I used to be so awesome at picking out gifts. And now that I have been out of the game I am stumped for ideas that are not some piece of inexpensive plastic ( I have nothing against inexpensive plastic toys I just know they will be getting a lot of that). I have come to the hive for some ideas. The toddler girl likes: Doc McStuffins (so out of touch, no idea who this is). Glitzy things Pre-schooler likes: Girly superheroes Reading, Writing, and Drawing. My budget is max $25 per gift.

Been having the same few arguments for years. His illness is not going away and neither will the fights. The fights are really more a release of pent up frustrations. Unfortunately, in a not so healthy way.

Thank you.

Having just dealt with this in regards to my oldest it is very real and very terrifying. I do believe the school over reacted a little bit in regards to my child but the reality is he was diagnosed with depression. Was he truly suicidal? I don't know. My child was incredibly angry that the school insisted on calling me and strongly insisted one of us drive down there and take him for an urgent assessment, which resulted in a week if intense therapy and a week of missed classes. As I explained to my child, even if the school over reacted in your case, if you were truly in crisis and they didn't call me and something happened it would have been devastating. He is now taking an antidepressant and it turned out to be a good thing for him. The point I am making is that the crisis is real. It can affect anyone and I am glad schools are taking it seriously.

Another acceptance arrived today. Montclair State University

I don't think it is a Christian thing. I stopped coloring my hair in my 40's, almost 10 years ago now, and never looked back. I love my natural cruella d'vil look. I always hated the time I had to take to color it. Acceptance for aging the way one sees fit is a good thing. If you want to color your hair,go ahead. Don't want to color your hair, that is good, too. The getting for together I see as a societal shift in priorities. Also a good thing. Women doing what makes them happy instead of fitting into some box the patriarchy says they have to fit in. Power to the people.

Mine is 19 and still growing. He came home from college for Thanksgiving noticeably taller than dh. He was a late bloomer. My dh grew until he was 21.

Living the dream this year since it will just be the 4 of us. Going to the movies. Bringing in Chinese food. Pajamas, eating, and board games.

It is just us this year. We are going to the movies and then bringing in Chinese food. I am secretly hoping everyone loves it and it can be a new tradition. I don't really love traditional Thanksgiving food.

Having a parent with a chronic illness means you talk about a fair amount of medical stuff. More basic when they were younger but much more depth when they hit the teen years. Since certain cancers run on dh's side of the family we discuss the importance of early testing for them.

I love my China. Never get to use it. The visions I had of family gatherings at holidays rarely came to pass. To quote my mil "it is too much of a pain to go to your house". Not too much of a pain to expect us to schlep to you, though. I digress. My family used to come to us when the kids were little but the trip became to difficult for my grandmother. I have actually started using my fine China as everyday plates because I might at as well enjoy it. I realized my kids won't want it as it holds no meaning for them. No warm and fuzzy memories of helping me set the holiday table. So what am I saving it for? On the rare occasion we do have company it is easier to use paper plates. Makes clean up a breeze and I don't have to count the silver.

This thread made me think of this. It sums up my feelings.

Sweet Potato anything. Pumpkin. I will eat turkey but don't have to have it. This year, it is just us and I am finally having my dream thanksgiving. We are ordering in Chinese food, staying in our pj's, and watching movies.

No ice maker. They break. They flood your basement. They are nothing but heartache. If you don't have one your fridge will last longer.

I always do roasted root vegetables when I need to travel. Can be served hot, cold, room temp.

No, I don't know any snowflakes. I do know people who are making different life choices from my generation. Which is more of a generation gap than snowflake status. Snowflake is the current term to describe young people in a derogatory way so the older generation does not have to examine themselves. It is so much easier to criticize the current crop of young people as not being responsible, in need of safe spaces so there feelings don't get hurt, etc., then to look at your own life choices and maybe admit that you didn't make the right ones or think you wish you were brave enough to follow your bliss and travel the world instead of marrying and settling down to your 40+ work week. Our kids looked at our choices and wanted something else for themselves. Just like we made different choices than our parents. Thanks to technology they have different opportunities to make different choices and that is terrifying to those of us who cling to our old ways. The people I know who qualify as millennials work hard, don't feel like life owes them something,are accepting of different cultures, genders, and sexual orientation. What I have noticed with the youth that I know is that they don't seem to have any interest in getting married and having children. They want to travel, they want to experience the world. They want to pay off their student loans before they settle down. Quite a few have told me the world is too messed up to bring children into it and they won't do that. But they do want to be in a meaningful relationship. Or at least have a fun date to do things together.

I have always been intrigued by health shares. As far as I can tell from my research a few years ago they are only good for healthy people who remain healthy. Now we are a family of pre-existing conditions so we definitely could not do a health share even if we wanted to.

I am sad for him and his family. Dementia is a cruel disease and now the organ failure. May they find peace. Going to go play my partridge family playlist.

According to the CDC your husband does not have lyme. However, the testing is horrible faulty. If he has been experiencing symptoms take the doxy. And 3 weeks won't be enough. Find a Lyme literate doctor. Our lives have been ruined by lyme and my advice is always run, don't walk to a doctor who understands Lyme.

I've seen his video. I'm a fan. And if yoga pants are bad, I don't want to be good.

Just got our financial aid letter today.

I struggled with the article. I think what they really want to be saying is " before you get married you need to have a real discussion about children, earning potential, and who is going to do what. That has nothing to do with education and everything to do with putting on your big girl pants and having the conversation before you get married. People show you who they are. If you are expecting them to be someone else after children arrive you best let them know that before you get married.

I love stoneware.

When my husband was in his 40's drinking hibiscus tea 3x daily kept his blood pressure under control. It stopped working for him when he turned 50. Now he takes meds. But he was able to put off meds for a number of years with the hibiscus tea.

I just replaced our 25 year old fridge because I had no choice. It was a basic Kenmore, freezer on top. I loved that fridge. My new fridge is a Maytag French door freezer on the bottom. I only got the French door because it was the only option in the size I needed. Turns out they don't make the size I had as standard anymore. I do like no longer having to bend for the fridge anymore. The clear front fruit and vegetable drawers are helpful for my dh who likes to stare into the abyss in the hopes I meal will jump out at him. I love how cold everything is. I didn't realize just how poorly the old fridge was doing. However, I hate, that this freezer is smaller than my old one. I don't need that much fridge. I couldn't fit all the stuff from my old freezer into the new one. I miss my freezer shelves that made stacking everything easy.