I sent you a pm. :)

OH wow. How in the WORLD do you get any sleep at all? I'd never be able to put up with all that... No advice here, I've never had any experience with anything even close to what you described. But I hope you get it figured out; it stressed me out just reading it! :grouphug:

Dawn, we house church, too! Yes, I would've been embarrassed if my husband said that. But not, like, super embarrassed. We've both (dh and I) said things that came out wrong before during fellowship; that's 'cause we're human. Everyone understands. Try to let it roll off your back. I doubt that he meant it directed towards YOU. Frankly, I don't even know if my husband can tell the difference between when I am and am not wearing makeup, kwim? I wear very subtle, natural makeup when I do wear it. Perhaps, I dunno, if someone asked your husband if you 'painted' your face, he would say 'no'. I really think men and women define 'makeup' differently. Isn't it crazy how worked up some people can get about something so small (me included! :))

:iagree: Hey! I agree with Joanne! See Joanne, we can find some common ground! ;)

I'm with Hillary. I wouldn't let him earn it back for today. He's old enough to understand, and you told him clearly that: choosing to disobey mom by not getting dressed = no Wii today That's easy, he got it. To me, it was a very appropriate consequence. He just didn't obey. I bet that if this same situation happens next time you need him to get dressed, he'll remember that mom did indeed hold true to her word, and he'd be more inclined to get dressed when told to. Imagine if you let him 'earn back' Wii today. Do you think your 'get dressed now or no Wii today' will work next time? Man, being mom is hard. But I believe we make it harder when we don't follow through on our word. :grouphug: Just my two cents.

My son is five, and is two years ahead in math/reading/language arts (see signature). That said, our LA program had us starting cursive a few months ago. We are skipping it. Just because he can 'think' like a second grader doesn't mean he can 'do' like a second grader, ya know? I think his motor skills aren't ready. Frankly, his printing is not so great, unless he's really trying to be neat. But, that's ok. He's five. I figure he'll learn cursive in a few years, when he's physically ready. Isn't that the great thing about homeschool, that we can tailor it to each child's needs? Well, I mean ONE of the great things about homeschool. :)

Hey, why don't you tell us what's on your mind, AndyJoy? How's the pregnancy going? And Bill, you're too funny. :lol:

Oh you poor thing! I'm so glad baby is ok. How terrifying that must have been, for both of you! I've never fallen while holding one of mine; shocking, really, since I'm not the most graceful creature. Let's hope you have a less eventful weekend, ok? :001_smile:

I've lost 23 pounds since January 1. It wasn't a New Year's resolution or anything. Actually, we got the children a Wii Fit for Christmas. Man, it's hard to see your weight up there on the tv screen, kwim? Anyway, the major things I've been doing differently: I aim to eat 5 times a day, about 2 1/2 hours apart. This is great for my metabolism. I loathe exercise, but doing the Wii Fit is actually fun. And I make a point of playing outside with my boys as often as possible. I keep track of every calorie I eat. I write it down. That way, no 'cheating' I don't eat sweets. Well, I eat very few sweets. :) We now eat brown rice instead of white, 100% whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat crackers, and lots more fresh fruit and vegetables than before. Basically, I've revamped the family's eating habits. Surprisingly, everyone seems to be enjoying it! I quit drinking pop. I had a BAD pop habit. I'd drink at least two glasses a day. I was addicted to the caffiene. That one feels great to be done with. I do still have it every once in a while as a treat, but it's one glass every week or two. I have set a goal of calories-per-day for myself. Obviously, this is different for everyone, depending on things like level of physical activity, etc. I never, NEVER eat after dinner. Not even a 'tiny' snack. Nothing at all except water. And, here in the midwest, we eat dinner early. Dinner is on the table when my husband gets home from work at 5pm. And I usually try to go to bed around 11. So that's 6 hours between dinner and bed. This has been the biggest struggle for me, but it was a bad habit that I needed to break. Hope something here helps. The main thing is to keep it up; you'll be healthier if you eat healthier and exercise, plain and simple; no matter if the scale moves or not.

Ok Dawn, can you tell me WHY though?

OK, I think my son would more than agree with this. :) Well, I still don't quite understand what causes it, but at least I know it's not like he's the only person that it happens to. We did recently find the world's best pediatrician, so I'm gonna have to ask her. Oh! He'll be having a well visit soon, since he turns 6 next month. That is, if I can remember to schedule it. :tongue_smilie: Anyone ever find a cure to it? Something to do to prevent the coughing?

Well, first of all, I'm so glad to hear that it's not unheard of. :) Other cold things do not seem to have this affect on him. Like I said, he can eat a popsicle no problem, and I've never noticed him coughing when he goes outside to play when it's cold. And we do know cold here in Michigan. :tongue_smilie: I never thought of asthma. He did used to have eczema, but seems to have outgrown it this year. I mention that because I know they are related. My stepson has both asthma and eczema. That's something I'll have to research more...

Everytime my ds, who is almost 6, eats ice cream, he coughs. A lot. The whole. entire. time. he's. eating. I've asked him if the ice cream bothers him, he says 'no'. I ask him if it's too cold, he says 'no'. He LOVES ice cream; I dare say it's his favorite treat. At first, I thought maybe a dairy allergy. But he can eat, say, a bowl of cereal with cow's milk on it, and not one cough. Or even drink a glass of cow's milk, eat a yogurt, a string cheese; nothing else seems to do this to him. The other day, when we had a freakishly warm afternoon, he had a popsicle outside. Not a single cough. It seems to have come one recently, or at least I just recently noticed it. Seems hard to imagine, though, he's been doing this for years and I just now noticed. Any one with experience or advice? I realize it's not a huge deal, but it's just strange, kwim?

I did something similar a few weeks ago. I had a head cold, and the congestion was just hanging on forever. One of my ears just would not clear up. Soooo, I decided to 'pop' it by holding my nose plugged, and trying to blow air through it at the same time; you know, it builds up the pressure in your sinuses, and 'pops' your ear. Well, it popped alright. It hurt so bad, I thought I would have to go to the emergency room. This was just before bed. I was up until around 4am, surfing the net, crying, and trying to figure out what to do. What finally helped was laying down with that ear pressed right on top of a heating pad. It worked very well; in fact, I think I fell asleep withing 1/2 hour. When I woke up in the morning, my ear was fine. I hope you find relief soon; ear pain is the worst in my book.

I think your title is cute; all the exclamation points make it look like you've been eating too much maple sugar... :D The class sounds like fun! A friend of mine just mentioned that there's one at a nature center near us; maybe we'll check it out!

Nope, not my children. I don't think they allow anyone under a certain age to be a living donor of organs anyway; I believe you have to be 18 for that. I don't know the age requirements for bone marrow donation, but in that case, it would have to be a sibling or someone else they were very close with (maybe a cousin?), and then it would still depend on their age/maturity to make that decision. But for me? I am a living organ donor. My sister has my left kidney. :) Many transplant teams/hospitals will not do stranger donation for living organ donors. I believe the reason is that they fear there must be something else involved (like the stranger has offered to pay for the organ, etc). My sister did a research paper on the subject. But no, I would not donate an organ to a stranger. As far as bone marrow, I would donate to a stranger, but would not allow my children to. No. That's just not fair to the person needing donation. Of course, I may be tested, then if they found me to be a match, there may be a reason why I can't donate. But that's different. As far as cadaver donation, I have made it clear to my dh that I want everything donated that can be used. And if I ever were faced with the horrible decision, I would make the same decision on my children's behalf.

I don't know where you find it, by my stepchildren have a program called Finale Notepad that they love. It came on the old computer that my sister passed on to us. You could try Googling it? I know the kids love it here; they're 11 and 14.

A verse for you: Phil. 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. I will pray. :grouphug:

If this is something you'd like to do every year on their birthdays, I would suggest things like: What is the neatest/coolest thing you learned since your last birthday? What is the funnest thing you've done/favorite place you went since your last birthday? What would you like to learn/do/see before your next birthday? And (if you're a believer), What's one thing God has taught you since your last birthday? This is a cute idea. :001_smile: Thanks for sharing it with us.

This is a wonderful idea. I'd love it if a friend of mine gave me a bag of walnuts. But, maybe I'm strange that way. :D

What about this for think? Or this is kinda cute. Or this.

We love to add bbq sauce and have bbq beef sandwiches. Yummy...

:iagree: Umm, yeah, what she said.

:iagree: Bill, while I always respect your right to have your opinion, I rarely agree with it. But this time, I actually do. :)

Ginger, It is true about what Wilkerson did in the time before 9-11. I'm sure others will disagree, but my dh and I count David Wilkerson as one of the greatest living men of God that we know. We listen to his sermons regularly. Yes, we took his warning seriously. He is speaking the same thing that has recently been on the hearts of several good Brothers that dh and I know personally. The best thing I can say is, be still and know that HE is GOD. Blessings, Bethany