Dark chocolate covered almonds with sea salt and turbinado sugar... So yum!! A lot of their treats are so good! Their frozen pineapple is the best and their frozen sweet corn The small mango Greek yogurts are so amazing Their Grade B maple syrup is the best price I've ever been able to find Bags of organic apples We love Trader Joe's and I consider them to have very good prices for most things! Our closest one is an hour and a half though so I don't get to go as often as I would like.

Thanks everyone for their input! I thought of hand, foot and mouth but she has no spots in her mouth or on the soles of her feet and they don't look the same as the pictures I've seen. She just in the last hour came down with a fever so I'm guessing viral and my Mom thought it was viral when I showed it to her as well. I'm not worried as she isn't lethargic and it doesn't seem to be bothering her!

Sorry, I added a photo... Took me a while to get it compressed enough!

My 12 mo old came down with this rash yesterday morning while we were at church. She is sick with a cough but hasn't had a fever. It showed up with a few spots around her mouth and then on her legs around her diaper. Since then it spread down her legs and she has had a few spots on her hands and feet. The weird part is she has no spots at all on her trunk or under her diaper, only around it! I haven't changed any soaps and I can't think of any different foods she's had recently. We did go to the beach on Saturday so I thought maybe it was from the sand in her pants but now it's on her arms and I don't think she got sand in her shirt since she was wearing a jacket too. Am I right in thinking it is hives? It does fade and the spots aren't always there but it's been over a day as well. ETA photo since it didn't work the first time

Definitely loved the last episode! I'm kind of enjoying the slower pace of this season myself. The last few I've disliked the Drama in every episode and thought it was a little over the top.

I have a 6 yr old girl and a 4 yr old boy and they are both currently enjoying The Tale of Desperaux a lot!

DH and I have really enjoyed Decisive Battles of World History!

Go to the Genius Bar. We just had this problem with our iPad mini and they have a way to back it up, restore and reload the backup without messing anything up! It was a lifesaver! ETA: You will need your iTunes account information.

We like elderberry syrup, but it isn't recommended for people with autoimmune history, so I don't take it. I always take high doses of vitamin C and Trilight Health 'Scout Out' tincture, it is amazing stuff (but not for use when pregnant).

My daughters 1st birthday is this 11th... I didn't choose that day for her birthday but so be it. We can still be joyful and thankful. I would be really offended if someone didn't want to come to her party because it's on Septemeber 11th.

I just wanted to say I am so sorry you are having to go through this. Our 33 week old son was cremated and we buried him in our backyard. I would like to find something to mark his grave but it is hard to think of and so far I haven't found anything "perfect" (it has been 2 1/2 years). I hope you are able to find something affordable that is what you want! It would be sweet if your DH could make it!

We are on our way to camp with our new to us tent trailer for three nights with friends right now. Last weekend we took our trailer 40 minutes up the mountain for one night to try it out. DH and I went to the homeschool convention in Southern California last month and stayed in an airbnb guest house with our youngest (who is 10 months). And the last time we stayed in a hotel was when we went to Southern California in April just to get away for two nights. I haven't been out of California since 6 years ago when we flew to visit friends in Tennessee and Kentucky. In January DH's brother is getting married in Texas so we will be going out of state then.

A friend was a librarian last year (she was previously a teacher for many years but doesn't have the energy to do that any longer) and was lucky enough to be at one school. This year they told her she would be over five schools. It is very sad.

I have the Neato package from Costco. DH got it for me for Christmas and I love it. It is on a schedule to run every night at 8, which is the kids bedtime, so they pick up before bed and when the vacuum turns on they know it is time for bed. It does do pretty well around chairs and such for me, we have wood laminate flooring. The only con is that it can't get under my cabinets so I have to sweep that part out so he can pick it up. It's still worth it though, my floors are so much cleaner than they used to be!

I hate plexus and have a TON of friends that sell it. They make way too much money off of it in my opinion. My sister has tried it and lost some weight but not as much as she was hoping. All my friends love it and swear it's fixed so many of their problems. I know they wouldn't lie about it, but it's so overpriced I refuse to try it.

Apple cider vinegar slightly diluted (not much, just a tablespoon or so), but make sure it is the good unfiltered kind. Sauerkraut helps me a lot, but also make sure it is the kind with no vinegar, just salt, water and cabbage. I buy Bubbies. Eat some about half hour before each meal, you only need a couple bites worth each time.

On number six I know that you would be paying realtor fees on the whole amount, or at least, that is how it works here in California. I'm so sorry your situation sounds hard. It sounds like you need to have a sit down with your realtor. You can tell her when she mentions they are "wanting a look" no. Also if you require a loan approval or proof of funds (which is very normal in our area, DH is a realtor) it should weed out some of those people!

Would taking charcoal help?

No, because of the drought and water restrictions our lawn would barely be alive anyway, so last summer we quit watering and we did this summer as well. I miss my lawn though, it's so brown here in the summer that patch of green was a sight for sore eyes!! Assuming we come out of the drought we'll replant and water again... Might turn the front yard into a more drought friendly shrub type landscape though.

October is frequently Santa Ana winds time and can be warm (although with the crazy weather we've had this year who knows what October will be like). It probably depends on what you consider "warm" but you'd definitely be able to swim/boogie board if you had a wetsuit (which you can rent if you don't have one).

I would do the tide pools at Dana Point or Corona del Mar and I've heard good things about Aquarium of the Pacific. Corona del Mar is a great beach for swimming and Dana Point has some as well. Make sure to go at low tide.

There is an child calm forte and an adult, which do you have? I would just give her a half dose.

My husband is a realtor and I am surprised at the number of times there are more than one offer. One time it was a house that had been on the market for a while and the timing was bizarre. I'm sure the buyers he was representing thought he was lying at first but the other offer ended up getting it.

I read the Mandie books growing up and loved them. When I was older I re-read one and couldn't believe how is overlooked how self centered and badly written they were! I did the same thing with Elsie Dinsmore. I do like the books about Elsie's cousin Millie though. My 6 yo DD just LOVES Ramona and went through a phase where she listened to the audiobooks non-stop! She has now taken to reading them at night before she goes to bed. If I had a child who was prone to trying mischievous things they heard I might be careful but my DD doesn't and she thinks Ramona is so funny.

I voted "comfortable and getting better" but then pessimistically thought I should have voted comfortable and the same. We have enough money for some splurge purchases, we have no debt aside from our mortgage, which we pay extra on each month and hope to pay off in a maximum of 8 years. We have money in investments and 2 months worth in savings. We do try to buy large purchases used though, we don't have cable, we go out to eat about once a week or less, we can afford for the kids to take swimming lessons and buy what curriculum we need. We do not take expensive vacations because we have so far chosen to complete projects on our comfortable, but not extravagant home. If DH was not very handy we would be hard pressed to have had to hire a contractor. DH is in the middle of a career shift, but it will take a while. When he is done he should be making more than he does now... Assuming it all works out. Once our house is paid off we will have much more wiggle room, but will then be needing to save for retirement (our eldest will be 14 in 8 years). Of course we could always wish for more money and a nicer home, but what we have works and compared to our parents at this point in their lives we are much better off.