You know, I'm not sure! I know that the last time I checked my state wasn't offering state aid for adults...I will check into Medicaid. But I don't believe that my midwife would be covered by that. I know that her services aren't covered by state aid.

Really? I think she was gorgeous! To me, a lot of the newer Hollywood types all look the same...lots of bleached hair and Botox. I think she had a very distinctive look that set her apart from everyone else. Also, she was such a cute little girl and a wonderful actress in Miracle on 34th Street.

I hesitate to post this, as I know this is a controversial subject, but... We are seriously considering this. Originally, I had planned to go with a midwife assisted homebirth. I've met with a midwife a couple of times and she is really great. The only problem is that DH has recently been diagnosed with a chronic illness, and this week we received bills from his specialist and his ER visit from Oct....they are over $5,000, and we are still waiting for some lab bills to show up. (We are uninsured.) We are applying for their financial aid program, but honestly, we can't even afford to pay any additional monthly payments right now. We are still working on paying off a $2500 bill from his general practitioner. In addition, we are waiting for more test results that may indicate he has another chronic illness that will require expensive treatments. (DH is working a temporary gov't job right now, which doesn't offer benefits, but he has had several interviews within his department that do offer them, so we are hoping that he gets one of those.) All of this to say...I feel like spending another $2500 for a midwife is just something that we cannot do. We could only pay her half of the deposit she asks for for her first visit, which I felt terrible about, and we planned on using next year's tax refund to complete the payments. I just hate to do that when we are behind on so many other bills. I don't want this to sound like this is a purely financial decision, or that I am making a big sacrifice or something. All of my labor and deliveries have been quick and uneventful (knock on wood). My pregnancies are healthy with no complications (knock on wood again). My last child was born at home, with a midwife attending, but she was completely hands-off (at my request) so I pretty much did the whole thing on my own. We had a waterbirth, and I "delivered" DD. Also, because of DH's illness and my planned homebirth, MIL recently bought us a year's membership for an ambulance service. We live 3 minutes away from our small-town hospital that doesn't do births, and 20 minutes away from a big-city hospital that has a large labor and delivery center. So if anything did go wrong, we would have a quick way to 2 hospitals. I really think that we could do this. DH would be completely supportive of my decision either way. He reminded me that after my last birth I had remarked that I felt like I could have done that all by myself. A few year's back I read Laura Shanley's (I think that's her name) book about unassisted childbirth, but I don't remember it having any really practical advice, which is the kind of stuff I'm looking for. What I'd really like is some sort of how-to manual that tells you the basic supplies I might forget, or some clues that you need to go to the hospital. If it's an emergency situation, I feel like I would be able to tell that we need to go to the hospital right away, but I just don't want to miss something subtle during or after the birth. I believe that my midwife will actually consult with people doing unassisted childbirth (checking to see that baby is head down in the last few weeks, etc.) but I haven't talked to her about it yet, as I've only seriously considered it this week. I would really love to hear from somebody who has been through this. I totally understand if people don't feel comfortable posting here, so feel free to pm me. Thanks for listening. :001_smile:

I read about that! We are so excited...it's one of our favorite shows. We watch them over and over again. My only gripe is that it's not coming out until 2013. :glare:

:grouphug: I'm so sorry Joanne.

We co-slept with all 3 of our kids (as babies). DH is a heavy sleeper, so we just push our queen-sized bed up against the wall, and the baby sleeps between me and the wall. I shoved receiving blankets into any gaps.

Wow, that is one adorable baby! Love the photo with big brother, too. :001_smile: Congratulations!!!

Whew! I thought we were the only ones. All 3 of my kids have rolled off of the bed at one time or another (and one onto a cement floor :eek:). None of them had anything more than a small bump.

Not sure if this has been mentioned, but not all schools have cafeterias. None of the grade schools in my town do...the kids just walk up to the kitchen windows to get hot lunch and bring it back to their classroom desks to eat. I think it would be nearly impossible for these schools to make their classrooms nut-free.

Thanks for the links! I missed that first NaNo thread, and I keep forgetting to check my social groups. :lol:

I sent you a PM. :001_smile:

Anyone? :tongue_smilie:

Sorry if there has already been another thread about this, but I've been receiving NaNoWriMo countdown emails and I'm getting into writing mode. :001_smile: I write children's fiction, and this year I think I'm going to try something completely out of my comfort zone: fantasy. Still sticking with kids fiction (middle-grade age) but I don't have any experience writing "real" fantasy (I usually write contemporary stories with a hint of fantasy). I figure NaNoWriMo is a great way to test the waters. :tongue_smilie: We'll see how it goes! I'm hoping to make this year my third win in a row. Who's planning to participate this year? What genre will you be writing?

:lol::lol::lol: So funny! That's what we call him too. I really liked The Sixth Sense and Signs (though I know I'm in the minority on Signs...that part where Joaquin Phoenix first sees the alien on TV really freaked me out). There are some pretty gory parts in that movie though, if I remember right. The Happing just had us laughing out loud though. That was pretty bad.

Hmm...there was the girl skinny-dipping at the beginning. I think any nudity was very brief. I don't remember anything else, but I could be wrong.

:grouphug: I'm so sorry!

Not exactly "Halloweeny," but my kids (the two oldest) watched Jaws last year as their first horror movie. They loved it (I can't remember how gory it is, so previewing might be a good idea). How about the newer Mummy movies?

:iagree: :iagree: :iagree: :iagree: I agree, especially with the bolded. We're an atheist family, but I have nothing but respect for LDS missionaries. They've always been polite and respectful of our beliefs when they come to our door. I can't imagine them being pushy after being told they're not welcome....unless missionaries are different in other parts of the country :confused:? Out of all the people in our homeschooling community, the LDS families have made us feel the most included. They have always been extremely nice to us and treated us like we're one of them. They don't bug us about where we go to church, or what curriculum we're using. Our oldest DD even occasionally attends church youth activities with her LDS friend. She's never been preached to, or felt pressured to participate in anything she didn't want to. They're honestly the nicest, most sincere group of people I've ever met.

Thanks for sharing...that is so great! (Where's Fred Savage though? :tongue_smilie:)

:party: Congratulations! She's so beautiful. :001_smile:

Yay! Thanks for the updates...I've been following your thread. :001_smile: Hope you're able to get some rest! :party:

:iagree: If it was an innocent mistake, I would say to give the lady the benefit of the doubt, but to open with that line...she was just looking to pass judgement, imo. :glare:

:grouphug: I think your response was entirely appropriate. The lady was being rude (that's putting it mildly), and should mind her own business.

Me too. Well, I kept checking back to see if the joke was over yet, but it just. kept. going. Whew, I thought I was the only one who was annoyed. :lol:

Ooh...I was hoping to see an update to this thread! :001_smile: Congratulations!!! :party: