Just read they scrammed there. Lovely.

Felt in PA, an hour outside of Phila. Bed shook, lamps shook, etc. I was nursing my youngest down for a nap and thought the dog was itching and kind of thumping/shaking the bed. DH felt it at work. Isn't surrey nuclear plant down there? I wonder if they scrammed.

"I've noticed we are having a problem getting your bowl to the sink to be rinsed. I don't like nagging and you don't like being nagged. I'd like you to come up with a plan so that you manage to get your dishes cleared, and I don't have to nag you." I'd ask her to present you with several ideas that might work. A visual aid? Can she make it? Would she enjoy making a silly poster, decorating a poster, making herself a placemat, or a placecard with a reminder? My 7.5 yo often requests a snack in his room while he's reading late-ish at night. Somehow his dishes don't make it back downstairs the next morning. He also leaves wet towels on his floor sometimes. Rather than nagging, I'm going to work with him on making a poster that we'll laminate that has reminders for him. eta: it has been a while but have you read How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen so Your Kids Will Talk? It might be good to revisit if you haven't. I need a refresher but I always think that's a great book particularly for talking to tweens/teens.

Pyrex. It is more expensive but it has held up well for us. We've been using it for most of our food storage since about 2004 when we phased out most plastic. I also use the ball freezer jars for smaller quantities. I freeze soup for my kids in those, etc. and it is almost as easy to heat up as it is from a can. My DH has been using Pyrex for his work lunches for several years now without a problem.

Wikki Stix? Dover coloring books? I usually pick up a few of the small stained glass ones for stocking stuffers or for little doodads for Advent. I also have some Christmas themed tattoos in my cart for both kids. We've used these in the past on the day we attend a local holiday parade (they wore the tattoos on their cheeks for fun). Sudoku book? Air dry clay?

Yeah, anything with a lot of gluten? Some LC breads/tortillas/wraps, etc. add extra gluten for texture and protein and I know I can't handle that, and I'm not celiac. It feels like a brick in my stomach. I don't use any of the LC recipes that call for something like 1/4 or 1/3 cup of VWG. I feel awful if I eat it. Like I have a brick just sitting there in my stomach :(

:iagree: It doesn't ring in my mind as typical experience people have when they start LCing. That doesn't mean it can't be from changing what you are eating though. It might be worth getting checked or keeping a very close eye out. I hope you get some relief soon. eta: make sure you are drinking enough as well.

I've had nausea but don't recall ever experiencing stomach pain from it. I assume you aren't using anything w/ sugar alcohols (malitol, sorbitol, erythritol, xylitol, etc.) because those can cause GI upset (but that's usually crampiness and-TMI- loose stools).

I am :smilielol5:at so many comments in this thread because they ring so true! I am totally an introvert, and being around my kids nearly 24/7 is really, really draining for me. The 17 month old still cosleeps and BFs, so even when the older two (7 and 4) are in bed, I have him near me/attached to me. It is absolutely draining. I often tell DH that I totally envy his commute to work. 30-35 mins of driving anywhere without little people talking to me all. of. the. time would be blissful. I'd sit there w/ the radio OFF in fact. I need to hear my thoughts, and it is really hard to do with 3 kidlets underfoot. 99 percent of my crankiness stems from their very normal kid behavior and kid requests. It just overwhelms me. The youngest is forever climbing on something and shrieking for something, the middle is always needing the baby gate opened/closed, a light turned on, something to eat, etc. and the oldest asks so many questions it makes my brain hurt. And when it is all going on at the same time I just look like this:eek:. With the older two I have emphasized that I *need* to recharge at night. I need them to go to bed and not come in with 100 requests, because if I don't get my recharge time (which still involves my 17 month old being latched on half of the night), I will go crazy. I also stay up late nearly every single night, because that's my me time. I'll poke around online, use Pinterest, endlessly tweak my wish list at RR, etc. and revel in the fact that no one is talking to me. I take great comfort in knowing I'm not the only one who finds it challenging and exhausting. When I think it is too much, I realize how much I would dislike back to school night, PTA events, and other larger school gatherings. :lol:

Is it cramping? Intermittent? Is it a dull ache? Nausea? Are you constipated?

DS1 is 7.5 and purchased a Nook for himself. We have the e-ink, non color version. We have not yet paid for a book and have been finding lots of great freebies in the public domain and through our library system. I discouraged him from purchasing the color Nook because I really didn't want him going online with it.

Gentle Christian Mothers. There is a gentle discipline board there that has been so helpful to me through the last 7.5 years of parenting.

GOYB parenting :D I started reading GCM a few years ago when my oldest was a baby and that was tremendously helpful, along with many of the book recommendations there. GOYB is a great site too ;) Playful parenting. It takes energy and it can be really tough at times, but when it works, it works. It can shift the whole mood in the house. Instead of spiraling into progressively more poor behavior/consequences, etc. it often gets us back on track. I absolutely love Playful Parenting (the book) and have found it so useful at so many stages. It is fun to gain their cooperation playfully. Teaching, redirecting, rehearsing, practicing. Working on things when little people are not in full out meltdown mode and it is too late for the teaching moment. Giving responsibility that leads to true self-esteem vs. external praise. Remembering that people who don't feel well don't act well. Being mindful that a child who is quite hungry, tired, thirsty, overstimulated, etc. is going to be tough to reason with. Fixing the cause behind the behavior makes a big difference. For us, many times there's no fixing the behavior until we get to the underlying issue (kids have low blood sugar and need a snack or a meal. Kids are overtired and miserable, and need a nap/bedtime). My two older kids' arguments usually stem from boredom. When mom is busy with something else and they are hungry and bored, they start fighting. When my DD is overly tired, nothing else works other than getting her to bed. She's back to normal the next morning, kwim? Make sure their cup is filled up. When things with one of my kids seem to go on in a negative direction for a while, it is time to backtrack and make sure their cup is filled up. We need to reconnect and kind of start over. When we work on healing the relationship, many times the behavior kind of follows. Remembering that tantrums are an immature expression of big feelings. Most of this is from GCM, GOYB parenting, etc. and things I've picked up from there over the years. Now if only I could get to the point where this is automatic, but it is has been an ongoing process for years.

Another poster hoping for feedback on using it with Mac OS.

My feelings are similar. I've worked in early intervention and in the school systems as a PT. Spanking is obviously not an option. There are many other tools in the toolbox, and even with the most challenging children, spanking is never, ever an option obviously. I feel if I can find other options in those cases, I certainly don't need to spank my own children. I've been around plenty of "challenging" kids and spanking was not an option, no matter what.

Oh, I agree that not everyone knows there are options. On the flip side, I personally have seen many people assume that not spanking=not disciplining your child. I have witnessed parents who are permissive and do spank (Johnny, don't do that. Johnny, stop that. Johnny, if I have to say it one more time. Johnny, do not do that. And then they spank). I have witnessed punitive parents who do not spank. In my mind, it goes back to the difference between authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive parenting. I strive for authoritative. That doesn't mean my kids don't have rules and boundaries, and that we don't have expectations as a family, or that we don't discipline/teach. I don't strive for authoritarian or permissive parenting. eta: I have said to my parents many times that I think it would be lovely if more child psychology was taught in schools. Most people interact w/ children in some way or go on to have children of their own. I've personally witnessed many college educated folks who really don't have a good understanding of typical child development. I think understanding the normal course of development, and the typical challenges that arise at each age, would really help. Many things need to be taught/outgrown no matter what discipline strategy one employs. My other concern w/ punitive discipline is that it teaches kids to avoid behaving a certain way in response to an external authority. When you remove that authority (child knows no adult is around, etc) there have been studies showing the kids will often engage in the undesirable behavior. They know no one is around to punish or "catch" them. I'm oversimplifying my explanation but I think it is important to help a child develop those qualities from an intrinsic desire vs. fear of an extrinsic force coming down on them.

And in decades past, people didn't even believe babies felt pain. Circumcisions and more intense surgeries were performed on babies who were thought to not even feel pain :( I think the argument that it has been going on for hundreds of years really glosses over the amount we've learned about child development and psychology. I honestly don't understand how smacking a toddler on the rump will prevent them from running the next time. Psychologically, young toddlers have poor impulse control. Why not just keep them from running, period? We've never swatted a child for trying to take off. If they attempt to run away or I feel they might, they go directly into the stroller, the sling, hold my hand, or be carried. I see absolutely no point in punishing afterward. As my kids have matured it hasn't been a problem. I wouldn't want to rely on the "lesson" taught from previous spankings for running into the street..IMO, why not prevent in the first place? If I'm not preventing, I'm not doing my job as a parent, and I would be angry with myself if my child took off. Ditto any other dangerous situation that people advocate spanking for. I'd rather use the twist style outlet covers than have to swat a toddler attempting to stick a fork in there.

I eat low carb. I have PCOS and am insulin resistant. My husband's family has a strong history of Type 2 diabetes. He and I are not overweight, but we eat LC for our overall health. For us it is embracing: natural fats including natural saturated fat grassfed dairy grassfed/pastured meats as we are able if we can't do that, we look for hormone/antibiotic free and/or organic eggs veggies lower glycemic/lower sugar fruits (berries, small servings of melon, half an apple at a time, etc) minimal to no grains nuts, seeds I think some people can tolerate whole grains, but the concept that "grains are good" has been overblown IME. 20-25% of the population has symptoms of IR and/or metabolic syndrome. It assumes everyone has the same type of insulin sensitivity, which isn't true. Thin and normal weight folks can definitely be insulin-resistant, but that rarely seems to get any press. I think insulin's metabolic effects in non-diabetics has been overlooked for far too long. I am a big fan of Gary Taubes' work. I also think most nutritional recommendations are not well supported with solid evidence. There are studies saying "fat is bad" when the study participants are eating bakery items, cheetos, and other carby goodness right along with their fat. But it is always the fat that is evil :glare: People are afraid to eat eggs for breakfast, but think Cheerios are "heart healthy" and "lower cholesterol." In the meantime, folks have soaring triglycerides and smaller LDL particle size (which is more dangerous than the more bouyant large LDL cholesterol), which are far more dangerous, even if their overall cholesterol total # doesn't change or drops a bit (like the 5 points or whatever that Cheerios claims it can drop your cholesterol by).

Sear-up. I grew up in the Mid Atlantic region and have only rarely heard people call it "sur-up."

and the "research" supporting their position on what is good is laughable.

I don't like that wording at all. As PPs said, you can submit your own version of the affadavit and objectives. I haven't filed yet but I don't think you need any sort of "approval letter" whatsoever. I would be very uncomfortable with that type of wording and would do my own thing in compliance w/ the actual law as written. eta: I hate PDE's new and ridiculously inaccurate site, but this is from their website: Homeschooling is a right and the school's permission is not needed, as long as the required documentation is submitted with the affidavit.

:iagree: BPA, environmental estrogens, etc have been linked to central adiposity, insulin resistance, etc. I will add that I think our society has become dietary fat phobic due to the messages that "fat is bad" and that many kids never have a feeling of satiety because they are riding the blood sugar roller coaster all day long (cereal, crackers, pretzels, carby snacks, etc.) while their bodies are starving for some fat and protein.

It was just up very briefly for me and now the whole page is loading wonky. Ugggh. I guess that's what I get for endlessly tweaking my cart and not ordering already!

I had problems with it late last night and it won't load for me today. I see a menu on the right hand side but I can't click on anything. I was able to get to the site and look at my wishlist yesterday at some point, but later on it was down for me. I use Firefox.

When I was living in NC, the bonus room situation was pretty common. I personally don't think that would work well for us at this stage as my kids are young, and it is easier for us to be on the main floor. It allows me to throw laundry in (I like having a main floor laundry room), empty a dishwasher, prep lunch, etc. while they are working. If you are the type who doesn't like those types of household distractions, then the bonus room setup upstairs might be ideal. The bonus room upstairs would work for me if I had older kids, I think.