Do you mean like a Shepherd's Pie? Shepherd's Pie 4 potatoes, peeled, quartered 1T butter 1 onion, chop fine 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (divided) 1 1/2 cups carrots, chopped 1T oil 1 pound ground beef 1T ketchup 1c beef broth Boil potato until tender (15-20 minutes). Drain, mash with butter and 1-2T of chopped onion and about a 1/4 cup cheese. Season with salt/pepper/garlic powder (I use about 1/2t garlic powder and a little pepper, no salt). Boil carrots until tender, mash and set aside. (I also tend to add a little garlic powder to these, but we love garlic). Heat oil in fry pan, cook rest of onion until translucent. Add ground beef and cook until browned. Drain. Return to pan, add in flour and stir until mixed. Add ketcup and beef broth. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer for until broth is nearly gone. Put beef into bottom of 2qt casserole. Top with mashed carrots. Top with potato and top with remaining cheese. Bake in 375 over for 20-30 minutes until top is golden brown. You can add other vegetables if you like....I typically make this when I have leftover veggies and just add what I have between the beef and carrot layer....green beans, corn, peas, jicama, broccoli, etc. Squashes tend to get really mushy so I would mash them with the carrots, though beware, sometimes it makes for a weird color, lol. I've tried substituting ground turkey for beef but it was pretty blah. If your family likes lots of spice then add more spices to the beef mixture. We tend to like just lots of garlic.

Check your city ordinance....I can't recall the exact wording, but basically between 10pm and 6am making noise that disturbs your neighbors (be it a party, dog or even revving your motorcycle engine 50 times before you leave your driveway.....errr, sorry got off track) is not ok. Of course, getting the police to come out and tell them to shut up isn't always easy.......but last year we started a neighborhood watch program and therefore have an officer assigned to us. Enough people complained about motorcycle man that the officer finally talked with him....he's better and the dogs don't stay outside and bark anywhere in the neighborhood now because that one got even more complaints than the motorcycle man. I don't mind a little barking....they are dogs after all, and sometimes barking means there is someone who shouldn't be in the alley or whatever, but on and on and on for hours is just not something I'll tolerate, so I do call the police. And so did enough of my neighbors that those with dogs who bark for no reason have finally gotten the message that it's not ok. I would say it has taken 2+ years of complaining and working with the watch officer but I can happily say that it's rare to have a dog going on for more than a few minutes now. Which means it may wake me up....but it's constant barking won't keep me up.

Doesn't matter....tell them that all naughty children in (pick a country on the other side of the world) are in bed and you're going to bed now too!

Per your stats (upper right corner of each post) You've been a member of the board in THIS reincarnation for 2 years...and have thousands of posts....that would be enough for me to be comfortable that you're not a scammer. I don't actually remember your name from the old boards, but Colleen, WTMMindy, Beuller, Karenviaco...those are all familiar to me from when this board was just a long list of thread subjects to skim through and open, lol.

What is Shred?

If you used a credit card you may still be able to dispute it that way....but be aware that some people have reported that Paypal has closed down their account for disputing a charge through their credit card company. Though this new policy of Paypal's is making many people glad to close their account. It's the seller's way of not having to pay fees, but it doesn't seem to be made clear to the buyer that saving the seller a couple dollars in fees, though a wonderful gesture on your part, costs you the right to dispute it because "it's personal not business". I have not had this happen to me, but I'll say that the first time Paypal allows someone to rip me off, will be the last time Paypal receives my business. And I'd file the dispute in a New York Minute. And yes, I do understand WHY Paypal does this...because when you dispute through the credit card company the fees are reversed on paypal, not the seller.....so if paypal can't collect back from the seller then PAYPAL is out of luck. Gee, you think they'd understand how unfair that is. Personal opinion....paypal and ebay are getting much closer to being about 50% honest and 50% dishonest users. Problem is you can't tell the difference until it's too late.

See that always makes me wonder....is it like used car salesmen....or garage sales.....they always start out with a much higher price than they want so they have room for the hagglers, and they make a bigger profit off those who just accept the first price quote? Sigh....why can't everybody just charge the same price for the same product everywhere, then I don't have to shop around or haggle over price or even ask for a discount. My shopping utopia would be to go to a website and type in the produce I want, find who has it in stock and since everyone's price is the same shop where CUSTOMER SERVICE is best...or whoever was closest, lol. Can you tell I hate shopping?

Except for the beer isn't that a typical corn dog? Battered hot dog cooked in oil? I have had beer bread before and it didn't really taste like beer (which I'm not fond of) so I doubt the beer in the batter would mean it would taste like a beer dog. Even if it did, so many people eat hot dogs and beer together, why not mix it, lol. Now....the onion, cheese and bacon seem bit much, but I like my corn dog with just a smidge of mustard so I'm pretty plain. Now...give me a hamburger with grilled onions and cheese and I'm happy! The weirdst thing I've ever watched someone eat fried was a Snickers bar.....I kept thinking what a waste of a perfectly good chocolate bar! She claimed it was heaven, but the thought of greasy chocolate made me refuse her offer of a bite. I don't think anything can be fried and then called healthy.....deep frying battered vegetables is called "tempura" in a Japanese restaurant and while it's yummy it's far from a healthy way to eat veggies, lol.

My favorite phrase: Is that the best price you can offer me? It's so much easier to phrase it this way than to say "I was hoping to spend less" or "I can't afford that do you have something cheaper". Works for everything, from rental cars to granite countertops to the guy selling oranges at the farmer's market. If they say yes that's the best I can do, then I have to decide to either pay what they asked or shop elsewhere (and it's equally amazing how often "Thank you, I think I'll shop around first" as you walk towards the exit will elicit a "wellllll"). But, you'd be amazed how often that simple phrase gets me a discount....sometimes small 5-10%, but other times, they'll offer perhaps a different product (like your "left overs" in the yard) for huge discounts. I've also had (almost always in the case of the farmer's market) them offer to throw in something extra for the same price. One caution on "left overs" and "seconds".....make sure they carry the same warranty against defects, especially for something like tile and granite. I know my friend who has installed tile for decades recommends against those discount tile places because they are often seconds with tiny flaws which eventually will leak and a few years from now you'll end up with mold because of the water that got through the tiles....and of course, you can't blame the tile after all that time. Flaws in granite of course won't cause those types of problems, but cracks forming because of a second with a stress-point can mean expensive repairs or replacement much sooner than you're ready to redecorate.

A very wise Pastor once reminded me that I now have my OWN family....and while I should still strive to respect and honor my parents that my responsibility is to the family that God has put in my home for me to care for.....my husband and children. Cleave onto and all that. Since you need your daughter there to help care for your household while you are unable, I would politely decline the invite and suggest that this bonding time between gd and gm take place at a time when it will work better for the rest of gd's family. Now that would be my polite answer (with the striving to respect/honor) if GM's true motivation was simply to bond with GD....because now is NOT a good time............but honestly, knowing her true reasons, I'd be saying no even if "I" was feeling well enough to take care of my family without dd....because I would have some serious reservations about a GM who doesn't respect MY ability to parent. Since you obviously disagree that DD has "issues" I'm have some concerns about allowing GM to "work on them". Oh and then throw is the strong suspicion that the real motivation is to have a helping hand with the youngster she's volunteered to take care of, and well, No No No would probably be my response, lol. NO. Had she come out and been honest "I could really use GD's help with the wild child" I might have spent some time considering whether I could do without DD for a while. Dishonesty is not rewarded in my home. And when GM throws up objections, I'd ask her how she expects to have quality time with DD while taking care of the whirling dervish she's supposedly in California to care for! If time with GM is something DD wants and the "issues" issue doesn't bother you, then I'd suggest that AFTER GM returns from California would be a good time for DD to join her in NM. When they could have time together.

Our library keeps holds behind the information desk (things were disappearing), so for about a year now we've had to go to the desk to get our holds....well, the librarians see us come in the front door now and usually already have the holds pulled and stacked up by person before we get up to the desk. LOL I think though what I love most about our librarians is not just that they know us by sight....but that they really KNOW us.....it's not at all unusual for them to have a small stack of books they've set aside for us to look through based on what subject matter they saw we were putting on hold. It makes me feel like I've got a partner in selecting books when they do that. Of course, the huge box of goodies that we bring to them every holiday probably helps, but I think they are genuinely happy to see people checking out books that aren't on the "popular" list. Some of those racks seem almost musty when we go searching, lol. Sad sad sad. Be careful you don't overwhelm them when you return all those books! Some poor soul is going to have to reshelf it all.....do them a favor and call ahead so they can bring in an extra employee for the day, lol. :tongue_smilie:

Well, your signature line contains quite a few I think: Afterschooling 2 dds 11 yr old gymnast 16 yr old diver/gymnast/trackster Afterschooling requires books, supplies, and if it's done by someone other than you then teacher/tutor costs. Gymnastics, track, diving.....those are expensive

You should contact the local agency in your town....if they're like the ones around here they hold seminars to give you all the information you'll need before even making such a big decision. And no, you can't homeschool them. I had a friend who was a certified teacher, still subbing in the public schools while homeschooling her son and they wouldn't let her homeschool the foster children. Afterschool tutoring, fine, but they had to attend public school. As someone else said, even if you're on the road for adoption they don't allow you to homeschool until the day after the adoption papers are finalized by the court....I know several families who have waited anxiously for that date and pulled them out the very morning after the courtdate. Also, many states have minimum ages that YOUR children must be before you can foster.....because foster children tend to require more of your time they don't want you to have infants of your own, for example. Some have age requirements, like the foster child can't be older than your children (probably as much for safety reasons). All of these types of questions would be answered, and a million questions you don't even know you have yet, at the seminars. Even though it may be a few years before you can foster, it might be wise to start learning the process now.....many of the things they look for or require take some families a bit of time to adjust to....if you knew about those ahead of time, you could start working on reaching that goal while your infant grows up a little more. There is a lot to be said for being prepared. :grouphug:

It's actually not unusual for military folks from that era to not discuss their medals....the Bronze Star for example, is the 4th highest honor that a military solider can receive. It's for bravery, acts of merit, or meritorious service. Many soliders don't feel that their acts deserved the medal because despite their brave actions their buddies died anyway. My dad never talked about his military life until he was terminal and his kids begged him to let us gather his life memories for the grandkids, etc. We kids felt we had a very incomplete picture of him our whole life, and boy did we learn how right we were. I would certainly make the effort to try to locate his service records, but realize that records that old may have been a part of the ones that were lost in the 1970's....and back then there were no back ups. Now-a-days there are redundant redundancies so it's much easier to get ahold of them. Contacting your state rep is a good suggestion if it seems that you are getting the run-around from the military itself. My DH needed a copy of his DD214 for some refinancing we were doing and despite the fact that he'd only been out of service for about 4 years at the time it took weekly phone calls and nearly 2 months before we saw the paperwork. It's not a fast process, lol. While his military record may have some of the facts, it's going to be short on details that will really give you a full picture. For that, your best bet is to try to track down men he served with.....if the base(s) where he was stationed are still open you might see if they have an alumni association because they may have a list of people who are still alive that served with him.....it may take a lot of phone calls to find his closer buddies if you don't have names, but you may be amazed how much these old guys can pull up names of fellow soliders and who they all hung around, lol...yet they can't remember what the wife sent them to the garage to get, lol. Be patient and prepared to listen to some great old stories....but hopefully you'll find what you're looking for. We did but not soon enough to truly appreciate the guy my dad really was.

My husband called a radio station and had "Butterfly Kisses" by Bob Carlisle played for our daughter for her 13th birthday. He knew she was listening in her room and she came out in tears so glad that he loved her enough to call "her" radio station and ask them to play "their" favorite song. It came out in 1997, the year after she was born and he'd rock her and listen to it on the radio, and as she got older he'd play it for "them". I don't know whether all churches do this, but our church has a special time where those with birthdays that week come up to the altar to receive a blessing from the pastor....every claps afterward to wish them happy birthday. On some special birthdays (typically the high numbered ones) someone has recited a poem or something. No one has ever sung that I can recall, but in my church that would seem to be the appropriate time for this....but I'd make sure the child was ok with it since it would be quite obvious who it was for....my daughter loved the radio dedication, and did have one friend hear it, but I'm not sure how she would have felt about it in a larger audience. That's definitely a question for daddy, daughter and the pastor of the church to decide. I found the lyrics to Butterfly Kisses online: There's two things I know for sure She was sent here from heaven And she's daddy's little girl As I drop to my knees by her bed at night She talks to Jesus and I close my eyes And I thank God for all of the joy in my life Oh but most of all for.. Butterfly kisses after bed time prayer Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair Walk beside the pony daddy; it's my first ride I know the cake looks funny daddy But I sure tried Oh with all that I've done wrong I must have done something right To deserve a hug every morning And butterfly kisses at night Sweet sixteen today She's looking like her mother a little more everyday One part woman; the other part girl To perfume and make up From ribbons and curls Trying her wings out in a great big world But I remember.. Butterfly kisses after bed time prayer Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair You know how much I love you daddy But if you don't mind I'm only gonna kiss you on the cheek this time Oh with all that I've done wrong I must have done something right To deserve her love every morning And butterfly kisses at night She'll change her name today She'll make a promise and I'll give her away Standing in the bride room just staring at her She asked me what I'm thinking And I said I'm not sure I just feel like I'm losing my baby girl She leaned over - gave me Butterfly kisses with her mother there Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair Walk me down the aisle daddy; it's just about time Does my wedding gown look pretty daddy? Daddy don't cry Oh with all that I've done wrong I must have dont something right To deserve her heart every morning And butterfly kisses Every hug in the morning And butterfly kisses at night

Best to bring your own....Disney charges $15 a day for a single, $31 a day for a double stroller. (If you pay up front for your "length of stay" it dops to $13 a day single; $27 a day double...you get a receipt at the first park where you pay for your whole stay and just show that receipt at each park to get a stroller. If you park hop, you can show your receipt for daily or length of stay and get another stroller for the next park. You cannot take the strollers outside the park, even when baby is fast asleep in them.) One big hint....whether you bring your own or rent one....bring along something distinctive to tie onto your stroller....when you leave your stroller in the designated area to get in line for a ride/show....the Cast Members are constantly moving the strollers around to make room as people come and go...so when you come out your stroller won't be where you left it. And those Disney rentals all look alike! They do give you a name tag, but even those all look alike from a distance.

I would think that would depend on the child.....most that are that young are pretty just along for the ride, and I've often wondered how much of that they actually remember. Yet there are a LOT of them in the park so other parents obviously think they are getting something out of it. Some of the reasons I personally wouldn't take kids that young (unless they had older sibilings): They won't remember much, except through the photos, so kinda like the first birthday party cake, it's more for the parents than for the kids. Mickey Mouse is a cute character in a book, a movie or as a stuffed animal.....however at the park he's about 6 foot tall. I've seen so many terrified toddlers! If you have a fearless child, the photos are absolutely adorable....but like with Santa, a screaming kid just isn't my idea of a photo op! Most of the rides that the adults are likely going to want to do are not going to be toddler appropriate. Many have minimum height requirements. Most of the rides appropriate for toddlers is going to be in Fantasyland in Magic Kingdom or Toontown. Now, there is something called "Kid Swap"....where both parents and the child/children stand in line but when you get up to the front of the line you let them know that the child/children aren't riding....they'll let one parent ride and then when that parent comes back, they take the child while the other parent rides...no standing in line again so the other parent can ride. This is especially cool if you have one child old enough to ride and one too young....Dad rides with kid while mom holds baby....then Mom rides with kid while Dad holds baby....so kid gets to ride twice! Lucky Kid! Obviously every family will have their own opinion of whether it's worth going "while they're free". My feeling was that THEY may be free, but Mom and Dad aren't, so I'm paying hundreds of dollars for Mom and Dad to not be able to really "do" Disney.....all the sights and sounds usually wear out the kids quicker than at home, so your day is cut short by having to return to the room for a good nap so you don't have a cranky kid. Most kids can sleep in the stroller, but then you can't even do the kid swap because strollers aren't allowed in the lines. I figure it's worth saving those hundreds of dollars that you'd spend for Mom and Dad to have a half trip and use those later to pay for a slighly older child. Personally, I find 7 and older to be perfect.....until they hit 10 they go for the kid price, which is about half the adult ticket price and if you use the dining plan REALLY cheap (about $10 a day for 1 sit down, 1 counter and 1 snack per kid per day, adults are around $40/day for same). They're old enough to remember a lot of it....and to be able to help in the planning so they get excited about it. Their enthusiasm is real...they aren't yet jaded, lol, though my teen still squeals when she see Mickey! Maybe the best question to ask youself is whether your toddler has gone to other amusement parks that weren't geared specifically for their age and enjoyed it. Or have you avoided those in the nearby town because "they're too young". Or taken them and wondered why, lol. That is probably the only measurement you'll have available....but remember that Disney is basically 10x the size and stimulation as any other amusement park in the country. Can your kid handle it? If you do decide to go, definitely get Birnbaum's Disney for Kids....as it will help you decide ahead of time which rides and shows are right for which age group. And they list all the little play/rest areas, not to mention things like changing station locations, etc.

Duh...yes, it is....what was I thinking. Dogs....oops, wrong dogs, lol. Yes, it's Lady and the Tramp....and they serve a pretty good spaghetti, though I've yet to see anyone "sharing". Another couple of resturants that the young crowd like that no one has mentioned.... Chef Mickey at the Contemporary.....it's a large buffet with Mickey Goofy and Chip and Dale or Pluto....ocassionally Minnie, Daisy and Donald have been there too. 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian....dinner has Cinderella and her Prince which is nice, but the real show stealers are the Stepmother and Step Sisters....they are an absolute hoot! Breakfast is Mary Poppins, Alice and the Mad Hatter and once when we were there Tigger showed up...not quite sure if he's a regular though. O'hana at the Polynesian has the Stitch characters...food is great, juice is to die for (and we got the recipe so we can make it at home occasionally!). We are not big Stitch fans, so we really enjoyed the dinner at O'hana more....that food is delicious and it's all you can eat served family style (meaning they bring big trays of it to your table and you serve yourself off the tray, asking for refills as needed). Go hungry because you don't want to stop it's so good. THey have a floor show that seems to be different each time we go.....good but not characters. Another great place to view fireworks...either from inside the restaurant or you can go down to the beach if the weather is nice and sit and watch it, they pipe in the music (same thing at Grand Floridan beach) A really great, but relatively unknown character meal is at the Swan Resort....Garden Grove. Call and verify the days because it seems to change each time we go, but several nights a week they have Rafiki and Timon from Lion King. The food is really good buffet, and it's always been half empty when we go which means you get more time with the characters. We were the only family in there one night for about the first 30 minutes, and we had Timon pull up a seat and kick back. The kids were in seventh heaven! Whispering Canyon Cafe at the Wilderness Lodge is very popular with the kids....they do some fun antics, like pony rides around the restaurant, and if you ask for ketchup the waitress shouts out for it and every table that has ketchup is supposed to race their bottle over to your table...silly stuff like that. Just like at 50's Cafe though, you have to do your part to get the interaction going. Another little known, but good character meal is Cape May at the Beach Club Resort....Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald in beach wear at the breakfast buffet. They also have a clam bake at dinner (no characters), but we've actually never been to that...but it seems to get good reviews. There are also great restaurants (both sit down and table service) in the various countries of EPCOT. That's actually our favorite place to go hang out. Talking to the Cast Members in each country is a ready made lesson plan...they are happy to tell you all about their country! Before our first trip we studied each country and learned how to say hello and a couple of other phrases for each country....the smiles on the Cast Members' faces even when we mangled it was so big....they were just tickled that we'd tried! Oh just thinking about all the fun, makes me anxious to get going on our next trip!

Of the ones that you have listed, Sci Fi would probably be the most fun for the kids.....you are seated inside old-time car replicas (2 people per row, so with your kids ages it'd likely mean you and DH won't sit together as you'll each sit with a kid...or you and DH could sit in the middle seat and the kids in the front if they don't need your help) There is a full size movie screen playing a 1 hour loop of various sci-fi short movies, commercials, etc. Kids normally find the campy old time movies to be hilarious...and parents get nostalgic about it, lol. Burgers and Shakes are their speciality and delicious. Cinderella's Royal Table in the castle (Magic Kingdom) is very difficult to get reservations for....you literally have to call 6 months in advance and early in the morning. Or you keep calling hoping for a cancellation. But, it's a wonderful, albiet expensive, meal....breakfast and lunch are character meals with Princesses coming to the table to sign autographs and you can take photos....dinner has a short "show" with Fairy Godmother and the mice but they don't stop and do autographs. Any of the meals include a professional photo with Cinderella taken in the Lobby before you go upstair to be seated. If your kids aren't really into Princesses, this is probably one I'd skip since it's so expensive and difficult to get, and your kids are pretty young. If you had older kid that would appreciate the ambiance, then a late dinner is absolutely awesome if you can time it so that you are eating when the fireworks go off right outside the window! Coral Reef is at EPCOT and is a bit more elegant dining....and has a floor to ceiling aquarium that has lots of fish types swimming around but also quite regularly there are people swimming as well. Food is excellent and atmosphere is very exciting for kids to watch the aquarium as the eat. A few that you didn't mention, but I'd like to suggest based on your kids' age: Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom: THe characters from Winnie the Pooh come around while you eat for photos and autographs....every 20 minutes or so the characters will lead the kids (big or little) on a parade through the 100 acre wood (i.e. around the restaurant). Truly exciting is to make a breakfast reservation for before the park opens....they will let you enter the park to walk down Main Street when it's practically empty (only those with early reservations for this or Cinderella's are in the park). Food is pretty standard buffet. 50's Prime Time Cafe at Hollywood Studios....you sit at old time booths with a black and white TV playing 50's shows (I love Lucy, Dick Van Dyke, etc). The waitress calls herself your cousin (or mom or aunt) and the interaction can often be quite fun and hilarious. Definitely want to put your elbows on the table so "mom" can tell you to get 'em off the table....leave some veggies on your plate and "mom" will tell you no dessert, etc. My daughter spilled a little of her shake on the table (it was very full!) and "mom" made her get up and get a rag to clean it up. The waitress won't "pick on you" if you're shy, they're really good about figuring out who wants to play and who doesn't....we love the interaction. Garden Grill at EPCOT...Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale will come around to your tables....the veggies served are actually grown at EPCOT (Land of the Living ride shows you where)....and the fun part is that the resturant rotates slowly to show you different parts of the Land. Very fun, very fresh delicious food. If your kids are into Jo Jo or Little Einsteins, then Hollywood and Vine for Breakfast or Lunch (Hollywood Studios) is a character meal. If you don't have a Rainforest Cafe in your hometown...then I highly recommend it. Downtown Disney has Rainforest Cafe pus it also has the sister restaurant R-Rex (themed in Dinos of course). There is also a Rainforest Cafe at Animal Kingdom. Heavy theming, great food but very very loud both from the other guests and the theme animals making noise. But kids love it. You mentioned Yak and Yeti....they have both a sit down restaurant and a counter service (think fast food type). The food is decent at either, but it's not really all that special unless your hometown doesn't have Asian restaurants. It's Americanized Chinese, that's about it. Captain's Grille is good food, but not much special there for the kids. Good steaks though. Tony's Town Square is themed to be the restaurant from 101 dalmations and there is of course lots of memorablia to match the movie....but if your kids aren't really into the movie most of it will mean nothing to them, and then it's just an Italian restaurant with lots of stuff on the walls. San Angel is in Mexico in EPCOT....it's one of those restaurant where you either love the Mexican food they serve, or you hate it...very little in between. My family is the "hate it"....Taco Bell is better. You can go here: http://allears.net/menu/menus.htm and see the menus for each restaurant so you can determine if there is food your little ones will like (great for picky eaters!) With the exception of Rainforest Cafe (both the Downtown Disney and Animal Kingdom which has a separate entrance) and T-Rex, all of the resturants above do require that you have admission to the park. If you aren't planning on paying the extra for the hopper tickets (something I rarely recommend with little kids as the getting from one park to another is time consuming...the main exception is if you will be at Disney for less than 4 days, then the hopper gives you the chance to visit all 4 parks and hit the highlights only) be sure that you will be visiting the park where the restaurant is located that day. There is a LOT to know to make a "perfect" Disney vacation, but unless this is going to be the once in a lifetime shot at it....then you can do only as much planning as you really want to do. If it's a once in a lifetime, then you want to be sure to plan so that you don't miss anything that would have been great for your family! We live clear across the country, but still manage to go to WDW constantly....we did 71 days in 2009...and we're going in less than 2 weeks, lol. So, if you have any questions....PM me. My husband calls me the planning queen.....many friends have asked for my help too. I love Disney! You can do reservations up to 6 months in advance...since your trip is less than that already, you should consider trying to make them very soon. You can do it online: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/ or you can call 407-WDW-DINE (407-939-3463).

Perhaps a proper response to that question would be....well, I make the time because I love to read, just like you make time for ______. Said sweetly and with a hint of surprise and the point gets across without sounding snarky, especially if it's "just like you make time for TV or sports" which people tend to get defensive about. I wish I could find more time in my day to read.....before bed is my biggest chunk of reading time....but let's not forget the minutes in the bathroom, lol. THey do add up.

Well, it's still the same end result....so instead of the snarky Kate Goesslin comment maybe let them know that if they are that concerned with the Locks for Love charity it appears that cash donations do just as much (or probably more because there is no "winnowing" of cash donations to take up staff time, lol). Thus, the hair touchers fascinated by long hair because they presumably have short hair can do just as much good for the charity of THEIR choice rather than solicit help from those who do not share that choice. Really, it all comes down to it's your daughters hair and they need to back off. Comments are annoying but touching can be construed as harrassment especially if it continues after they are asked to stop.

Reason #143789234789234812347 that I'm thankful I homeschool. My hats are off to those teens though to have kept trying to get her to stop and then instead of just getting themselves to safety they helped all the little kids off first. Harry called them heros and I agree.

If you'd like it to taste like one of those rotisserie chickens you buy already cooked at the store....without all the chemicals, lol..... Combine: 4 teaspoons kosher salt 2 teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon onion powder 1 teason dried thyme 1 teaspoon white pepper (can sub black but use on 1/2 to 3/4 as black pepper is spicier) 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon lemon garlic salt Adjust the seasonings to your families tastes but basically you want to make a very aromatic and tasty rub to put on the chicken/turkey. Rub it over all parts of the meat, under the skin if possible, and in cavities if your meat has them. This is best if you can then "marinade" it in the fridge overnight or at least several hours (meaning start the rub early, early morning so it's had some time before you put it in at lunchtime, lol). Quarter 2 onions and 2 lemons (limes or oranges work well too) and stuff these in the cavities (if you're using a turkey breast or boneless chicken pieces just put them under/around the meat in the pan, the flavor will still get in it but obviously not as strongly. Put the bird on a rack so that the juices flow under it and don't sautee it....but the juice makes fabulous gravy of course! My family LOVES garlic so I tend to take garlic cloves and slice them and stick them under the skin of whole birds or use a knife to cut a small slit into the meat to stuff the garlic. Cook at 250 degrees, yes, 250...it's a slow roasting. Length will depend on what you're cooking....a whole chicken or a whole turkey breast will take 4-5 hours, boneless breasts/thighs about 2-3 hours. You'll know it is done when a meat thermometer shows 180 degrees internally. This works pretty good in a slow cooker as well...Make balls of aluminum foil to set the bird on so that it roasts, not sautees in the juice produced. Obviously the skin won't get crisp in a slow cooker, but you can take it out and put it under the broiler to crisp if desired. Cook double what you think you'll need...because everyone will want leftovers for lunch!

Where do you find long tops?

For the people who repeated are asking why she doesn't donate her hair to Locks for Love, I'd find proof of what forty-two wrote, print it out, and give it to them with the polite but firm comment that I'm not going to donate my hair so that Kate Goesslin can have hair extensions! And then the next time they touch my hair, I'd also say "Excuse me! That's MY hair, please leave it alone". If it persists, I would make a harrassment report to the college....because touching someone when they've asked you to stop is harrassment. Hair is just as personal as someone touching my bre*st would be. I love being pregnant...but I absolutely hate complete strangers touching my bulging belly. And I have been more vocal on occasions than I should have, but heavens people, would you like me to rub and carress your beer belly? I know your daughter probably doesn't want to confront these people, but she must stand up for herself....and as a parent I'd want to help her learn how to do so in a way that is comfortable for her but still forceful enough to stop people.....or today it's her hair and tomorrow it's what? There is no difference between this manhandler and a bully, IMHO.