I am sorry, but your perspective makes so little sense to me. Bad things- like weather patterns, volcanoes, perhaps major accidents- are not God's fault- but good things are? I never understood that. I see it all as very impersonal, and I have no problem with God.

To me, prayer is for two reasons- one is to express gratitude. The other is to pray for the best, highest outcome for someone or something- I might pray for someone to get well, for a situation to improve, for my kids to be protected from harm...but underlying is an understanding and also a prayer that whatever is for the highest good, is to be done. Sometimes that is for someone to go through a hard time, to not get well etc. I do believe prayer carries an energy and it is powerful. I do not believe in praying for specific outcomes such as high grades, for a certain team to win, etc. I would rather pray that the person sitting for an exam have the energy and confidence they need to do their best. For the team to play their best- in other words, I am sending them my love and positive energy-not asking God to take sides!). I would not pray that my will, what I want, overlies another's free will- such as that my child follow my religion. I would pray that they find their own truth and their own path, that they live their own truth with all their heart. I think that is touchy- to interfere with another's free will. I love prayer. I think our whole lives are a prayer whether we like it or not. I am not Christian.

I am not sure of the official recommended info on doseage/length of treatment, Negin- my approach with Neem is on an as needed basis. I would take it for a while. Then stop (and dose up on propbiotics/yoghurt). Maybe just go through a bottle of it. I wouldnt take it forever- not because it isn't safe, but because it shouldnt be necessary- and I dont know its long term effect. Its not a herb that is used like that, generally. If I was dealing with an acute issue, I would triple the dose on the bottle, for 3 or 4 days- but I do that with all herbs. If I was dealing with something chronic, I would take it as suggested on the bottle. The thing with herbs is...its not like prescription medicine where there is a specific dose to get the required result, and the tablet is the right size. Its a much wider range of possibilities and the amount in a capsule is quite arbritary.

Lol, I am none of those things- overweight, poor, time poor, cluttered- although I am not skinny, super wealthy, stressed and a clean freak, either. Just averagely normal in those areas. I can see how there could see a connection between those things maybe but I think it would offend those who struggle in any of those areas but not all, so I won't. I understand the OP was mainly referring to herself and making conversation. Welcome! :)

I have noticed that some families just get sick a lot more than others. No point in comparing yourselves- however, there are probably things you can do about it. It is possible that your kids inherited your weaker immune system. You might need to work harder to keep them healthy- better food, multi vitamins, warm feet in winter, no dairy for the guy who gets ear infections, some herbal tonics during cold season..that sort of thing. We do those and we rarely get sick- but it could be just genetic. But remember, every time your kids get sick, if they are getting better without antibiotics, their immune system is getting stronger and stronger. If you have to resort to antibiotics, unfortunately that's not the case, but sometimes it is necessary. If your kids are getting antibiotics at least once a year, I would do something about it- their systems need help, simply because they are not coping with the bombardment of viruses they are coming in contact with. If not- if they can overcome the illnesses within a week or 2 without antibiotics (which only deal with secondary infections anyway, when it comes to colds flus etc) ...they will get stronger as they grow up. Sugar depresses the immune system, and allergies put it under chronic stress. Its not really "normal" to be sick so much but it is common. I don't think its necessarily a problem, but perhaps a little help is in order.

Many of us love to plan, love the planning part- and I was one of those. But in reality, life never works out like the plan- not in my world anyway. Thats ok- the planning helped me to clarify what we were doing, why we were doing it. The process of planning itself is very clarifying. But then when you get up in the morning with your ideas of what you are going to do for the day...be prepared for the unexpected. Be prepared to go off on a side track, to discuss things, for maths to take twice as long one day and something else to take half as long. Its really only experience that helps you fine tune it all. I woudl defintiely have some sort of plan to get started, though. Write down a few goals for the year, or the month. Write down what your daily structure would ideally be like.

We all have feather down doonas. It takes 10 seconds to make the bed. I like walking into my bedroom to a tidy room and a made bed- it feels peaceful. I am the only one in the house that makes their bed daily though. It is something i do for myself that makes me feel good.

I am watching my mother with her 2 parents in their 90s now. Its a lot of work, even though one is in a nursing home getting top level care (Alzheimers) and the other is at home with his wife taking care. Its still a lot of work for her helping them with financial and practical stuff. My parents are younger, my dad has cancer but his wife is taking care of him. My mum is 66- a ways to go yet. They have things in place, I know, to lessen the burden on my brother and I, but there might be a time when we need to make decisions. Until then....theres not really anything I can do about it and I am fine with that. I dont think you can necessarily plan it....take it as it comes.

We bought one and it has been in the toilet for years :)

I think "3 or more" is a bit unfair in the poll- its as if, if we wear them for 3 we may as well wear them for 10 :) I wear mine 3 times usually.

I agree. I can't really equate following legal channels within the US legal system- which is how I read it- with violence, at all, and not remotely parallel with the type of violence his father supposedly perpetrated. Its a peaceful and legal way to get something done- its the way our society has set up to get justice without violence, specifically. He may know things the media aren't letting the general public know, and he may just be emotionally upset- who knows. But if suing is wrong, if following legal channels to attemt to get justice however one perceives it is wrong, then its wrong for everyone, not just when we decide it wrong.

I like the article- and I think she has a good point. It gives a different picture to the previous article, that's for sure. And as a commenter below the article said....homeschoolers are already going for this. It's a good point that its best to teach kids discipline and how to learn when they are young- when they will listen. It sure is hard to teach that sort of thing to an unwilling teenager- and by then, they should be learning to find their way. Maybe we get it back to front by trying to be so creative when they are young and saving the hard stuff for when they are teenagers.

I had heard of her- but now that I have seen those clips- that's how we have been living for years! All our furniture and ornaments, most of our clothes are all 2nd hand. It is fun to live like that and find bargains. Even when we want to buy something new, like a computer (although my Mac is the only new computer we have, and we have 8), we will research and find the best deal we can and the price difference can be a lot. Today in fact I wanted a really good pair of walking boots for winter, and I didn't want 2nd hand ones this time- I found the ones I wanted for 20% off the retail. I think you need to be time rich to do that- same with finding food bargains. I can imagine someone who works full time doesn't have time to shop around, find the bargains etc But if you have the time, it can be a very creative way to live.

I guess you could say I pushed, because he resisted a lot...but I am not convinced in retrospect that it really helped much. I would push and he would apply equal pressure in resistance = not going anywhere. So many different personalities- hard to generalise.

Lol I cant keep it all in my head- so maybe that doesn't make me a true Trekkie- but that movie was great- the kids were just watching it here the other night. I am not so keen on the original series any more- its a bit too old fashioned now for me. But Next Generation is fantastic. I can never remember if Deep Space Nine or Babylon 5 are trekkie series but I always lump them together. Love them too. I never liked the most recent Star Trek series- I found the earlier series all had very clean values. The most recent one seemed more modern and compromised on the values it expressed.

:iagree: I would agree that many of the attitudes expressed here are too harsh, IMO. Do you accept him and make him feel loved as he is, regardless? Its one thing to try and correct behaviour, but if it makes a kid feel he is fundamentally not ok, its coming from a different place from when he feels he is fundamentally ok and loved and a good person, but heres something we are going to look at differently because it doesn't serve you, the kid. I often say too...we don't choose our personalities and we don't choose our wounding and unconscious patterns. As adults we can take responsiblity for them (and how many of us dont ever have pity parties?), but a 5yo does not consciously choose to have a pity party to be difficult- he is driven by internal mechanisms in that direction, for whatever reason. He can be veered away from those behaviours if they are superficial patterns but not necessarily if they are deep- and if he feels there is something wrong with him for melting into tears when he is told off, or whatever, it is only going to do more damage, because he may not yet have the emotional maturity (he is 5!) or the developed nervous system for veering himself out of those states once they are triggered. Since most adults have plenty of negative traits they barely take responsilbity for, and find very difficult to change, I suggest a 5 yo needs an incredible amount of patience and understanding rather than a dismissive, callous attitude. And then, the parent needs to be patent with themselves too for the frustration of dealing with a kid who has some challenging patterns- especially if those patterns trigger the parent. I want my kids to love themselves, warts and all, and that is my underlying intention- I feel it is the only way they will have the motivation to deal with their own issues and the best way to help them make good decisions for themselves. When my son in particular would go off the deep end in negative emotional states- and he was a highly emotional kid until his teens when he matured out of it- we were fairly helpless but we tried all sorts of things. But he knew he was loved within those states as well- not just when they were over of if he changed them. Not that we were perfect- I certainly lost my cool- but I apologised mostly, if I got too upset. Sorry, rambling.

I am thankful both my teens are thriving and enjoying their lives and growing up beautifully. I am thankful for having a quiet, not busy time in my life. I am thankful for the gorgeous sunny autumn weather, but I will also be thankful when the rains finally get here. I am thankful for dh and the fact we get to spend time together during the day. I am thankful for our financial situation improving.

We did a large part of Ambleside one year and that involved many read alouds at once- we never got them muddled- but my kids were older. I dont think it matters, to tell the truth. Supposedly it can be really good for them to learn to keep up with several at once, but some years we did, some years we didnt.

I like being at home a lot but going into the world feels good for me too and I do make sure I get out of the house a few times a week. I do not want to hide at home even though it is comfortable- and I am not scared of people or interaction with them- I just get people burn out really easy, but people are also wonderful, so I crawl out of my shell- my comfort zone- regularly to interact. I learned to get out there because I homeschooled my 2 extroverted, social animal kids.

Maybe low carb isn't your thing? It's not for everyone - but also weight does tend to redistribute as you get older. What sort of exercise are you doing- I find that yoga, walking and some simple weights work at home, tones me up. But, I am never going to be petite- are you working against your own natural bodytype and trying to be something you are never going to be? Or is it just a recent thing that you have flabby thighs and you used to have slim legs?

I am not at a point where I lack time but when I was more time stretched....going to bed early, getting up early was and always has been a key for me. I will get a lot done as well as me time (meditation, exercise), early in the morning, wheras in the evening time just seems to get wasted. Routines save time- a swish and swipe of the bathroom, a 5 or 10 minute tidy, moving the washing through its cycles....when things are fairly automatic and routine, it saves time. Doing dishes in the evening saves time in the morning. Slowing down and relaxing actually saves time. Rushing everywhere and trying to do too much ends up backfiring.

I think you need to let go of the power struggle and let go of the control, and let your dd grow up and also to make mistakes. It's one thing to tell her how you feel, it's another to control her, at that age. Whether its true or not, your original post hints that you might still be treating your daughter as a child and wanting the sort of control over her you had when she was younger. IMO, at 18, and with baby, she needs to be treated as an adult and while it may be appropriate to strongly tell her how you feel....if you dont back off and let her then make her own decisions, she won't get strong. It doesn't seem appropriate, to me, to be telling her she can't drive with him. You can offer to drive, beg, implore, try to get the bf to see a doctor, but not lay an ultimatum- you are stopping her from growing up and taking hold of her own life. I go through the teenager in someone else's car issue regularly. Its hard, I know- mine are younger- but I do allow them i other people's cars regularly because of various reasons. Its nerve-racking and I wait for them to get home with baited breath. But...I think it is part of being a parent to let go. A hard part. :grouphug:

Yes- I agree with asta regarding blocked energy- and also....toxins. We end up pretty toxic by our 40s if we dont do something about it- years of suboptimal diets, swimming in a sea of chemicals from pesticides in our foods to artificial stuff in our food to poisons in our air. I am sure this all affects the blood and the brain. So many people complain of brain fog and it clears up when they change their diet, heal from a disease, do a cleanse- that sort of thing.

I think that could be true, although I love both- i dont have fibro, although I do ache periodically. I love Tai Chi- it flows. It might be helpful.

Seems to me it should be fairly low on the priority list compared to other healthy changes. But I am in the no milk is healthy camp. Milk is promoted as an essential food because the dairy industry has a lot of power. No other animal drinks milk of another species, nor its own past weaning. But I have a great chocolate milk recipe :) Its actualyl a chocolate green smoothie but you cant see or taste the green. Its basically almond milk, kale, raw cacao powder and honey. Yum. Just like a chocolate milkshake only..healthier.