Phonics is outdated? Really? So, all those studies that show that the sight reading/whole word reading is not as successful as phonics are just written by nut jobs? :001_huh:

LOL! You PAID for this experience? Seriously, I would have had a hard time not telling her where to go and how to get there, and I'm generally quiet and non-confrontational (outside my immediate family). And I'm still trying to puzzle out what kind of "professional" you saw. No matter what she was, I probably would have complained to her manager-supervisor (whatever) about her lack of professionalism.

I hear this when I complain about the kids or not getting a break. He's taught lessons, and he's very good at it (except grammar), with the exception that he doesn't follow a progression of topics. He teaches random things without considering what a child of our children's level needs to be learning. I also know that while he might to a fine job of teaching, he won't do everything I do. Either the house will be really clean with minimal schooling, or the house will not be clean with lots of schooling. It's very frustrating. He complains about his job, I should be allowed to do the same on occasion.

For emergency housing assistance you could try the Salvation Army. They helped us to get our rent paid once when we suffered a loss of income during Hurricane season. Also have your friend contact her county's Public Housing. Some of them have emergency housing facilities, or know of an organization that does.

I had mine done at Piercing Pagoda when I turned 12. I do think they are nicer than Claires. Someone mentioned Icing, and if that is related to the Icing where I live, that is also nicer and more professional than Claire's. My first earrings were something hypo-allergenic, because my mom had issues with earrings. Later I discovered I could wear cheaper jewellery without a problem. Now that I'm older I'm more sensitive to the cheap stuff.

Sign me up!

I save a lot of money by buying meat in large quantities when it's on sale. I also save by making our own bread products; breads, biscuits, muffins. If you have a backyard, plant a garden. Dry beans are less expensive than canned beans. We don't eat a lot of processed foods. We did it for health reasons, but it's actually turned out to be quite a money saver. I make my own salad dressing, barbecue sauce, enchilada sauce, and more. Don't buy jarred tomato sauces. I make tomato sauce from tomato paste. I can of paste plus two cans of water and the seasonings of your choice. I usually start by sautéing some garlic and onions in olive oil, then add the paste and water gradually, along with my spices. Avoiding soda and juice can save a lot of money too.

I had a situation where we were getting debt collection calls, at all hours of the day, for someone who either previously had our phone number (even though we've had this number for 4 years) or was giving out our phone number as their own. At one point, the calls became too frequent for me to tolerate. I told the collection agency numerous times that we were not the people they were trying to contact and to stop calling us, but they wouldn't stop. I finally contacted our police department. They sent out an office to take a statement and file a report. The officer then went outside to his car and telephoned the collection agency in question and told them, after viewing my drivers license, that I was not the party they were attempting to reach and that they needed to stop calling my home immediately. He also got a name and phone number for a Supervisor at the collection agency and told me that if I got any more calls from them I should call her directly and report it, and that if she didn't resolve the issue, I should call the police back again. I haven't had a problem since that day.

I like this one too. It's one of the few kids movies that I don't dread the kids popping in.

Thank you!

2 no's male age 45 female age 38

I agree with all of the above. I usually prefer fairer men.

Leaning-towards-carnivore...I love it! That pretty much sums me up too.

Owen has become obsessed with the white board in the past few days. Yesterday he got black dry erase marker on his favorite shirt. It's off-white. How do I get the marker out of the shirt?

Another yawner. And long bedtime stories often put ME to sleep.

They also whip more air into the ice cream now than they used to. You are getting less ice cream and more air. We've been making our own ice cream for at least 2 years now. I've actually lost track.

Wow, the quoted sounds exactly like our house. Dad got a new video game and everyone wants to play. I have used this to my advantage. You get all your school work and chores done in a reasonable amount of time without any complaining, you can have a dollar (for the Medieval Faire this summer) or 45 minutes playing on the computer. I'm setting a timer for each assignment. They have an allotted amount of time to do their assignments. Anything not done when the timer goes off becomes "homework" to be completed after I'm done teaching all the lessons for the day. The school work is getting done. The chores are getting done. Life is good. I got some new coloring books and dug out the play dough for the 3 1/2 year old. I've also got Leap Frog videos. Can you find something to use as an incentive for getting the work done?

I won't use a dentist that won't allow me to be present.

If it was my own child that refused the lunch, he could go hungry. If snack was real food (cheese, crackers, grapes, etc.), he would be offered snack. If snack is a treat (cookies, jello), no snack because you didn't eat lunch. If it's a child I'm babysitting, I would offer peanut butter and jelly in place of the prepared lunch. I would also talk to the parents and make a plan for future situations like this.

LOVE the dress. Very classy. Very elegant. Not gawdy or too much poof. It was actually quite a bit more plain than what I was expecting.

LOL! Here I was thinking a mango was a new device like a Blackberry, or Kindle. I'm so out of the loop with new gadgetry.

Wow, I don't remember writing this, but it sounds JUST LIKE ME!

I'm the same way. The problem for me occurs this time of year. I look best in earth tones. This time of year everyone is selling pale pink, turquoise and other pastels, or lime green, which do nothing but make me look awful. I don't like busy prints. In fact, I don't care for printed tops. I like a solid color on top. When I'm going casual, it's boot leg jeans, boots, and a fitted solid color tee shirt. I prefer to be more dressed up and pretty. I love A-line skirts, of all lengths. I love to wear heels. I have several pairs of tall boots, which I miss terribly in the summer. I prefer my boots to sandals. I'm actually more at ease in heels than tennis shoes, and the few inches of extra height are a plus, I'm only 5'3". I don't like loose baggy clothing on me. It makes me feel sloppy. I don't wear big clunky jewelry, but I do like to have some jewelry on at all times. At home I wear yoga pants and fitted tee shirts. I don't really like to wear shorts, but sometimes it's necessary. Camping and hiking in skirts is a bit ridiculous. I can't stand really long shorts, or really short shorts. Do you have any idea how difficult it has become to get something somewhere in between?

Our children's behavior frequently gets complimented when we are out, and most especially at restaurants, from both the staff and other customers. Often times they are not even behaving to our standards. We are always surprised to hear it, especially when we feel their behavior was not their best. Do other children really behave that badly in public, or do people just have really low expectations of children?

I just told my kids that 30 minutes ago. I couldn't get into the room, again, to collect laundry. I'm done. If you can't keep your room clean, you must have too much stuff. My time limit was actually by dinnertime on Saturday.