I may be misunderstanding your question. Are you asking if a DE language class has different requirements than a regular language class? If so, my kids' DE classes ARE regular college classes that they take with other college students. If you are asking if college language classes in general have more work load than other general ed college classes, then it really depends on the class and instructor. My Spanish classes didn't have much work outside of class at all. My dd has taken German and Chinese...the Chinese required a lot of work, but not as much as her Stats class. She has put a lot of outside time into her German class, but only because she wanted to.

My 16.5 year olds want: Birchbox subscriptions Converse (one) and Vans (the other) A stuffed animal (because they are feeling nostalgic for the past..lol.) A nice coat Movies and books Nail polish

To me it is just another unwarranted knock. Yes, there are entitled, self-absorbed Millennials. And Gen-Xers, and Boomers, etc. But so much is being blamed on Millennials right now, while most of them are looking around going WTH did you people leave us with?! They've grown up in a totally different world than the generations before them. They've never known a world without cellphones and internet. They've lived in a global world their entire lives, and have never lived life without the threat of terrorism. What's worse, is the people that are harping on this generation are the ones that raised them. Maybe a mirror is warranted rather than yet another bash. To the OP: Sorry if this thread derailed from what you intended. I've just read too many internet comments lately that can't seem to place blame where blame is due.

Just watched it on YouTube. Honestly, I'm sick of Millennial bashing. As a mother to three, aunt to more, and bonus mom to even more, I see kids that are fed up with being chucked in a box that doesn't even fit them. They are intelligent, hard working young adults that are facing adulthood in a very uncertain world.

I slept through it all and was surprised to see that tornadoes had hit so close. Also praying for the linemen and rescue workers that are already exhausted, and have so much more work to do. There are still people missing from the fires as well. What an awful mess this has become. :(

I have a Griddler, which you can do paninis on. Mine also has a waffle plate :D I love having it on the counter. We do quick quesadillas, paninis, grilled cheese, and I can cook frozen burgers on it quickly. https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-Griddler-Panini-Bundle-Attachment/dp/B01IFVQX88/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1480474664&sr=8-9&keywords=griddler (they also have a cheaper version without the waffle plates)

We've had several doozies. A house in MN knocked you over with animal urine smell. A large portion of the walls were painted black or dark purple. One room was filled with dirty terrariums of snakes. There were cats, but I'm not sure how many...a lot. A house in TN was everything we were looking for. It was a cheap foreclosure on land. There were several minor repairs and painting needed because the people that lost the house took every fixture available and spray painted a few rooms. But what made us run away was the basement. We walked down there and the entire thing was covered in mold! Thick furry mold. Another TN house was so filthy that you had to walk trails through the house. Dirty underwear, trash, tons and tons of mail and magazines. Including porn magazines. It also reeked, absolutely reeked.

I'm not a forestry expert, but I think that the risk was probably deemed pretty low. It really is a very humid area. In the forests there is a deep bed of leaves that are usually damp year round. Think green and mossy, not dry brush. This drought has dried out things that normally are not that dry. While fires did happen, the large wide-spread fires haven't been something we've seen here.

They really are calling this a perfect storm event. It is absolutely not something that would happen here under normal circumstances. Extreme drought + arson + high winds = a very rapid event that grew exponentially. Normally in November here begins a rainy season. By December it is often just a soggy mess. The lack of rain has been extreme and very unusual. Then we have idiots that for some reason decide to set the forest on fire. They worked hard to get the fires contained, but then a front came through with 70MPH gusts of wind. That wind was also blowing in such a direction that pushed the fire right towards Gatlinburg. It happened FAST.

This is an extremely unusual event for this area. Normally our weather patterns keep East TN very humid throughout much of the year, and widespread fires like this just don't have a chance to occur. However, with the extreme drought, arsonists, and the perfect storm of conditions, this fire got out of control faster than anyone imagined. It has been so sad to watch the live feeds. So much of this area depends on the tourism that brings in money. The number of structures burned keeps going up, now that they are slowly making their way into some of the harder to reach area. A man that was supposed to pick up a tractor from us this week called this morning to let us know that he's likely lost his barn, but cannot get back to his property right now to see. I'm praying that the number of deaths doesn't go any higher. I know there is at least one man that cannot find his wife and daughters.

My dh and I both are like this, and ironically often fail to see it in each other. The net result is that we tend to not communicate very well, and get flustered with "new" ideas popping out of our mouths..lol. I don't feel like it makes me not know him, it just makes me a little less sure of what his plans/goals are. He often thinks major things through without mentioning them to me until he's already reached a decision. (frustrating when it affects me too) He does see me as kind of closed off (I am, I admit). My mind is a very private place where I work out all my dreams and inner demons (with a horrific childhood, there are a lot of those floating around), and there are large parts of me that I don't really want to share with anyone, even my spouse. But, I don't think it makes me any less friendly or warm, just private.

We don't have a separate family room either. Our downstairs is our bedroom, plus a kitchen/living/dining area that is all open. Our only private areas are our bedrooms, and perhaps my office area..but even it isn't super private as it is really an open area at the top of the stairs. (We do often put a baby gate at the bottom of the stairs to close off that area if we are having people we don't know as well over) I think it is probably just what you are used to. Like a previous poster, I unconsciously read every thing in sight. I wouldn't think twice about reading something that is posted openly.

We have a houseful of guests all the time, and it is pretty much Grand Central Station around here. I don't have any expectations of privacy in the public spaces. Anything private is kept upstairs in my office, usually tucked away in a drawer if we are having lots of people over. It wouldn't phase me for people to read things on my fridge or bookshelves. In fact, bookshelf browsing is quite the conversation starter!

I also think it is allergies. I've had a horrible time with something similar the past couple of weeks. We have SO much smoke in the air that it makes my eyes itch, and my sinuses are killing me. The ear thing started about the same time. It drives me crazy.

Pretty much none. My teens love decorating for Christmas, so I usually get to just sit on the couch and watch.

I paid $50 for a 23 pounder at our local butcher. It comes fresh from an Amish farm, and is always super yummy.

Apparently not. Today, out of the blue, my 16 y.o. dd climbed up into the attic, brought down their box of old Legos, and then she, her twin sister, and her 20 year old sister sat and played with Legos for three hours.

No standardized testing until middle school. A very basic national standard: i.e. long division by grade X, reading fluently by grade X, etc. K-6 focused on reading, writing and math, and really getting those skills down cold. Not test prep. Not 6 years of early American history. Science and history exposure through reading and hands on experiences. Lots and lots of physical activity. Upper grades only see a standardized test every other year, and one basic one for graduation. In high school allow for more vocational tracks. Bring back shop and home-ec, but make them gender neutral. Lots and lots of physical activity. All of that is probably pie-in-the sky, but a larger wish would be to see much smaller classrooms, a return to exploring the classics, and socratic style teaching/learning.

We have extra, cheaper mattresses that are stored under the girls' beds. They've worked great over the years for guests, and stay out of the way when we aren't using them. I keep a fitted sheet on them while under the beds to keep the dust off, and change it when we have company. I've had the worst luck with inflatable mattresses, and find them very uncomfortable.

I would understand. Dh would not handle it well. He doesn't handle burst of emotion well in general though. I would probably usher her to her room, and say "Look, she is beyond exhausted and has been holding it together all day. She's done."

My college experience thus far has caused me to lose all faith in the competency of advisors..lol. My dd and I both have had very, very bad suggestions from our advisors, and one advisor would have caused dd to not graduate on time if she'd followed her recommendations. If you've carefully looked at classes and feel confident that she's not missing something major, then don't worry about it.

I have one friend I've known since early elementary school. We remained friends through high school, even through me attending several different schools. When we were in the 10th grade, she was dating a guy and wanted me to go out on a double date with her. Her boyfriend set me up on a blind date with a guy he worked with. That guy was my husband...we've been together since our first date. She married that guy, and I married mine. We moved away, and have lived in several different states, but always kept in touch. Now we keep in touch on FB, and visit one another once every few years. (we went to her oldest dd's wedding, and they came to our 4th party). I figure after being friends for 35 years, we will probably always try to stay in contact. There is another friend that was in our little group that we still are friends with on FB, but don't see IRL.

Ours is under a rock garden/flower bed area of our yard. The lid is only about 2ftx2ft, and it is buried a few inches below the soil. I keep that area clear of any thing important, and kind of have the area marked with a rock. It isn't a big deal to dig it up. ETA: If they are digging up your whole yard just to pump, they are doing it wrong.

TN: Our property taxes are pretty reasonable. (I pay $1500 a year for a 2000sq ft home, a barn and nearly three acres, in the county). Our sales tax (city and county together) runs around 9.25%. I don't know how that compares with other places though.

Most of the homes I've lived in have been on septic. We've had varying degrees of issues/non-issues out of them. The first little trailer we bought together over 20 years ago had septic put in. BIL put a double-wide on the same system later, and has lived there ever since with no issues. I don't think they've ever even had to have it pumped. Dh's parents had their 40+ year old septic pumped for the first time ever about two years ago, mostly because they were having pipe break down problems. We purchased a 40+ year old home around 15 years ago, and had to have the tank and septic line replaced immediately after moving in. (apparently the drainage pipe had collapsed some time ago, but the single elderly woman that lived there never used enough water to cause back ups...it couldn't handle crushed pipe AND a family of five though..lol.) We lived there for 10 years with no further problems with the septic. We did, however, have to periodically dig up and clean out a grease trap that ran from the kitchen to the septic tank. The house had a garbage disposal, which we've since learned is a no-no with septic. Fast forward to this house. We built it three years ago, on poor soil. (we knew it wasn't great, and it just barely passed the soil testing required). Our septic tank and drain field are in thick TN red clay. We also live at the bottom of a high ridge, so we get a lot of runoff. We've already had to have it pumped once. If there has been a long rainy season, the ground gets too saturated and it just won't drain. Most of what they pumped out was backed up water. The weather has been on the dry side since, and we've not had problems. We expect to have to pump once a year or so when there has been a prolonged rainy season. But that is completely due to the poor drainage of the site.