Sorry, that's really aggravating. My husband sometimes says things like that when he's upset, and I can't stand that level of over-dramatizing. Maybe they just can't deal with their emotions?

My DH as well. He is extremely literal, so when I say things, I have to be sure to say *exactly* what I mean. I've had to work on my habit of just blurting out whatever's on my mind.

Even though I don't have things to hide, per se, I do have things on my computer that are private. For example, I keep a journal of sorts in my email... just emailing thoughts to myself. If I'm angry at DH, or annoyed or... I write about it. I wouldn't want him to read those things - like someone else said, if I'm ready/want to talk about stuff, I'd like to do it in my own way. I write to myself differently than I address things with DH. It's not wrong to have private thoughts... it IS wrong to snoop around without permission.

UGH, that is my nightmare! I want to teach in a public school rather than private (someday)... but this terrifies me.

I've experienced this, too. Until I met my DH, I always bought the cheapest variety of anything I could find. Now, I shop around and I'm grateful that I can choose between brands of food or clothing and make a decision about what's better. About your second point - the mindset - YES! I read an article about this that really made an impression. The basic point was that poor people are savers - they are really skilled at saving their money and living on less, but they never expand their money. Wealthy people have the money to risk... like on investments and trying out unlikely careers and such. I definitely see the connection between poverty and living low-risk. It makes it really hard for people to ever escape being poor.

Oh gosh, I hate regular camping so winter camping is my nightmare! I bet your son has a blast, though :-)

I wish! I think my day at school would be so much better if I could just wear jeans!!!! But no.... apparently it's "not professional." :glare:

I'm like this too! Too much heat and sun makes me feel like a dried out (stressed out) lizard. I LOVE cloudy, rainy days! Not a whole month of them, though. That happened a few years ago and that was too much even for me.

I have a friend that bought a few thousand dollars of Bitcoin years ago... for next to nothing. Now Bitcoin is up to over $14,000. Yep, I'm jealous. I wish I was brave enough to try things like that out.

Definitely! Your kids sound amazing :-)

My husband is an academic, too. I know how hard it is. Good luck!!!

I'd like to go to your party :-) I also like leaving at 10:30! :)

Well, there's really nothing you can do to stop people from getting married! Everyone is different, so getting married young works for some people and doesn't for others... same as getting married later :-) You sound like an awesome, rational, no-drama mom. When I moved in with my now-husband when we were both 19, I'm sure all of our parents were freaking out, but luckily nobody let on. It would have just made us more determined, anyway!

I just drove through MA, CT, NY and PA, and we saw so many cars FLIPPED OVER on the side of the highway. The snow on the road didn't seem bad at all, but there is a ton of ice. I made a resolution then and there not to ever drive during the winter holidays again. I'm staying home in bad (or even questionable) weather. I wish we could all get our time off during Thanksgiving or Easter instead, and avoid so many people trying to drive in the snow!

How about some chapters from High Noon books, like Tom & Ricky? The chapters are just a few pages long.

Ha, here's the real link (I hope): https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&q=http://www.cobblearning.net/howetoreadandwrite/files/2016/05/PDF-How-to-make-complex-sentences-using-AAAWWUBBIS-words-2fjn1nc.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1514599708635000&usg=AFQjCNH2IlTCEeHaO-QtFyLm_bpe85zr7g

This is a really tough skill that even my dyslexic high school students struggle with. We teach them about the "AWWUBIS" words (see link) and then basically just teach them that if there's an AWWUBIS word (like When, Although, If) at the beginning of the sentence, then they need a comma and a second part to the sentence. It seems like it should be natural, but it's not. https://www.wayfair.com/storage-organization/pdp/viv-rae-folding-toy-storage-bin-vvre2715.html?piid=21419176 You could make a checklist that she uses to proofread single sentences. AWWUBIS word at the beginning? yes/no If yes, second half of sentence? yes/no Punctuation? yes/no That's what I'd do :-)

I second the Ronit Bird recommendations, starting with the Dots book. I worked with a 5th grader who did not "get" numbers. He couldn't understand that the number 5, for example, could be made up of other, smaller numbers (4 and 1, 2 and 3, etc). After a month of Ronit Bird, he was able to play dice games and make 5 out of two numbers, and also do things like 2+2+1. He was seriously excited! Like your daughter, he could do things with blocks, but once they weren't in front of him, he just guessed. He needed the intense focus on numbers being "made up of" other numbers. That skill (subitization) is necessary for all future math, so it's not like you're wasting your time on it... you're building the foundation.

Wow!!! I'm so happy for you both!

I have a boy like that in my class. I can see him as a very successful adult - very intelligent, great social skills, everyone thinks he's fantastic (because he is!). He's a terrible reader and speller... but if he can get by, I think he could be one of those dyslexic entrepreneurs you read about. If your daughter can function in day-to-day life, that is wonderful. If she's an okay but not great reader, though, she'll have to be good at using technology. Luckily, everyone is on their phones and tablets all the time... so a person with dyslexia using technology to get by will not stand out at all. She has to be REALLY good at using the tech, though... if any of it is laborious or confusing in any way, a student will just say to heck with it! and choose to bumble along rather than really take the time to do well. I think it's really important for a student with dyslexia to be able to talk about it and advocate for themselves. If she can somehow be proud of her strong points and really "own" having dyslexia, that will go a long way. Many college professors don't have a clue about dyslexia, so she'll have to be the expert. A real evaluation + diagnosis would be very helpful for that. HBO's documentary Journey into Dyslexia is EXCELLENT. I highly recommend watching it, even if you have to buy it. The filmmakers interviewed a wide variety of people (college girl w/ dyslexia, middle-aged entrepreneur with dyslexia (who, by the way, cried when discussing his time in high school :-(, and more). It's really great! Might help you picture a teenager-college-aged student -adult with dyslexia.

Playmobil are amazing, wonderful, creative toys! They're well-made and last forever... like LEGOs. They were my absolute favorite toy growing up :-)

You're in my thoughts today. :grouphug:

Awesome :)

One more comment before I get off my high horse. I recently listened to a podcast about extreme financial transparency in organizations. What happens if everyone knows everyone else's salary? If everyone knows the electric bill, the mortgage on the building, the income from donations... etc. An interesting thought when it comes to schools.

There's a serious culture of self-sacrifice among teachers. Somehow we're okay with (or at least not protesting too much) that admins make $150,000 when teachers make $30,000. Do principals REALLY work five times as hard as teachers? I'm all for higher pay for greater responsibility and education level... but come on. The gap is not THAT large! I say bring on the local news, too :)