount into the abacus and he has to show the value using the fewest number of coins--do most kindergartners know how to do this? He was eventually able to do it, but it just seems like a lot of hard work for a 5 yr old. I really want to give him the great foundation that everyone seems to feel RightStart can provide, but am I doing something wrong? I'd say he's more advanced than the average kindergartner, but not super ahead or anything. Oh, and I always have been better than average in Math so it's not that I don't understand it. Any advice? Just keep pushing through it, or switch to Singapore Essentials and MEP? I only planned on doing RS A and B, then switching to MM and maybe adding in some supplements.

WOW! That looks amazing!

Yeah, I think organic would be the way to go if she is concerned with the quality of the juice her daughter is drinking. The only warning I'd say about that is to make sure she knows the source of sugar in the juice (hopefully, just 100% fruit juice). I would think most are fine, but she wouldn't want one sweetened with stevia or something like that since those do not raise blood sugar in a predictable way. HTH