Yup, that. It's lovely that your friends advocate for the best for your child... They are not in your trenches, parenting your child, though. They only have the view from their own trench, which is, of course, quite limited. (As is everyone's) I am an introvert. Going to public school did not help me get over it. I don't do well in large groups. It wasn't particularly traumatic for me to be in a classroom, but this is my nature and I don't think you can really teach someone to not be an introvert/extrovert.

It's sooooooooooo passé!

When they need it. Which is completely subjective when I look down at my legs. A couple times a week during the winter, a few during the summer, any time I have to teach Pilates or yoga, where my legs can end up right in front of someone's eyes when I help them with a pose. I used to have crazy itching. Disposable razors were the worst, so I used the ridiculously expensive (but sharp) Venus ones and it was a bit better. A few years ago, I decided I'd had enough of spending that kind of money, so I bought a vintage, double-sided safety razor at a junque shop ($3), and a pack of razor blades ($6 for 15) and, guess what? No more bumps, no more itching! After 25+ years, I discovered (for me) simple is better. Bonus: the pack of razor blades lasted about a year!

It sounds like she had a WONDERFUL day! :D

Um... Penguins? I would not replace the just laminate unless you are not planning to do the rest for a very long time. Paying twice for countertops just seems wrong to me. So, actually, I guess I'm agreeing with you in the poll. :D

:blink: Seriously.

That's pretty much my thought. I assume what I share will be shared with a spouse (but no further), but I don't necessarily choose to share the confidences of others with my husband. I don't, for instance, if it's a deeply personal thought that I get the feeling the friend would not share with anyone else in the world. Or, obviously, if someone were to explicitly ask me not to repeat it, even to him. I wouldn't want to keep someone's deception a secret, but I will keep someone's personal thoughts, struggles, if that makes sense.

This. Our email is pretty much always open, and we both have access to each other's calendars, but it always strikes me as weird when I see messages from people who share an email address. And, that, right there is the correct analogy to my feeling.

We got the Oxford American dictionary & thesaurus. The thesaurus is integrated into the dictionary entries.

:svengo: Buy a laminator. The projects will come. :D

I almost always have eyeliner and mascara on (waterproof, so it doesnt sweat off when I'm teaching fitness classes) Lipstick in winter and, at the end of winter when my natural paleness becomes something closer to dead-looking, BB cream. ;)

I use Plan to Eat. It has a mobile site, so I take my shopping list with me.

I get th mccaw, but a zebra in the front seat of a truck? :blink: Where does one even get a zebra???

I do one with a pineapple, 4-6 oranges, and a can of coconut milk. Add some crushed ice and it's better than Orange Julius! :)

Get it together and get over it! :grouphug: I totally get your hurt.

Tax value and market value are two different things. Tax values don't change at the same rate as market value. The tax value of our house has always been under market value, and has never been used in valuing it for the purpose of financing.

Love dips! I have no idea what E2L is.... How about a white bean and corn salad (like the black bean variety, but with what you have)? Cassoulet?

Well, I can see the logic there IF they are required to fill X seats. Then, it would be preferable to fill those seats with the children who have capable, involved parents. But that's not the case. The reality is that seats get expanded to accommodate the bodies enrolled. Since that is the reality, keeping my children at home creates less of a burden on the limited resources the school has, which gives the teachers more time and other resources to spend on the kids who really need it.

I usually reply like this :blink: Seriously, there is no way to argue with that kind of "lojik".

I tend to agree. It's one thing to take one of many bad choices when there are no good ones available, but it would be quite different, to me, to default on a promise because I no longer liked the ROI I was getting.

I tend to agree with the "don't make any declarations" stance. Why tell her you're taking her control away? That just sends them into seek and destroy mode. On the other hand, when my mother wants to make a big show of "concerned, involved grandparent" she usually tries to get my dad to influence me, and he's not biting, so... I would (and do) conveniently not answer the phone, etc, when she goes through those phases. Sometimes, I send a "saw that you called, we're just so busy!" Facebook message (because she doesn't seem to have my email address), and then I space out replies longer and longer until she loses interest again. Oh, the ridiculous games we end up playing, just to live our lives peacefully. sigh. :grouphug:

... Double post.

Good point (from all who made it). I suppose I didn't even consider that she may have come from a background of not frequent enough meals. It, frankly, seems like crazy talk in an area of such abundance (I realize it's not, just saying it seems lik it should be) I still think it's a peculiar retort for being called a crackhead, though.

That's fabulous! So much to do in your own space! :D

I'm up way before them. When the 11yo wakes up, she reads. When the 7yos wake up, they make silly noises and fight amongst themselves. At some point I call them down (or they come down on their own) and everybody eats and starts school.