My in laws like to pay for things that are their idea. Swimming, for example. I'm certainly not complaining because it's expensive and a needed life skill. But I can tell my daughter won't last. She does want to try gymnastics, though. But they only want to pay for what they want to pay for. It's a weird dynamic. I get it.

I got it every year when I worked at a hospital and when I was pregnant. But not since. No reason for it - just lazy. And I don't remember getting the flu either way. We are somewhat hibernating because it's rampant around here. I am a little bit worried about one of us getting it.

I think you could do it in a weekend unless you are also painting trim which could take longer. Go for it! The only thing you might need help with is moving the heavy stuff. I probably would go through his stuff because I'm cheap, and you never know if there is something new in there that never got used. A half roll of tape would be a score for me! But I would not use something that should have been tossed or was not cleaned properly. And I would search for 20-30 minutes at most. If it's several hours of junk-sorting....then no.

I used to work in a VA hospital, and while there are some bad stories out there, there are also many, many good outcomes you never hear about. He has many things going for him. They love on their volunteers, and trust me, he probably knows who the patient advocates are and how to reach them. It is already a second home to him. He is 100% SC and that makes him eligible for a lot (I don't know how that works exactly, but it does factor in somewhere!). The advice I would give you is to make the case manager and/or social worker your best friend. They WANT a family contact to help them decide about care, especially if he loses any independence or develops needs he can not handle himself. They are the coordinators of all that happens in and out of the hospital regarding developing care plans and available resources. And they have great influence over the MDs because the docs are generally willing to sign off on their recs. And -- they can be your eyes and ears for how he is REALLY doing. So I would start by calling the oncology dept and finding out who their case manager or social worker is and introduce yourself. Your dad may have to sign a form saying they can talk to you about his medical care. (They will tell you if that is the case). You may want to have that talk with your dad first - making you a point of contact and giving them permission to talk to you.

It sounds like a Happy Meal was the least of her concerns. She could have been on the verge of needing a feeding tube or TPN. You can't get a more refined diet than that..... yet it is a lifesaver.

I have a grease smell for days in my house anytime I try to fry something. I'm not sure why that happens, so I quit frying anything. It's very off-putting. I go to Hardees if I'm in the mood for fried chicken. It's cheaper than KFC and their biscuits are awesome. Otherwise I do the oven-bake thing if I'm cooking at home.

When my dog hears the hair dryer turn on, he comes to me wanting to get the hair dryer blown on him too.

I'm getting excited reading through all this! Sounds like it will be fun!

https://www.groupon.com/deals/philadelphia-sightseeing-tours-14 Is this the bus tour? Has anyone been to the Mint? Is that worth seeing? I'll be looking into all these suggestions - thanks!

My parents are visiting for Christmas and they want to take an excursion to Philadelphia to sight see. It's about a 5 hour drive from us, and I've never been, so I don't even know where to start. I'm thinking we'll be there a day or two. Probably depends on the cost of lodging. I have an 8 and 6 yr old, so yes, I hope they learn a little history while we are there! So...what would you say are the main attractions to fit in? Would weekdays be better than weekends? (or vice versa) How about parking and getting around -- is it difficult? Places to stay? We are coming from the south, up 13 through Delaware. I only have a dumb phone and no GPS, so I'm a map-it-out-ahead kind of girl.

I do like the way AAS has progressed and find that my son (8/3rd) has done well with it so far. However - I have found I am mostly going by the book - the rest of the supplemental materials we don't really use at all. I will use the tiles when teaching something new, but he prefers to write and not use the tiles. The only thing I find useful in the supplemental materials are the syllable tags. I have the supplemental materials for Levels 1&2, but considering how little we use them, I hate to order them again for the rest of the levels. I am just wondering if anyone else uses AAS this way - have you found that you can use it successfully without the supplemental materials, or are there certain items in there you have to have?

Come talk to me and draw me in. If I'm on the outside looking in, it's either because I don't know anyone and I'm not comfortable jumping in, or the size of the group is overwhelming and I just get lost. I will never make myself the center of attention or even speak up if there's a big group chattering - I'm listening and interested but won't go to great lengths to make myself heard. One on one I'm fine but find it difficult to make that first connection. If I see someone else in the same boat I will gravitate to them to talk but never insert myself in a big group.

Or pinterest pages? I'm getting overwhelmed with googling and need some reliable sites for ideas and recipes for all kinds of foods (meals/snacks).

If they are truly repentant, I would support welcoming them back into the flock, but not a leadership position. I would expect they forego any leadership position until they have a period of spiritual mentoring and restoration themselves. If they didn't -- that would be a huge red flag.

How old is he and how is he supporting himself? He sounds lazy and entitled. If that's the reason he's not working, that would bother me A LOT. Learning the value of hard work and responsibility is more important than the dollar amount at her age. Maybe the harder she works, the lazier he'll seem - before it's too late.

I was also thinking about meds....steroids especially.

In my former career, I worked in a VA hospital and saw lots of this behavior. I believe there are fear/denial/control issues when you see this, rather than wanting to die - unless there is depression involved. Options - You can ask for a competency evaluation. Someone who is declared incompetent can not make informed decisions. You can get a health-care power of attorney (what these are actually called may be different according to the state of residence) - so that if one does become incompetent, a designee can make healthcare decisions. You can get a consult with a primary care provider or social worker - someone neutral to draw up a very specific living will. They need to hear pointed questions, such as: Your blood pressure (whatever) is dangerously high. You are going to have a stroke. When you do, do you want: to be on life support, have a permanent feeding tube, etc. I know it's hard when they refuse even to be seen by any healthcare provider. I'm not sure how much of this you can do by phone, but do make the calls.

Yeah, that first poem is making it more difficult than it could be, IMO.

I am just now getting to the poetry segment in WWE3 --- and I am tempted to skip it. Two reasons - first, I don't remember getting to this material until my senior year of high school!! (not saying it shouldn't have happened sooner). It just seems rather advanced to me. Second - I was under the impression that this program (WWE) was focused on teaching expository writing (granted, I do get that you can use fictional/creative writing to accomplish modeling good writing and introduce great literature. I like this aspect). But how does poetry fit into this? I really could use some insight on this.

Thanks for the feedback - UTI wasn't even on the radar. I was thinking she irritated herself or had something going on on the outside. I'm having her checked.

If it were UTI, would you also see a fever? Just curious.

My daughter complains off and on of having "Hot" pee - her way of saying it burns when she goes. Any ideas what could cause this? There is a little redness down there. She is 6. I honestly don't think it's a hygiene issue but know that's a possibility. FWIW, she has had Strep "down there" in the past -- I know what that looks like and this is not the same.

This is encouraging - My son is not a natural writer so the slow pace suits him. But at the same time it worries me a little.

If you went through WWE/FLL and are beyond that now, I am very interested to hear your impressions of how your kids are doing advancing into more substantial writing. There are a lot of things I really love about these programs - I am doing level 3 in both - but I am starting to wonder if it is enough to preparation for the later grades. I tend to "go by the book" so if it's not in the program, it doesn't get done. I don't even think we have covered what a paragraph is, and I'm pretty sure other kids his age are writing them by now. I would like to hear from folks who have been there/done that - and if so, is there anything you would add or change?

That was a painful admission!