Keep in mind my girls are much older, and even my very athletic girl prefers clothes that are clearly feminine but not pink (LOL doesn't seem to actually exist :( ) AND we all love superheroes, despise the lack of pockets in girls clothing, and more... but those totally look like boy clothes to me. It could work with the right outfit, but we would still see the shorts as boys clothing. Nothing wrong with it, but not our preference.

No advice on meals, but a suggestion to help keep food in the house for the rest of the family: Bins and baskets! Even in the fridge. Either separate out what he can eat freely, or if it's more convenient, what he cannot eat. I got tired of hearing moaning and whining about "What happened to all the blank? I never got any!" So now everyone has their own basket of personal treats- candy bars and other non-perishables- on an open shelf in the kitchen, pre-portioned snacks for work lunches have a bin in the fridge, and anyone who wants to "claim" an item has to label it. It's cute to see their markings on donuts, the last portion of fruit juice, cereal, leftover pizza... Anyway, set aside some things that he has to leave for the family. No need for everyone to go hungry, LOL!

If it were my child and I had any influence on the wording of the invitation, I would have sent a wedding announcement with an invitation to a reception Something more formal and Miss Mannerly but like this: Mr. And Mrs. Rebel Yell are pleased to announce the marriage of Daughter to Son in Law at Town Hall, Last Month. Please join us for a reception to celebrate their marriage. Date/time/etc.

Have you tried Target? I noticed they have some bikini tops in bra sizes, including 36DD and 38DDD. You can match them to a wide variety of bottoms. Most under $30, and there always seems to be a few on sale.

Lemon sauce? RECIPE PLEASE!!! SweetChild loves stuffed grape leaves, I just buy them at our grocery store deli. I should order some for her grad party, but I've never had lemon sauce! I think she'd like it.

SW PA, I often drive through our MAJOR college community- I think there are 5-6 colleges within walking distance of Diamonds job. I haven't noticed the shorts linked, mostly I see girls in workout leggings. I have seen a lot of these in our mall shop windows, but haven't seen any one anyone I know. http://www.forever21.com/Product/Product.aspx?BR=f21&Category=bottoms_shorts-denim&ProductID=2000144227&VariantID=012

By providing space, do you mean a building that you own, or plan to rent space 1-2 days each week? Assuming the building is your own with no other groups already using it, I would have a 1 day/ week group meet, and make the space available on other days for other groups or tutoring. I would charge a flat hourly fee. If you ask for a percentage of class fees, you could lose money if the teacher charges very little, and people don't pay or quit. Let the teachers figure out their fees, figuring in the cost of renting the space. Will the rent include janitorial services? Whether or not you do, specify exactly how he class spaces are to be cleaned or maintained. Insurance will need to be considered, and should be reflected in the rental fees. Don't forget things like paper towels and toilet paper. If I were opening a homeschool enrichment center, my dream space would include a gym and an auditorium/stage, possibly combined as a multipurpose room. Sinks in some classrooms for art or science messes, and open shelves or cubbies for daily storage of supplies, coats, bags, lunches, etc. If groups are allowed to store supplies and books on site, have lockable cabinets and be cautious allowing food storage- I attended a place with critter problems due to inadequate food storage. Also, our stored bottled drinks (lunchtime fundraisers) would disappear, I'm assuming the host organization perhaps thought they belonged to them? Classes I would want or would have wanted when my children were that age would be volleyball (the main homeschool sport in my area), and anything that is difficult to do at home or better with a group. Science labs, choir, drama/musical theatre, literature discussion. Also anything I'm not good at: art, writing critiques, and math tutoring. I think math would be best as tutoring or very small groups unless everyone is using the same level of the same book at the same time, understanding at the same pace, which rarely happened with homeschoolers Also, have a good place to eat lunch. One of my most hated times at a former co op was everybody eating lunch in the flor of the room that was used all day for PE. Uncomfortable, and smelled horrible. Also, provide huge trash cans. Cheap little wastebaskets are useless- they end up overflowing, and people end up just leaving trash on tables. Also, provide good quality trash bags. No one wants to clean up a mess when the thin bag breaks and someone's sticky soda leaves a trickle trail all the way out to the dumpsters. Silly little details like this caused endless frustration for me at various places.

It would bother me. Siblings using our family nickname is OK. We never used our special nickname for a child in front of a grandparent except for once, she tried to use it and we asked her to please not call her that. We do not use nicknames for our children. The first really has no common nickname, similar to "Holly" but the others do, but we almost always use their full name in public, so that's what others do. If our child whose name has literally hundreds of variant names actually went by one of them, and others called her that as well, I wouldn't be upset. If, for example, the name was "Isabella" and we called her "Bella" and others did as well it would be harder to be upset with that than if we only privately called her "LaLa" and someone tried to do so too. All of this is also assuming a younger child, under 12 or 10 or so. But if the child of any age tells people "Call me LaLa!" from the example above, I wouldn't try to prevent it. This is also assuming that the nickname is an actual name/variant. I can't think of a substitute name that won't give away one of my children's private family nicknames... but it isn't a "name" but an outstanding feature. No one else gets to call her that.

I bought a SQ washer a few months ago, basic non-computerized model. My dryer is really old, but works. I've had it repaired a few times. If you have a repair person you trust, ask for their recommendation. They man who fixed our old washing machine insisted we get the Speed queen, even though he said we'd rarely have any need for him if we bought it :D If m dryer is no longer repairable anytime soon, I'll buy whatever my fix-it-up-chappy recommends.

I did this! I hated hauling books to the van, driving and setting up by 8am or some other inhuman hour -good GAWSH we homeschool so we can sleep in, dangit!, sitting at a table all day, selling about 5% of my stuff and maybe making $10 after I paid my fees, gas, and bought lunch. Then haulinall the leftovers home. I advertised my homeschool garage sale on a few local email lists and Facebook groups. I announdpced that th majority of the books were old but free, and there were some newer books for sale. Also that I had some games, educational toys, and would be selling lunch items. I had tables in the driveway with free books- old abekah stuff, not complete sets, marked up books, workbooks with ten pages completed, cheap novels and readers I probably paid a dime each for, etc. there was a bookshelf in the garage with the for-sale items clearly priced. Free books were held in a box or bag while they shopped, and I took payment before they left the garage to help me keep things straight. I sold hot dogs, cold drinks, chips, and cookies- DD made the money from that. I gave away seven or eight huge boxes of free books in total- laundry basket sized boxes. I also gave away old bikes! I made a decent amount of money, like-new current edition books I had at half retail price but negotiated. My goal was to get rid of stuff and make a few dollars, and bless my fellow homeschoolers. I got rid of so much stuff, and had fun chatting while people ate- it was a great day and I plan to do it again this summer.

Still let them k ow ahead of time about the warts. They may be able to accommodate her but use plastic covers in the pedicure footrest or whatever they use.

Seriously? Is your DH embarrassed for making you feel bad? Too showy would have been if you did an Oscar red carpet walk to the microphone and gave a speech about how wonderful you are. Standing, as you were originally told you'd be asked to do, simply allows people to see who you are so they can possibly talk to you more about how they can get involved.

The equipment will be sanitized, not necessarily sterilized. Get the warts clear before getting the pedicure. When I worked in salons, I was expected, possibly required by law, to refuse to work on clients with possible things like warts, rashes, lice, etc. I wasn't technically allowed to make any diagnosis, but I could say "This looks like blahblah. Since I can't be certain, I can't provide this service today. Please have it checked out and reschedule as soon as it's clear or a doctor confirms that it isn't contagious." Editing to add a portion of the law... Sanitation/Disinfection As sterilization is not required of tools and instruments used in cosmetology salons or schools or cosmetician or manicuring salons, references to sterilization have been removed. Section 7.1 (relating to definitions) contains definitions for ''cleanse,'' ''disinfect'' and ''EPA registered disinfectant.''

I don't know what is average for my area, SW PA, middle-income suburb of the large city, surrounded by very poor and very wealthy suburbs. I expect to have a wedding within 3-5 years, so I'm giving this some serious thought. I also expect to have very little to contribute financially. Much of this will depend on the bride and grooms wishes, of course... but this will be my input: Things I would leave to professionals: Photography. I have friends who are top-tier photographers, I cannot afford them. But even a beginner or highly skilled amateur would be fine. Food. I don't need gourmet food served on fine china, but I do want it prepared in an inspected commercial kitchen and kept at appropriate temperatures. Buffet is fine. DJ, possibly a small live band. Dancing is very important, but don't need a light show. Things I expect to do as inexpensively as possible: Hair/nails/makeup. I'm a cosmetologist, so I can handle myself, the bride, and her two sisters. Everyone else is on their own. Bridal gown: a bride in a well-fitted dress can look amazing even if it is a $19.99 sale white dress from JCPenney. I would certainly pay a bit more if needed, but $5K? No effin' way! Davids Bridal $99 sale would be a place to start. Bridesmaids: simple inexpensive dresses that they can wear normal bras with, and their own shoes/purses. Men's clothing: I'd rather they spend the money on owning suits than renting tuxes. Especially since we're not likely to have the level of formality that will truly require an actual tux. Decorations. A theme is OK, but I'm hoping for a venue that needs minimal decoration. Flowers. Basic wholesale flowers tied with ribbon, instead of specialty bouquets. Food. Even though I want it prepared by someone other than me/grannies/guests, I also don't want fussy expensive foods. Cake. Something pretty to cut, sheet cake in the back to serve. I don't want to attempt to get some stunning confection that no local baker of reasonable price can actually execute, and end up with a Cake Wreck Things I hope to skip: Limos. In a perfect world, wedding and reception will be at the same location. Close enough that there is no need for a party bus. Photo booth, or anything excessive from Pinterest. All the personalized matching Bridal party stuff that makes for great photos, like robes, custom-name-wired hangers, hotel suites, etc.

Is his page the officially official group page, and is he some sort of officially official authority, or is he just the first person who made a neighborhood group page on Facebook which everyone joined because it was the only one they knew of? If there is no official reason for his page to be the only source of information, then I encourage you to start a new one. Give it a different focus, such as "Good Neighbors, Good Times" for event planning. Link to his page and any others relevant to your neighborhood, such as the town council, chamber of commerce, school district, etc. that way, you don't appear to be taking over, merely you are another source of information out of many sources available. Have a very handy response available to copy/paste if people try to get gossipy about his page... something like "This page was created to be a resource for event planning (or whatever your focus is) for our neighborhood. Discussions about zoning, schools, elections, blah blah blah are encouraged to find more appropriate venues."

In your privacy setting, you can set it so that you have to approve it when someone tags you, or posts to your wall, or even tags a photo you posted. Highly recommended, even when people aren't having issues with people on Facebook.

Not true.. you can block anyone at any time, even if you have never had any interaction with them whatsoever. I have even blocked people because what they post/like/comment on via a mutual friend or group shows up in my newsfeed too often, even if it isn't harmful or controversial, just personally annoying. blocking is my friend.

Don't just delete the people or unfriend them, but actually block them. By blocking them, they will not see anything you post anywhere on Facebook, they cannot tag you or private message you. You will not see anything they like or comment in, even if it is on a mutual friends post/page. You don't have to be friends with them to block them, and if you are friends with anyone that you block it will automatically unfriend them, too. Blocking is a beautiful thing!

Same! :D

I'm mixed on this. When I'm having a hard tim making a decision, I try to look at it without having cost be a factor (even though in our budget is is almost always a huge consideration) When my oldest was 12, I also had 7 & 5 yos. It worked for one more year to be free of regular summer classes, but after that, Diamond really needed the summer classes to keep up in dance. There was zero need for the youngers to do so. Over time, their interests changed and seasons overlapped, were year round, or just didn't mesh like they used to when they were younger. Advanced levels were only offered on certain days, while younger or beginner levels were available nearly every day. So still not considering the cost of the activities, it sounds like you have some kids (swimmers) who can only "do their thing" in the summer, one (black belt) who would greatly benefit from continuing year-round, and another (dancer) who would benefit from a summer session. It may be time to relax the rules or rethink the summers free of extra curriculars, mainly because of the swimmers. Some alternatives: Thank the Karate dojo for their offer. Simply explain that you were planning on taking a summer break for several reasons, including cost and family time. Perhaps he can continue with just one day/week instead of a full schedule? Dance: similar thing. Can she take ballet only, or a new style that she doesn't do during the regular season? (For example, My girls took the 6-week summer jazz classes to learn technique, but we didn't have the time, money, or interest in taking it for the 33-week regular year) Swimming: any chance of lessons during the school year? If not, and you have the money, I would keep the lessons. Not swim team, just learning to swim? If you do keep the older kids out of summer classes, and your main goal is learning to swim, could the same amount of money be spent splitting private lessons for a shorter but more effective plan for learning to Swim? Good luck! This is good preparation for the future when work schedules, rehearsal schedules, dance class, shows, karate class, Buble study, youth group, and everything else make family dinner together at 6:00pm every night a rarity. (Don't worry, we find plenty of ways to be together, it just isn't always dinner)

Eeew. Sounds like a similar system for raising money to pay full time people, though. I guess it works.

SweetChild is DONE with high school! Well, she has to fix a few typos on her final personal narrative essay today, but I already updated my signature. :D She's still looking for her summer job, hoping to be a receptionist/salon assistant. In the fall she'all start beauty school, skin care and make up only. Then in January she'll go to community college to work on her business degree. Very proud of her. She worked hard every day to finish, even on days when I could have done better. Anybody else?

Some college-age people I know have worked as full-time paid staff at Christian summer camps. The pay is fairly low, especially considering it is way more than a 40 hour week... Anyway, I have gotten letters asking for support which would basically be donations to the camp organization as each paid staff member is requested (not required) to raise donations to cover their pay. But the letters always detailed that far better than I just did- it was clear that it was a tax-deductible donation to the camp, she would get her salary regardless of what she raised in donations, and donations in excess of her pay went into the general fund for staff salary or camp needs.

BabyBaby (15.5) has been doing martial arts for eight years. I'm just going to give my thoughts on the age thing in class, I might come back later with more useful advice for what to look for... One of our biggest complaints for ANYTHING we have done: martial arts, dance, learn-to-skate, almost every single homeschool class or event... has been children too young for the class being allowed to participate, almost always for the convenience of the family of the younger child. Almost always, the too-young ones are not physically ready, not skilled enough, or are just too young for what is usually a longer class. Instructors end up focusing on them to try to keep them engaged ( or the parents happy) and the rest of the class loses out. Some of the older or advanced students aren't getting the attention of the instructors- a quick glance might seem like they're doing things correctly, but if certain moves are done too long with improper technique, it can lead to injury and weeks of physical therapy to try to repair the damage. We are currently in week three of physical therapy because of this. I see it as poor business skills. So the business kept the one child and 1-3 others in that family, but they most likely lost 4-5 other families in the process. 4yos in the 6-8yo class, refusing to participate and sprawled out making "snow angels" on the ice, tripping my kids who were learning to skate backwards, was the reason they quit figure skating. To be fair, I also have to say that twice, BabyBaby has been "young" for her group. (LOL three if you count that she'd be a grade behind by local public school age cut-offs) First, she would turn 7 in the late fall but I asked if she could try the 7-9yo ballet class so she could be in with her sister and I wouldn't have to drive a sixth day of the week (another sister was there three more days) for her to go to the 6-8yo class. I also promised that I would do so within the first month if she wasn't able to keep up or the majority of the class was "old" 9yos. She was fine. Second, at age 14, she was invited to join the 18+ Judo class for adults. This was just to say, I dont feel crazy strict about ages, as long as the class isnt suffering for the sake of including a too-young student. But very often, it does.

BabyBaby earned $100 to pay for her black belt test at age 10. We had paid for all previous tests ($25+, each going up slightly over four more levels) I have an absolutely priceless photo of her at the front desk turning in her little envelope of cash :wub: Our rule was she had to work and earn the money. No using birthday gifts, no using savings, no money from Grannie towards it without legitimate work, although reasonable but slightly generous compensation was allowed. She carried heavy bags of mulch and potting soil and did some related gardening, helped a granny move by carrying boxes and furniture, a few odd jobs for us, and I'm not sure what else, possibly pet sitting?