We school year-round with no change in the typical work load. We just take off days or weeks as needed throughout the year.

I voted pretty, but for me it's more if it's visually appealing in some way. BUT I'm a very visual person. If it looks dull and ugly, I'm less likely to pick it up in the first place. If the typeset is horrible, it won't get far either. My kids are similarly inclined.

No. It just means you are good at reading. All my kids are accelerated readers. They are all very smart. But I don't consider any of them particularly gifted.

I'll preface this with the fact that, yes, I have a gripe against Girl Scouts. Our girls were in Girl Scouts from the age of 4 until just a year or so ago. I was a leader or co-leader most of that time. IMO, the program is going down the toilet. They seem to be taking everything my girls loved about Girl Scouts and replacing it with touchy-feely, lets talk about this issue type programs that they hate. The Journey books are horrible for my very un-girlie girls. It would have been akin to torture to make them work through them for badges. I would love to see them bring back a much more hands on program, and leave out all the group counseling style stuff. Also, it seems like the organization itself has put a huge focus on making money for Girl Scouts. Being a leader (a VOLUNTEER position) has been made more and more difficult to do. The push to sell nuts and cookies was HUGE. The bank account rules bordered on ridiculous. The hoops to jump through are unreal, and many leaders are dropping out. I miss the old Girl Scout program.

My definition of clean (enough) is having the floors swept, any obvious sticky/dirty spots mopped up, dirty laundry washed (or in a hamper), dishes washed, trash taken out and table top clutter mostly picked up. Not spotless by any means, but presentable. My mother's definition of clean enough was surgical suite clean. Everything scrubbed, dusted, polished, and not a thing out of place. I swore I would never make my family live under the torment of keeping a house that clean. It was miserable for everyone involved. She would probably be horrified at the state of my house most days, yet I consider it a fairly well kept house. :lol:

I have 3 kids, and they all have very different interests. We also belong to a very active homeschool group that gets together a lot. The kids are all great, and all the moms get along well, so we try to foster the relationships as much as possible. I also have the house that has spur of the moment hang out time and sleep overs. I also have a dh that works from home, and goes to school. All that to say, we are BUSY! What helps me the most is having a very flexible schedule because we school year round. I tend to pick curriculum that can be set aside for a day or so, then picked back up. I don't school with the 'finished by x date' mentality. Whenever possible, I try to schedule activities on the same day...but it doesn't often happen. Right now we have Tae Kwan Do and Piano on the same day. But then we have church on Wednesday, Park/field trip day with the group on Friday. Then in the fall we'll have outside classes on Mondays and I'll teach an art class for a group in my home on Wednesdays. I try to do things like shopping on the days that I'm already out...usually on Fridays. I also try to clean as I go. I'll get up in the morning, grab a cup of coffee and empty the dishwasher. Then as I have time, or happen to wander through the kitchen, I'll load it back up. I'll also start a load of laundry early in the morning...it can wash itself while I do other things. Then I'll get the kids started on their school work, and as they are working I'll pcik up in whatever room we are in. I'll also work on dinner through out the day in tiny increments. Like yesterday, I set out chicken breasts to thaw as I waited for my coffee. Then a couple of hours later, once the kids were busy with school stuff, I sliced it and put it in a marinade. Then at lunch time I put rice in the oven to bake. When dinner time rolled around, all I had to do was chop up a few veggies and stirfry the lot in a skillet with the chicken. I also delegate chores to the kids. They do laundry, dishes, and trash. Our family dirties enough clothes and dishes to do two loads of each a day....they get the second round in the evenings after dinner. They have done those chores since they were big enough to stand on a stool and reach the sink well. The trash waited until they were bigger than the trash can:tongue_smilie: My house is often dusty. It's NEVER perfectly clean. But laundry stays pretty caught up, and I rarely have dirty dishes sitting on the counter over night (but it DOES happen). My office is ALWAYS a wreck. I just gave up stressing about it. I can have a clean house when they are grown. :lol:

I do like this idea....even though we don't do allowances.....hmmm.

Mine get money on their birthdays or at Christmas. Occasionally there will be a job (like a big yard work job) that they can earn a little money from. We provide for all their needs and sometimes their wants. If they are going somewhere with friends, I usually give them a little spending money. They really have no need for their own money. They have learned that they don't have to have new things very often, and to wait when there is something they really want. Yes, they do complain about not having their own money. To which I reply: get a job...:D.

Not a dime. I don't see it any differently than any other contribution a family member makes to the household. Of course mine don't get allowances either.

You are welcome! I wouldn't have thought of it if I hadn't enjoyed a wildflower bike tour recently and the guide talked about them. :D

Was it a gall? If you google 'leaf gall' and look through the images, you may find one like it... ETA: if it IS, you can often cut them open and find insect larvae.

If I'm lucky, it gets sorted into darks and lights, with maybe a light colors load thrown in. Often we are just trying to tame the beast and all sorts of things may be thrown in a load.

My mom had me and my brother Devin. My dad had me and my brother Cody. I'm the only one with kids (3) so a total of 6. On my dh's side, his parents had two kids, and there are 6 grandchildren, so a total of 8.

Considering that I was married and living on my own with my dh at 16...then yeah, I think I would be ok leaving a responsible 16.5 year old home alone for a couple of days. (not advocating marriage at 16 though...lol) Yes things could happen, but they could happen while you are home as well.

I would put the youngest two together.....they will adjust eventually. My twins have always shared a room. There were times during the toddler years that they would play instead of sleep, but that was the exception rather than the rule. I would hate having to make my older child go to bed or be VERY quiet because of the younger one needing an earlier bedtime.

The kids are all going to be off with various friends tonight, so dh and I are having homemade hot spinach and artichoke dip with garlic bread...followed by Ben and Jerry's. (bad I know...lol)

Not weird at all....I purchased four boxes at an estate sale myself not too long ago. My dh and I enjoyed looking through all the recipes and hand written comments (This is good! Better with more salt, etc.) I was kind of sad for the orignal owner though...that her daughters had no interest in keeping them.

My dd is on Advair, and we have been happy with it. (she too tried to come off preventatives and within 2 days had to go back on)

I do! :D:D

Lunch was a bag of cashews and a root beer. Which leads to my frustrating thing for today. I have been sitting in a Dr.s office for four hours and counting now...they were running two hours behind for my dh's three hour procedure. What's fun today? Playing on our new iPad. :D

Some things we take are: Hummus, peanut or sunflower seed butter (raw veggies, pretzels or crackers for dipping) Sliced apples (if you squeeze lemon juice on them, they don't brown as fast) Grapes Applesauce Grilled chicken, cubes Cheese,cubes nuts Dried fruit

I wish we could, but my girls find it terribly distracting. We can't even get anything done during piano lessons.

Not changing my policy :)

I got into way more trouble on my own than I ever did at a sleepover. I can only think of two that I did anything I shouldn't. One was at a cousin's house. We snuck out to see her boyfriend that lived down the road. FWIW her mom noticed and hunted us down..:lol: The other was when I stayed at a friend's house while her mom was away. Boys were invited over :glare: All the rest were pretty innocent.

I often wonder what my twin girls' relationship will be like when they are adults. My best friend in elementary school was a twin, and she and her sister have always pretty much hated each other. Weird dynamic there. My great aunts (who are also identical twins) are best friends. They even dress alike! My girls are pretty close, but they don't really embrace the whole twin thing. I also worry a bit about one of my girls being lonely when/if the other gets married. (I have one that I would be surprised if she ever maintains a close relationship outside of family) So if you are a twin, what is your relationship like now as adults?