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trinchick

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Everything posted by trinchick

  1. No, they stay put and don't budge an inch. I spent ~$35 for a pair of the Spanx hose which I thought was outrageous, but I've worn them twice now and think they're worth every penny. Also, TMI but I use the gusset when I use the restroom so I'm not messing with the waistband at all. this may help prevent the rolling.
  2. I just learned this from the saleswoman in the nordstrom dress department: high-waisted Spanx with no underwear. I cannot believe how much this smoothed out my bulgy bits.
  3. How about having a lemonade stand? DD9 would love this, and it can fill a lot of time between making signs, making lemonade, and then actually sitting outside and flagging people down. How about asking them to wash your cars? Put them in bathing suits and give them hoses and buckets. They're bound to have fun with that. Or even just putting out the sprinkler for them.
  4. It's strange. At the beginning of our marriage, I was the yeller and nitpicker. I definitely had a vision of how our life would be and if everything didn't fall into place, I went berserk. Toothpaste globs in the sink = cause for battle. Spent too much money on lunch out at work instead of eating packed lunch = major infraction. We've undergone a huge role reversal here. For the past several years I've taken the "what's the big deal" perspective while he's gone bananas over every little detail in life. And of course, kids change everything. That said, we've been married for 15 years come September. I think every marriage (or relationship really) goes through a variety of seasons. We're in romantic hibernation right now. I need to push myself to make the effort to take us back into summer - or at least into spring (I'd even consider it a success to get to an early, chilly spring). Like a PP I need to think about the marriages I want my children to have. If I think it's worth it and valuable for them, I have to start thinking that the effort is worth it and valuable for myself, too. And then do it.
  5. We did have church counseling from our priest (married, Episcopalian), which was very nice, but I don't think I was open to it being anything more than just a step towards the wedding as opposed to actual marriage preparation. My father died when I was 4 and my mother never remarried. I didn't have any good model of how marriage should be - good, bad, or otherwise. I was not very good at first. I engaged in lots of power struggles with DH and frankly browbeat him. I was very unhappy. I disliked myself. I know he couldn't have been happy, either. Fortunately, our marriage survived that bumpy first year. Not sure how or why, but I was able to turn that off, and I've become a far better team member. I am better at choosing my battles and recognizing that DH is his own person. He is a working adult and can make choices for himself that may not be exactly what I would do. I expect him to offer me the same degree of latitude, and he does. My most recent discovery, though, is a sad one. I think DH used to really adore me and I don't believe that's the case any more. I attribute a lot of this to myself. I don't show him enough that he's appreciated. I don't show him that I think our marriage is important - or as least as important as the kids. I'm going to try to proactively work on this, but I'm not sure where to start.
  6. The former inhabitants of our home were deadbeats who didn't pay their bills. We've been in the house for 10 years now and still get dunning notices and calls from collection agencies on a monthly basis. I don't make any effort to forward them. As a naturally curious person (AKA nosy), I open some of them only to be shocked to find that they owe $25,000 to some credit cards (note more than one) and haven't paid their student loans for their daughter (at Tufts no less). Most recently, I got a bill addressed to the former resident. It was from a new creditor, so I opened it to find that the deadbeat is still using our address to gain credit and order things (as recently as April). I called the creditor to let them know and I ended up having to jump through hoops to prove I wasn't the person who borrowed the money. It was ridiculous.
  7. Loved last night's episode. But now I'm kicking myself because I googled spoilers to find out what happens to Tyrion (I haven't read the books). Now I'm mad because the suspense is definitely more fun than knowing. Grrr. Note to self... They're called spoilers for a reason.
  8. We have decided not to do sleepovers either as a guest or host. For sleepover parties I pick up dd at 9:30 or so. Every time there has been another child who'd planned to sleep over but couldn't handle it and already gone home. Honestly, as a mom, I'd rather pick up my kid at 3:00 than have them feeling miserable and trapped at someone else's house. But I wouldn't let them try another sleepover for a long long time after that.
  9. I hope there is a happy ending for this woman. I have been praying fervently for her. But this situation has opened my eyes to so much horror in Sudan that I cannot fully rejoice in her safety or trust the government for her release or the safety of other Christians in the country.
  10. Ds was exactly the same way. He never are baby food (even my good homemade stuff) or cereal. He ended up going straight to table food at around 10 months.
  11. I bought my van a few years ago using Truecar.com when the website was pretty new. It helped me find a brand new, previous model year van at a local dealership, so I saved a ton of money. I tried to play the dealerships off each other and I guess we had some success. Beware that sometimes dealers will tell you they can match your price until you come into the dealership and then they don't have the exact add-ons etc. It was really frustrating. The website was good for a "reality check" in that you can see the real prices that those models with identical features are selling for in your area. It lets you know if you're really getting a good deal or if you just have a really good salesman who can convince you it's a good deal.
  12. We also stayed at Patriots Place. We got a one-bedroom, and it was fine for our family of four, but I would have preferred a second bedroom if available. Wyndham has a few timeshare resorts in the area, and Patriots Place is one of their older ones. But the grounds were lovely, and the pool was very nice. Location was very convenient. We got a steal of a deal through http://www.getravelop.com/ It rents out excess timeshare inventory for less than $400/week. You need to be a gov't employee OR A FRIEND of a gov't employee - so if you know a teacher, police officer, firefighter, bureaucrat (like my dh :patriot: ), you're covered. We've booked through them three times now (Virginia, Vermont, the Berkshires), and they've never asked for any identification or proof so I think it's a cover so owners don't get outraged that they're renting out units for so little $$. Inventory changes all the time, so if you don't see something suitable right now, keep checking back.
  13. Depending on how many categories there are, I'd take salad to mean really any side dish for a cookout. Last year for our church picnic I was assigned "salad" but brought some roasted veggies that were a hit (if I do say so myself). I think there are so many mayo-based salads at these things that people were happy for something a little different.
  14. I don't really love our house, but it has three things I really like: double oven, attached two-car garage, and en suite master bath. None of those things were on our "must have" list until we moved in, and now I don't think I could ever move into another house that didn't have them.
  15. My first house had metal cabinets and each door and drawer had been painted a different Brady Bunch color. Then there was the brown shag carpet on the KITCHEN FLOOR. Yes, carpet on the kitchen floor. Can you think of anything more disgusting? We had to move the range for something and saw that the rug had originally been orange. Needless to say, I got down on my hands and knees at that exact moment and started pulling up the carpet with no regard to what was underneath. Fortunately, there was indestructible 1950s red linoleum tile hidden by the carpet. Still ugly, but at least we could clean it.
  16. Thanks for posting this. DD has the same thing, and I was stumped. I think we'll try the duct tape route, too. Stupid question: she has a lot of the printed duct tape from doing crafts. Will it work the same as the gray tape? Anyone know?
  17. Another vote for a visit to The Tile Shop. We were totally floundering about our master bath until we saw all the vignettes set up there. It quickly became clear to us that we both had the same vision. Then I went home and spent some time on houzz.com to get some further inspiration on colors, etc. We will use our contractor to actually source the materials, but I feel like we've done a good job using those resources to get kind of a knock-off designer bathroom. Now we just need the contractor to fit us into his schedule...
  18. If you're looking for inspiration for colors, maybe spend some time on houzz.com . Designers will have posted every color combination imaginable. Be warned, though, hours slip away like nanoseconds....
  19. Oh, and a delicious way to ease into veggies could be a tomato salad. For a bruschetta-like salad I dice up some tomatoes, fresh chopped basil, clove of garlic, kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, a splash of balsamic vinegar and a glug of olive oil. Can serve on toasted baguette or on grilled eggplant slices (to add another veggie). Also good on its own as a side dish. For a caprese-inspired salad, I just add some diced fresh mozzarella to the salad above and omit the garlic.
  20. Another vote here for ethnic markets - especially Asian markets if you have them in your area. The produce is often riper than in typical supermarkets, so you may have to go more frequently but the cost savings are significant. Plus there's usually more variety, so you can experiment with new-to-you veggies! I'm fortunate to live in the Boston area where the Haymarket is available. DH works right down the street and visits most Fridays during his lunch break to purchase our veggies. The prices are insanely low compared to the grocery store. We eat tons of Romaine lettuce. At the store they cost $3/bag of three heads on sale ($4 not on sale). The same bag is a buck at the Haymarket. Brussels sprouts are $1.50 a pound. $1 a bunch for asparagus. Red and yellow peppers 2/$1. Strawberries/blueberries $1 a box. English cukes 3/$1. DH is choosy about the vendors he uses, and we will occasionally get an item that's a bit over-ripe. But for the most part, the produce is good quality and the savings are huge. On the opposite end of the cost spectrum, we are also members of a CSA at a local farm in the summer. I find that pound-for-pound the veggies are quite pricey compared to the grocery store (and especially compared to the Haymarket). But the quality is incredible and worth the cost. I love the fresh greens, herbs and tomatoes. And the strawberries for the first few weeks of summer are so incredibly delicious. I do not join the CSA for their fall/winter harvest, as I find that the veggies they offer during that season (potatoes, squash, etc.) are usually low-cost at the grocery store, and I can't justify the expense.
  21. Sunflower kernels - the ones already out of the shells. I don't want to have to do any work. These are devious little snacks disguised as healthy treats, which I guess they are... unless you eat the whole jar of them in one sitting.
  22. We have soft fern in our living room and I really like it, but our furniture is mostly taupe, so not sure if it would be too much green with your existing furniture. As info, if you think a color is too intense, you can get the store to mix it at a certain percentage. So our living room is soft fern at 100%, but our foyer leading into the room is at 75%.
  23. As the old saying goes, he chased me until I caught him. ;)
  24. DD9 wore this dress for Easter: http://www.belk.com/AST/Main/Belk_Primary/PRD~4201352S14SD3588/kc+parker+Polka+Dot+Dress+Girls+7+16.jsp?off=5&rCode=0438507944532&ZZ%3C%3EtP=4294923540&ZZ%3C%3Et=parker&ZZ_ST=parker&fO=AND%28Category_Path%2CNOT%28P_IS_PRODUCT_SEARCHABLE%3AN%29%29&ZZ_OPT=Y&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=1408474395191292&bmUID=kmOmWSq Looks like Belk only has it in stock up to size 12, but I know it goes to 16. DS3 wore a sailor suit in navy blue with white and red. They looked great together without being too matchy-matchy if you know what I mean.
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