Muslim funerals are very simplistic. The deceased is bathed and wrapped in a white shroud and sometimes scented with musk. Their isn't supposed to be a coffin but US regulations state that a coffin must be used so we use the one that is the most simplistic, a basic wooden one. Once the deceased is prepared for burial, a formal prayer is done in congregation and the deceased is taken away to be buried. All the men that are present must help to dig the grave, place the deceased in the grave, and then fill the grave. There are no flowers and traditionaly there are no tombstones either. After the grave is filled, a chapter from the quran is read and a special unformal prayer is done. After this everyone goes to the mosque (sometimes it is the deceased home instead) where they bring food and try to offer comfort. This last for three days if it is done in the mosque but can last longer if it is in the person's home. I think the family would appreciate it if you prepared some food and went to where the funeral was going to be held. Even if you didn't take food, showing up at a funeral is a really big deal in the muslim community. Just remember, as muslims, we don't consume any form of swine or alcohol, this inculdes gelatin unless it's kosher.

OK, so the last time I bought a fashion magazine was when I was in my early teens, 13 I think. I'm a crafty person. I love to knit, crochet, and do cross stich. These craft magazines are very expensive though. They can range anywhere from 6 to 13 dollars and they are not very thick. I decided to take at look at Vogue just to see what was going on and when i saw the price I was shocked. Vouge knitting magazine is only about 1/4 the size of Vogue itself and costs $5.99 whereas Vogue fashion magazine is about as thick as a book and only costs $3.99. And some of the ads I found in them ... lets just say i would never buy one just for the sake of my daughter not having to see them. Am I the only one who thinks this is ridiculous?

Well my oven has a cook timer , so I will set it to automatically turn off after a certain amount of time. It's very convienient. I don't have to worry about fogetting, not getting home on time, or anything like that.

I agree with the poster that said that that price is not bad considering how many your homeschooling. I got most of my books from Amazon and I got them used. Sometimes you don't get as good a deal but sometimes you can get a steal. Also, alot of the books used in history are at the library. The reading books are also at the library. I try to not let them write in the workbooks so that I can save them for another child. If it's something that they can't just write the answer to on a seperate piece of paper, then that's when I use a photocopy. You could also get half now and the rest later. Math and the Language Arts (spelling, writing, and grammer) are things that I think you shouldn't put off. Logic and debate, foreign languages, history and science, can wait.

I think they are cute! But my kids have stopped playing with them. On a positive note, my cats love to play with them lol.

How do you feel after the Zantac and zyrtec have taken affect is what will confirm weather it is an allergy or not. How do you feel now?

It doesn't get that hot here but its still too hot this year. I've developed a prickly heat rash because of it so I am quite uncomfortable right now. I just don't go out anymore if I can.

I'm right there with ya!

Well at least those tacks are encouraging. When I went to high school it was remedial, regular, honors, and AP.

I spent some time in Istanbul and it is fabulous. There are soooo many beautiful things to see. I really did like it and am very much looking forward to going back there. I have lots of relatives that have gone to Egypt and they say it is wonderful there too. My cousin says that she left her heart in Cairo. Syria ... I went there in 1999 and it was OK. Damascus has a beautiful ancient castle that at the curent time has shops set up in it. What I hated about Syria was that it was soooooooo crowded. My dd was 2 at the time and there was no way I could put her down to walk around. She would have been trampled on. I also don't want to sound mean by saying this, but I found Syria to be filthy.

Why is spending the money the only option? Why not decided to use that money for something else that is more important like an emergency fund or invest it in a safe way. I would just keep it as a savings account for her and have her get a part time job to pay for expenses and fun. Until she gets a job I would give her just enough for gas. The texting is something she can do when she does get a job.

I can't wash my hair with baking soda. It will dry my hair out to a crisp lol. I do see what your saying. I could eliminate a majority of our cleaning products. I guess I just need to sit down and list all of what I need and the best places to get them.

See I have a Kroger's, Publix, and Walgreens right about 5 mins away. Walmart is about 15 mins away. Sams and Costco are about 25 mins away and there is also a Walmart right by them too. Aldi is the farthest. It's about 30 mins away but in the same direction as Costco and Sams and the other Walmart. I have considered going to Aldi once a month but I don't know if I can buy that much meat, cheese, and milk there. Plus it's perishable. I got a gallon of milk for $1.89. I have never bought milk that cheap before. I guess I just have to get a sort of rythm going but I'm afraid of how long its gonna take to get there.

... buying groceries, household supplies, and personal supplies. I am having a hard time trying to figure out which works best. Some people cupon. This works well when you don't limit yourself to products. For example: You have to be willing to use other brands besides the brands you usually use and you are usually limited to prepakaged foods. The only place this works for me is with some personal products and definately with cleaning supplies. Another problem with this is if you forget to buy the Sunday paper. That can throw your savings off track. It also takes considerable planning. I have to plan the day before. Some people go to warehouses like Sams or Costco ( I personally have not found this to work for me). I am not done buying all the things I need and the bill is already $200 or more. DH insists that I should go there but I just don't see the savings there. And then there are those that go to Aldi and Dollar General. I have come to love Aldi because I can now buy my kids all the things they LOVE at a very low price. My problem here is that the fresh produce is limited. I need to find a way to merge all of these methods and make them work without driving myself crazy. What I'm trying to say is: What should I get where? I am sooooooo confused as to what not to get at what location and what I should get at what location. Does that make sense to you guys? I hope so, cause I think I made myself dizzy trying to figure it out myself lol.

Well I can see where it might be a problem when they are younger because you would need to help them through a lot of the work they do. On the same hand though, their HS day isn't as long as an older child. I like to get as much done in the morning before we start and I absolutely have everyone pitch in. I will start the day with making the bed. Then i have DD put all the dishes away while I make breakfast. On the weekdays I keep breakfast short and simple so that I don't get overwhelmed with housework. It is at that time that I pull out the slow cooker and I throw part of our dinner in there and that way I don't have that much more to do after we're done with school. When breakfast is done we put the dishes in the dishwasher and clean up and then we start school. Now being that I have an older child that I homeschool, I will simply give her her instruction and then I tackle whatever task I have to do, or give the younger ones their lessons. It's really about doning it little by little and doing it whenever you can fit it in. Save the major cleaning for the weekend and just tidy up during the week. But I do notice that when I start early I can relax a little at the end of the day.

I so agree!

Yeah. I went to the one in Franklin TN instead of the ones in Nashville. I know too many nosiy people that shop there. The good thing is the milage is the same if I were to go to either one.

Ok so let me start by saying that the last time I shopped at Aldi was over 10 years ago. Back then it was horrible. You went there simply to save money and that was it but the quality was sooooo low that you wondered if you were really saving money. So I stopped going there. Then I saw the post here and it got me to wondering if things have really changed there or not. I went today and I have to say WOW. The quality of the items have highly improved. They sell fine imported chocolates! And delicious looking german cream cakes. But I also noticed that the prices are also a little bit higher as well. Which made me wonder ... Is it really cheaper to shop there? Or do you go there for quality now? For me it's a 20-30 min drive so i'm wondering if it is worth it or not.

We have one and it comes with a saftey net. It's loads of fun and the kids love it ... even I love it.

To me, nothing works better than one of those silk epil machines. It pulls all the hair out. It hurts when you start out but the hair on your legs and arms gets very weak from being constantly pulled out and it stops hurting so much. I used to do it every week when I first started. I did it that way cause it doesn't hurt as much if you don't let all your hair grow back. Then after 1 year I only had to do it once a month. You don't get the mess you get with sugaring or waxing and its not a frequently used as shaving. Its one of the best purchases I've ever made.

:glare: So what are ya tryin to say?:glare: JK:D

:lol::lol::lol:

I love this! I am gonna cross stitch it, fram it, and hang it up!

OK! I finally get it. I would take the $100 away and donate it to charity because I know the grandparents will probably not take it back anyway. If she has spent the money already I would return the items or have her give the items to charity. If the grandparents won't listen and keep undermining like that I would put a distance between them ... yes I know it will hurt but it is only temporary until they both learn their lesson. If your daughter decides she wants to drive over there then take her lisence away. Don't give in to any tears no matter who they are coming from. And keep in mind that it WILL get worse before it gets any better. It's always the darkest before dawn.

I really don't understand this. What exactly are they doing that you view as undermining?