Your seller is a jerk. If there was an inspection contingency on the contract, then he's required to give you the earnest money back. We had to file in small claims for a buyer who wouldn't close on a sale AFTER all contingencies (including inspection) had cleared. Per the contract, we were to get the earnest money in that case. The escrow company's policy was to release the earnest money only if they had a signature - they didn't care what the contract said. So we went to court. The beautiful thing was that there was a tiny blurb in the contract about a penalty for withholding the earnest money without cause. The would-be buyer lost the earnest money AND the judge made him write us a check for court costs and the penalty. Check your contract for that - it might be enough to get your seller to give up the earnest money, if he knows he's risking penalties.

We have had prepaid phones in our family since at least 2004. Started w/Virgin Mobile, then Tracfone, now we still have 2 Tracfones and I recently ditched my iPhone for an android smartphone on VM. Coverage has always been fine - I get lousy coverage at my house which is on the edge of nowhere, but I got lousy coverage w/ AT&T, too. Customer service isn't that great, but neither was it with AT&T!

I understand if you want the iPhone. But saving $40-$45/month for 2 years DOES come to $1000. ($960-$1080)

My 15yo hates school in general but loves Khan. I wish we could use it for all subjects. Ds is in 2-day-a-week site-based classes for math & science this year - maybe next year I'll save the $$ and just use Khan.

In every neighborhood we've lived in, it was either stated directly in the covenants, or assumed that the fence was the property/responsibility of both. Post placement was irrelevant.

Thanks, I am copying these ideas to a document so I can print out & keep in my kitchen binder. :)

I paid $$$$ for 2 years for an iPhone with AT&T. When my contract expired, I looked into cheaper carriers/plans but the major carriers are very similar. I bought a Motorola Triumph (droid phone) on the Virgin Mobile prepaid network. They retail for $300 but I found a deal for $180. I got on the 300 min/unlimited text & data plan for $25 (it was showing on the website for $35, but a couple of months ago you could still look at more plans on the website & find the same thing for $25 - I don't know if you still can). I am saving $45/mo versus AT&T and I get more texting & data! (phone minutes were never a problem - I rarely *talk* on my phone!). So my new phone will be paid for in savings in the next 6 weeks. I found it hard to switch from iPhone to droid. But since you've never had one - you won't have to worry about switching! And you will be $1000 or so richer at the end of a 2-year contract. I'd really consider a smart phone on a prepaid network if money is at all a consideration.

Yep. I bet he'll never see the letter.

You were so thoughtful to your friend. I need to make sure I am checking with the families for dietary restrictions.

I'm glad you liked that, because a couple of months ago I took a Greek pasta salad and pita chips & hummus to a family who had older kids...they said they enjoyed it, but you never really know if they're being polite. :) I think salads are a great idea for warm weather.

(in all my cutting & pasting of URLs looks like I messed up the title!) I am always paralyzed with indecision when someone needs a meal. Last week I had 2 friends with family members hospitalized, and I wanted to bless them with meals. Here's what I ended up with, which worked great, I think: Baked Mac & Cheese PW's Baked chicken legs (I used reg seasoning salt instead of spicy b/c of young children) Steamed green beans A pan of blondies What are your favorites for this? I like to bring things that a) everyone likes!, and b)that refrigerates and/or travels well in disposable or inexpensive containers.

The only one I've ever read is The Other Boleyn Girl. I thought it was trashy. Don't know about the historical accuracy.

nm

When I talk to the general public, I tell them that we homeschool, or, that we homeschool through a charter school program. It's always very clear to them that we do the bulk of our schooling at home, despite the fact that a public charter school is holding our records. You'll only find confusion or disagreement among certain dogmatic groups who won't let you be a member of their club anyway, so don't worry about it.

We love to have friends over for a swim. :) I'm relieved that this acquaintance's views aren't shared by everyone else...I will rest easy next summer as we lock the yard gate whenever we leave.

An acquaintance of mine was complaining about her next door neighbor being away for most of the summer, with their pool sitting unused, while she & her children sat in the heat all summer. She said the neighbor (with whom they are friendly) should have told them they could use the pool anytime they wanted. She was very serious, and put out at their selfishness. We have a pool, and ever since that conversation I have been wondering if I'm supposed to let my friends who live nearby know that they can use it whenever we travel. The idea of people being in our yard when we are not home - even though they are good friends - just makes me uncomfortable. But now I feel selfish for keeping the pool to myself. I hadn't really thought about the liability issue until I was reading photomo's thread on this topic. We were gone several times this summer. Once it was for 10 days and when we came home there was damage to our landscaping. We discovered after a while that squirrels had caused it (who knew they could be so destructive?!) But if we had given an open invitation to friends, I'd have been put out wondering whose children had been hacking at the shrubbery. So, what do you think? Do pool owners "owe" their friends use of their pool? Or was my acquaintance out of line?

I agree. When our kids were younger (10 & 13) we left them alone in the evening for a couple of hours. We came home to a fire truck w/ flashing lights in front of our house, and neighbors and firefighters in our yard. The kids were terrified and didn't know what to do - we had told them never to open the door if we aren't there. All because a cat was on a utility pole in our backyard. The firefighters left without doing anything - they said the utility company would have to take care of it. The cat-owning neighbor and her boyfriend stayed parked in his car in front of our house all night, where they could keep an eye on the utility pole. It was creepy and neither my dh nor I slept well. The next morning we were out of the house, and while we were gone the utility company came & got the cat down. All that to say, I hope your neighbor's cat goes home soon. :D

Absolutely. My dd watched it with me when she was 13 or 14 and it's still one of her favorites.

Thanks for posting this. Your dd is very talented. (I'm a BC survivor).

This weekend I spent about 3 hours organizing photos from 1993-2006. They were mostly in the envelopes they came in which is why it took only 3 hours - I had to flip through them a little, but it was basically putting envelopes in order. Then I spent another 2 hours getting 1997-1999 into an album. Just a plain photo album with acid-free plastic sleeves and a little spot next to each for writing. The 2 hours included time spent sorting through and choosing the best ones for the album (I'll keep the extras & duplicates in a box). I didn't do any of the writing b/c I need a new pen. But I am just so happy and relieved that I got such a huge chunk done! This has been weighing on me heavily since I began scrapping with Creative Memories in 1996. All I have to show for that is 2 huge bins of paper & supplies, and 3 unfinished albums. I will try to finish the albums b/c there are some special photos on those pages, but other than that, I am DONE scrapping and am forging ahead with actual photo albums! {breathing sigh of relief}

I was thinking of the usual "diet" - reducing all those sausage-fat calories! I'm glad you can make a pizza that fits your diet. :)

I hear ya. It's hard to stick to my list, but when I do, I get great deals on staples - butter, cheese, coffee, bread, etc. My family knows if we run out of any particular cheese - cheddar, mozza, whatever - we don't eat that cheese again until I get back to Costco. It's literally half the price of other grocers.

Are you a Costco member? I buy both of these items at Costco. In the last month I purchased 6 large (64 oz) jars of mayo for under $5 ea with the coupon deal. (I checked the expiration and know we'll use them up before next May). The Honey Maids go on coupon at Costco sometimes, too. But I have to say I noticed a few months ago that these suddenly got smaller - even at Costco! I was dismayed, as Costco doesn't usually practice the deceptively decreasing package size. The boxes look the same, but the crackers themselves are narrower. :(

I would just buy what matches your kitchen/dining room decor, and not worry about what the food will look good on. I have many colors, and will use the reds & yellows when I serve Italian food only b/c that's the color my Italian-looking placemats are - same for Mexican; I have some brightly colored Mexican placemats & use the brightest plates on them - but other than that, it never occurred to me to coordinate with the food.

Oops. Like Chris in VA, I skimmed over your post and missed the part about whether I'd want it at church every week. I wouldn't. But I also know it's hard to plan meals for 100 people that don't take a lot of pre-planning and work. So I don't know what an alternate suggestion would be. I was on a strict diet recently and we were attending an event that I knew would only have Costco pizza to eat. I brought my own yummy meal so I didn't feel deprived.