I say go for it. But I may be projecting. I've moved 26 times in my life, and I'm trapped in my "forever" home now. Except for one 9 year stretch, we moved about every 2 years for most of our marriage...I've been in this house for 3 and I'm getting itchy! Maybe close up the house for a month or two and rent a vacation home somewhere? Give it a trial run. Or just do it if it is financially feasible.

If your gut feels it is an icky situation, then it may be. Be cautious, but try not to let your original perceptions color everything you see. I tend to "adopt" kids into my flock. I've been known to call other people's children "one of my kids", although I usually call them my bonus kids. A few even call me their second mom, or whatever. That part wouldn't bother me much. (Maybe that comes from wishing I'd had a bonus family as a child that took me under their wing when things were so crappy at home?) I wouldn't try to take over the role as an actual parent, though, unless circumstances were dire and it was needed. In our own family, a similar situation came up in which a teen boy ended up moving in with some of my family members. He was actually dating their daughter. His home life was a wreck, sometimes dangerous, and it was truly a better situation for him. They had two teen daughters, and no extra bedrooms. He's spent the past few years sleeping on the couch for the most part. From the outside, I'm sure it raised many an eyebrow. From the inside, they provided stability for him when he needed it most. They helped him graduate (he was poorly homeschooled) and are now helping him make it through college. Their daughter is set to marry him in a few months, after 5 years of dating. They gave them the opportunity to have a good start in life. Anyway, I don't think it is a bad thing to be wary. You just have to be careful about making assumptions.

My dh only hopes to make it to typical retirement age at his job. His health will probably force his hand much sooner. *I* am the one that will probably work until I'm 70. I'm starting a brand new career at 40 so he can retire early. He'll probably still do stuff though. He refurbishes old tractors and resells them as a hobby, so I see him doing something similar. Just things to keep him busy when he feels up to it. My FIL retired at 62, but has continued to work various part-time jobs.

It is common. Dh buys and sells tractors and cars on Craig's List all the time. He will often have a price in mind that he is willing to pay for a vehicle, after researching. He will always ask if the seller can come close to that price before driving out to see it. (Around here he may have to drive 30 minutes to an hour for most sales). If not he moves on.

I had a sleep walker that would pee in weird places. I actually watched her walk into her sister's room, pull out the bottom dresser drawer, drop her pants and start to squat....before I realized that she wasn't awake and was about to pee yet somewhere else she shouldn't! lol. Her most common was to "wake up", come sit in your lap, and let loose. I was so glad when she grew out of the sleepwalking phase!

:lol: :lol: :lol: While, I can totally see where she got that, I think you rock any Amish hippie vibe you may give off, and I would take it as a compliment. And Mamas of four boys are just intimidating by default. It is in the rule book.

I get that too. Most of my girls' friends are surprised by me. 1. I talk to my kids AND their friends. Like, a lot. 2. I listen to crazy music. Loudly. In the car. With windows down, in the church parking lot. :lol: :coolgleamA: 3. I play video games (this floors many a young man) and can talk quite animatedly about Fallout 4. 4. I joke around with the kids, their friends, whoever. 5. Teen friends are pretty much assimilated into our family and become one of my "adopted" kids. They know they could come to me if they needed something. 6. I don't helicopter my girls' to death (which is very, very common in our circles). 7. I'm young compared to most of my girls' friends' parents. Some of the kids have siblings near my age. 8. I dress to the occasion, so I can be found in ratty shorts and a t-shirt with dirt up to my elbows (quite often in during warm weather), to dressing in full business attire, and pretty much every thing in between. I've also been known to go out in public in any of those situations, much to the girl's dismay when that means flip flops and dirt :p One of the boys my twins hang out with a lot thinks I'm weird, but cool. He fist bumps me in public whenever we see him (grocery store, college, etc..lol.) He looked at me in amazement when he came over to the house one day and I was on the Playstation, kicking booty. He was also floored that I thought that my dd dying her hair blue was pretty cool.

I did when we first started, but at this point I don't give a rat's patootie. My kids speak for themselves..lol.

Listen to music Read Text friends Watch weird YouTube videos play video games (usually just the ones that are apps on their phone like Daddy Long Legs) They are very much like I was at that age...holed up in my room with the radio on.

I'm going to third (or fourth) having her volunteer at a vet's office. In 7th grade my oldest dd was absolutely positive she wanted to be a vet. She had volunteered at a raptor rescue center, and was comfortable with the gross side. I managed to snag her a volunteer position at a vet office and within 2 months she knew that she couldn't be a vet. Dealing with euthanasia was a deal breaker for her. On the plus side, she did get to stand in during a few operations and thought that it was pretty cool to watch. She's gone into a completely different field now (She's a German major headed into Library Science..lol!) Also, I think that if you just keep her strong in math, writing and science, and keep her course load close to what most good universities look for, she'll be prepared for whatever she ends up doing.

We have a table and chairs set up on our porch with a chess board (weather proof). Kids gather there a lot. The fire pit is popular. The odd ball thing that all the teens love is our giant rock garden. We have 9-10 HUGE rocks kind of randomly placed in a circular area in our front yard. We stuck an old wooden chicken out there on a rock. They turned it into this game where they have to jump rock to rock without touching the ground (not an easy feat) and then you get your pic taken with the chicken. Anyway, when we have a bunch of teens over, there are always several out there rock hopping. But yeah. Food.

I have a Thermos brand travel mug that works well. Actually we have 3. Two are 10+ years old and still working just fine. One of them did have the handle break a little recently when my dd dropped it onto concrete, but it is still very usable. My newest one I got for Christmas this past year. It keeps things just as warm and seems pretty sturdy. DD has a Contigo that she loves. It is easier to clean than the Thermos brand.

Probably TMI, but I used to intestinal distress every time I went to visit my parents, or they came to visit. It would usually hit on the drive there, so it wasn't their cooking or their house. I'm pretty sure it was the stress. I do get headaches a lot at my in-laws, but I know it is from clenching my teeth so I don't say things I'll regret..lol.

Same here. I'm the same age my mom was when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. She passed away within 6 months. My dh, whose parents are still alive and healthy, didn't really understand why this is bothering me. I've never worried much about birthdays, but the next two will be hard.

Oh, so much this. I had to get a new driver's license photo this week. It is a horror. I have jowls. I don't have jowls in real life! (do I??!!!) I look OLD. I hate DMV photos.

When you feel young, but look in the mirror at your eyes and realize you look exactly like you remember your grandmother looking. Wrinkly eyes and all. When your baby niece is getting married. The one that was born AFTER you lost your first baby and stole your heart. When your oldest daughter is dating a man. A grown stinkin' man. When you realize that ALL of your children are older than you were when you started dating your husband. Age spots on your hands. What the heck?!

I'm another that goes out with wet hair all the time. When it was long, I never dried it (curly and time consuming) and it would take all day to dry. Even now that it is short, I still just gel and go a lot.

Common here (East TN)

I'm wearing one right now with leggings. However, I don't see them in my normal every-day places like the grocery store, or the library. I do see them a lot at church and at college. We also have a large population of international students at college, so I also get to see some beautiful dresses from different cultures. I also work in the office of the President and VP of the college, and you are expected to dress up a little. I see a lot of dresses in the office.

Yes, I have. My step-dad had terminal lung cancer that had spread to his brain and spine, and was in unbearable amounts of pain. Our last visit was so sad, you could tell he was ready to stop fighting and SO tired of the pain. My mom had passed away several years prior, and I think he was just ready to join her. So, yes, I prayed that God would take him quickly and painlessly. He passed a week later in his sleep. It was a prayer answered.

We lived in a rental with concrete floors with thin carpet and tile over it. 1. The floors were very cold in the winter. (but they were wonderfully cold in the summer too). 2. Anything dropped on them was broken. 3. It was VERY hard on my feet and back.

There are 4 of us in this house and depending on the item, we all may be able to wear it. All underwear has an initial written in sharpie. All socks are different brands/styles (we all seem to prefer slightly different things) Shoes are shared freely. As far as other items, it doesn't usually take long for people to figure out at least what isn't THEIRS. The girls all do their own laundry too, which kind of helps to keep things separated.

Don't I wish. There are no jobs here that one could walk to. The paltry babysitting jobs they've managed to snag have barely earned them enough for an outfit and shoes, let alone a car. They have no income to save up to buy a car. They won't have an income until they have a job, and they won't have a job until they have a way to get there. Mom is already stretched too thin to drive all these people to jobs. Not to mention that it is darn near impossible to get hired anywhere if you are under 16, and many places won't hire anyone under 18. Let's not even talk about the cost of insurance. I have discovered over and over, that the things that seemed so simple to do when I was a teen to make moves towards independence, are much, much more difficult now.

Let them run with the extras. My oldest is a collector of languages. She dabbles in several. She has learned Latin well, and is majoring in German in college. She can also speak a little Mandarin, some Japanese, and some Swedish. She also collects words from any random language she runs across. For her, it really hasn't been much of an issue. (except for the occasional mixing up of Latin definitions and German ones for very similarly spelled words).

I think it is our culture right now. I know a LOT of teens that just weren't excited about getting their license. I had to force my oldest to learn, and she didn't get hers until she was almost 18. (We live in an area that you have to drive to get anywhere!) I think part of it has been that they have been shuttled all over the place..lol. When I was a kid, we lived out in the boonies. However, my mom and dad both worked full time, and we never could go anywhere. I couldn't wait to get my license so I could just simply get out of that house! My younger two are anxious to get theirs, but they REALLY want jobs that they know they can't have until they can drive.