Well, we've had Mimi since she was a very young kitten. She is almost 2 now. She is friendly to our family and only rarely gives little bites to my son who likes to tease her. But when we were gone for a few days over Christmas, I hired the neighbor boy to come and feed Mimi. He said she was very agressive. She hissed a lot and he was afraid she would hurt him. Because of other issues (her peeing in the basement; our allergies; our upcoming move; her aggressive behavior to our older cat) I decided to put an ad in the newspaper looking for someone to adopt her. I got lots of people who were interested. One family came over to meet her. I had put her in her carrier before they showed up. When they walked over to the cat carrier, she went CRAZY! Hissing and screaming and squealing like nothing we'd ever heard before. It was terrible! Needless to say, the family chose not to take Mimi. At this point I was doubting that we'd find a home for her. But one elderly lady called several times and sounded very interested. I told her how Mimi had acted to the other family, but she said she would try her out for a few days and see if she adjusted. Monday morning, this lady named Lois came over to meet Mimi. It went pretty well. Mimi hissed some, but wasn't overly mad about things. She got into her carrier quietly and left for Lois's house. At 2pm, Lois calls to tell me that Mimi hasn't ventured out of her cat carrier yet. We agreed that it would just take time. Tuesday morning, Lois calls and says that Mimi got out of the carrier during the night but she can't find her anywhere. She says I might have to come over and help find Mimi. Also there is no sign that she has eaten anything. Tuesday night, Lois calls. She found Mimi under her nightstand. She put gloves on and when she tried to get her out Mimi bit her. Lois is sure that we've abused the cat, or that the cat is sick. "I've never seen a cat act like that." She wants me to come and get Mimi and bring a copy of her rabies certificate. Well, during the day Tuesday I had stopped at the vets office to get a copy of Mimi's records to send to Lois. Guess what? We are 2 months late for Mimi's rabies shot!! Wednesday morning I went to get Mimi. Lois freaks out when she sees that the cat is late for her rabies shot. She is still bleeding from the bite and wants me to bandage it up for her!! I was crying through most of this, just feeling terrible about this sweet lady getting bitten. I had already made an appointment with the vet for that afternoon to talk about putting Mimi to sleep. And Lois insistent that we have a rabies test done on Mimi, "because there is something wrong with that cat." I went to the vet Wednesday afternoon and told him this crazy story. He agreed that we should put her to sleep... BUT he couldn't do it right away. Because of the bite, we have to quarantine her for 10 days to make sure she doesn't have rabies. Even though she is a totally indoor cat and there is no possible way she has rabies! (Or we could put her to sleep and send her head away for testing, but understandably he didn't want to do that.) So I brought Mimi back home with me. Arg! Lois called asking to be reimbursed for the cost of her antibiotics. I feel terrible knowing my cat can be so aggressive. I don't think it is wise to keep a cat who will attack strangers. But of course it breaks my heart to put her to sleep. And she is being as sweet as ever now that she is back home. What's up with that?!

Do you think an animal shelter would take a cat with a history of biting?

I don't know much about South Africa, in particular. My father-in-law was born in Ethiopia. African gifts he has given us are woven baskets, paintings on some kind of fabric, and silver jewelry. He also has awesome African spears and swords on his wall that I hope to inherit some day. :)

I mostly agree with Catwoman, although we haven't ripped out the 2 ceiling fans in our house yet. I think they are really ugly. I never use the one over the dining room table, because all I can think about is dust getting into my food. (Maybe I should dust the thing??:001_huh:) I tolerate the one in the master bedroom because it is useful. But I still think it is very out of style.

I had my fifth and last baby at 34. I'm glad she is my last, but mostly because of the number of children I have, not because of my age. I feel like I am a better parent now than I was when I was younger. I am more relaxed and patient. My husband and I have just thoroughly enjoyed our youngest two. I have had more health problems with pregnancy as I've gotten older and I do think that is a legitimate concern.

I have five kids and one is not as cute as the rest. He's stocky, with big ears, and kind of awkward. I imagine it is hard for him sometimes.

We listed our house for sale last week. Some scammers have taken our house pictures and are listing it for rent on zillow, craigslist and other sites. It is just crazy! While I was home today two people pulled into my driveway to check out the property. One person called me on the phone (how did they get my phone number?!). This evening my husband spoke to four different people who stopped by to check out this too-good-to-be-true rental. And our realtor has been called by numerous people as well. This is all just today! It makes me ill to think that people are getting ripped off and I can't stop it. It also makes me a bit uneasy that the scammers have our names and are using them in numerous emails and such.

City water and trash service are billed together and are between $70 and $75 a month.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-and-sour-pepper-pork/detail.aspx I use pork tenderloin in this recipe for Sweet and Sour Pork. It is delicious!

I would quit. I don't find swimming lessons for this age very profitable. And regarding the bad behavior, this is a hard setting to successfully address the bad behavior. I would ask whether you can get a refund. When my 5 year old burst into tears the first day of swimming lessons, the director said I could talk to her about a refund if he couldn't handle the class.

The only read aloud I remember from my mom is The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. We laughed so hard. My favorite read alouds from 3rd grade - From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and A Wrinkle In Time.

We recently finished our basement and added a bedroom for our 11 year old son. He is so happy to have his own space! He likes arranging his stuff the way he wants and knowing that no one will bother it. He likes being able to go to sleep in complete darkness-- the brother he used to share a room with always kept a light on. He hasn't been scared to be far away from the rest of us. It took me a little while to get used to the new arrangement. I was sad to have him so far away. But I've gotten over it. Given our home and our kids ages, I think it was the best decision. What is funny to me, is that the son with the basement bedroom still spends must of his free time playing in his brothers' room. He still wants to be around his siblings and that makes me happy. And he hasn't been sneaking food from the kitchen. That was my other concern.

As others have said, I was on Lovenox and heparin during pregnancy because of the blood clotting disorders MTHFR and PAI1 (and history of 2 late miscarriages probably due to this). I think I was on another blood thinner briefly after delivery, but can't remember the specifics. Now I take baby aspirin daily. My midwife wanted me to deliver sometime in my 39th week. My inductions were done at 39weeks6 days and 39 weeks1 day, so not particularly early. I think if I had gone into labor before that, I would have been able to deliver somewhat naturally. I would have stopped the heparin immediately and been given something to reverse the heparin. I would have been allowed to labor without pitocin, but would have needed an IV and close monitoring. I wouldn't have been required to have an epidural or any other pain reliever. So that isn't most people's idea of a natural delivery, but as good as it could be in that situation. What aspect of "natural" is your friend wanting? My midwife was under the supervision of a doctor, but I didn't have to deal with the docs directly, so I was happy.

Thanks so much. We love these books too. I just put a hold on it at the library. :)

We had our five kids over an 11 year span (plus 3 miscarriages) with almost no birth control. Sometimes we were anxious for another baby, other times wishing for a break. My fertility tends to return as soon as I quit breastfeeding around one year.

My son starting getting migraines when he was 6. You've gotten a lot of good advice already. I just wanted to add that the main contributing factor for my son was inconsistent meal times, not eating enough, and going to bed hungry. Once we realized that, we were able to watch his eating more carefully and lower the number of migraines he experienced.

My mom made Italian ice for my brother's rehearsal dinner. It was cheap and yummy.

I walked 3 miles. The weather is finally improving and it feels great to be outside. Keep up the good work!

Have you contacted the manufacturer? That would be another option. I sell lots of microscopes and science supplies. Some of the manufacturers are very responsive in this situation and will send out a replacement part right away. (And of course, some are not responsive at all!) It might be worth a try.

We are in Ohio. I think most family dentists here will also see children. We got referred to a pediatric dentist years ago when my oldest freaked out when she needed a tooth pulled. Since then we have just taken all the kids to the pediatric dentist and it is always a wonderful experience. He allows parents to go back with the kids. He is wonderfully gentle, soft spoken and good with children. The best part about his office is that he has a large open area with four different exam chairs where all of my kids can get their cleanings, fluoride, etc. done in the same room. This is such a nice situation for siblings-- really puts them at ease. I don't pay attention to the cost, because we have dental insurance. I don't think it is much different than the dentist my husband and I go to.

I've had three miscarriages. After three healthy pregnancies, I lost a baby at 15 weeks. Then I lost a girl at 21 weeks. My doctor did some blood work after that and I was diagnosed with a clotting disorder. For my next pregnancy, I was on blood thinners throughout and carried DS to term. Next pregnancy was an ectopic pregnancy. Then another successful pregnancy while on blood thinners. After my second loss, I dealt with lots of guilt, anger, depression, etc. It was really hard. I'm sorry you are going through this.

I live in Akron and three years ago, I lived in the same neighborhood that Kelley Williams-Bolar lives in. Now I live about 2 miles away in a slightly better Akron neighborhood. So many people feel sorry for her because they think she had no other options, but I don't see it that way. Akron Public Schools has open enrollment throughout the district. So Williams-Bolar could have enrolled her daughters in a different Akron high school at no cost and without breaking the law. The one near me has a very good reputation and it would have been almost as good as the Copley Fairlawn schools that she lied to get into. If your public school is in academic emergency for 2 of the last 3 years, you can use the Ohio Ed Choice voucher system and the state will pay up to $5,000 a year for tuition at a private school. My children are in a private Christian school now and lots of kids there get free tuition and a fantastic education because of the Ed choice program. And once you are accepted into this program, it is renewable every year regardless of how your home public school performs. There are many charter school options in Akron. So to say that she had no options just isn't true. She was unwilling to cooperate and wanted to make a big scene. I don't feel sorry for her.

Amazon has them. Search for Ruskin or Crocodile Creek placemats.

I posted about a similar problem recently and got some harsh replies too. Try not to take it too hard. I didn't read all the replies, but regarding cats getting on counters and tables I can recommend a product that will stop this behavior: http://www.amazon.com/Contech-StayAway-Motion-Activated-Pet-Deterrent/dp/B000DZFFN4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1296066028&sr=8-2 It has worked wonderfully for our little kitten. When the cat gets on the counter, the sensor detects it. It beeps and sprays air at the cat. Nothing harmful to the cat, but they sure don't like it. We've had almost no problems with the kitten getting on the counter since buying this product.

Thanks!!! This is very helpful. I never thought about removing the pad, but keeping the carpet intact. That might be the best, first option.