We stopped masking a few weeks ago when my kids started public school. They also take the bus. Neither the school nor the bus requires masking and very few kids wear them by choice. Everyone in my home is fully vaxed/boosted and we aren't in close contact with any high risk unvaccinated people since moving. We would definitely mask if going to a medical facility or something like that, but nobody in my house is in any appreciable danger and numbers here are low. I do think the special hours idea is a good one that would help to protect people who are at risk and/or not eligible for vaccine. I wish that would catch on. I also would like the signs to really mean what they say so people who are at risk can go into a store that says "masks required" and know that masks are actually required. It drives me nuts when they say it's required but nobody wears them. I recently went to a store that said they were required. I wasn't intending to wear one, but when I got to the door it said they were required for everyone so I went back out to the car to get mine. When I got inside I was the only person wearing a mask.

The varathane water based polyurethane will give you a much more durable finish than the matte clear coat. The chalk paint stuff is fine for vertical surfaces, but if you're going to set things on it or sit on a stools definitely go with the varathane. I did a hutch with it 10 years ago that still looks great-just sold it a couple days ago actually. We also have a bread box done with it. That one is only 5ish years old but has stood up to daily use. Latex is too soft when cured to be a good choice on furniture, but I think pp might have meant using it under the poly.

My bff has light yellow-green with no hint of brown, but she's the only person I've seen that on irl. And I think I'd call it more chartreuse than emerald. Lots of my family members have dark green/hazel that have a thin ring of brown around the pupil. The brown disappears with age. I still have a tiny bit of brown left but my mom's (late 60s) are solid green. I guess it's like graying where the pigment disappears with age.

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this. There's definitely been a theme in your posts that shows his lack of consideration for your feelings. You sound like a great mom though-that much has been obvious repeatedly. Hugs.

I wore a Honeywell North through two pregnancies. It was not too hot, but my downward peripheral vision suffered. I don't love doing stairs with it. I also have a half face from 3m. I think this is the new version of it.

You could bump up your protection to n100 elastomeric for the must-do errands. Not as comfortable as KF94, but not horrible either. I think it's always good to have one around the house anyway. Good luck in surgery and wishing you a quick recovery.

I want to donate all my curriculum. I can't remember the name. Help me out. Thanks!

I'm not familiar with the backstory, but if someone made that comment about my son I would be just as likely to think they were implying that the younger girl has a crush as that the boy might be a creep. Regardless of how she meant it, I think it's prudent to teach kids that age that sometimes people make accusations that are untrue for a variety of reasons. It's a good idea to leave doors open and be in sight of a third party when the option exists. I always made sure I did that for teaching faith formation classes and coaching baseball, and it's not because I'm a maligned teenage boy. It's just smart. It makes it so parents don't have to wonder and protects me from accusations. The same is true for loads of situations where there is an older person of either gender working with a child. Whether my child was the older or younger in this situation, it would grab my attention and I would definitely discuss it with dh. I would also probably ask some clarifying questions of my child in order to understand the situation better. Young girls can make confused attempts at seduction too, it's not just teenage boys who act inappropriately. Discussing with him how he might handle such a situation could be helpful.

@bibiche everything else is native but this tricky spot is against a two-story south facing brick wall with about 2 feet of ground between house and walkway. I found some native shrub and vine options, but we would need to drill into the brick, and I'd rather not do that. There is also a patio next to it so I don't want a lot of mess falling on the furniture. My other thought is espalier nannyberry , but I think it would be a lot of upkeep. Not sure what other deciduous self standing shrubs will exceed 10 feet?

I've got a tricky spot on my new house that would be solved by this, but there is wild area about 50 yards away, so I don't want it to escape. Anyone know if these are sterile? If not sterile, how much time would I need to spend deadheading in your experience? Thanks.

Yeah, turns out I screwed up. It's NEXT thursday. That's what I get for making appointments at 5 am without my glasses.

Yay, got my 13yo an appointment for this afternoon !

Do we still needs cdc approval? Or is this the final word?

We saw either a red tailed hawk or a red shoulder hawk-hard to tell the difference from a distance.

Two shots are somewhat effective at preventing infection, but a recent booster is even more effective. The main thing is that the shots (1,2, or 3) reduce the likelihood of severe disease, hospitalization, or death. By extension, they also reduce the likelihood of misc and long covid. If the kids become infected after vaccination they clear the virus faster, which reduces transmission risk for the community at large. Any new variants that develop in the future are unlikely to evade t cell response, which is kind of a continuous, evolving process. So two shots plus recent booster > two recent shots >1 recent shot.