Reading this thread makes me sad. No, likely we could NOT live on 1/2 our income. What makes me sad is that 1/2 half our income over $50K a year. There was a time, when my ex and I were married, that we lived on under 40K a year and had money to spare. Now, there is just NO WAY. Our mortgage and cars alone cost $3372 a month. However, this scenario makes little sense as dh is the only one in our family who works...so if he were to be laid off, then we would be up a creek, honestly. :( If I had to go back to work and could make what I made before I quit, then we would be at just over half of what dh makes alone. At times, I have been totally tempted to get a job, put the kids in school for a few years, and pay off everything. But alas, my heart just isn't in that as much as it is in being here for the kids. :)

Well, I don't know. But I see a pattern. For instance, my mom smoked while pregnant. My grandma smoked when I stayed with her and when it would go in my face, she mused that "smoke followed beauty." Now we know that smoking is harmful even to those who do not actually pick up the cigarette and likely, this is why I have asthma now. :( When I was a kid, we laid down in the backseat of the vehicle and slept as we drove to our vacation destination. Now, my kids are strapped into car seats until they are NINE! Times have changed. When I was a child, there were no school shootings that I knew of. If there were, they were very isolated incidents. Now, there is about one a year and at least one or two others "attempted" nationwide in a year.

Yes! I am the happiest I have been in a LONG time with my marriage, my place in life right now, my "job," and all else. It wasn't too long ago that I did not feel this way (the last year has really been a change for me/us). Situationally, I am very sad right now, though. Two kids that went to ps with my son died in a tragic motor cycle accident last Sunday and I attended the funeral for one of them last night. This has been a really hard week in that respect.

See, you guys assume he has a mom that would actually care. My mom never did. As a matter of fact, she thought my best friends phone curfew was stupid and mentioned to me, many times, how overprotective her parents were. I am not saying the OP has "stupid" rules nor that she is overprotective...just mentioning that his mother may think a call from her is ridiculous as easily as she could be infuriated. I guess it will just depend on what kind of parent she is....

When I was 14, I spent many nights on the phone until 2am talking to whomever. Is it possible that your dd could call HIM after 9? I mean, if they are friends or whatever, then okay. I am not sure that she should be punished for something HE did. That hardly seems fair. Maybe you could have her tell him that she will call him after 9 and that if he calls again after 9, she will no longer be allowed to take any of his calls. ?? It would likely be better coming from her to him rather than from you to him or God forbid, you to his mother to him. When you do stuff like that, kids get crafty and stupid...

I have a BA in English from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. I graduated in 2001. :) My focus was Technical Writing. We should talk teachers sometime...especially if you did writing. What years did you go there? P.S. I also have a 10 year old from the man I met at a UT vols game (he was sitting in my seat) in 1998.... :))

But...one of the BEST basketball teams possible. :)

WOW...this is very close to me. :)

That is the million dollar question, huh? I had had my Gateway for 6 years and hardly ever had issues with it. I had to reformat the hard drive last November and at that time, my dh said that my motherboard was likely to go soon. It was oozing goo from the capacitors (oops). Well, night before last, it went. We had a lightening storm, so that may have knocked it out, but either way, it was gone. I spent all day yesterday removing the hard drive (I was so afraid it would be dead too, but thank God, it wasn't). Then I had to shop for a new PC. I am really limited these days in what I need, so I was looking at low priced, but brand stuff. I started with desktop towers only. The brands I would consider are HP, Dell, and Gateway. The prices started around $465 and went up. The we turned the corner and there sat all the laptops. I now have a Dell Inspiron. It was on sale for $399. :) So far, I have it set up like a desktop. I am waiting for a docking station, but in the meantime, I have it sitting on two letter sorters so the screen is the right height. I have all of my cords plugged into it, so I am using my mouse and my keyboard as normal. However, I can also unplug just a few wires and be free to carry it around. We couldn't do the wireless router and the card AND the computer all in one day, so for now, I just have the laptop. I like it, but there is a lot to get used to...mostly because it runs Windows Vista and I had XP on my other PC. I miss XP terribly. :( My dh told me that I was probably the only person in the world who got a new laptop and missed her 6 year old dinosaur computer. LOL Oh well...wouldn't be the first time I was a loner.

eyes-bin

I am in the "wonder what is bugging her" camp. I seems she is responding to some peer pressure or starting to really mess up her priorities. I would not mess with her birthday as that is a good cause for total resentment. However, I would let her know that "weekends" with friends are, from now on, contingent upon good behavior with family. If she can't be kind and polite in your house, then she will not be allowed to leave it it "hang with friends." I also think maybe getting someone who can helpl you deal with her behavior may be a good idea. Sometimes counselors can tell you better ways to handle things so that the strife is not there all the time. I say this because I went from the ages of 13-18 literally loathing my mother. We actually yelled and screamed, pulled hair, and once had a fist fight of sorts. It was absurd and I totally ran all over her because she let me. If there is one thing I don't want to repeat with MY sons, it is that! I should have had more respect for my mother, and likewise, she could have had a bit more respect for the stage I was at in my life at the time. 15 is TOUGH. I am definitely not envious, nor do I want to hurry up and age my kids so I can be in your shoes. *hugs*

Both. I clean as I go (especially with meals and dishes), but I also have some things that I do regularly that are scheduled (like laundry, dusting, dust mopping, etc.).

Thank you all. We have such a small community that this sort of thing really affects most everyone. It also bring way too close to home the realization that life is a gift and that it can be lost in just seconds. My kids, especially my oldest, think they are invincible. My older ds and I talked tonight about how making smart choices can save your life. These boys should have never been on the highway at the ages of 12 and 13 on a dirtbike. They should have had on helmets. I would like to hold some hope that other children will learn from this and not repeat these same mistakes. My heart just really hurts over the two that did.

Oh WOW! That is an incredible find. I am so glad you will finally be able to help your mom feel better. I am also glad to hear she is doing well cancer wise!

Several years ago, I took a job working for the school system in the county. In the time I spent there, I really got to know the kids. I did service projects with some of the classes and did tutoring for others. Mostly, I worked with kids in 4th-6th grades. That was about 3 years ago now. Today, I found out that two of my former students - two kids that I worked closely with during that year - were killed in a motorcycle accident. It was a terrible accident. The two boys (now ages 12 and 13) pulled onto the highway riding a dirtbike. They apparently pulled out and didn't see the oncoming vehicle. They were not wearing helmets and I am not sure, given the speed the truck was traveling (55-60MPH) and the speed the boys were traveling, it would have helped if they had been. :crying: My heart is just breaking for these families, but also for the hundreds of kids this will affect as well as they go back to school and see their classmates' empty seats. I also ask for prayers for the driver of the truck. He is a good boy and I can't even imagine the pain and grief he feels right now. He is a member of his church and God is the absolutely only thing that can get him and these families through this right now.

Oh Oh...I love to pick off peeling skin after a sunburn. The problem...it doesn't matter whose skin it is (dh and the kids are none too pleased when they are the ones peeling...)

BTDT Hon! I think I have the T-shirt somewhere. :glare: :grouphug:

I know several mennonites - as in people who go to the Mennonite church...but they don't live the Amish life. I use CLE...does that count??? LOL

That is horrific. :( She really needs to be on top of this too. Her kids and her dh seem to have a spreading staph infection. It may not be MRSA...but anything that is spreading and looks bad needs immediate medical attention. I am shocked the dr sent them home if he thought it was MRSA and had spread to that many family members. The last person I knew IRL who had MRSA was an infant. He had it on his scalp and from the time the mom took him to the doctor until he was admitted to the hospital was about 2 hours. He was there for 10 days receiving antibiotics through an IV. MRSA is just not something to mess with. The other two people I have known IRL with MRSA infections...died.

Nevermind..

Oh yay! I think I am going to give it a try...now to decide which ONE to try. :D

How would the emptying /rinsing scenario play out in a public bathroom??? Oh my! I am just thinking of standing next to someone in the walmart bathroom while they rinse their diva cup in the sink....:001_huh:

The thought has crossed my mind to try this. I have used tampons for about 15 years now and it is hard for me to switch from what works. I know when to use which absorbency and have never had issues. No matter what, you have "lady goo" (LOL) there - in a pad, in a tampon, or in a cup. The cup sounds much better to allow "flow" (tampons sometimes stop the flow for me). I do wonder, though, if it works for someone who has pelvic floor prolapse? I have 1st degree, which is minor (until I hit menopause...then watch out!), but still...I wonder if it would be comfortable.

Love it! We grew a squash last year that made that look small and it was NOT on purpose. It was utterly hilarious. Of course, it would have tasted awful, so we pitched it, but it sure was impressive to look at!

Haha...I have a son who will be 6 at the end of September. He didn't technically "miss" the ps cutoff, but he was 1 day from it and he is small. Soo....he would not have gone to ps K until THIS year. Currently, he is working in 2nd grade reading and LA and end of 1st grade math. Needless to say, we will continue homeschooling. LOL He is not a genius...not even "advanced" - homeschooling is just so wonderfully one on one that you can't replicate it in a ps. Your plan looks great. I would not start Spanish or Latin until he is reading or you are using just fun basic programs. Learning 3 languages at the same time would be totally overwhelming to ME, much less a 5 year old. It can also be tough to learn a new language at the same time you are learning the basics of your own language. I would stick with Greek if you must do something for foreign language since his dad is Greek and he will likely be actually speaking that at his home. Other than that, looks great. Specifically: We LOVE phonics pathways. :) Does he know letters and sounds? If so, you may want to start higher in ETC. My ds started at book 1 and is now starting book 4. Math - we use CLE and love it. I have not used the ones you mentioned. For History and Science, we use Heart of Dakota. It is a great living book program that includes Geography.