Same here, when our kids were renting apartments in the college towns. We co-signed because it was the only way they could get a lease. But the apartment leases were set up so that each resident was only responsible for their portion of the rent, even if the others moved out. ETA: Dorm rooms were more expensive than apartments. We wouldn't have co-signed if it meant we would be responsible for roommate damage or bailouts of roommates. The kids paid their own rent though, either through working or scholarships.

My job.

Oh yes, I pored over The Elijah Company, Timberdoodle, and Rainbow Resource for hours. Though the financial planning part of curriculum choosing was stressful (what if I get the wrong thing so I waste money, and don't have what I really need, etc.), I really enjoyed the research. It made me sad when The Elijah Company went out of business. Those seem like rather gentle days of homeschooling, and I miss them. Maybe I'm not remembering the hard parts, lol. But when we started out, there was no internet. I would have enjoyed having a resource like WTM (books and forums), but the lack of technology also made life simpler in many ways. During that era of homeschooling, the explosion of homeschooling materials was just beginning to happen. We were stepping out into new-ish territory. Today, it seems so weird to me the lack of thought and research that so many homeschoolers put into their schooling plans (I don't think this generally applies to people on this forum, lol!). I guess there were those then as well--mostly then they would just choose a boxed curriculum and make it work. And it did, for some of them--just not us. Though I must admit that in some later years, due to a variety of circumstances, we went to Calvert. After those years, we returned to the pick and choose method again. Both systems served us well for the times we needed them. Well, lots of nostalgic musings...

From my limited experience/knowledge with this kind of thing, it very easily becomes a control thing (so the parenting part overlaps with the nutritional part). It helped here to be casual about food but always have good food available. If he sensed we were getting anxious or tense about whether or not he was eating something, or wanting something, he noted it (he still does). Lots of good suggestions above as to food types. Lots of toddlers do enjoy dipping their food into sauces of one kind or another. Because there was neglect in this area, he may not be real aware of what his hunger signals are and what they mean.

Not prairiewindmomma, but thank you. I had put White Fragility in my cart without realizing it was written by a white. I've exchanged it for The Warmth of Other Suns and may also get some others recommended on this thread. I only have my phone right now, and it's hard to research as well. My oldest ds lives (in the same community) and works with many people of different races; he has recommended some books in the past that I just hadn't ordered yet, so I need to do that as well.

Now I'm drooling for chicken pot pie. It looks like you have lots of options. Laura's white bean idea sounds delicious--easy, too, if you have an immersion blender and use canned beans.

Probably! lol ETA: But I suspect my dh is a lot easier to trim than a wriggly puppy.

I heard the Lodge plant closed (due to the virus--I don't think it was permanent), so I hurriedly ordered the cast iron skillet I'd had on my wish list for months. It's perfect! I now have three different sizes/styles of iron skillet and they cover any skillet need I have. The only thing I still wish I had in that department is an iron lid for my deep dish, which would make it good for camping. But the lids alone seem to be about as much as the whole set. I, too, bought hair clippers and good quality hair scissors. I believe that I will be doing dh's hair from now on, and it looks quite good, if I do say so myself. 😉 He had had the same style for over 40 years, and it was time to go shorter with more of a buzz cut. It makes him look younger, and now that I've done it three times, I'm gaining confidence and it doesn't take me as long. Definitely wins in the budget category, and he likes how easy it is. One of my ds has also let me cut his hair, but with scissors. It doesn't look professional, but it isn't embarrassing, either. I'm getting better, but we will see if he continues to let me cut his. Other ds has hair that is too thick and straight for mom-cutting; it isn't very forgiving of mistakes. We will finally be getting a dog mid-July. Can't wait. He's a mini-goldendoodle puppy. (Not interested in hearing why I should get a rescue or a pure-breed; I've done my research for over two years.) I've bought some books, but haven't had time to read most of them yet since I have still had to work. Maybe soon.

Do you have a "recipe" you could share (please)?

Yes, being guarded is definitely stressful. It reminds me of a Frances book I used to read to my kids. Frances' friend was taking advantage of her, so she taught her a lesson, and then said (something like), "Being friends is nicer than being careful." The "being careful" is exhausting. I love that Bible verse anyway, but have been thinking that I need to get a wall plaque to put it right before my face these days, lol.

Yes to this. I told dh this weekend that I was feeling overwhelmed with things I had to do that didn't leave me with enough time to "ponder" like I feel I need to.

The last day or two I have been very saddened by things I have read by friends and acquaintances on Facebook. I've begun to feel very isolated because so many people local to me all seem to have the same mindset about some things that I expected to see more nuance and diversity of opinion. On one hand, not being on FB and seeing those thoughts and opinions would protect me for some of the angst and sadness. On the other hand, it helps me to know I need to be more guarded around people that I assumed would be more like-minded with myself. So it is clarifying in some ways. Even though it saddens me and makes me feel lonely, I think it helps me be more wise in how I interact with people. I do see a lot more polarization of opinions than I ever have before, more echo chambers, more assuming things about 'the other side' than before, and struggle against it in my own mind. I wonder where I fit in all of it, because it isn't in either of the most polarized sides of it.

I think I'm really glad you have that doctor's appointment.

Ugh, I'm sorry. For a long time, sleep issues plagued me, but I didn't realize I had sleep apnea. I went through menopause, and had some symptoms I didn't realize were related to menopause. I had no idea anxiety was related, and for about 6-8 months, my anxiety levels shot through the roof. There were a lot of things going on around the same time that I think played into difficult sleep. There have been allergy issues. There was the anxiety issue. Going through menopause played havoc with my thyroid med levels, and they had to be adjusted down several times over several years. In fact, my doctor adjusted them down again in January, and though in response, my numbers dropped significantly to where I should have been having hypo- symptoms after having had hyper- symptoms, I've feeling really good. On my CPAP, I'm not having as many episodes after dropping my thyroid med level. So I think it can be crazy difficult to sort out. It doesn't seem to take much being out of whack to cause a big reaction when it comes to affecting sleep. I hope you can find a solution soon, because consistently running low on sleep is so miserable. ETA: Using a CPAP may have made such a difference because I waited so long to get help. It had gotten so bad that all afternoon I dreaded going to bed at night because of the fight I had trying to sleep, and I was having a lot of anxiety about it. For the first time since--I don't know, maybe my 20's?--I usually fall asleep very quickly, and am again enjoying settling down to sleep.

For post-menopausal me: Best to have no Diet soft drinks, though Stevia in (even caffeinated) teas doesn't seem to affect me (I do try to limit caffeine in the afternoons and evenings). Melatonin was not helpful, giving me nightmares and making me feel sluggish. Magnesium is helpful; however, it works best for me to take it in the morning rather than at night. Most helpful of all is using a CPAP machine. I don't care for wearing a mask, but my quality of sleep improved exponentially after I adjusted to using it, including cutting bathroom trips down from 3-4x/night to usually only 1x. If I can't have my machine with me for some reason, like being really congested or camping out, propping my head/shoulders up helps a lot.

Yeah, we're having scrambled eggs and biscuits (that I had made up and in the freezer). I think I'll add some spinach for something green. Maybe.

Well, does it count if it was in a dream (nightmare) I had a couple of nights ago? It was great incentive not to ever try. The results were decidedly NOT successful. 😁

Well, for one thing, I think you said you are a statistician. I am not. Which may just mean I am muddled. Every day, I check my state's updated reports on data. Then I hear the governor say things like we are handling this well, we have flattened the curve, etc. It doesn't seem like the hospitals are in any difficulty (but I'm not in them). But the numbers look to me like they are still rising at a rate I'm not comfortable with. Maybe it's due to increased testing of people, including asymptomatic ones. Maybe I'm not looking at enough statistics. It's more what I hear surrounding the numbers than actual charts. I'm tired, though, and it may just be me.

I have found it more and more difficult to find consensus on numbers, and making any sense of them. Maybe it's just my non-statistics brain, but it seems like everywhere I look, there is contradictory information, or at least people interpret the data so differently that I don't know what to believe about it's meaning.

So now I want your naan recipe/instructions, please. I usually just make from-scratch brownies. I do have to work with the timing on both boxed and homemade, because my oven is a little slow. It's sometimes hard to get the perfect balance.

I agree with others that I would be fine with it. We (personally, but perhaps much more widely) are, as a PP stated, are going to have to start making these kinds of risk assessments more, I think. Our family members (in the household) are traveling soon to visit family members (grown kids). We want to be wise, and have weighed things the best we can, but have decided to make the trip. Even though our area is opening back up a lot, we haven't gone to church services because we didn't want to add the extra risk. If we don't go soon, we won't be able to go for a long time due to jobs/classes, etc. And some members are struggling a lot with missing other members, so the mental health aspect is entering in.

Locally, there is a lady I know whose mom (in her 90s) tested positive. Her mom is expected to pass today. The lady seems determined that Covid19 NOT be considered a cause. She told me that it was "no more covid than the osteomyelitis (and her age)." And that she'd had a heart attack over the weekend. Today, when someone asked if it was due to covid, she said "sepsis." I don't understand her reluctance, other than that we live in a very skeptical area about the seriousness of covid, with many believing doctors are overstating the deaths. It's true her mother had health issues, but I don't see how covid wouldn't be considered among the causes, because it does seem to be an initiator of the final issues. ETA: I don't know if her mom's doctor is saying this too, or if the lady is approaching it in her own way.

Every single time I see the topic of this thread scroll by, "Want to talk weight loss?" my immediate thought is, "No." I have stopped myself numerous times from typing a simple "no" in the text box and posting it. Or "Nah, not particularly," or some such response, sometimes snarky, sometimes with utmost sincerity. But yes, I need to do a lot more than just talk about it...Maybe you ladies will get me re-motivated. Sigh.

My sister is in your state. Her cancer treatments were not cancelled or delayed, and I believe the future protocols will be on schedule as well.

I don't remember anything about it. I don't think I've ever heard it referred to, either.