21. Putting Down Roots: Gardening Insights from Wisconsin's Early Settlers by Marcia Carmichael~non-fiction, history, gardening. Succinct look at several nationalities who pioneered Wisconsin. Historical context. How they changed. Specific family stories. Photos. Old World Wisconsin recreations. Recipes. Well cited. Perfect for what its limited subject. 4/5 20. Gudrun's Kitchen: Recipes from a Norwegian Family by Irene and Edward Sandvold~cookbook, biography. 2/5 19. Twelve Owls by Laura Erickson~non-fiction, birds. 2/5 18. A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell~fiction, WWII 5/5 17. A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge~science fiction, space 3.5/5 16. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card~classic science fiction, read aloud. 4/5 15. Flour by Joanne Chung~cookbook, baking 3/5 14. Home to Woefield by Susan Juby~light fiction, humorous 2.5/5 13. Making the Most of Shade by Larry Hodgson~non-fiction/gardening 3.5/5 12. Growing Perennials in Cold Climates by Mike Heger~non-fiction/gardening 4/5 11. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson~mystery 3.5/5 10. Letters from Yellowstone by Diane Smith~historical fiction 3/5 9. The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day~fiction 2.5/5 8. The Alphabet in the Park by Adelia Prado~poetry 3.5/5 7. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman~non-fiction/medical 4/5 6. One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus~speculative fiction 2.5/5 5. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Woods~juvenile 3/5 4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester~(read aloud) juvenile 3/5 3. The Alienist by Caleb Carr~Mystery 3/5 2. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton~Fiction 4/5 1. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt~Fiction 4/5

I have no roses. I live in the north (zone 4b) and have a lot of partial shade/full shade. Any suggestions? I'd love to have a few, but can't guarantee full sun...the tomatoes already need to be grown in buckets on the back porch. Links to newbie education sites welcome.

This is what works for me. I personally enjoy the time away, so I don't mind folding. I take my laptop in my room on Mondays and Thursdays and watch a period drama (Downton Abbey!) or something while I fold and put clothes in the boys' individual laundry baskets. Its easy for me to put my and dh's clothes away while I'm in there. If this doesn't work for you, I would recommend making laundry folding part of entertainment. The kids can watch television while folding their clothes 2x a week. This is easier to do if you limit screen time (woohoo extra tv!!) but could also work without that. My boys have 'put away laundry' on their chore lists for Mon., Thu., and Sat. I do spot checks. If they don't have it done they don't move on to any electronic entertainment (video games, movies, tv) until they do. There are days/weeks I'm a little less careful than others...and this doesn't mean they put their clothes away neatly...but the system works most of the time. Older kids (12+) can do their own laundry if they can't/won't follow my schedule. My 13 year old does his own laundry on Saturday while he cleans his room. To him, that's easier then trying to remember to get things in his hamper every day. :tongue_smilie: I only wash clothing in hampers.

Clinics and hospitals often have special waiting rooms for this kind of situation. You can call and see what they suggest.

I love their bird site. Thanks!

I would be annoyed if someone cut my hair, but its almost a whole other thing in the black community. Someone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but my 4 year college roommate indoctrinated me. I would never touch a AA woman's head without permission. Hair is a major deal.

All possible organs donated. Cremated. Ashes buried in the roots of a new tree or spread in a garden that means something to dh and I. Anyone who wants to visit the garden can. Otherwise I like to think of my elements moving on to be useful and beautiful.

20. Gudrun's Kitchen: Recipes from a Norwegian Family by Irene and Edward Sandvold~cookbook, biography. Family story of a woman who moved from Norway to the Midwest in the early 20th century. Some recipes, not all classic Norwegian. Bizarrely, this woman lived first in the same Chicago neighborhood as my father, then in the same small Wisconsin town (just down the road) as my mother. 19. Twelve Owls by Laura Erickson~non-fiction, birds. Beautiful watercolors. Book suffers because it doesn't really know if its a children's book or not. It's not long, but often the material skews older. Also does not have a consistent viewpoint (sometimes the birds, often the birders). Lots of information, late elementary or above. 18. A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell~fiction, WWII 17. A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge~science fiction, space 16. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card~classic science fiction, read aloud. 15. Flour by Joanne Chung~cookbook, baking 14. Home to Woefield by Susan Juby~light fiction, humorous 13. Making the Most of Shade by Larry Hodgson~non-fiction/gardening 12. Growing Perennials in Cold Climates by Mike Heger~non-fiction/gardening 11. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson~mystery 10. Letters from Yellowstone by Diane Smith~historical fiction 9. The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day~fiction 8. The Alphabet in the Park by Adelia Prado~poetry 7. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman~non-fiction/medical 6. One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus~speculative fiction 5. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Woods~juvenile 4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester~(read aloud) juvenile 3. The Alienist by Caleb Carr~Mystery 2. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton~Fiction 1. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt~Fiction In progress: Flora Mirabilis (Howell) Putting Down Roots: Gardening Insights from Wisconsin's Early Settlers (Carmichael) Corvus: a Life with Birds (Woolfson) Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood (Sacks) Redwall (Jacques)-read aloud

Pears cooked in wine?

Wisconsin

My mom made decorative lights with those jars and strings of Christmas lights. I would fill them with chocolate chips, m&ms, lentils, popcorn, dried fruit, extra buttons, seeds, pins, bath salts, pens, nails, loose change, hair pins, rubber bands, razors, lego men, batteries, dice, or tea bags. Just off the top of my head. We have one with bullet casings from dh's grandfather's funeral 21 gun salute.

If you're unsure you can also do a henna 'gloss.' A henna gloss is a little bit of color. You take it off much sooner (Google for specific directions). I mixed a few TBL. of henna with chamomile tea and a white/clear conditioner. I left mine on for 60 minutes under a shower cap and then washed it off in the shower. I've did that, assuming I would move up to a full henna. Two months later I did another gloss. The overlapping areas (where I'd glossed before) were brighter red (although still very auburny) than the newly hennaed areas. I like auburn (my grey was minimal), so I figured I'd find the right shade and then only gloss higher then that. What I ended up with was 3 subtle shades of brown/red, browner at the temples and auburn at the tips. Of course this was before I started greying more. :tongue_smilie: I have some henna in a drawer. When life slows down a bit I may try this again. I'm not sure if a henna gloss would cover grey as well.

I killed several common can openers (including Kitchen Aid and OXO) but I ordered a Swingaway from Amazon and its still going strong 3 years later.

18. A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell~great novel of the people of Italy (Jews, priests, partisans) in their resistance during the final years of WWII. Both realistic and inspiring. Thousands of of Italians hid Jews during the German occupation after Italy left the axis. A novel that investigates the good and evil available in every person. 17. A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge~'hard' science fiction, imaginative novel about a resurrected (and evil) AI and the people (humans, pack-mind creatures, sentient trees, transcendent Powers) who travel the zones to find its counter-measure. 16. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card~classic science fiction, read aloud. 15. Flour by Joanne Chung~cookbook, baking 14. Home to Woefield by Susan Juby~light fiction, humorous 13. Making the Most of Shade by Larry Hodgson~non-fiction/gardening 12. Growing Perennials in Cold Climates by Mike Heger~non-fiction/gardening 11. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson~mystery 10. Letters from Yellowstone by Diane Smith~historical fiction 9. The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day~fiction 8. The Alphabet in the Park by Adelia Prado~poetry 7. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman~non-fiction/medical 6. One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus~speculative fiction 5. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Woods~juvenile 4. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester~(read aloud) juvenile 3. The Alienist by Caleb Carr~Mystery 2. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton~Fiction 1. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt~Fiction In progress: Twelve Owls (Erickson) Flora Mirabilis (Howell) Putting Down Roots: Gardening Insights from Wisconsin's Early Settlers (Carmichael) Gudrun's Kitchen (Sandvold) Corvus: a Life with Birds (Woolfson) Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood (Sacks) Redwall (Jacques)-read aloud

2-player games Archaeology (will work for more) Pick and Pack Lost Cities Biblios (will work for more) Crokinole For Sale (will work for more, good for groups who feel intimidated by games) Games with Kids Flash Point (cooperative, fire-fighting/rescue 9+) Pandemic (cooperative, disease curing 9+) Zooloretto (zoo building 7+) The Adventurers (like the first 10m of Indiana Jones 8+) Ascending Empires (flicking, colonizing planets 9+) Bohnanza (fun, easy trading and collecting game 7+) Ice Flow (getting backpackers across the Bering Strait 10+) Ticket to Ride (set building to pay for tracks 6-7+) Party Games for a Crowd Dixit (very artistic, but hard for kids below 10/12) Wits and Wagers (betting/trivia game) Faces (a lot like Apples to Apples) Pit (trading, very non-threatening) Bang! (spaghetti western) Incan Gold (press your luck, treasure hunting) Saboteur (cooperative tunnel building/treasure hunt with a secret saboteur) A Bit More Complex or Strategic Thebes (archaeology) Agricola (farming during the Middle Ages) Stone Age (civilization building) Blokus Trigon or Ubongo (puzzle/shape games) Samurai (area control) Alien Frontiers (dice game, colonization) Space Alert (a cool RPG-like cooperative where everyone tries to survive space battles by negotiating and splitting up ship duties) My husband collects board games and these are our current favorites (although the boys like Pokemon and Killer Rabbits too). I could get it down to 2-4 choices if that's more helpful, but I like certain games in certain situations.

I was inspired by last weeks Baking Roundup. I checked Flour by Joanne Chung out of the library. First I made lemon ginger scones. Good, but donut-like. Then I made potato bread. It was very soft, but needed a bit of wheat or rye flour I think. Then I mixed up some brioche dough. Then I got up really late on Wed. and made lemon curd. Thursday I made cinnamon rolls out of the brioche dough and pastry cream. We ate the cinnamon rolls with lemon curd and pastry cream. Yeah, it got a little crazy. I still have another loaf of brioche dough. I could make berliner style donuts or brioche pain-aux-raisins this weekend. Next weekend I'm cutting down a bit.

What Jen said. Plant soon though, while they're healthy looking. A healthy sprout makes the transition better.

My husband does not own any of these. He used an online timer for Pomodoro at work an in-house blog/kanban/status system at work. He prefers a visual system at home, but there are several apps available to a Google search. These looked the best from a very quick search. http://www.personalkanban.com/pk/applications/announcing-the-launch-of-ikan-the-personal-kanban-iphone-app/ http://thenextweb.com/lifehacks/2010/05/17/5-great-productivity-apps-for-iphone-owning-pomodoro-fans/

Yes. My son is 7 and while he's endured endless medical testing for medication levels, liver function, kidneys, etc. he's just started his initial developmental testing. We were at the neuropsych last week. This week is the OT evaluation (missed yesterday because he had a seizure 10 min away from the appointment and rescheduled for today). Next week is the SLP evaluation. Hopefully all of this will go somewhere. I had to push a little to get this. I hope they reach an understanding about your son.

No idea if is this is related to my son's speech problem (or exactly what that is yet), but we had an evaluation from a neuropsychologist last week and he referred my son to a Speech Language Pathologist. Basically, he 'tunes out' somewhere in the sentence and therefore gives odd answers to questions that are more complex. He focuses on key words but misses out on important nuances. This is considered an SLP issue, so we go in for an evaluation next month. Your issue, I'm not saying its the same, but it might be similar enough to justify a SLP evaluation.

My husband has found Kanban and Pomodoro very helpful. Kanban is a production organization system that gives people a visual of a variety of tasks. Basically, we have a large white board on our pantry door. There are a few columns. The first says Things to Do. To the right of that is a column entitled Want to Do. To the right of that is a column titled Doing. And after that is one titled Done. We move post-it notes with tasks written on them across the columns until they reach done. We have a separate board for long term tasks (like house repairs that don't need to be done immediately or annual cleaning projects). Kanban has really helped my husband focus on what needs doing, without feeling that he has to keep up with/not lose a notebook or dayplanner. Pomodoro is a technique that breaks tasks into a time limit, as if (and some people do) you have a timer sitting next to you and you just do everything you can in that amount of time. No pressure to finish. Flylady has something similar in her 15 minute clean/decluttering. It releases you from feeling overwhelmed (so overwhelm that you waste time overthinking).

You keep this fantasy. Can I have the one where I work in the Smithsonian's garden archives? They have apartments and a stipend and everything. Sigh.

This is an inappropriate response. Are there others you can see? Take a little trip? Some neuros don't like to push meds without an EEG, but you have so many symptoms...plus visuals by medical personnel (the nurse)...there's no reason for them to put you off after all this. They may not want to prescribe everyday meds but they should prescribe an emergency med you can use if this pops up.

My son has a severe seizure disorder and what you're describing sounds like seizures. Many people do the 'smacking' sound when they're coming out of a seizure. Another symptom, when you think she may be experiencing a seizure...or just be a little out of it...check her pupils. Are they really dilated? During a seizure, even a very very light one with no other visible signs, often the pupils will dilate and cover most of the iris. As they're coming out of it the pupils will contract back to normal. I agree with the person who said to take a video. It will be easier for the neurologist to diagnose. If you're not aware of the different kinds of seizures check Youtube. Perhaps instead of saying 'seasonal' you could say 'environmental.' For someone who's prone to seizures there are often environmental triggers. Fast light changes. Constipation. Noise. Certain foods. Allergies. Not enough sleep. Even humidity/dryness. It's not unusual for one season to hold more triggers than others. It may be that your daughter is stable the rest of the year, or presents lighter seizures (short absence/petit-mal) and is overwhelmed by the number of triggers in Jan/Feb. In any case, a neurologist should be able to prescribe an emergency medication for you for those times when she has seizures. And of course, if she seizes more than 5 minutes or so, please get her to an emergency room.

The 2 or 3 stoneware items I got broke. The cheese grater with crank was annoying to use. I do like the batter bowl with pouring spout and lid. Very nice. My MIL just had another party so I bought the prep bowls (SIL loves) and the plastic accordion frosting thingies. I figure DS7 will have a great time with those and they're dishwasher safe and less fiddly than pastry bags.