What she said. Each fellowship ideally should be guarded by a plurality of elders. This is not what you see in many mainstream American churches, but it is what is modeled in the New Testament.

Pfffft. No WAY. Zee learned to read when he was three from watching Leap Frog videos. No lie.

It really does sound like gallstones. I had them. Had my gallbladder out. They HURT! I did get an attack to stop once (before I had my gallbladder out) by doing a backbend type stretch. I Think it dislodged the stone or something. But I would definitely get your gallbladder checked out asap.

Anyone want to chime in? As I shared here, my dad had a heart attack in August, and is finally home. But dad is (almost) 56, and mom is 54. Not old at all. But mom is dealing with HER parents, who are mid 80's. They're refusing to move to assisted living, their health is deteriorating, there's issues with them driving, etc. I hear mom pour her heart out to me about things, about how hard this is, how tricky it is to deal with this issues with her parents. And I keep thinking 'Oh. My. Word. Is this me and you in thirty years?!' Are there conversations I should be having with mom and dad NOW that will help? Should I just come out and ask mom 'So hey mom, what do you want me to do if and when you're driving becomes dangerous? And what should I do if you and dad are no longer safe living alone, but you refuse to move to a facility?' Anyone done this? I mean, if there's things I can do NOW that will make it easier on all of us in the future, I'd like to do it. I'm thinking of making a list of questions, talking to mom and dad about them, then writing down their answers and saving it all. That way, if these things come up again in the future, I have those papers to pull out and say 'Hey, mom and dad, remember when you told me what I should do if blah blah blah happened? See, I have it right here what you said I should do. Well, I need to do that now..." I don't know if I'm making sense. I just see the difficult spot my mom is in with her parents, and want to avoid that if I can.

Kristin, if you were looking for some dinner ideas that would fill him up without meat, I would suggest Stuffed Shells. We love those, and they're plenty filling because of the cheese. We don't miss the meat, and we're a meat-loving family. I actually use this manicotti recipe, but I stuff the filling into those jumbo shells instead of manicotti tubes because the shells are easier. :p For breakfast, would he eat eggs instead of meat? Still animal protein, but less expensive. In the end, you might just have to keep feeding him meat. :D

I think many of us could say the same thing. I know we sure are in the same boat. We got each of the little boys two gifts, plus one to share. And we really had to research and dig to come up with THAT much. Zee refused to give me even ONE idea of what he wanted. He insists that he neither needs nor wants *anything*. I told him 'well, then daddy and I will just pick you out a few surprises'. He liked that idea. :)

We got ds9 this remote controlled helicopter. Dh says Air Hogs are the best brand to get. I think he'll really like it. We also got Ds7 and ds9 a lego set to share. They too have a TON of Legos, but they do always like getting a new set. We got them the Lego Creator Seaside House. We really like sets from both the Creator and City lines. (Just feel the need to add here that we did not pay these prices. We did a lot of searching and found great deals.) We are also getting ds9 Minecraft for his computer.

I've never been on pinterest... :leaving:

Mergath, you're no monster. My mom abandoned me as a child. If I found out today that she was dying in the hospital, I don't think I'd go. And i don't think that makes me a monster.

THIS. Mergath, do what YOU need. Or, you can go see him if that's what your stepmom tells you that's what *he* needs. But that's up to you. I'm a big softie; if stepmom told me dad was asking for me, I'd probably go. But we don't know your story, and perhaps that's not what's right for YOU. Either way, this is not a situation where other people's opinions about what you do should matter.

This is what I was thinking, too. Covers for those huge headphones that are so popular right now.

Would he take (and eat) a lunch every day if you packed it for him? Just an idea.

Every year, dh's office has a big holiday party where everyone brings food. The last two years I've made cake pops, and (not to toot my own horn or anything, lol) there's no way I can top the cute ones I made last year. :p So I need a new idea. Anyone have any cute holiday treat ideas?

Ok, I cannot figure out how to post a picture!!

I think mom and dad will like it. The picture is awful. I promise, it looks nice IRL. It's a picture frame with two openings. On the top is a photo my aunt took of my parents just a few days before my dad had his hear attack back in August. On the bottom is a piece of paper my dad wrote on the day he had his heart attack. It doesn't show in the picture, but it says "I'm more concerned about her than me". My dad was so out of breath that he had to write, but he was more worried about my mom than himself. I hope they like it. :) I thought I'd share with the hive, since you all have been through so much with my dad's heart attack and all.

Yep. I get up in the morning with dh. I fix his breakfast and pack his lunch (and warm up his car if it's cold) while he gets ready for work. He eats his breakfast in the car on the way to work everyday. Of course I wish he'd sit down and eat here, but that's not gonna happen. :p I am CONSTANTLY trying to come up with new ideas of what to pack dh for breakfast or lunch. Mostly lunch; He doesn't like the standard cold cut or pb&j sandwiches.

Yeeeeeeeah. I agree. But after 11 years, I've given up that fight.

Dh uses my facebook account. So yes, he sees dss's posts, too. I just happened to see it first. You know, you're probably right. Dss is usually really good about respecting our rules despite not agreeing with them. Thanks for helping me remember that we all make bad choices sometimes. I just hope this helps him to actually avoid doing things like this, instead of just getting sneakier, you know? 'Cause as a teenager myself, a situation like this would only make me think 'Man, I gotta cover my tracks better next time'. Yeah, I guess I wasn't a very good kid. Hunh. No, he didn't forget dh and I could see; having me on his friends list and able to see all his posts was the compromise we made in allowing him fb access at our house. And yes, to say there are different standards at his mother's than at our house would be, um, an understatement. I realized that doesn't make life easier on dss. But I fully believe kids can learn to follow different rules depending on who's authority they're under at the time. Not to mention, having two households with different rules isn't anything new to dss; he's never known any different. I'd even go so far as to guess that MOST kids in the two household situation deal with that to at least some extent. I know I did as a kid.

I'm irritated. To put it mildly. Dss15 just posted something on facebook that is SO not appropriate. It is the lyrics to a song that A) I can't believe he listens to and B)He should at LEAST have known better than to post the lyrics, seeing as I'm on his friend list and would of course see the post. So this demonstrates, IMO, that dss has very poor judgement. And YES, the boy KNEW we would not approve of the song. When I asked him if he would like us all to sit down in the living room so that he could read his brothers the lyrics, he got a 'deer in the headlights' look and shook his head no. He never in a million years would be under the assumption that this sort of thing is acceptable to dh and I. It is SOO far from any sort of entertainment we allow in our home that it's not even funny. Dh has not quite decided how to handle this. I say we should take away internet access. Period. I'm telling you what, if this had been one of MY boys, maaaaaan would they be catching some grief from me; which would only *begin* with no internet access. I think my tongue is swollen from how hard I had to bite it to not lay into dss. I'm disappointed in dss. And at the same time, dh and I ultimately have to answer for what dss does in our home. Which is why I say no internet access, except for school use, which would have to be done at the kitchen table. Dh does not seem to agree. And since it's HIS son, my opinion holds little to no weight. Dh DOES parent dss differently than the little boys, because of the nature of their relationship (dss is only here part time, etc). I'm frustrated, irritated, annoyed, disappointed, and sad. I dunno. Maybe I just needed to vent.

Earlier today, I had to exchange a pair of shoes at Kohls. I bought my dh the wrong size. They didn't have the size I needed out on the shelf, so I found the associate working in the shoe department. She went to the back and got me the size I needed. I realize that should be normal, but I find it rare. Usually no one wants to bother with checking, so you get the ol' "We only have what's out" line.

Dad is home!! Woooooooooooooooooooot! :party: <--------- That's me doin' a happy dance! Now I just gotta get me, Moose, and Zee over our colds, and we can go see him..... at HOME! I'm just gonna mention here that he had his heart attack on August 20. So, it's been 107 days that dad's been in the hospital or nursing home. That's a LONG time. I can't wait to see him at home. :)

Mom just texted me that dad is being discharged tonight, and is going home! I'm excited and nervous.

They're saying dad won't nned surgery. Right now we're just waiting.

Well we don't do Christmas. So I'll sit with ya, OP. :D

I donated a kidney to my sister 10 years ago. :grouphug: to your family, I'm sure it will all turn out fine.