I have three daughters with PCOS and all three have taken the pill to control painful symptoms and not a single one has had an exam by an 'actual obgyn.'

One ordinary day we learned three things: Declan jumps on the counter when we're not around, Declan likes cornbread, Declan does not mind eating plastic wrap.

Three cats - one never, one seldom, one 'as often as he likes'. We discourage but not with any real intensity so I don't know how easy it would be to make him stop.

The Arrival movie thread made me want to pull out Chaing's short story collection and read them all over again? Favorites? Thoughts? I loved this collection of stories, especially Division by Zero and 72 Letters. Anyone else read them?/love them?/hate them?

Rabbit trail.....what were your favorites? I loved 72 Letters and Division by Zero. And, of course, Story of Your Life. I think this is one time where a movie did great justice the original intent of the story while still being a cinematic creation in its own right.

It is correct that she did not tell him.

I've seen the movie and read the short story so I want to make sure I am remembering each one correctly... If I'm recalling the movie correctly, I believe she did not tell Ian what she knows about her daughter's future. It is not in reference to a second child. BTW, if you haven't read the short story, oh, do so. It's so good. The rest of the short stories in the collection are awesome as well. ETA- I read the story before I saw the movie so it is possible I took that knowledge into the movie with me and interpreted things from that perspective.

Religion, politics, and immunization status - my three 'absolutely not' topics for any conversation.

She's beautiful. Congratulations.

Eve of Destruction

Even sadder is that I know someone who would actually wear them. :crying:

We have a nice collection for overnight guests who have forgotten theirs.

Nothing at all sounds surprising or 'abnormal' to me. The nice thing about being on the far end of raising 6 children is that I've seen a lot of variations of 'normal'. Everything you said makes it sound like she is a bright, outgoing kid who is developing at her own pace.

We had a similar issue with a chess club we started. DS was the oldest and most advanced player while most of the others were younger, less experienced. We decided that he would ask, and always encourage the other kids to ask one another, "Do you want a 'teaching game' or a 'challenge game'?" The idea of the 'teaching game' was that they could offer pointers to one another through out the game. The point wasn't to win, per se, but to better their game. Sometimes the players would ask to change their mind mid-way through and ask to switch to a teaching game. That really helped the younger ones save face if they felt they were being badly beaten. Since the idea was to have fun and learn the game, everyone was okay with that approach. Eventually the younger kids would play 'challenge games' with kids who were at their level. We always encouraged good sportsmanship from all players. This method worked well for our kids. I'm sure this same idea could be adapted to ping pong, pool, etc.

Duplos, Silks ( large silk scarves for imaginative play)

Absolutely. It sounds like a fantastic game. Although my 'baby' is 16 and if he goes into the frig it's usually to empty it. :coolgleamA:

Wagner popped a jump and it cost her big points - points that would have made a difference. She didn't deserve a spot this time. There are better women who came up behind her. It's their turn to shine. Fun fact - Ashley's Wagner's first skating instructor back when she was a little kid living in Alaska was my son's ice dance coach who got him to Nationals.

I guess I'm in the minority here but I think, "I apologize' sounds dismissive - as if the person isn't 'really' sorry but they apologize because I am upset rather than being sorry because the did something upsetting.

Ashley Wagner's reaction to judge's score - totally inappropriate. She behaves poorly and I think she's a poor example for upcoming skaters.

Of course. I meant no disrespect. Infrastructure makes a huge difference in how the cold weather is handled. Alaska is far more able to prepare for and deal with the cold. Buildings are designed to contain warmth, cars and buses are equipped with block heaters to get them running, and most everyone has cold weather gear to handle the exposure. The southern part of the lower 48 is just not equipped to deal with super low temps. In actuality, the biggest weather issues here are unseasonable warmth. Since snow typically packs down on the road during the winter season, warmer weather melts it and causes extreme icing. For us, that is far more dangerous than snowfall. I feel terrible for the people experiencing unexpected weather. It's difficult to have your life disrupted by something beyond your control. And feeling cold and not being able to get away from it is miserable. But, still it is funny for me to hear someone talk about a cold house because the temp won't go above 70 when we are all in short sleeve t-shirts with our house set at 62. (Okay, in the spirit of full disclosure, my daughter is always wearing a sweater. But, she's a wilting swamp blossom. :001_rolleyes: )

I have to agree. :thumbup1: We keep ours set at 62 and my son is, at this moment, in shorts and a t-shirt.

Well, if it makes you feel any better about things, just reflect on the fact that we don't have a Chic-fil-a anywhere in the entire state. :laugh:

Public school is still out until next Monday. DS is a coach at the local parkour gym so he's teaching at the daytime 'boot camps' so he's been busy during the day. So, he's just dipping in the big toe this week - catching up on a few things that got behind. We'll get back into a full course load next Monday.

My older kids are out on their won and two or three years ago, I finally them their collections of ornaments I've been gathering over the years. They were so excited. They said it was like getting a Christmas present in July. So, I guess there are a fair number of kids who would love the ornaments chosen for them throughout their childhood. I also have duplicate ornaments for some achievements- Wizard of Oz ones from the year dd played Dorothy, etc. Some I don't - daughter has the Tazmanian Devil because her nickname is Taz.

Again, perspective. Here children play outside for recess unless the temp is below -20F. Otherwise, it's just considered a typical day.