Yup, I'd go, too. Moms and girlfriends aren't mutually exclusive, and I can totally see him wanting his support system there when he's worried. You both are part of that. I and my FIL went when my husband had LASIK. FIL just met us there. He didn't have any function, other than being there (and regaling me with the story of his vasectomy... :ack2: Dear FIL, I do not need knowledge of your "junk". The end.)

:iagree: Our HD has a section of 8x10 and 9x12 hanging rugs that are (I think) bound remnants from their WtW selections for under $100. You have to flip through the fancy rugs to get to them.

I've wondered that about our lacrosse parents. Don't they already have friends? Because lax season - while rather short - keeps us so busy, I miss my friends. I don't want to suck up more time socializing with other people. I think the bolded is part of the "my child is a special snowflake" mentality. If you can have expectations of your child's <performance, behavior, civility, whatever> you have to have some other reason for them to stand out amongst their drab peers. (Yes, I know people have legitimate allergies and other diagnoses. I am referring to the people who approach their kids' health as a competitive sport.)

We generally shoot for between 6:00 - 6:30, but during lacrosse season the kids have a small meal around 4, then we eat supper around 7:30 or 8, when they get home from practice (5:15-dark 4-5 nights a week). We sometimes have a large midday meal, and light supper, which the children prefer, actually. We've talked about making that our norm, since our lifestyle supports it.

:grouphug: Well, that is certainly disrespectful behavior, and I would definitely set some boundaries as far as what you will accept from her, but... There are a lot of mean, disrespectful people in the world who don't have personality disorders. And they suck. More so, when they are a close family member. In any event, boundaries are important. It is up to you to decide, and communicate, exactly what you will and will not tolerate, and then act accordingly. The difference in NPD is that your boundaries will be categorically ignored, and often the only way to enforce them is to completely cut off contact. There are a number of us who have come from the place of uncertainty to the place where there is no doubt in our minds that our family member has a personality disorder (I think "character disorder" is the more accurate term). There are many who just have family members with bad personalities or dubious character. Either way, there is a lot of experience in dealing with "difficult" family members here.

Yes. My husband is AIR-un. The female name is EH-rin.

Interesting question. I've lived outside of Maine long enough to have no accent. My children - MD natives - have Canadian speech patterns and pronunciation, e.g. been and again are pronounced with long vowels. No idea why, though I joke they're channeling their great-great grandparents.

This was my thought, as well. My husband teaches math and science. Period. I have zero involvement, other than supervising practice sheets he leaves when he works. It's his job. He's not "helping". He researches, plans, schedules and teaches, and he's on top of it, regardless of the twitch he develops.

You should mention that there wasn't even a brawl.

<wistful sigh> I would love to have a stove top model. We have an electric, ceramic cooktop. :glare: We're using the Corningware one I bought at a junk store to leave at my dad's a few years ago (off the grid, gas stove) this week, and it's awesome. We've had electric models from the 30s and 40s and they're wonderful, though. While we're up here in Maine, we'll be looking for another. They have the best junque stores around here!

I love our vintage percolator. If you're looking for drip, the best one I ever had was a Capresso. After that one died (several years, no cleaning, mineral deposits eventually blocked the tubing), we went through a Braun, a Krups, and a Cuisinart and they were all horrid, particularly the Cuisinart, which overflowed grounds into the tank and had to be (awkwardly) cleaned out on a daily basis.

Yep, you may want to try various active ingredients. Some have salicylic acid, some have something else that I can remember. Nizoral has an antifungal, if it's a yeast thing... If he has scent issues, I would encourage sniffing everything before you buy. T-gel (and other coal tar preparations) have a distinctive smell.

I figure I get my t-shirt when I check in (to Betty Ford or some other quiet place) after launching the second one. See you all in Group! :D

Uh... I gave / got what you would expect: weight, length, name, how everyone's doing. Sometimes, length of labor. Never stitches. That's just :confused:

That's what we ended up doing with my now 11yo. She would scream from our driveway to our destination. It was horrible. We turned her around and rigged a portable tv/VCR between the front seats. We turned her around because she was old enough and big enough, but the Blue's Clues and other happy videos were what stopped the screaming.

'It' gave me nightmares as an adult. :)

I wouldn't either. They have a "responsible adult" checking in, which is what they want. I can't say that I've ever run into this, even booking online recently. Are you staying somewhere that's popular for, say, spring break?

:lol: No, I can't come up with one, either! I'm glad I'm not the only one with occasional literacy glitches.

What a beautiful little thug! :) I would have words about midwives sitting around knitting while you labor but... I'm a knitter. And the hat is adorable. And she was awesome. So, ok. Heehee.

I totally agree. But (at least in my mother's case), she normally lacks the introspection and planning to see that play out in advance, let alone decide that there may be negative consequences. Mine would feel completely justified, and shocked at my audacity in being offended by whatever is in the letter. And she would insist that I wrote the incorrect email address in her book. So... Yeah, connecting those dots and taking action seems advanced to me, even if it's motivated by her self interest.

Well, this but more cynical. I'd open it knowing it was a full-on N-rage for whatever crime she thought you'd committed in not responding to the ill-addressed email. Though, I can't help thinking the acknowledgement of her own error and trying to preempt the reading of the rage letter is sort of... Advanced. Or, at least, sort of odd progress.

Yes, to measure growth, you must have a beginning point. Of course, when you posed the question, my first thought was, "why do people weigh/measure fish?"

Oh, yes, uh-huh. The lights in there show off their subtle color variations much better. (the molds, not the children)

Me, too. And humans. That's what we grow in winter. I'm too busy killing the plants I take in to save from frost to try and grow others.

That is phenomenal!!! I have been middling through smashing world and American history together for my 3rd & 7th graders this year and you har just made it a bazillion times easier. Thank you so much! I already love your site and materials, and I have a new question for you: may I use your logo to link to the site in my October "Resource of the Month" post on my umbrella group website?