[Bought a house, adopted a dog, got pregnant]

:D

It's great to hear such a wonderful story. All the best!

[When your Mom must be absent on Mother's Day]

That is heartbreaking. It's good that you can be the kind of mother to your children that they will look forward to you being a grandmother to their children.

[After vomiting, rehydration question- Doctor Mom, come help me out]

If you get an electrolyte powder that is mixable into water, you can control how much you are adding and increase the efficacy of smaller amounts of water to increase hydration. Short of IV fluids, the body takes longer to rehydrate completely than to dehydrate.

[I'm going to cry; financial aide changes]

Another option that may or may not be palatable: If nothing else surfaces, consider a few community college classes and reapply for next year.

 

What they are doing sounds unethical at the very least. College is a big decision and they know it. Hopefully, it's not a way just to get money out of you. Either way, waiting might be a good option simply so that you don't feel like you are pressured into a decision that you might come to regret later.

[I am in tears right now]

You're doing an incredible job working with a special needs child. Have you connected with other parents with similar children and similar issues? It might be one of those times to distinguish between what you think can be changed and what cannot be changed and what is really important. When it comes down to it, the most important thing (I think) is raising our children to be good people. The most important thing they need to experience is love of all kinds (love through touch, love through boundaries being set, love through loving looks, love through patience, etc) and it sounds like you are already doing the most important things. Perhaps leave off the things that are so frustrating for you and find things that he is good at and can improve on, even if they are not essential. Give it a month or two and try again and then reassess. You will be in my prayers.

[Reading Books for Almost 2nd Grader and almost 1st Grader]

Reading what was written brought up a question of my own. I skimmed the Magic Tree House books before letting my six year old read about 30 of them. They seemed alright except for the atrocious sentence fragments. I am concerned about the new-agey stuff you mention. Can you go into further detail?

[Do I want a Kindle or a Nook?]

I have a 3rd gen and love it. It's light and easy to hold. I prefer it because I am an Amazon shopper and it's where I get all my stuff. The Nook ties you to the B and N marketplace. I feel much better about Amazon as far as company viability, too.

[US Americans: help me answer a question please]

It's a flap. It's what people have described as between a t and a d. Some people think of it as being lazy. It is similar to the way many pronounce the "tt" in butter or flatter or the t in writer.

[Aunt and Uncle divorce situation, what to do?]

This really is a hard situation. If you or your daughter are religious at all, I would recommend praying. It can work wonders, if not in the people we're praying for, then in ourselves at least. You never know what will happen.

 

I'd have your 19 year old do the inviting herself and express to both of them how important it is to her and ask them if it is a sacrifice they are willing to make for her sake. That's really what it comes down to and it ought to be said. And if either of them is going to be difficult about it, it will be up to her to forgive them because it is really the only thing left in her power to do. Regardless of what happens, the situation is going to be hard on someone.