I was about to say the same thing. :)

:iagree:

First, I think it's commendable that you are considering your MIL's feelings in all of this. Your 14yo SIL is your MIL's child, and I'm glad you are seeing that it's MIL's call and not yours nor your dh's, even though the child is his sister. It doesn't matter whether you think she should be allowed to read Harry Potter. Her mom said no, and that should settle it. You get to decide for your children, but not for hers. Second, my dh & I are also conservative, like your MIL, and we did not allow our children to read Harry Potter when they were young. We chose to wait until our youngest was 15, and then we read the books aloud together as a family. If someone had secretly provided them with an audiobook, knowing that it was against my wishes, I would have been LIVID, no matter who it was. You and your dh must ask yourselves how you would feel if someone provided one of your children with the means to disobey you regarding something about which you feel strongly. Third, if my 14yo accepted the audiobook and listened to it in spite of me, I would have been even more upset. I think it is wrong, wrong, wrong for your dh to encourage the girl to disobey their mother. It makes no difference that he is her brother. He is an adult, and he should know better. And if someone knew about it and said nothing, that makes that person an accomplice, and he/she would no longer have my respect or trust, particularly if it turned out that this person lied by claiming, "I didn't know a thing about it." :iagree: with everything Jean said.

...and everyone in the church is invited. This is usually for a couple who is "high profile"--the pastor, music minister, youth minister, deacon/elder, etc. or some member of their immediate family. For example, the pastor's daughter had a baby about a year and a half ago, and the church gave her and her husband a baby shower, although the daughter is now living in another state and attending a church there with her minister-husband. The young mother grew up in the church, and everyone thought of her as one of their own. When "regular people" ;) who are members of the church have babies, it is usually their Sunday School class or some other church organization that hosts the shower, and everyone in the church is invited. It is usually held in the church fellowship hall. In both instances I've described, a baby shower is given regardless of how many babies the family has had. When a non-member, even a long-time attendee, is having a baby, there is generally no baby shower. Of course, around here you don't often see people attend for a long time without becoming members. People tend to either visit for a short time (a month or so) and then they either join or move on to visit somewhere else.

What I mean by this is that when the ACLU condemns group A, it is perceived to be defending group B. When they condemn group B, they are thought to be defending group A. Take a look here and here for a little bit of what I'm talking about.

I love it! You've inspired me!

I think the reason the ACLU garners so much hatred is that is that while its purpose (to "defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and laws of the United States guarantee everyone in this country"--quoted from their website) sounds noble in theory, in practice, it's next to impossible to uphold everyone's rights at the same time. So instead of helping everyone, the ACLU tends to come across as being against everyone.

:iagree:

:iagree: Yep, that's how it is here in Georgia. :) My Michingander grandparents call it all "pop". I remember that as a kid, I thought that was hilarious the first time I heard it.

Chrystynna, pronounced "Kristina", so maybe I was more prepared than some. However, I went to school (60s & 70s) with a girl named Kytherania, pronounced "Katrina". That one I never did figure out. Her mom was a well-educated woman--a teacher, even.

You're probably right, and I imagine that my foray into textual criticism could evolve into a quest that takes many years to complete. I do have a little bit of an advantage already: my dh & I both studied Christian theology in college, and we both hold bachelor's degrees in that subject. Dh also holds a bachelor's degree in Latin (and I've studied it at the high school level, but I'm not nearly as versed in it as dh is). Dh is a minister and seminary graduate, and he studied Greek and Hebrew in seminiary. He will be an invaluable resource! He has already shared all of his textbooks and materials with me, and believe it or not, topics like textual criticism are a normal part of dinner table conversation in our family. ;) I've never really delved into it deeply, however, and I'd really love to do that.

Okay, maybe I should say that I am willing to read a book (or information on a website) that has bias as long as the authors give evidence for their position, and not just slam the opposition for believing differently.

Thanks, Denise. This is something I've been wanting to do for several months, but I've had to put it off until we finished school for the year. I'm very interested in textual criticism, but I want to be sure the sources I use for my research are reputable.

I've listened with interest to many debates about which Bible is the best/most accurate English translation, and I want to research for myself to find out when/where/why/how the various versions were translated. I want to find out about source material and who the translators were, as well as what their motivations were. Got any good, unbiased website or book recommendations for me?

:lol: So cute!

:iagree: However, one of my good friends actually thinks that they do. :glare: Her dd works 2 grade levels ahead of where she would be if she were in ps, and the mom has always put her up two levels in everything else as well. For example, at church, the mom insisted that her dd be in the youth group (6th grade through high school) "because she's in 6th grade" when she was 9 years old! I never could get the mom to understand that in situations like that, the girl needed to be with kids her age instead of with kids who were on her grade level. I can't imagine that the teens in their church were too thrilled to have a 9 year old tagging along on all their events.

Yep. :iagree: Sheesh!

Who does the deciding?

Me too. :(

:001_huh: WOW!

:iagree: Very well-put. :)

If you have 2nd edition Apologia Chemistry, look in your Solutions and Tests manual on page vi. All of the Apologia courses have a section in their Solutions and Tests manual on how to grade that particular course.

I saw this story on The Weather Channel. So, so sad! Even the Weather Channel anchor (I think it was Kim Cunningham) was crying.

:iagree:

I put a pork loin in the crockpot, fat side up. I salt & pepper it, add maybe 1/2 cup or so of water, then cook overnight on low. The next day, I remove the fat and then use a fork to pull off chunks of meat. We all like difference barbecue sauces, so we add our choice of sauce as desired after it is served onto our plates.