I'm so glad you had an enjoyable, refreshing day!

Well...bummer. That's NOT what I wanted to hear, you know! I like the washcloth idea, 'cause there's always water in there. I think I'll be trying that as well. I don't really think the washing machine really smells, and most of our laundry seems fine, but the towels definitely have some kind of smell. :001_huh:

Okay, I did the bleach cycle this afternoon. I may try the vinegar too. How much baking soda do you put in with each load? And how much HE soap do you use - I've been using HE but usually the recommended amount. Do you use less than the recommended amount?

Our front loader is about 4 months old and we're getting a musty smell in some of our towels. I've left the door of the washer open, and have cleaned the rubber gasket, but I'm thinking the washer may be the culprit. My dh is super sensitive to smells, so I've got to figure out how to deal with this! I've been poking around the net for information and ran across this: Smelly Washer. Has anyone heard of this or used it? I'd love to get "hive wisdom" before I waste money. ;)

What a heavy load for you to carry. :grouphug: I'm praying for healing, peace, and provision.

I'm praying for your son's healing, and wisdom for you to make the difficult descisions. May you have peace and strength. :grouphug:

:hurray: Such good news! Thanks for updating us. Continued prayers for you!

:hurray: I'm so excited for you! Good for your dh for talking you into taking the day! You're blessed with a wonderful, giving friend. I'm glad you're accepting her generous offer, and know in turn that you'll be able to bless her or someone else in their time of need. Have a great day!

What a fun desk! Great job with the painting - it's very nice!

No bakes....straight out of the pan? I can't imagine anyone doing that..... :rofl: Glad you are enjoying them. Will. resist. temptation...

:hurray: You should be so proud! I know that TPTB will be impressed with you tomorrow. I mean, come on, we're impressed with you everyday! :D Hope all the remaining tests go well and then time for a relaxing break!

Congratulations, Heather! My hardest transition was from 1 to 2! Once I had kids old enough to be independent and helpful, it was much easier to add another child. We have four now, and I figure that leaves two pairs - if dh and I can each handle two at a time, we're good! Enjoy your growing family!

:grouphug: What an awful day for you...praying for healing for your thumb, peace and rest for your spirit. I hope tomorrow is a much brighter day.

I think the uncertainty at the end of pregnancy is so stressful. Couple that with the physical exhaustion, hormones, emotions, and anxiety about labor and a new baby....no fun at all. I'm praying that baby will hold off until your dh is home, and that you can have some rest and peace in your spirit as you wait. And some rest for your body too, so you can be prepared to bring your precious baby into the world!

Just in case you can't wait, ;) I've got Pam's recipe saved on my computer, always handy for the late night cravings (or morning, or middle of the day, or...whenever!). Chocolate No-Bakes Posted by Pam "SFSOM" in TN Stir together 2 cups sugar 2 tbsp cocoa (more or less, but this is about right for me) Then add 1 stick butter 1/2 cup milk Melt the butter completely, bring to a boil and boil HARD one minute. Remove from heat and *quickly* stir in 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 cup peanut butter til this is pretty much melted in, but quick-like (And chunky pb is best, but only if you have it already) 3 cups of quick oats Stir and stir til it's all mixed Drop these by spoonfuls onto wax paper and eat them when they cool. Have mercy. They are all the happy days of my childhood rolled into 2 inch mounds of goodness. It's best to make these when you know you will only get one or two and everyone else is going to elbow you out of the way and scarf down the rest. And the oatmeal. Healthful. Uh huh. Eat with a tall glass of milk, and you're talking breakfast.

Praying for wisdom for you and quick sale of your house!

I tried to use CQLA Pre-Level A, but it wasn't a good fit for us. I am now using their stand alone writing program, Meaningful Composition. So far, we love it. I thought CQLA was pretty straightforward in its layout and easy to use. However, I always struggle with multiple subject curricula, because I can't stand to have my student working at something that's not their correct level! When we first tried CQLA, the spelling was too easy, the grammar was about right, and the writing was too hard. When I came back to it later, the writing was okay, the grammar was easy to okay, and the spelling way too easy. Also, by that time we were using Growing with Grammar, and I didn't want to ditch that. I think the writing instruction in CQLA/Meaningful Composition is excellent. It's very step by step and easy to teach. It's similar to IEW, I think. She calls it a directed writing approach. She teaches key word outlining and an awesome tool called "Checklist Challenge". The CC is basically editing and revising, but is more thorough than anything I've seen in other programs. That's my two cents worth. ;) It looks like there are a bunch of new samples on their site, so hopefully you can find the right info. to help you with the decision!

I'm glad it worked! :001_smile: It's nice to have access to all that info. still.

I've tried to like the hybrid mode, truly I have, but I always end up frustrated. If you open a thread to the last post (which I do often), then it only shows that post. Or if you click on a post within the thread, then you only get that post, or that post plus the others listed under it. It just ends up being too much "clicking" and drives me crazy. So I always end up back in the linear mode, and just switch to hybrid if I can't easily follow the responses. I do appreciate quotes showing who the post is responding to; that helps make the linear mode much easier to navigate.

I know what you mean about the google search. I don't like searching the boards that way, but sometimes it helps me find what I'm looking for. You should be able to go through old boards from that link. Just click on the curriculum board, then go down to the first post "welcome to the new board". From there you can click through to the old board.

Tina, here's a link that should get you to the old boards: Old WTM boards. You can also do a google search to access the old boards. Just type in site:wtmboards.com then your search terms.

Praying for healing and a good night of rest for your son, and for you! :grouphug:

That's a lot of uncertainty and anxiety causing "stuff" all at once! ((hugs)) and prayers for you!

Praying now! Please keep us updated.

When I have muddy clothes, I usually rinse them with cold/slightly warm water, then scrub with Whisk detergent. Soak in a combo of Whisk/Oxyclean if needed. This actually works pretty well if the mud doesn't sit drying on the clothes for days. ;) We had a lot of mud earlier this spring - I'm SO glad it's mostly dried up!