Always cracked half an inch. I have a fear of not being able to get out or get to my children if there is an emergency. My adult children now have their doors closed most of the way, but not latched in deference to my irrational fear. Plus, if you have pets closed doors are an invitation. They must be able to get to the other side.

Count Chocula. Boo Berry and Frankenberry are gross to me. Just why? Chocolate or what is the point. Meanwhile, I haven't had any of these since I was a child and my precious snowflakes have never had them in our house.

You have to be clear on the invite that you are setting an end time. Something along the lines of how you wish you could party all night but turn into a pumpkin at 10pm. As for go to food: Crudite and dip Tomato and mozerella salad crackers and cheese Hummus and pita slices Chips and salsa/guacamole I like not having to cook for a crowd. I prefer platter and out appetizers.

Open enrollment has always been a thing and has nothing to do with fines for not having insurance.Probably has something to do with business budgets and taxes. And to prevent people from buying insurance only when they are sick. Insurance works because people pay into it when they are healthy so you have it when you are sick.

I already know I will be mother's caretaker if the time comes. Right now she is okay on her own. Still has a marbles and for the most part her health is well for a woman about to be 80. My in-laws have other children to take care of them.

I don't bring my dog to the dog park. He was attacked by a Jack Russell Terrier and the other owner blamed my dog when he stuck his hands in between the 2 dogs and was bitten. Even though there was no way to know which dog did the biting. And who sticks their hands in between the mouths of fighting dogs? My dh was in the process of pulling our dog away by the hind legs when the other guy stuck his hand in. It was an awful experience and it soured me on the dog park experience. Don't waste a second thinking you could have said anything that would make this woman think differently about her dog. She started with accusing your dog of doing something.

Best to make your own. It will still have honey or maple syrup to stick together but at least you are controlling it. I have made these and my kids loved them. http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/chocolate-covered-recipes/fudge-baby-mania/ And I have been meaning to try these but I haven't gotten around to it yet. https://beamingbaker.com/5-ingredient-homemade-kind-nut-bars-vegan-gluten-free-dairy-free-refined-sugar-free/

Doubtful. This chapter is closing and I will be moving on to the next chapter. I would certainly answer a question of asked but I will remove myself from local homeschool Yahoo and Facebook groups.

This is my last year homeschooling. We started in 2007 and I have seen a shift from when I started to now. A shift in numbers of people homeschooling, a shift in how people are homeschooling, a shift in how my experience is viewed. And a shift in the resources I utilized with ds and now dd. The internet was a game changer. The plethora of options has been a game changer. I don't feel like I have much to contribute to someone's journey because there are options that weren't available when I started. Not that I offer unsolicited advice. And if I being honest, I am always surprised when someone considers me a voice of experience because I always feel like I am winging it.

My sister and I laugh at ourselves acting like mom all the time. Earlier this year at a family gathering I leaned over to my daughter and pointed at my sister and whispered Aunt looks just like grandma and laughed. My rotten daughter looked at aunt and then at me and said "so do you".

I was thinking it was some kind of new design trend. I had never heard of a drop in shower. Sounds fascinating.

Mom, did set her up for failure. But, not on purpose. We all screw up our kids. I think mom was doing what she thought was the right thing at the time in regards to diet. I also believe she saw talent in her daughter and wanted to help her become great. Again, no idea how to do it. Attempts at being helpful met with resentment and teen angst. We are all damaged beings trying to do our best with where we are in our own development. Mom worked with the tools she had at the time. Unfortunately, it screws up our kids and our relationships with them. I think I identify with Kate because I spent a lot of years blaming/hating my mother for things that I now know were really not in my mothers control. To be honest, my path to a better relationship with my mother began the day my husband pointed out to me when we were newlyweds 25 years ago that I will forgive my father for anything and my mother for nothing. Totally not fair. But there it was. Therapy. Lots of therapy.

I found it pretty realistic to mother daughter relationships. Mom has no idea how she made her daughter feel. Daughter has never gotten therapy to deal with her feelings. So instead is stuck in a cycle of inadequacy with no idea how to have an honest conversation with mom. Kate needs therapy.

Ooo, I made this once. It was delicious. I totally forgot about it until you posted. I think I put it out of my mind because the price of cauliflower was so ridiculous for awhile.

You have sent my introverted self into spasms at the thought of all that interaction. When my kids were younger they loved sitting outside handing out the candy when they were done tot.

Set to explode? I think the explosion has already happened. All I will say is that Lyme and it's coinfection friends have shown me that it is not easy to be sick with something that doctors are arguing about whether or not what you have exists. While they are duking it out you are left in desperation and paying out of pocket and finally going broke in the hopes that the next treatment will offer some relief until you are left with woo woo science and snake oil salesmen. And you try that too, because you are desperate for something to help.

I used to love Halloween. I don't mind teens enjoying themselves and being kids for awhile. Usually around here the kids stop around 13. Some older. We get a lot of people driving in from other towns. I don't mind the little kids. I don't even mind the teens. Unfortunately, there have been problems with groups using Halloween as a chance to case neighborhood homes. I stopped answering the door. I put out a cauldron and hope people are polite and don't take all of it. For the most part people take one. There have been some take it all kids. Last year a group of older kids took all the candy and then started tossing the cauldron around and broke it. I heard them laughing while they were vandalizing my property. On the one hand, I get being caught up in the fun of the holiday and the sugar high. On the other, they purposely destroyed my property. This year I will be putting out a cardboard box with the candy.

Yes, this answers both question. About a year ago I started doing yoga daily at home before I start my day. It has made a difference in how I feel and inner peace with the things I can't control.

I like www.veganricha.com www.ohsheglows.com www.chocolatecoveredkatie.com I find interesting recipes by googling the ingredients I have on hand or by adding vegan at the beginning of a traditionally meat recipe.

My sister and I are equally bad at staying in touch. I would say we call each other equally every few months. I am also one who has been the caller and the callee in friendships. I have ended some after feeling like I was getting nothing in return and I am sure I have been dropped for similar reasons. The reality is, I hate talking on the phone and I hate idle chit chat. I marvel at people who have a 20 minute phone call with their sibling every day. What the heck do you talk about? I don't care that my sister watched my nephew play baseball or practice guitar. Nor do I think the minutia of my day is all that interesting. I can't muster up the energy to care.

Replace the filters. I replace ours annually. I can notice a change in the taste of our water around the year mark.

My daughter has pcos and it sounds like your daughter might, too. I had been having my daughter's thyroid checked since she was 9 and constantly told her pediatrician I thought something was wrong. I knew what she was eating. I saw how much exercise she had to do just to maintain her overweight status. The pediatric endocrinologist told me he wasn't in the business of giving out pills to make people skinny. I am still so angry about that. No one took me seriously util she didn't get her period for a year. I believe if she had been given metformin at 13 instead of 17 that she wouldn't be obese now even though she has been a competitive swimmer since she was 9 years old. The curse of pcos is that losing weight helps symptoms but the hormone inbalance makes it incredibly difficult to lose weight. If she is already showing signs of insulin resistance make a fuss until someone takes you seriously.

I have never heard the phrase but I would never think of the poppy flower as being an arrogant jerk.

I hate that my house likes to take on water. We replaced the leaky roof when we moved in. No matter how much maintenance I do with the gutters we inevitably end up with ice damming in the winter. My bedroom has never been finished because I wait years to repair the water damage. We finally hit the 10 year mark and we redid the walls and ceiling. I had just picked out a paint color when, bam, leak. So now I look at my ruined new sheetrock and think about how I don't have to money to repair again.

Giving away your pets so you can live in a tiny house grinds my gears. That would make me so angry I might spit.