I'm sorry. :grouphug: It's so difficult to leave a place that feels like home, even when the situation has become tense or uncomfortable. I hope you're able to find peace, and perhaps someday a new community.

Oh Loesje... I'm so sorry. Safe travels, and may you cherish whatever time you have with her. Keep us posted as you're able. Stacia and Negin, lovely picture! So fun to be able to put faces with names. Still working through the Ladybug Farm books!

I don't have much to add. Keep communication open. As others have said, treat the desires with respect... Values can be shared gently and the important thing is to really make potential consequences clear. The trust issues with electronics and the pictures, yeah, those are different issues that would certainly come with consequences at our house.

Crashing the thread as I've been looking at courses this afternoon.... :) For the Barbarians course... What would you think about this for a younger middle schooler? DS is interested in the topic. I asked him to make a list of a few courses he'd like to get, and this one made the cut.

Ah, okay... That's good to know too!

Oh dear. 70% off is a fabulous deal.... But it's still expensive when there are about 30 courses you want! :lol:

So good to hear from you... Glad you're on the mend, we've all been thinking of you! Your son is such a polite young man! Best wishes for a quick remainder of your recovery.

I'm pretty sure that's not what she said... Your comment is a bit rude. Hugs to OP.... I think I remember you posting about this child having trouble being nice to people at home, so I'm sure camp makes it that much more difficult. I know you'll have to "choose your battles" a bit, but don't be afraid to remind her civility is not optional. Deep breath, mama!! :grouphug:

I don't usually like to be told not to do something.... But this is one case where I'm totally gonna listen!! I hereby propose that we put coded warning labels in post titles... You know how people put CC in titles for Christian Content? If that weren't already taken, I'd propose we use it to mean Creepy Crawlies instead. But we could start with BB, or a more generic Bugs label. No really, I'm serious... :)

The Mitford books are nice. I'm so sorry for what you're going through, and I wish much peace for you. :grouphug:

:lol: Nah... I'm not nearly as sunny as my name implies! :D

Wow... I guess I had known he had cancer, but he didn't mention it much on the main boards. I didn't know things had gotten worse. Kewb, I'm sorry for the loss of your friend, and please do let his wife and daughter know that we all grieve for their loss. Thanks for letting us know.

So.... What did you end up doing today, Aimee?? How is she doing?

Will Autumn be upset if she misses the awards and other activities? Because if she doesn't care, I wouldn't give one whit about the school's expectations at this point. And if it were me, I'd probably say that since she is still recovering from a horrible, painful full body sunburn acquired on a school activity earlier this week, she is, regretfully, unable to attend any additional outdoor activities out of concern for her health. :glare: Honestly, these people.... calling you the morning OF a field trip? Not supervising enough to see a very fair, red haired girl is starting to burn (but sure, let's stay out the rest of the day), and then expecting her to do it again two days later? I'm very glad they're no longer handling your daughter's education... and I'll just shut my mouth there. :D

I'm with you. I've adored all the stages here, and I joke that I'd love to clone DS to have about four of him at different stages! But the tween stage is mostly fun. He's more independent and doesn't need me every moment. And he's getting to be a fantastic helper... Tonight I walked in the backyard and he was getting ready to water plants without being asked. And yes, the quirky humor and the great conversations are wonderful! We've been considering school this fall, for a variety of reasons.... But we're just getting good at doing this at home, and he's just getting so interesting, I'm not sure I'm ready to give it up!

Ask and ye shall receive.... :D Hi Juniper!! :)

Right... you really had to get the full picture of events. ;) Wow, MiHH... Bravo! Loved it!! :)

Yes she is, and :iagree: Totally.

Oh honey, you're a great mom... any of us could have done that!! And as was just said above, unless it was a loooong time expired, it still should have provided some protection. I'd probably be a bit ticked at whomever was chaperoning this outing... I mean, these are middle school students, they're not always going to think about mundane things like sunscreen!! If they noticed her burning, they should have made her reapply, sit in the shade, don a shirt, something... before it got THAT bad. :glare: (Yes, I know the worst of it doesn't always show up until later, but as bad as you describe, they should have noticed she was burning.) Back in the day, I unfortunately had a couple blistering sunburns. And the first one, I was about her age. It was painful, so I completely sympathize. Try all the soothing tips everyone else shared, and definitely keep her home tomorrow. Hopefully she'll be comfortable enough to try to show up for awards on Wednesday!! I'd tell you to give her a hug from all of us, but that would probably hurt too.... :grouphug:

And then you made sure to read chapter 14 again when you got there, right?? ;) MiHH, this sounds fabulous... I will read it tonight. I *so* miss that show, and I was always a total Sam and Jack shipper!! :) Congrats on your award!!

Robin, those boots are... intriguing. I'd break not only my ankles, but probably my neck as well, as I went sprawling on the floor... :LOL: Fence art, huh? I've seen things like the big barn stars and copper sun/moon designs... I've never seen books!! Angel, I haven't seen the final Warehouse 13 season yet either, so no worries on spoilers. I watched the first three seasons faithfully, then got really behind and stopped, so I'm working through the whole thing all over again!! Today in between taking the dog to the groomer, taking my son to tennis, picking them both up, and running errands, I managed to sneak some Chinese food for lunch and sit and read a couple chapters of my book. It was actually quite delightful!

Stacia, that looks great! I looked it up on Amazon and it looks like it's being released in paperback here in August, if anyone else is interested... adding to my list!! :)

Happy Sunday, everyone! Robin, thanks for the steampunk links... I am not that familiar with the genre, but willing to explore it!! Interestingly, my son and I had just yesterday selected Wells' "The Time Machine" as our next read aloud! (Side note: Did anyone watch the show Warehouse 13? I thought it was fun, and loved the depiction of HG Wells in the show!) I am re-reading all the Ladybug Farm books by Donna Ball. If you're not familiar with them, they are fun books about three friends in their 50's who decide to buy and restore an old run down rural estate, and they have quite the adventures. I enjoy the characters and the descriptions of country life. They're funny, and although dissimilar to my life, somehow very real. The first title is "A Year on Ladybug Farm" and there are now six books, I believe? A new one just came out, which was my impetus to re-read the others. After wrapping up May, I've finished a total of 27 books this year!

Oh, let's not give them any ideas, LOL!!

It sounds like such a reasonable request, doesn't it?!? I'm trying to be more careful about what we eat. But honestly, I can't keep up and I just choose not to worry about some things.... Otherwise, as I am not a master gardener by any stretch of the imagination, we'd starve. Something interesting to keep an eye on though...