I have been a Jersey girl for almost 14 years now but in my heart I am still a New Yorker. Thank goodness I still live close enough to get a fix. Much to my horror my kids think of themselves as Jerseyians.

Have you tried http://delias.com? I have been able to find clothes that cover and that have a more generous fit there. You do have to wade through all the inappropriate stuff but there are some gems.

You can also do sliced tomatoes with a slice of fresh mozzerella slices on top. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and garnish with chopped basil.

I have a slightly smaller version of that dollhouse. My dd probably stopped playing with it between 9 & 10. Now at 11 she will use it if a friend is over but it is not a go to thing for her.

I co-slept with both my kids. I would nestle the baby in the crook of my arm in the middle of the bed.

Will you be able to use the stove? One of my favorites is Hot Cherry Tomatoes: Toss some cherry tomatoes in olive oil and garlic and sautee until the skins on the tomatoes just starts to split. It only takes a few minutes to cook and is delish. If no stove: Scoop out the cherry tomatoes and stuff with tuna salad, egg salad, or my personal fave-goat cheese.

Some ideas: Quinoa Salad Black Bean Salsa Asian Cole Slaw (it does not involve mayo so maybe your family will like it) Guacamole Cheese and Rice Crackers Rice Salad

My dh is the only coffee drinker in the house. The Keurig is perfect for us.

I am not a huge tea drinker but I do partake of the free samples when I pass by. If I had the $$ I would purchase some of their teas.

I run it when it is full. Which is usually every 2 -3 days. I hand wash the pots, pans, and good knives. I also set it to run in the middle of the night when everyone is sleeping and electricity rates are lower and then the kids unload it in the morning.

Same dress. Not an issue. Sure there will be a handful of people who have seen you in it but the majority of the people have not.

I only give out one piece per kid/teen/adult trick or treating for sick child. We get too many kids/adults from out of town. Shortly after it gets dark I turn out the lights and go hide upstairs. Once it gets dark here all you have are the teens/adults who don't even wear some kind of costume. If I am handing out candy I want to see a costume. If you are one of the lucky groups to come before I shut the lights you will get big handfuls of candy because I don't want to be tempted by it.

the best man should not annouce in his speech that the bride is pregnant. Although, the band leaders reaction to the news on the video is pretty darn funny.

I only let my kids eat homemade treats from people we know. I know the odds are slim that the homemade treat is poison but I am not willing to take the chance. If you don't want to give away candy there are plenty of other options: Play-Doh, stickers, mini packs of crayons, pencils, pencil toppers, mini halloween pads.

I see I need to elaborate. Missing white people do get more media attention. I do not agree with the bloggers statement that it is simply the fact that the missing 5 year old girl is black and the missing baby is white. There is more to it than that and IMO, revolves mostly around what the media thinks will get them the best ratings.

Static Cling: Just stick some unmatched socks on her.

No, I don't agree with the blog writer. There are plenty of missing kids from all races who get no media coverage.

because he can?

I prefer a teaspoon of raw honey but I will file away the clove info.

Not too late at all. I pulled my ds at the end of 4th grade. We started 5th following a classical model.

:iagree: However, I don't think you should be able to use food stamps at a restaurant.

I have a 13 year old boy and an 11 year old girl. I do blog. Both of my kids are on a swim team and that takes up a lot of their time. In her spare time my 11 year old likes to read, text her friends, hang out with her friends, play board games with her brother, draw, walk the neighbors dog (not that she ever shows this kind of enthusiasm to walk our dog), and listen to music.

Between policies that tie their hands, dealing with over involved parents to non-involved parents, gifted kids, special needs kids, testing standards, and societies current view that teachers are a bunch of overpayed slackers who get the summers off, yes, I think they have a next to impossible job.

I doubt the public schools here would allow it. My ds did go with a friend on "Take a friend to school day" at the kids private school. My ds had a great time. I then explained to him about how the school was marketing itself to the kids. Hoping they would go home and tell their parents how great it was and that they wanted to attend. He was quite appalled at the concept.

This what I do. I do think it is weird and rude. I suppose I do weird and rude things when I am impatient.