I'm sorry. He sounds like he was a lovely pet.

I am so sorry. It is so hard. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

Thinking about this, since I have all boys. For me, it's about the ability to protect themselves. I worry less, in general, about my 5'10" 170 pounder than I do my 5'7" 120 pounder, just because one looks like an easier target. I know I'd worry more if I had daughters.

What are your concerns, exactly? I'd probably make a list, and then realistically evaluate them to make sure they're legit before I told him no. A lot of times I don't like the idea of my boys doing something, but often the reason is actually that I won't have control over a situation or, if I'm honest, I'm simply uncomfortable with the idea that they're growing up and are young men instead of my little boys. And my being uncomfortable isn't a reason to stop them from doing something that's actually (relatively) safe.

:iagree: I wouldn't automatically say no if the logistics worked for our family. I'd want to Facetime the mom and make sure there's an "escape plan" if things go poorly or if he feels uncomfortable at any time. I'd probably want to Facetime with the friend a bit, too. And after I did that, if I had no heeby-jeebies, I'd let him go. The two 17 year olds I've had so far have been level headed and responsible, so that might color my perspective.

Have you looked at Old Western Culture?

I agree. It really sounds like something's off. My first thought at the OP was that MIL was moving in but didn't know how to tell them. I do hope all is actually well and she's just being weird. Open ended visits are the worst.

Does the VHSG have the incremental practice of Saxon built in to their problem sets? Or are the problems for each lesson simply what was studied that day? It'd be great if my boys were able to get more immediate feedback, but not at the expense of the mixed practice.

Does the VHS have the incremental practice built in to their problem sets? Or are the problems for each lesson simply what was studied that day? I keep forgetting about VHS, but like you I'm horrible at giving immediate feedback. But I can't tell if they have the spiral, incremental practice built in like the books. (Sorry, I don't really have an answer to your question.)

That's how I taught my oldest. I used a pastel/light colored marker to write things for him to trace. He had beautiful penmanship.

Another Courtney (and my maiden name began with a B :lol:) who loves the Amazon card from Chase. I use the reward points on everything from books to shoes for the boys or myself to home decor to earbuds and everything in between. I just used points to get a couple new Contigo coffee cups this morning :D.

Will you be seeing a specialist? It's possible it's something called autoimmune hepatitis. Mine presented non-traditionally, and I remember the liver specialist saying he'd think fatty liver, except it made no sense given the rest of my health. It's uncommon. When I was dxed, I was 1 stage away from cirrhosis (3) and I just had a biopsy last year and I'm down to stage 1 for both inflammation and scarring. I'm on a daily immune suppressant and have been for 7 years. They ended up dxing me by saying "try this. If your labwork improves, it's AIH." I'm sorry about the horrible day.

I use my Pampered Chef glazed stoneware pans for everything, including brownies (the only reason I don't use them for cake is I never make a 9x13 cake). They look so much prettier than glass for serving. The PC is out of your price range, but I don't know about the brand you mentioned; I was mostly just letting you know I bake in mine. That said, my second choice is glass.

I've been told ice, not heat, even though heat might feel good, for the first 24-48 hours after injury. Something about the cold helps to reduce inflammation and promote healing. 20 minutes on/20 off. I'm sorry you're hurting. Found this link: http://blog.gameready.com/blog/bid/355550/heat-or-cold-which-is-best-for-back-strain-treatment

Just a note that it's the multi-cooker and not the popular pressure cookers.

Aww, that's a sweet memory and it'd be hard to give the car up. Can you find some potential replacement cars that are $3300 and show your dh? I think for $3-$4000 you can get something better than the Saturn. (Ds18 is still saving for a car, so I look periodically because the juggling is insane with 5 who are never going the same direction and 3 drivers and 2 cars).

If that's the case, and it really can't be driven, I'd replace.

I agree. I'd leave it alone and drive it until it died. Start saving money for a replacement.

It's an old family recipe that consists of whatever they can find to eat :lol:. It's different from leftovers because I really don't care what it is. My guys aren't huge leftover fans, so leftover night isn't a favorite. But they love whatevers night :D.

Homemade pizza Whatevers Pulled pork Sliders Leftovers Ravioli Pancakes and sausage (It's a horrible overlap of wrestling, track, and football workouts, so it's easy stuff for dinners for awhile. And food my skinny, always trying to bulk up athletes will eat.)

My boys have never really had early enough bedtimes for it to matter.

Does he drink juice? If so, would he drink that? I'm sorry he's giving you such a rough go. FWIW, I had a few who wouldn't drink milk, but they'd drink "chocolate" milk. I only put a tiny amount in--they liked it when my Mom visited and made it for them because she made brown chocolate milk as opposed to my white chocolate milk :lol: .

My thought was low blood sugar as well. I'd try having a cup of milk and a little snack that he loves ready. I might even try waking him up (which goes against what I normally do), cheerfully, and sitting with him on my lap while giving him the snack, maybe even turning on whatever it is little guys watch these days. Distract him, cuddle him, and give him some nutrients. Honestly, if that didn't work, I'd consider going hard line on him. I'd talk to him before he went to sleep, and tell him when he woke up he didn't need to cry, and if he did, he'd have to stay in his room until he was done. Of course, you know him best and this might be an awful idea. When ds18 was a toddler, he'd sit on my lap, watch Clifford, and drink some milk. Ds14 used to wake up and thump down each stair on his bottom and demand milk with every thump "Mommy! Milk! I want milk!" (thump) "Milk! Mommy!".

Nope. *Sigh*

We're around $5K/year on two vehicles with 3 drivers. 1999 Saturn and a 2005 Odyssey (this gets almost all the miles, which is over 100/week). There's no way we could taxi/Uber for less than owning/fueling/maintaining/insuring the two vehicles.