This is my diet. Lost 60 lbs. already. No condiments Salt, pepper, and spices are fine; so is mustard and hot sauce. Condiments like salad dressings, mayo, and packaged sauces have ridiculous amounts of sugar that are stored as fat. Vinegar is awesome for loosing weight. No soda or juice. Drink water. Make meals from scratch. This can take adjusting but it's really the key. Seconds only on veggies Snacks = fruit I do have a sweet a week, but I have to bake it myself. Ice-cream is the exception. Meat once or twice a week The rest of the time beans, eggs, tofu, etc.. Whole grains or real carbs like potatoes, sweet potatoes, brown rice, polenta, whole grain pasta, and whole wheat bread. If the bread stays soft for more than a day out of the fridge it is stuffed with fake food. No processed or fake fats. Olive oil, real butter. If you eat like this you really don't need to count calories. Real food will make you feel full quicker. It takes time to get used to it, but now I can't eat how I used to it doesn't appeal to me anymore. I also ditched the car for trips shorter than a mile, parked at the end of lots when I used it, used only the stairs no elevator or escalator, and did 10 minutes of carbs a day. The first month I didn't loose any weight. But after that it was about 5 -- 10 a month. I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but this is not a yo-yo weight loss. It's gone for good. For what it's worth.

I think it's all in context. When I was a kid I often heard "Damn those children." when things went wrong. Often they weren't our fault and it bugged me. I feel damning something or someone is a very strong thing to say. But when I hear someone say, for instance, that something was so "f***ing good" or even use the the f word or s**t as a way to express frustration, it doesn't bother me. I don't talk like that myself, but that's because it's not part of my identity. I think the attitude behind things bothers me as oppossed to physical words themselves. Some people say all the "right" words but are nasty inside, and others let it all hang out but I know they'd go half way across the world if I needed help.

Brown italian sausage meat; put the meat to drain in a sieve; fry onions, bay leaf, fresh oregano and basil in olive oil; add meat; add splash of red wine; salt and pepper; add sauce from jar and crushed garlic; bring to boil; simmer at least 1/2 hour

I live in France and French people that I know are appalled that American schools provide anything less than 45 minutes for a meal. When I tell them that Americans often eat in their cars or while walking they are in shock. In fact they don't believe me. More on topic: I think it is very odd that work places must provide breaks for employees, but that elementary students are expected to work non-stop without recess.

Just to clarify: Dh is in univeristy; we are a young couple. He studies by day and works night shift all but two days a week.Much of his free time is used up with homework Because of this I do the house work and mind the kids most the time. When he is home though he tells me dishes are off limits -- he cleans the kitchen and puts the kids to bed. I get the evening off. He's a huge help, but he is not a multi-tasker especially when doing things that don't come naturally for him like cooking. I never thought of it as a societal problem.

This made me laugh. My husband is very willing to cook, but it's just not in his blood or something. Oddly enough he can grill amazingly with wood from scratch making his own coals and all, but we live in an apartment now and there is no grilling here. When he tries to cook in the house he has not met with success. I do plan on trying to teach him a couple things, but I thought since he'll have all the kids too it might be easier if cooking was minimal. I don't own a crock pot.

I will be leaving my husband solo with the kids for two weeks for work reasons. He does not cook anything, literally. I really need ideas of meals for him. Lunches will be cheese sandwiches of every type and peanut butter sandwiches. I will stock the fridge with cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, cucumbers, and lettuce for veggies. I'll also make boiled beets. Breakfasts are cold cereals and pre-boiled eggs. Snacks are also easily covered, but dinners have me stumped. We have no food allergies or special diets. We have no microwave either. Any suggestions?

I just moved and have been buying kitchen stuff as I need it. The things I found myself needing right away for cooking where: large cast iron frying pan (this doubles as my baking pan) large cast iron pot (this doubles as my casserole pan) small sauce pot 3 SHARP knives (cleaver, regular, paring) cutting board tongs metal spatula whisk potato masher ladle peeler 2 glass bowls (use for serving food and mixing ingredients) These are enough to cook just about anything. Of course there are times as I am blowing away steam from my fingers as I pour out water from a pot with the lid cracked that I wish for a colander and other great kitchen ware. But I can cook everything, so far, with this list.

My three boys (7, 4 and 2) are allowed to eat from the snack items as they feel hungry. I always buy a drawer full of oranges, apples, and some other seasonal fruit, a bowl full of bananas, a container of peanuts and raisins, apple sauce, whole wheat crackers and cream cheese. I replenish these as needed. Generally, they only eat one or two snacks a day. My snack rule is that snacks must be eaten at the dining room table and cleaned-up when finished. Because snacks are not rationed I never hear the argument regarding getting equal shares. Everyone eats when he is hungry and until he is not. Once in awhile l I'll make a treat for snacks like a tray of brownies and these are more regulated.

Thanks will do that.

Thanks I'll be sure to use these with the little one. And Bill, your input has been very helpful. I guess I'll be running back to the boards when I get stuck. Dh says if I buy it I need to make it work -- we're pretty strapped for cash. So here goes...

Yeah, I was thinking to put the pages in plastic sheets so they can do them as many times as they want. Will the annotations book tell me what to do? I didn't order the first grade diary or the notes to teachers.

Okay, I'm gonna buy it! The fluidity of the program is what appeals to me the most actually. Thanks

Right now I need it for ds(7) and ds(3). They do plenty of math at school -- well the older one does. He did a year of Saxon before hitting school so he is ahead and school work is review for him. Right now he likes math because "it's easy" and I want to keep it that way. Are the lessons clearly laid out? I worry that I'll end up with a bunch of rods that will be used to make roads for cars by ds(3) because I'll be lost about what to do with them or strapped for time to plan my own classes around them.

Sort of had one; we did like each other though. Happily married eight years and three kids later. There were rough patches. We are very young, by average standards, but we're determined to make our marriage work and it does. I don't think the circumstances enveloping the wedding itself is a likely determination of the outcome. There are tons of marriages that follow the normal traditions and don't work out. Is the man from the group too? Are they still in the group? These are strong determiners. In my experience, if they share that background and move away from it together they will last. If one is devoted and the other unsure or they have different backgrounds it'll probably end. That's what I've seen from where I came from anyway.

I'm thinking about buying Miquon Math. I've been looking for something that is based on investigation as a supplement to school maths. My main intention is to give my kids a deeper understanding of mathematical principals so they can hopefully come to love math as much as I do :). I don't want worksheets or drills. Miquon math was suggested to me by the boards. Before I buy the whole set, is there anything worth knowing (pros or cons)? I've never handled the program and would hate to spend money I already don't have on an item I won't use.

Planning on Pollock kebabs with zucchini and onions and cherry tomatoes over a bed of couscous with parsley, olives and oil/vinegar. Strawberries for dessert.

Legging are very casual wear from what I've seen. A pretty scarf might pull the outfit together though.

I stumbled across some fun videos for history. These are short (about 10 minutes each) and designed as visual learning resources for college students who want to brush up on topics or run through a course for CLEP credits or other tests. They are available on different topics, but we've only seen the Western Civilization ones. My ds(7) loves the little cartoons. They go along nicely with SOTW as an enrichment or re-enforcer. http://education-portal.com/academy/course/western-civilization-ancient-near-east-to-1648.html

I do it all the time. One of dh favorite dishes. I make it heavy though with breaded chicken tenders slices, aparagus, shaves of parmesan, etc.. It definitely stands as a main dish.

I find that all my pet peeves are illogical. :) It helps to know what people are thinking though.

Yeah, I think 50% is pretty fair. I see crazy pricing and not just for books either.

I'm not sure why but it really bugs me when people ask almost full price for a used item. I see it as grabby. What do you feel is a fair way to price used items. How do you determine your pricing? In my experience buying used items is more work and less straightforward. While I appreciate the price cut, between the "lightly written in pencil pages" and the "shows signs of wear" I feel I am doing the buyer as much of a favor as he is doing me, and I don't want to pay 5 dollars short of full price. What's your logic?

I think Miquon Math is what I need here. Some of those the other programs look good, especially Kitchen Table Math, but I'm not looking to have a comprehensive curriculum as the boys go to school. I just want something that will get them thinking and using math from time to time. I basically want to give them a little boost mathematically and scientifically while focusing our after schooling hours on English and history.

Checking these out right now. Thanks.