I have 2 weird ones. Maybe someone knows the name of these phobias. The first is wind in my mouth. Can't even stand the thought of it! It dries your mouth out and that makes me anxious and jittery and just a freakazoid. It is for this reason I'm addicted (no really, I am their #1 customer!) to Lipsmackers (to keep my lips moist) and will not speak outside on a windy day. I will cover my mouth with my hand. The dentists' hygenists are often very rude when I fight the air hose or suction. Give me a root canal over that blasted suction any day! The second is some social phobia. I don't like approaching a crowd alone, especially if I know them a bit but I'm not terribly familiar with them. I feel awkward and back in high school. :glare: It has been brought to my attention that while approaching a crowd like this, that I "rang" like a telephone. I'm guessing that it was a nervous tic, but I was completely unaware. They said that I did it every day of that week that we were all together. I seriously had no idea. I was self-talking and telling myself "it's okay, they're just people, you're walking fine, etc." when I may have blanked out for a few seconds. That would be when I "rang". I think this is a hard one to define because it only seems to come out with people who I don't know really well, so they typically don't feel comfortable enough to say anything. Those who know me well wouldn't hear the "ring" because I'm not nervous near them. So weird.

My family is in a similar situation. My dad died in '89 and my mom remarried and he has 3 dds. Without making this a really long and boring response, let's just say that it is fair and everyone will be happy. Each parent is guaranteed care and life on their property and for those that do not get a property, there is a nice sized life insurance policy to be cashed. All will be fair. It absolutely is up to them in the writing of their wills and they must be explicit in every piece of material goods. A lawyer, not a DIY kit, is strongly encouraged in these complicated situations.

There is someone in my life who does this. I usually pop my eyeballs out of my head in an astonished look, freeze for 3 seconds, then shrug and go get a glass of water. Meh. If they think they knew what I was going to say, then I'm not going to waste my breath. I never finish the sentence. I might make some casual yet teasing remark like "too bad you missed what I was offering. Oh well. I'll give it to Suzy." This usually piques their interest. But I usually won't bite. I do believe that their behaviour is learned, and I have no problem being instrumental in people learning lessons. ;)

Honestly, I'd move. As yucky as that may be, I just would. Look, you don't have renter's insurance. You have an accident waiting to happen with those kids. Your landlord doesn't care and won't help you. And um... a tree will land on your home and possibly kill someone. :001_huh: That all seems to add up to a new address to me.

I suppose it depends on where you live and whose side of the story you wish to read about. Our books on the northern side have a slightly different story to tell. :tongue_smilie: :auto:

My boy has classic autism, or what autism used to look like before the umbrella. He will be 11 soon, and was dx'd a few days before his second birthday.

The Case for Christ The Case for Faith Both written by Lee Strobel. He also has a very engaging video out which covers the material in the books. Highly recommended. :001_smile:

ProClick! :D

I do all of those things and more. I was explaining to my dd12 a while ago about this and it was an interesting conversation because my dh was there and was like :confused:. He had no idea I did all of that and he's never once thought of it. Just another difference between the sexes, I think. As a female, yes, I do worry more about that kind of thing than I think I would if I were male.

It doesn't become more manageable per se, but over time we discover what works in which situations, what doesn't, and the child may learn to self-regulate. What appears to you to be a tantrum may be a regular tantrum, but is probably a melt-down caused by sensory overload (or underload). My son is hyper and hypo sensitive in every sense. He may be seeking-seeking-seeking one moment (scraping his hands on pavement) then avoiding-avoiding-avoiding the next (won't hold hands). It can change at any second to the other extreme; there is no middle ground. I'd suggest you read The Out of Synch Child. :001_smile: You'd be better equipped to offer real help to her if you really understood what was happening, and you are beginning to seek that out as seen in this post. Kudos to you. :cheers2:

Butterscotch. Sugar. Pecan. Peanut Butter. Banana Cream. Pumpkin. Key Lime. Shepherd. ;)

Paintball sounds fun! There's archery lessons, horseback riding... you know, I like the camping idea, actually. If there's enough kids that know each other I don't think parents would get the willies. Some sort of survival type training weekend or something. Sounds pretty coming-of-age to me!

The lessons are DVD format, with a charming retired English teacher who uses real world examples as she teaches the material. After the DVD lesson, the student uses worksheets to reinforce what was taught and to increase retention.

Cozy Grammar is not too workbooky and very engaging. My dd loved it! We only did one of the courses, but if I were still hsing we'd do them all.

:grouphug: Jean, Jean... do take it easy. We love you and will tie you down if necessary. Praying for a full recovery. :grouphug:

:crying:

A friend of mine teaches there. PM me and I'll connect you. :001_smile:

dh has recently admitted that he does not like crock-pot chicken. :glare: It's really sad because it's the only way I like it unless he grills it outdoors and that will not happen until May or June. He does not like crock-pot chicken because of that white gelatinous blub that gathers on it sometimes, I think it's cooked chicken pudding. :tongue_smilie: Anyhow, unless I use my crock pot, I tend to overcook chicken for fear of salmonella. So I have a box of frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Anyone have any recipes that a) involve the crock-pot but don't leave that white slimey blub on it? or, b) a recipe that ensures I can't dry it out? I suppose I mean heavily enshrined in liquid goodness, because I won't believe you if you say 45 minutes in the oven... I'll add 15 to ensure it's cooked :lol:

Yes, for safety reasons and the fact that there are no payphones where she swims... BUT... we have strict rules about using it. She is only to call home, my cell, dh's cell, or 911. We pay the bills on it (and will until she's an adult) therefore we call the shots regarding its use: no calling friends and no texting and no internet. We can see every call made or received on it and she has kept her end of the deal since she got it for her 12th birthday. Our dd is very honest and trustworthy so I don't expect her to abuse the rules... but I do expect her to one day say "hey, if I paid for it, then I should be able to text!" and to that, we'll say "when you're 18!" (or an adult, which is more vague and based on maturity level)

My sincere sympathies to your dd. :grouphug: I've had (several different kinds of) migraines weekly since the age of 7 and have been hospitalized frequently for them. It sounds like you're on the right path with tracking them. Keep a log and note as much detail as you can about her diet, cycle, sleep patterns, etc. To complicate things, there are many, many triggers out there. Here is a list of mine so that you can consider these when she gets them: monthly cycle bright sunlight flashing lights, including florescent lighting too much reading too much screen time not enough sleep knots in hair, brushing/washing hair crying holding bladder too long hats or hair accessories (most anyhow) glasses that are too tight scents sounds (any high pitch or loud noise) any sharp head movements (thrashing, jumping, etc.) any head thumps (pillow fights, etc.) not eating enough (I have to eat every 4 hours) too much caffeine not enough caffeine (true!) food dyes aspertame and artificial sweeteners well water stress reading without my glasses sleeping with any light around me waking up to any light around me Now, that is after 30 years of monitoring and I'm still finding new triggers. The crying and bladder triggers were just discovered the last few years. Once you nail a trigger, you can sometimes help avoid or anticipate it and make accommodations if available. For example, I bought a loose fitting black sleep mask from a lingerie store that helps keep the room dark, especially when I'm sleeping away from home. I don't roughhouse with the kids, I avoid sunlight by use of loose fitting, large sunglasses, and I eat regularly. For those migraines that cannot be avoided, here are some remedies that I've used. Keep in mind, there are many different kinds of migraines, and some remedies work for some migraines, not all. It's trial and error for each migraine. Sleep in a dark room with a damp facecloth over eyes medication (I found an OTC med that is wonderful: Mersyndol, although it has codeine which knocks me out for 6-9 hours so I only take it in the evening; a prescribed drug that works great during the day is called Apo-Ketorolac or Ketorolac Tromethamine) HEAD ON Migraine stick Peppermint essential oil (your natural food store will have oil mixtures for this purpose) I'd also recommend she get her eyes checked and see a neurologist. Inderol (A blood thinner) used to help with my cyclical migraines and I was on that throughout high school. I only stopped taking it because the cons of a daily med and so many different triggers didn't outweigh that one cyclical migraine; I was still getting migraines all the time from the other triggers that I just wanted to take action to attack them and deal with them once they came. I hope some of this helps. Let her know that if she ever gets an aura (mine appear in my visual field and the ground seems to move) to rest immediately, get home and lie down ASAP. It has helped me to draw my aura on paper and write descriptive words to what I'm feeling, and to bring that to the doctor. Typically 20 minutes after an aura an insanely brutal migraine will occur.

am I the only one contemplating leaving everything, getting a whole new identity, fleeing the country and never returning rather than having to face my in-laws with the horrible truth that we forgot their 75th birthdays which were a week apart? I just want to :banghead: and then :leaving:

:iagree::iagree::iagree::grouphug:

Arg! My dd12 has a new friend over for a play date and dinner. I did not know she was diabetic. When they were hunting for a snack, my suggestions of fruit or cheese bombed. She measured out exactly one cup of OJ (not from concentrate) and asked for celery and peanut butter. I don't know much about diabetics and their needs, but a quick google just confused me even more! My original dinner idea was Olivieri Rainbow Tortellini (the tri-packs from Costco) with a blush sauce, garlic bread, and steamed veggies. Now I'm wondering about the carb issue? Would you serve that to a diabetic? :confused: Haaaalp! P.S.: I know she eats pizza, should I just order in and call it good?

Dozer is our yellow lab and Autumn is our beagle.

In! :D