Thank you all so much! I am so excited for her. One question - how long does it take before your fingers stop hurting when you practice? Do you build up callouses? Thanks.

I am so encouraged to hear these ideas! I think the biggest problem we might face is consistency. I'll have to set a lesson time with her each week and make it a priority. I will check out the suggestions tonight. Anyone else? Thank you!

We bought my daughter a guitar yesterday. The plan was to get her into guitar lessons a.s.a.p. However, the guitar center gave us a beginner lesson DVD. She and I watched the first lesson last night, and today she is strumming away C, G, G7 chords. Has anyone had a child learn guitar through a DVD program? This seemed so simple to do, but I know it was just the beginning. Would it be feasible to learn at home? Share your experiences and/or recommendations for programs, please. Thanks!:001_smile:

We gave our daughter a tracfone with 30 minutes/ month on it. She needs to call or text when she's ready to be picked up from certain activities. Also, she and my son take the dog for a walk in the development behind us. While it is a safe neighborhood, I always feel safer knowing they have the cell phone. With tracfone, 3 texts = 1 minute, so if she's pretty careful, we can make the minutes last a long time. You can be on the "protection plan," which is only $6/ month to carry your minutes over to the next. So that is $9.99 for the 30 minutes, then $6 for the next month. $16 for two months isn't bad!

I get it, and I really like it. I am always inspired to cook and eat healthily after reading an issue. I don't go quite as far as they suggest with certain ingredients or organics, but I definitely get some good ideas and recipes.

We left off the plastic insert that fits around the prong, and ours fit quite well. We have the Sony Dream Machine, so it is not just a docking station but a player and clock radio as well. Here is the model we have: http://www.amazon.com/Sony-ICF-C05iP-Clock-Radio-Black/dp/B003DZ9Z78/ref=sr_1_29?ie=UTF8&qid=1324944475&sr=8-29

Unfortunately, I had to have my gallbladder out after an E.R. visit much like you describe. However, in retrospect, I was able to see that my worst attacks were after eating high fat foods. (The E.R. night was after a Christmas party with high fat appetizers and cheesecake for dessert.:eek:) My doctor said that I could try waiting and see what happened. What happened was horrible pain every time I ate anything with significant fat. Avoidance was obviously helpful. There wasn't always consistency, either. Sometimes I had an attack even when I had eaten normally. I think if I were you, I would adjust my diet and see if that helps you stretch it out until you want to have surgery. If it is post-partum related, I suppose that will help as time goes on as well. I also want to tell you that my niece had her gallbladder out when her daughter was three months old. I think she only had to stop nursing for 12 hours, and she was able to nurse when taking her pain meds after that. Patients go home the same day, assuming there are no problems. I opted to stay the night, but I was not nursing, or I'd have been home a.s.a.p. Good luck to you. I know how disruptive this can be!

I'm right there with you! I don't understand it - sometimes I feel agitated for a time, then I realize that it's because I need a Coke. I don't have one everyday, but when I need it, I really need it! Why does this happen? Sorry to say, I did stop drinking Coke for a while, and it was definitely NOT disgusting when I had another sip weeks later. It was like nectar of the gods!:drool5: I wish it hadn't tasted so good, but alas, I am back where I started. I wish you success and hope you'll post when you figure out the cure.

Our church has Christmas Eve services and Christmas Day services. I think we're only attending on Christmas day, though.

Praying here. :grouphug:

We live in western New York, and there are at least two in this area that meet in schools. When we lived in Oklahoma, we were involved in a church plant that met in an office complex.

I usually have good luck at Kohls. They have great sales, too.

Oh, but she is so adorable! Thanks for the smile.:001_smile:

Great deal! It's beautiful. :hurray:

I wish it had just been the outside, but the bottom melted worse than any other part because it was sitting on the metal rungs. UGH. I will check out Urban Homemaker for other things as well. Thanks for the recommendation!

Oooh, $59 is a great deal, at least compared to $100+. The lid should be fine - I hope. I was thinking of going to stainless steel, but this is half the price. Thanks, Jean. I'll look into it further. :ack2: I still can't believe I did that...such an expensive mistake to make!

I am sick...can't believe I did this! I've taken such good care of my beloved Bosch for several years. The flour was in the freezer, so the dough was very cold. I had a brilliant idea - preheated the oven for about 1 minute, then turned the heat off. *This is where the plan broke down. :/ I put the dough in the perfectly lukewarm oven to rise, still in the Bosch bowl. BUT I forgot to turn the oven off!!! It was a bad scene and a terrible smell of burned plastic. Anyway, as soon as I can stop beating myself up, I'll need to order a new bowl. The plastic bowls I have seen for $105, and the stainless steel for $125-140. Does anyone know of a discount site to order replacement bowls? I would be most appreciative. Sigh. Apparently, I am not worth of the mighty Bosch!:001_unsure:

I have two boys that have graduated, now a senior and sophomore in college. Two more to go!

I don't get it. Do you mean you wouldn't buy a gift for the new baby because he/she has two siblings you already bought for? I was given a shower for each of my four, and each one was a fun celebration for the new addition. I would have felt terrible if someone was upset by that. I think if I knew someone felt that way, I certainly wouldn't want them to come to the shower being irritated that they had to buy a gift. I recommend that you skip this one. Please forgive me if I have misunderstood.

Chocolate filled Oreos with cold milk...yum.:001_smile:

Here are my dd's (12) daily chores: Straighten bedroom vacuum stairs and upstairs landing take out recyclables feeding gerbils Walking the dog Straighten shoe rack Straighten entryway Empty small trash cans set table for supper She has other chores that are not daily, including yardwork, deep room cleaning, window washing, cleaning gerbil cage, bathing dog, etc. She sometime switches certain daily chores with her brother (13 y), whose chores are: bedroom empty dishwasher vacuum family room sweep living room straighten dining room/school room Scrubbing Bubbles in bathroom sinks Take laundry to basement get mail and paper Gee, when I type the daily chores out, they seem to be doing a lot! Chore time really only takes 30 minutes, which as you can imagine, means they aren't the most thorough cleaners in the world, but they get the jobs done.

Oh wow, that is a nightmare scenario for all. :( Our Petsmart has the grooming area completely glass enclosed, and the door is not automatic like the main double door. There is also a latched half-door between the grooming floor to the customer side, a double protection. I feel very safe leaving our dog there. I feel so sad for your friend. I just can't imagine...:crying:

I use a Salton, but I couldn't find a link to the one I have. It was pretty inexpensive and well worth the purchase. I use skim milk and powdered milk and it comes out great. After it cools, I strain it in cheesecloth to thicken (just plop it in, squeeze out some of the whey and then let it hang over a bowl for a while). If I hang it for 2 hours, it will be as thick as Greek yogurt, but of course, it reduces the amount of yogurt you get. Cost-wise, this is much cheaper than paying 1.50 for a small container of Greek yogurt, though! So good.:)

Oh, man. I'd have gone ballistic also, if that makes you feel any better. Our back van window shattered, and insurance covered 100%. They even had a mobile window installer come right to the house. I hope your fix is as easy!

:lol:!!! Off to search netflix...:001_smile: