a good friend of ours did. She(Juliette) was connected with a troop by paperwork. She was not listed as a member of that troop. She sold cookies, and her profits went to this troop because individuals couldn't get profits. But the troop would use those profits to pay for Juliette's summer camp expenses, etc. That was the only connection she had with the troop. There was some talk of having a Juliette troop. Meeting every 3-4 months for social plus to show work done. (as in a "see what I did" - not a required thing) Also it would have given them a group to hang our with at council camp outs etc. I don't know if they did this so can't tell you if it worked. hope this helps--I'm not aware of any Juliette forum, although sure sounds like a good idea Nandell

--choc ones in a jar to be exact. One of my daughter friend's dad travels often for his work. He always counts out the kisses( to match number's days away) and puts them in a decorative container. One kiss a day--when the kisses are gone, Dad's home. They started this when she was very young. She's 13 now and still loves it.

FW private classical school? I don't know if it's too far from you or even of they're hiring but it only takes a phone call to find out----:grouphug: I know it must be a fairly good school because I think SWB was a speaking guest there once. ;) http://www.covenantfw.org/

I am passing all of this on to my sister for my niece. I'm regretful that we didn't start looking a t summer opps earlier but will check it out to see what's available. And she now will have many options to look at with all the career info I've received. The Hive to the rescue once again!

for the suggestions. I have to admit--I didn't even know what an Actuary is or does! But I have to say it sounds like something she might enjoy. She is very logical -both in thought and actions. Our little mini-Spock. :001_smile: nandell

My sister is asking me for advice, so of course I'm turning to the boards for advice. :001_smile: My (non home schooled rising senior) niece is very much inclined towards a mathematics type career. She is a tremendous student,being very bright , hard working, and self-motivated. She lives in a very small Central Texas town. Mathematical career exploration with her High School teachers has basically led her to a math teaching career, which is a career path she strongly does not want to go down. She is taking CC course at the next town but they only allow HS students to take English and History. :confused: So she does not have a math professor to counsel her there. What advice could I give my sister about how to help her daughter explore more options in this area? Can anyone recommend workshops/camps etc with an engineering/mathematics slant? My sister's family would not be able to spend much at all , if any for an academic enrichment type camp. Niece/ family would likely qualify for almost any financial scholarship requirements, and she has a high enough GPA to be in the running for an academic scholarship. (sorry--extremely biased aunt brag) I know this is very late to apply for any summer type camps/workshops--esp as she would need to apply for scholarships. My sister just started talking to me, and she does not know anyone at local high school that have done camps like these. I would appreciate any Hive advice or suggestions about both career exploration avenues and possible mathematical -engineering type workshops/camps. Thanks Nandell

My 16 yo dd has had increasingly severe headaches since Dec, when she started a low dose antibiotic for acne. The 'biotic helped her acne and we never connected it with her headaches. The neurologist we saw said that some antibiotics can cause ocular edema, which in turn causes headaches. She's been off it two weeks now with some relief of her headaches. It's too soon to know if that is the primary cause of her headaches. n

Thank you all for the encouragement and advice. I am going "full sail " ahead on this project! nandell

We have dark paneling in our TV room, left over I think from the 70s. I really want to paint it to lighten up the room. My dh doesn't think there's anyone to do it and have it look good. Anyone with experience with this?

Dress in layers. Check average temps for the times you're going. It really gets cool earlier there. Invest in some long distance binoculars (some even have cameras in them so you can take pic)--they saw amazing animals from ship deck in mornings. Only regret my parents had was that they did not schedule more time on land trips before and after the cruise. Have fun nandell

I got acrylics at around her age and had them off & on for awhile and to this day my nails don't grow properly and are weaker than they used to be (my Mom had this same problem from them) - so I wouldn't encourage her to keep them *too* long! Thank you--that's good info to know. nandell

for the info. She'll be happy to fix her nails tonight. So far *crossing fingers* we haven't had a problem with nail breakage and Aikido practice. She usually goes 3-4 times a week. nandell

My 16 yo dd got acrylic nails professionally done for her birthday, both for the cosmetic look of the nails and to help stop a nail-biting habit. And it's working! :hurray: She had them painted a very pretty dark blue. However, she forgot that her aikido dojo is having a special guest sensei this weekend. The dojo rules are no nail polish but usually they're easy going about it. She def wants to have the color off, or at least muted for the guest sensei. Can she remove the polish herself without damaging the nails? Or should she paint over her nails in a neutral color? Or other suggestions? thanks--we're newbies at this artificial nail stuff nandell

I think you should just focus on how happy you are that she can come to you with her feelings. The very fact that your daughter knows what she is feeling, and can tell you, makes you an A+ gold star super mom in my book. If she were my daughter, I'd say, "Honey, I'm so happy that you told me how you feel last night. that is the first step in getting what you need in a relationship. Tell me if I got this right. you need me to be home more and cook meals, and you need a break from your brother. Is that right? I really want to give you what you need, but being a good mom is so complex, because there are so many different people to take care of. I'm going to make a real effort to do better, and we will talk again to see if it helps." Then, I would continue to see my friends, but when I was at home, I'd tell her that I wanted to have a meal together because family is important to me. Would she like to help pick the menu or have special time with you preparing the meal. When she is about to go to her friend's house, I would say, "I'm so glad that you get to do this. You really need a break from your brother, but I sure am proud of how good you are with him. That is a big blessing in my life." You do not need to defend your actions or explain yourself. I think just listening, and showing that you really value her and the relationship will do the trick. this is great advice. You are her greatest teacher about relationships and her world. And it looks like you are doing an exceptional job teaching her. (see bolded above-although it's hard not to bold all of it for emphasis) I think the ability to clarify feelings , thoughts, dislikes, desires is a skill that is taught (modeled by others), and requires practice, practice, and more practice. Being able to clearly define needs and feelings is crucial in all healthy relationship of any kind. I know many, many people of all ages that could not have expressed their feelings as well as your daughter did last night. There is no way I could have done that 11---or 15--or 18--. I'm still working on that at times, lol. Your daughter is telling you she wants to actively spend more time with you. That is something to celebrate! I would take that lovely growing up woman-child somewhere to eat at a quiet enjoyable place so we could talk. Just her and I. I would show her how much I love her and value who she is becoming. And talk about healthy relationships, the importance of expressing and meeting needs, and how proud you are that she came to you with her concerns. And how she can come to you always with anything. sniff---I have a 12 yo and we are struggling through, well-12yo hormonal times. Nothing very major but very taxing on both of us. It's hard for me at this moment to imagine her asking for more time with me. I am going to take my advice and take my own lovely, growing up woman-child of nearly 13 out this very afternoon. And talk about perseverance in relationships and how our struggles do not define our relationship. And how much I love and value her, and much of the time, enjoy her. And then do some fun and happy activity together with my daughter. Thank you for posting Nan

is Davita's Harp. A bonus of this book is that the main character from his novel, The Chosen , makes a brief appearance. But I don't think you can go wrong with any of his books.

I think I would start by addressing it with my dd (sounds like you did this effectively) then address it with mean girl's mom. I would talk with Mean Girl mom in the waiting room among whomever might be present. Sometimes it helps to have an audience. In my very nicest mom voice I would let mean girl mom know about her dd's concern that my dd is *fat*. Letting Mom know that I'm aware that many girls can be confused about normal development versus "fat" with all media pressure, etc , gives Mom a way to save face while still addressing issue with mean girl. I would be more than willing to wait and see how Mom reacts. If she's responsive, perhaps that's enough. If she's a queen bee, I'd go further. And I would help my dtr find some good come backs for further comments. I think one of the poster above had some good ideas about that. Such a downer that we females do these kind of things to ourselves anytime but esp. at such young ages nandell

:001_smile: I can send all of those. What will he have access to in terms of food and personal items? Is there a pbx?

My 18 yo Marine grandson is being deployed to Afgahastan . We all knew this was likely in his future but it still is a bit of a shock for him and for us. We would like to send overseas "stuff" to him but don't know really what we can send and what would be appreciated. I'm thinking more in the line of foods, entertaiment, comfort items. Letter, of course, will be sent regularly. Any words of wisdom from those of you out there that have experience with this? nandell

We have this (link) over our piano. Ours is a little larger, and no, I didn't pay those prices. Ours was a major thrift store bargain; we found it new with tags. Before that we had family pictures. http://www.crystal-fox.com/index.cfm/Rhapsody_Small_Musical_Wall_Art_Sculpture_7303.htm

My dd went to a Japanese film festival and loved it. The films were in Japanese, with English subtitles. How can I find more of these films? Renting would be great but we could if needed swing buying some titles. She wants to have movie nights with her friends that are also excited about the Japanese language. Specificly I am looking for teen friendly movies (does not have to be anime) that are in Japanese with an option of English subtitiles. Any ideas? Please? nandell

:grouphug: :grouphug: Bumping this so perhaps you'll get more feedback than just mine. Have you considered counseling with/for him? I think some people are more aware of harsh realities than others. Certainly one of my daughters is much more cognizant of potential fearsome consequences than my other daughter. She is much more cautious in her choices. But if your son's fears are interfering with activities that he'd really like to be doing, I think you are right to be concerned. nandell

Thank you for your input. Your input is consistent with other reviews I've heard. Nandell

Input? Thanks Nandell

These boards always get me thinking. New ideas--always good. What do you think the purpose for college is? I've always thought the purpose was for further learning, and specialization in a field that one wants to work. Some recent posts in threads talk more of college years as a learning experience that might or might not contribute to a lifelong career. A professional degree(job prospect at the end) versus a college experience based on learning a subject because of a passionate interest. I come from a nuclear family without much money. Vocational school was considered a big expense. When I decided I wanted more education, I was in position of paying for it myself so I chose my classes. And some of those classes had nothing to do with my major. But I also always knew what my ultimate goal was. Many of my high school friends (1978) attended a 4 year university, and archeology was a popular major then. A really interesting degree but to most of my friends not very useful when it came to getting a job. I am in support of life-long learning; I don't know that I am support of paying thousands and thousands of dollars to study it for four or more years.t. Life-long learning is a process that --well, to state the obvious--goes on for your whole life. I know of many people that work in one field and have passionate hobbies in other areas of their life. When I look at the economy now, I truly see a need for teenagers to have marketable skills for their future. When I look at colleges, I see a way to obtain specialized knowledge that leads to and benefits/enhances career choices. I'm interested in what others think of this subject. nandell This is not to be snarky in any way to any past posts or POVs about this subject. I truly am trying to understand another viewpoint about college.

This subject has been much on my mind as well. While I recognize that much of college is learning to be a lifelong learner, I also desire my dd to leave college with a marketable skill. My want for her is that she be able to support herself and- if need be- her family in the future, regardless of the current economy. Have you seen this study from the government? It talks about jobs related to their employment data: will the need for that job increase? What is the pay like? What are working conditions like? For us, it's been interesting to browse and talk of possibilities. http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocoiab.htm#A nandell