It is a good idea to test these & change batteries in them when you change your clocks.

I gave my kids our old digital camera when we upgraded to a newer, smaller one. They all caught on to it very quickly. I was surprised at how good their pictures turned out. My kids were used to looking at their picture on the camera screen after I took it, so a kids camera with viewfinder would not have been a natural progression for them. Now my sons save up their money to get their pictures "developed" instead of just seeing them on the computer. So, my advice is to get yourself a new camera & give the your dd the old one! :001_smile: Or buy a lower-end digital camera for dd.

Well...this just cracked me right up...too funny and spot on. Hope you're prepared for the fallout.:lol:

When I suggested the mom "bow out" I didn't mean to sound harsh. From Chicka's remarks (above) it seems as if, since she had time to "coach the girl in the back when she realized what was going on" she may have had time to formulate an alternative...Just as Chicka left instead of watching a video. Yes, we have all acted in a way that could be wrongly perceived by others, yes, all of us have acted in "not the best" way in the "heat" of the moment (myself included, perhaps more than most). However, many in this thread have been posting "what should have been done" type posts, and I was simply offering an alternative I had not see given yet. Not being snarky or harsh toward this mother who probably isn't even reading this post, just an other option amongst all the rest. As far as the motivation behind the actions, I offered one possible explanation. It is up to each one of us to examine our own motivations and actions and see if they are properly aligned with our (stated) beliefs.

I bought everything HWOT sells. I have used only the student workbooks. Well, dd4 did play around with the wooden pieces & slates a few times, and I forced the boys to use the short pencils, but if I had to do it all over again, I would only buy the student workbooks. The paper was a total waste of money for me, and the student workbooks are so self-explanatory you don't really need the teacher's guide. My boys are progressing nicely through the workbooks, working pretty much independently. Ds8 is on cursive now and, surprisingly, his printing has improved.

Good point, Karen.

You know, instead of making a deal about "we don't celebrate Halloween" when she realized it was a Halloween thing and there was not going to be any class, she could have quietly bowed out (as Chicka did before the video). Problem solved. Kid doesn't have to violate any religious convictions and mom & daughter could have gone out for tea or something. Instead of having an uncomfortable situation for all involved, it could have been a nice memory for mom & daughter. Then mom could have privately spoken with whomever was in charge (by telephone, perhaps at a later date) and requested a refund for that class. I suspect, though, that the mom was more interested in "proving a point"

It doesn't matter what technique I choose to use, I will always end up in the slowest line, or get the checker who is training or has to buy more pennies from the manager, or get behind the person trying to cash a 3 party check or something. I've resigned myself to my slow-line fate and use the time to read all the magazines I won't buy while my kids look at all the cheap toys. I don't think sending my kids to stand in a different line would change my fate...and if it did save me three minutes, I'd never know what Brad & Anjelina were up to.

Well, I'm glad I'm not alone! We decided to stop for doughnuts before going to the library, then decided "just math," realized we forgot ds7's math books, so ds7 did grammar & spelling (his 2 favs) and ds8 did math. Then we got 2 great library books about Native Americans. One called "The European Invasion" and one that is hands-on and covers everything from Native Amercan religion to warfare/hunting. We called it a day. Of course it didn't help that I let the kids wear their costumes from the moment they got up. Our decision was spur of the moment and made easier by the fact that all the public school in our area are off for today.

Very good information, thank you. We're going to the library & I printed your list to take with. My son is very interested in the culture of the Native Americans and their spiritual practices and gets a bit miffed when we read the stories about how the English tried to change them.

I also am looking for ideas from this period, but from the Native American perspective. We've had a lot of conversations about how the English settlers called themselves Christian, but acted in what could be considered a very un-Christianlike manner toward the native people.

not only does hardwood enable maximum hot wheels speed, but if a series of books is stacked at the right angle, a hot wheel can jump over a 4yo girl, into a picture (breaking it) and still land upright.

We have hardwood throughout, even in bedrooms. Looks very nice and is easy to clean. The kids have big rugs in their rooms. At first I just had several little rugs, but then splurged for a nice big one for the boys, since they're down on hands & knees playing with action figures & such. My room has no rug except for right beside the bed. We all wear slippers inside because it does get a bit chilly on the toes in the cold mornings. We have a plethora of animals and I can't imagine what would be left behind in wall to wall carpeting. It also makes it much easier to rearrange the furniture, which I do frequently.

Indiana Here (as you can see by my new avatar)...my relations out west "WA" say I live in the East and one county over they do stay on Eastern time.

Maybe you could look into a pharmacy near you (like CVS) or Wallmart that has a Nurse Practitioner walk-in clinic. The wait times are usually not as long and the NPs usually do a good job of listening/diagnosing.

Have you ever tried the Gold Bond Medicated lotion?

No, but my kids never want to throw them out once they are carved!

until I really started reading the political threads here. Funny thing is, the supporters for the man/woman team for whom I will not be voting are the ones who convinced me to vote for the man for whom I will vote. Does that make sense? Did I give away my choice?

Well, that works in theory, or maybe in a utopian world where everyone donates to charity and everyone agrees on what their money should be spent on. In reality, there are tons of folks who would withhold their money if it went to support, say, unwed mothers, anything given to anyone whose skin was not white, anyone who did not profess a particular religion or any number of other things. Government can provide for the less fortunate in a way that is nondiscriminatory. And please don't trot out examples of people who take advantage of the system. Anecdotal evidence of abuse will not cause me decide that government programs to help those who need it should be abolished.

:iagree: And we have been "spreading the wealth around" for many, many years under our current tax system.

We currently live (and have for a long time) under a graduated tax system. This means, very simply, that our government takes less money (percentage wise) from those who make less money and more money from those who make more. Some people who don't pay taxes at all, receive benefits under this system. I do not have a problem with that, I think it is government's obligation to help the poor, and the money has to come from somewhere. I don't understand all the "fear" about "scary" plans to turn us into a "socialist nation." I don't see any difference in what is being proposed tax-wise by Obama than what we already have in place, just a little tweaking of the numbers. If you really want to understand our tax system to strengthen your argument (or disprove mine), visit http://www.house.gov/jct/x-32-08.pdf Here's a sample, I've highlighted some in red to better emphasize my point: "In order to determine taxable income, an individual reduces AGI by any personal exemption deductions and either the applicable standard deduction or his or her itemized deductions. ..... The deduction for personal exemptions is reduced or eliminated for taxpayers with incomes over certain thresholds, which are indexed annually for inflation. Regular tax liability To determine regular tax liability, a taxpayer generally must apply the tax rate schedules (or the tax tables) to his or her regular taxable income. The rate schedules are broken into several ranges of income, known as income brackets, and the marginal tax rate increases as a taxpayer's income increases. Separate rate schedules apply based on an individual's filing status. For 2008, the regular individual income tax rate schedules are as follows: Table 1.–Federal Individual Income Tax Rates for 2008 If taxable income is: Then income tax equals: Single Individuals Not over $8,025................................................ 10% of the taxable income Over $8,025 but not over $32,550...................$802.50 plus 15% of the excess over $8,025 Over $32,550 but not over $78,850................ $4,481.25 plus 25% of the excess over $32,550 Over $78,850 but not over $164,550.............. $16,056.25 plus 28% of the excess over $78,850 Over $164,550 but not over $357,700 ........... $40,052.25 plus 33% of the excess over $164,550 Over $357,700 ...................................................$103,791.75 plus 35% of the excess over $357,700

Sitting here missing my kids (they’re at gramma’s) I was thinking of all the cute things they’ve said and done. Since it is Sunday I thought of what my dd4 said two Sundays ago after dh took the kids to church (I worked). I asked her how church was and she said, “Fine we ate communion.†I asked if she knew why they eat communion in church and she said, “We eat bread and juice to show praises to Jesus so she knows we love her.†I told her I thought Jesus was a boy and she said, “Jesus can be a boy or a girl, but she likes to be a girl and she likes when we eat and drink our praises to her.†:lol:

Sunshine, I undersand that you are upset, but what I read in the OP was that she did not miscarry in the ER....it was more than 24 hours later.

First let me say, that I do feel for you, having lost a child myself at 15 weeks. It can be devastating and it may take you a long time to work through your grief. I also looked for someone to blame and racked my brain to find something that could have been different to prevent the loss. It took me a long time to understand that it was probably inevitable, and even if I had gone in earlier, not dug a hole to plant a tree, not gone jogging, whatever the outcome would probably have been the same. I hope you can take time to work through your grief, with the help of a professinal, if necessary. My next comments are about contacting hospital administration regarding the care you received in the ER. If your objective is sensitivity training (as another poster suggested) for the ER and a cathartic release for yourself, then by all means, write a letter to the hospital administration. There is no excuse for callous treatment by healthcare professionals. If your objective is to get your bill "forgiven"...well, you did receive care. Should the nurse(s) who assessed you (took your vitals, etc.) not be paid? Should the ancillary staff who cleaned the room, did the laundry, etc., not be paid? Should the charge for the ultrasound be eradicated? Should the doctor who saw you, order the IV fluids & read the ultrasound not get paid? Well, everyone who saw you has already been paid. What more (other than act in a kind and professional way) would you have had them do? The hospital has overhead and did provide a service to you. You stated they did not provide the care you were there for, to prevent a mc, but they did correct your nausea and dehydration. The fetus did not die or show signs of being distress as per the u/s in the ER, so not much else could have been done there, other than perhaps to advise you to follow up with your midwife/ob the next day or if symptoms persisted.

our dog lives in the house like a person. When she was younger she was crate trained, but hasn't used the crate in years (in fact the crate got moved to the barn). She's an 8yo German Shep who gives family "the look" if there is no room for her on the couch. The only places off limits to her are my dd's room & the classroom (only rooms w/carpet & dog sheds). I'd like to keep her out of my bedroom, but she is frightened of storms, so in bad weather all dc are in my bed & the dog is right beside the bed on the floor. BTW, this is not how I was raised. I would prefer the dog to be off the furniture & mostly outside, but I am overruled in my house when it comes to pets.