This is gorgeous!! I think either would be lovely, but I picked blue and a tote bag to carry it!

Praying that everything goes well and that the hearing will be smooth for you tomorrow.

Oh good idea! It won't last forever - I think at one point during my prep, I sent a gif of a fire hydrant being opened to a friend to describe the, um, intensity of the experience. 😂

Ha! The bubbles and non-sweetness of seltzer helped me. Tiny bit of advice for the next few hours - if you think, even suspect a teeny bit that you may have to go to the bathroom- go. Quickly. Do not wait. And bring a book.

This happened to me too - DH and I are both - and he got a blood test to submit to the OB's office to prove his blood type. The office and midwives were all fine with it, but the pediatrician that came on rounds the first day I was in the hospital strongly suggested that I could have harmed my baby if I had been lying about who the father was. 🙄

So I was initially excited about the low-fiber, all-the-white foods diet. Then I quickly realized that I'm not 10, and that stuff does not satiate me like I always hoped it would when I was a kid and my parents were all about healthy foods. I was ready to kill for veggies or a salad pretty quickly!! 😂 (something my 10 year old self never would have thought!)

I was allowed a low-fiber breakfast the day before - I went with yogurt and cinnamon toast! And then all clear - lemon italian ice was my friend that day!

You've got this!! Come back and post if you get a bit hangry during the stretch between when you have to stop eating and before you start drinking all the liquid. I was a bit hungry during that period of time.

They're the important bits! After our friend was diagnosed, all of his friends signed right up as soon as we could, so we were able to trade prep stories. The Miralax dissolves really well into the Gatorade - it takes a bit of stirring, and I gave it a half hour in the fridge to get extra cold too. I had to drink 32 oz Gatorade mixed with the Miralax over the course of 1 hr. It helped a lot to drink it out of a big straw (I have some that we got for smoothies) and alternate with sips of seltzer to cut the sweetness a bit. But the Miralax is flavorless, so it's basically drinking a bunch of Gatorade relatively quickly. Boudreau's Butt Paste was a godsend as well. See if they'll give you the Gatorade/Miralax prep. It wasn't bad at all - I mean, it was a lot of lemon-lime Gatorade, but it was palatable. I do terribly with drugs - I can't do painkillers w/ narcotics well, and I was so sick after anesthesia when I had it. I was fine with the colonoscopy procedure - they put anti-nausea meds in your IV, and they give you just enough sedative/painkillers to put you mostly out but not 100%, so you wake up really quickly. With mine last week, my paperwork said that they stopped giving me sedatives at 9:02 am, and I texted my friend to let her know I was done at 9:06 am. We met with the Dr. for a few minutes after, and I was home and eating a bagel w/ cream cheese before 10 am. No nausea or oogey feelings.

Please do. Before the regulations changed to 45, one of our closest friends was diagnosed with colon cancer at 49. The treatment was horrific, and he went through hell for 10 months and passed away at 50. I went right at 45 - did the Dulcolax/Miralax prep, and it wasn't bad. There's not any stomach cramping or anything, it's very straightforward when you do go to the bathroom. Keep a book handy or something, and prepare to be in and out of the bathroom for 2-3 hours for both halves of the prep. (if you have the divided kind). I worried about being hungry during the fasting, but aside from a few hours early on, I really wasn't. The amount of liquid you have to drink keeps you from being hungry, I think. The nurses and doctors are fabulous and understand that everyone feels awkward going to a colonoscopy. They put you under with very, very light sedation and what I call "the forgetty medicine," - which makes what you do remember like a dream. I had a scary abnormal result at 45, which led to me getting a second one 6 months later, which was thankfully normal. A good friend of mine went at 42 and had a 25 in pre-cancerous polyp removed. The medical staff let her know multiple times how lucky she was to come in even earlier than 45 (the only reason she did was our friend that died). After, you can go back to eating normally right away. They gave me juice in the recovery area, and I was able to head home right after we talked to the doctor after I woke up. No after-effects aside from being a bit sleepy that day.

I hope there are legal repercussions for violating a restraining order! He may need to stew in a cell for a bit or pay a fine to understand that he needs to follow the law.

I have been following your story and I am just hopping mad that he's trying to claim that YOU'RE in contempt. Ugh - I don't know what it's about but I'm ready to go get my law degree and get bar certified in your state just so I can stick it to him for you. 🤬 I'm so sorry you're dealing with this, Heart!!

I played around with it, asking it to make IEP goals. Overall, it did a decent job! Please write an IEP goal for a student learning multiplicative reasoning with a relative weakness in working memory and strengths in visual spatial and fluid reasoning. "Given visual aids and support for organization, the student will independently apply multiplicative reasoning strategies to solve problems with 80% accuracy within a one-minute time frame, as measured by teacher-created assessments, by the end of the school year." I tried present levels, SMART goals and added in time frames - it was able to do it all which is cool.

You work in a school, right? I wouldn't 100% plan on going back to work Tuesday. The last time I had mild pneumonia, I was coaching gymnastics and needed at least a full week of rest before I was able to go back even for a few hours. I hope you feel better quickly!! Also, if your ribs start aching, I found that bending over and almost coughing upside down helped take some of the pressure off my ribs. Sounds weird, but it helped.

I never knew I needed something like this until now! We (currently) keep ours in a drawer in the office/school room, but now I NEED this battery organizer thingie!

I'm so sorry for your loss, Dawn. ❤️

My friend prefers cottage cheese instead of ricotta. I'm not sure if she blends it up a bit first to get a more ricotta like consistency or not? But she says it makes for a delicious lasagna.

There were plenty in the store when I went the other day, but store brand was $5.99. The Pete and Gerry's we usually get were $7.49.

OK - saw you're in MS. I found this: " The parent that wants to move away and take the children must notify the other parent with plenty of advance warning. Although many states have very specific notice requirements, Mississippi does not. The most important thing is that if the non-relocating parent objects to the move, then the parent who wants to move has to go to court and ask the judge to change custody. If the court does change custody or allows a parent to move, it's likely the judge will also divide up each parent's financial responsibility for any costs incurred as a result of the new custody and visitation plan. Don't move away with your kids when your ex disagrees and the court hasn't ruled yet. Consult a lawyer first." It sounds like he's out of compliance.

Does your state have a law against moving kids more than a certain number of miles without consent from the other parent? Vermont has this: "In Vermont, a custodial parent is free to relocate without court approval, but only if the move will not substantially impair the other parent's rights and responsibilities with the child." The stunt your ex pulled wouldn't be allowed in many places, I don't think.

Dang, I missed that post! Ugh - I'll keep thinking!

Dawn you are an amazing daughter and I've been praying for you and your father. ❤️

I know it's less than ideal, but what is the job market there like for fields outside of IT? Our area is struggling so much to find employees that places are closing because of staffing issues (RIP Panera). And they have very good starting rates - $18/hr is common for fast food/supermarket type jobs. Would your DH be willing to work somewhere outside of his specialty until he finds a new job? That may help with short-term budgeting. Other thoughts - IT in a school, substitute teaching, teaching computer lab (schools are desperate right now). Driving for Door Dash or Instacart can make a bit - one of my friends can make $200/day, which isn't a ton, but it's something.

This one is good - I don't add the nuts (or the sugar). https://minimalistbaker.com/sweet-potato-black-bean-burger/

Ted Lasso is amazing and a new season is coming out soon I think! We were obsessed with Tiny Worlds last year too.