Oh, I didn't mean to give the impression that I don't use processed foods at all. I don't like to serve a frozen/processed entree for supper, but I do serve fish sticks or chicken strips/nuggets some days for lunch. For supper, I usually cook a meal that requires using an actual recipe to prepare fresh meat and vegetables, as well as pasta or rice, but do I use some processed items. That would include cream of chicken soup and canned vegetables & fruits as called for in the recipe.

I do a lot better at Salvation Army than at Goodwill. At Goodwill, it's $1.99 for most kids' books; for adult books, it's $1.99 for paperbacks and $2.99 for most hardcovers. Some of the thick, nice quality hardcovers are $5.99 or higher. Textbooks are $3.99. DVD's are $3.99 and CD's are $1.99. Our local Salvation Army sells children's books for 15 cents. Adult books are 39 cents for paperback and 79 cents for hardcover. Adult clothing is $2.49 for tops and $2.99 for bottoms. Kid clothing is $1.49 for tops and $1.99 for bottoms. CD's & DVD's vary, but are usually about $1.

EK did it the year she turned 13 and she LOVED it. It was through the NLJC (http://www.nljc.com/). We are definitely NOT wealthy; in fact, we are just the opposite. It was a strain for us to come up with the $250 fee. But EK did get to meet with other girls (and a few boys) about her age, and she learned some dances and party etiquette. They met once a month and had two dances, a Winter Ball and a Spring Ball. She thoroughly enjoyed it and wanted to do it another year, but there weren't enough people signed up to have another class.

The only years I would classify as "difficult" are 1) the year that my dad died (EK was in 6th grade & EK was in 1st grade) 2) ER's senior year (because of all the college & transcript paperwork) 3) ER's first year in college (because I had a very hard time dealing with the transition)

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:iagree: ER's very favorite lunch ever is sloppy joes with tater tots. EK's is fish sticks with macaroni & cheese. I add some kind of fresh fruit and voila, there's lunch. We don't eat them regularly--maybe once a month or so--so I don't see a problem with it. I also don't do processed frozen foods for supper; I have to cook a "real" meal then. I buy "Taters" (that's the name on the package) in the BIG bag at Walmart. The Walmart brand tater tots taste better than the others we've tried. They crisp up very nicely when baked. So do the fish sticks; we like the "Portside" brand of fish sticks from Save-A-Lot--cheap and tasty!

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ing? I'm particularly interested in blogs by "regular moms", not professional chefs/caterers, cooking for 3-5 people.

:iagree: Me too! :lol:

:iagree: and :grouphug:

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:iagree: although I doubt either of my kids would've bothered to count them.

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I did see the threads you mentioned, and I knew you must be hurting. I have wondered how you were doing. I'm glad to hear from you that you're working things out. Praying you will find healing and peace.

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For 2 years, I've been teaching the dd of a friend as well as my own dd. It's difficult at times because the girls are 4 grade levels apart; this year my dd is in 11th grade and my other student is in 7th. After my dd graduates, my plan is to have a small group (maybe 4) middle school girls--preferable the same grade level--to teach in my home.

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This is what I take. I can't swallow those huge fish oil capsules, and these little krill oil capsules are great. As for the benefit, here's what I've found through my research: •Krill contains omega-3 fatty acids but without the high concentrations of things like heavy metals. •Krill oil contains an antioxidant called astaxanthin which isn't found in fish oil. •Krill also has Vitamin D and Vitamin A which isn't found in fish oil.

Dh & I were married for 10 years when our first was born; that allowed us time to get to know each other and to get established before we had children. I always wanted only 2 children, one boy & one girl, in that order, which is exactly what we have. I had my son when I was 29 (3 months before my 30th birthday), and I had my daughter when I was 33 (13 days before my 34th birthday). I had wanted to be finished having children by the time I was 35.

Thanks! That's what I've been told by others too. I'm having EK read the tips & strategies from the Rocket Review book and Cracking the SAT, but working the practice tests from the College Board "blue book".

I haven't really gotten into it either. I joined a few months ago, and I've pinned exactly ONE item. I don't want people following me--I just want to keep reminders for myself--so I set my profile so that no one can see it but me.

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We live in central Georgia in a semi-rural area. We sometimes lock our doors, but not always, and we NEVER lock our cars when we're home. (I very rarely lock my car even when I go into town to do errands. If someone wants to get in badly enough, a locked door isn't going to stop them; they'd just break the window and get in anyway.) If I'm home alone or if dh is at work & it's just EK and me, I'll usually lock the front door because sometimes delivery people think our sunroom is actually a porch, and they'll come right in to drop off packages or mail. It's a bit startling to have someone walk right into your house. :) We usually lock our doors when we go to bed, but not always. There have been plenty of times that dh lost his keys, and after searching everywhere else, we finally found them hanging in the lock on the front door. Once, we went out of town for a week and forgot to lock the back door, but everything was fine when we got back.

I get where you're coming from with the Duggars--since they can afford to eat better--but some people really have very little choice. There have been times when I had to "skimp on nutrition" so that I could "save a buck" because we needed every "buck" I could scrounge in order to keep a roof over our heads. We had meals that were way too heavy on carbs and way too light on protein because I had to do what I could to stretch things, especially meat, so I added a lot of pasta or rice or potatoes because they were cheaper. When I could, I added beans for protein, and we ate a lot of peanut butter too (still do).