We are usually doing school by 9AM. But, we don't worry about a lot of that stuff you do in the morning. I typically get up around 7:30, drink a cup of tea, read my bible and check email. Then around 8 I make the kids get up and eat breakfast. Some days we get dressed. Some days we don't. Beds never get made here unless we have company. Breakfast dishes get tossed in the sink until later. I do make the kids clean up the school area/living room BEFORE bed so it isn't a wreck when we get up. Dishes done every night after dinner. No TV in the morning.

Closest thing I can think of: "It won't kill you, but I might" :lol:

My dh's motto is : I'm awesome! :lol::lol::lol: Seriously. My dd's friend told my dd one day that she thought dh was awesome. It stuck. :glare: Now every time the girl calls, dh says...tell her: I'm awesome. Or he'll yell in the background: "Hey Mal, I'm AWESOME!" Thankfully the girl has a sense of humor. It's been said enough that I've contemplated getting him a t-shirt.

We are (pending inspection) moving into a house that has all real hardwood floors on the main floor. We are new to the hardwood thing. What is the best dust mop and wet mop for hardwood? How do you go about protecting the floor from furniture? Are those felt things you can buy at Wal-Mart good enough? We are getting rugs for the rooms too...any non skid products BAD for hardwood? Also, it has plantation shutters in ALL the windows (loving that!) Anything special that I need to do to make them last forever in TX sun? And there is a long but narrow sunroom that I get to turn into a craft/art studio. Anyone have any suggestions for decor or furniture? It has tile floor, and brick walls.

My girls, although they have their moments, get along very well. Even through all this hormonal stuff we are going through right now. I think what has helped with them is the way my husband and I treat each other, and zero tolerance for ugly behavior towards one another. Yes, they bicker occasionally, but name calling, hitting, or being purposefully mean has never been allowed. We've also been careful to teach them the importance of being kind to each other. Something that was also a big help (although I wish it weren't so) is that my BIL's kids do NOT get along well. They are nasty to one another quite often, and my kids have seen how miserable it makes everyone around them. We've had many conversations about why they should strive to not be that way.

:lol::lol: A related funny...you could tell whether my DD Sarah liked our choice for dinner or not by her prayer: Dear Lord, Thank You for this food = she liked it. Dear Lord, please bless this food = she didn't. We teased her about it, so now she will give thanks AND bless it.

I think I would take it in a similar vein as anyone else that was curious about our school and curriculum. Our realtor asked us a TON of questions the other day about it, but she was genuinely curious. I've had doctors ask too (in fact Kelsie's allergist, just the other day) and it is usually just our of curiosity. I find that well educated people are the ones that ask more questions about the books and curriculum...because of a real interest, not in judgement. (And I have been judged and accused of ruining my kids lives, so I don't have rose colored glasses on about it :001_smile:)

:lol: I can so relate. The last time I went into Verizon (to change my number) the guy was trying to sell me a new phone. When I told him I only wanted it to make and recieve calls I got this look: :001_huh: They can never understand my lack of desire to text, take pics, and surf the web on my phone!

Yeah, I'd eat them.

My dd takes Advair, and it has done really well for her. Her rescue inhaler use has gone WAY down. Our doc did say that he recommended people to start at the lowest dose and working up as needed. (we are working down after a doc change though, because she was on the highest dose after a bout with pneumonia )

Our main outlets are church and a park group. We were fortunate enough to find an AWESOME park group and my girls have made many close friends through it. And so have I. I don't worry too much about other outlets.

Ooops, I forgot the few canned and frozen veggies we get, and rice. Our pasta is GF, so it IS on the outer isles at some of our stores...lol. Plus, I don't buy it often.

I used to. But dd's food allergies have made it practically impossible to make ANYTHING from the center isles. I do buy a few things though... Rice Crispies/Rice Chex/Cocoa or Fruity Pebbles Ketchup (but only certain kinds) Ranch dressing for dh Crackers for dh The junky peanut butter for dh (see a theme here?)

Yes, here too. We put an offer on a house this morning, and now I can't concentrate on anything very long.

Yes! Aussie hairspray makes me feel anxious because it takes me back to my teen years. A certain perfume reminds me of my mom so much it's scary. The smell of a mechanic makes me SWOON. (my dh was a mechanic when I met him, and the first 10 years of our marriage) And if the mechanic smell is combined with Drakkar...look out. :lol:

um...blending my thumb. :001_unsure: I usually run it under water while spinning to clean it...something wasn't coming out so I used my finger to get it...and accidentally pushed the button. It didn't cut it, but it hurt like the dickens! Other than that, I LOVE them. In fact, mine broke a few weeks ago, and I miss it. I do reccomend getting the detachable stick one though.

I've found that I can get my kids to eat just about any veggie if I put it in soup! Especially if it has a tomato and broth base. I also saute cabbage, spinach, or other greens, with garlic and olive oil and they'll gobble them up. (well, two of them will)

I LOVE that song. It touched me like no other song has in a long time, the first time I heard it. I thought "that's us!" He IS a sweeheart. And fight for that good marriage...it's hard, but SO worth it.

Great pics. You can do it! In addition to a tripod, something that might help is a remote switch: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/buy/Remote-Controls/ci/4948/N/4288586625 Then you don't have to actually touch the camera at all during the actual shot.

I love my in-laws like my own parents. They have BEEN my parents for 19 years! And the whole family, I am much closer to my dh's family than I am to my own. That isn't to say we always see eye to eye, or that they don't occasionally get on my nerves (they ARE family after all) but I wouldn't trade them for anything.

We used to live there, and my FIL retired from X10 :)

DD14: John Bible study Physical Science, reading and questions Saxon Algebra I Begin a cause and effect paper on violent video games find a writing contest to enter DDs10: Science: Improve Your survival Skills and questions Ten Marks Math Begin writing their own "just so story" All of them: Greek and Latin vocab review read Time for kids article Read about India Piano practice Typing lesson Listen to Daughter of the Mountains Woman at the Well Bible study Read aloud a poem Then we also have writer's club from 10AM-11:30AM.

Have fun! I love photographing newborns. First, if you are going to try the mirror shot, get a hot water bottle or heating pad and warm up the mirror first or that baby will wake right up, and be unhappy. Warm fuzzy blankets work well (I have a brown furry looking one that looks awesome in newborn shots) Also, having the parent wear black on a black backdrop while holding the baby in various ways works well. Do the shoot soon after a feeding when the baby is all sleepy and cuddly. Crank up the heat in the house if you are doing nude shots, it'll sleep better. Don't forget closeups of the feet, hands, ears, etc. Things that emphasize how tiny the baby is are fun too. (Dad's hands or boots, etc.) Here's a shot I did that everyone loves...it was just on my kitchen table with some towels. http://aprylherrellphotography.wordpress.com/2010/06/18/babies-and-maternity/img_1192/

Mine don't get sick very often, and oddly enough the one with the most health problems is the one that never catches anything. I think it's because of her over-active immune system that attacks everything and gives her all her allergies. She has TONS of allergies, but she never catches stuff. She even seems immune to strep (she carries it and gives it to the rest of us though!) I don't do anything special. BUT I have also never been one to overly disinfect everything. I keep things wiped down, but rarely use disinfectant on stuff. We use regular old soap and water, and hardly ever use hand sanitizer. My kids got dirty and played with animals when they were little :)

Yes, cover to cover once, and as a family we are making the round a second time by reading at night to the girls.