My dad was recently in a rehab center following a hospital stay and then a surgery. The only positive was that the food was so bad he lost a lot of weight. We were really disappointed with the care. He was supposed to be doing PT, but the other 23 hours of the day he was confined to bed as he didn't even have a chair in his room. When he and us kids had decided we'd had enough they continued to post-pone his discarge for several days claiming the dr wasn't in and if he left withou dr approval then insurance wouldn't cover the stay. We think they were just trying to get the insurance to pay for as many days as possible. I don't how typical his experience was, but regardless of where your mom ends up, I would keep a close eye on her care and don't be afraid to speak up. We found the squeaky wheel definitely gets the grease, even if we had to be pushy.

I have a friend who is planning on using goat's milk. Their last baby had issues with formula, so they began using goat's milk then. I don't know any other details, or how she uses it or if she mixes it with anything though. It doesn't automatically throw up red flags for me. I would assume they had researched it carefully and felt it was the best option available to them. Fwiw, I know I had some cousins that were fed goat's milk as infants. That was 30+ years ago.

I hope so. She deserves it. I really wanted to slap Mary though.

Me too, which is why I had planned to have all my shopping done by Nov 1st. Except I haven't even started yet.

I see this policy so differently. I see it as saying "When a child turns 18 and is living on his own and taking care of himself then he's at a point where he can make a decision like this that might drive a wedge between his personal life and his family." Eighteen year olds, while legal adults, are still young. Parents still have much influence over them. Nobody is going to force an 18 year old who wants to get baptized out of his home and on the street and a church leader would not encourage that Really, that's just ridiculous. If an 18 year old is still living at home, he can still wait to get baptized when he's 19 or 21 or 25 or whenever he has the means and maturity to be out on his own and has established his own household. The rule is not "get baptized at 18 or you can never be baptized."

You're right. It's not a question asked in the baptismal interview. They are asked if they have a testimony of Jesus Christ and of Joseph Smith and the living prophet. New converts of any age usually do not have a full understanding of every single doctrine of the LDS church and they rely on faith. But you can see, how a child growing up in a home with a gay parent, is going to be especially conflicted when they are taught opposing viewpoints at home and at church, right? The church is not banning children of gay parents from being baptized. They just want them to wait. They want to protect them from being caught in the middle until they have a bit more maturity and understanding and can accept how their membership in the church might affect relationships with their loved ones.

I don't really understand this. The church has always taught that marriage is between a man and a woman. Always. This is nothing new. And when one decides to be baptized they are affirming that that they have a testimony of the gospel and our living prophet, which would include the teachings about family. When a person is choosing to be baptized, they are essentially disavowing all sorts of different lifestyles. For an 8 year old growing up with one active LDS parent and one gay parent, this could be incredibly confusing. This isn't like alcohol use or not paying tithing. Society is incredibly vocal about how gay marriage is normal and okay while the church teaches it's not. And when someone is so close to someone who is gay, it's unfair to ask an 8 year old to decide which side they are going to take. They are not mature enough and they probably don't understand how that taking that position is going to affect their relationships with family. Any person, whether they are 8 or 18 or 88 is going to essentially "disavow" gay marriage when they make baptism covenants. Either you believe the teachings of the church or you don't. And if you don't, if you're not able or willing to say "I love my gay parent but I believe that marriage is between man and woman" then you probably shouldn't be getting baptized.

Wringer and Bud, Not Buddy.

That's assuming all Mormons are righteous and everyone else is not. I certainly don't believe that to be true. I find peace in knowing that only God can judge. I think there are many people with good hearts who will immediately recognize and embrace the truth when it is presented to them. To say they arr "stuck in prison" simply because of opportunities they didn't even have in this life is overly simplistic. I think wherever we end up in the next life, we'll be most comfortable there. The wicked will not eve want to be in the presence of God.

While it's true we'll never be able to find all the records for every person that has ever lived on this earth, we believe that everyone should have the their ordinances done for them by proxy (if they didn't have the chance on earth) so that they have the opportunity to accept or reject the Gospel of Christ. I honestly don't worry about all the people whose records we don't have. I don't worry about the people's whose genealogy has been entered incorrectly by amateur genealogists. I don't worry about how things will work out for more complicated family structures, like divorces or multiple marriages. But I do believe that God is perfect and that every single one of his children will have the opportunity to come to know the Gospel of Christ and have the opportunity to accept or reject it. How that's all gonna happen, I don't know. We don't have all the answers right now.But it will all work out in the end. That I am sure of. But members of the church are still encouraged to do the temple work for their ancestors, linking generations of families together. There's something about learning about your ancestors, who they were and what they did and then being able to do their proxy work for them, that is so strengthening and unifying. My family line has been LDS for generations back, but I'm still grateful for all the work that has been done collecting their stories and life histories. I come from a line of amazingly strong women who endured and gave so much and their examples give me so much courage and hope through the trials I am going through. I think doing temple work is as much for us (who are alive) as it is for those who's temple work we are doing. You begin to see the much bigger picture and recognize that every single person who has lived on this earth is a beloved son or daughter of God and who has had their own trials and obstacles to overcome. But we are linked and strengthened together through those temple covenants.

I don't think the term "rejecting" is accurate. All are invited to church. However, full participation and being able to take part in certain ordinances requires a commitment to live up to certain standards. That includes not having any sexual contact outside of marriage. It means abstaining from alcohol and drugs. It means paying a 10 percent tithe on all income. And much more. But everyone who is interested in joining the church is invited to make any necessary changes to their lives so they can be baptized. And it's not uncommon for a person to make mistakes that put their membership in jeopardy, but they are still invited to return to full fellowship in the church when they have made the necessary changes. With regard to the children of gay parents, they would be allowed to attend church and it's other activities, just not be formally baptized until they are legal adults. But they aren't being rejected. I know several young men and women who attend church faithfully but aren't able to be baptized because their parents will not give permission. They are still lovingly welcomed to activities and church meetings.

No, but a grown adult is much more capable of navigating the consequences of choosing a religion that teaches doctrine contrary to what they were taught in their families growing up. I think this new rule protects gay families. The church has always declared that the family is central to God's plan and the church exists to support the family. I can see why the church would not want to be in a position where they were teaching a child that his/her family unit was contrary to God's laws. I don't know if it's been mentioned in this thread yet, but the same rule exists for children of polygamist parents. They can't be baptized until they are 18 either, but there's no uproar over that.

I don't think you fully understand the policy. The children and grandchildren of gay parents will not be excommunicated. They are being told they can not be baptized until they are legal adults, at which point they can participate fully in the church. And that restriction is the same for a number of people, including children whose parents won't give permission. Personally, I think it's wise. Same sex marriage is at odds with the very basic doctrines of the LDS church. So instead of putting a child between their family's values and the church's they are telling them they have to wait until they are older.

There's a difference between padded bras and lightly lined bras though. The ones I love are just thick enough to not show through, without adding noticeable size to your... headlights.

I don't have teens. But I worked. At 14 I started in an ice cream store. At 16 I workes in a computer store and then a sub sandwich place. I also worked all through college. DH worked doing grunt labor construction jobs, eventually working up to finish carpentry. I think that's why he's so handy to have around and why he's not afraid to tackle new projects. He's got a wonderful work ethic.

Exactly this.

Wait, it was a girl? Still doesn't change my opinion though. Pretending to shoot a bow and arrow is normal for kids.

I think that's ridiculous. I recently read "Why Gender Matters" and it was really eye-opening. The author was very big on boys needing a physical outlet and being able to play rough and that it was important for their development. He says that studies show that juvenile primates who don't engage in that aggressive play become very unchecked aggressive adults. The author was big believer in sports to get that energy out. I don't know if bows and arrows fall into that category as beneficial to their development, but I think as a society we need to understand that a certain degree of rough and tumble play is necessary for boys. My kids have bows and foam arrows and nerf guns and they love it. The only thing I don't like are swords because they actually hit each other hard with those.

I think it's weird and a bit rude if there are other places to park. Years ago we lived in a small, crowded college town and if we ever had friends park in front of our ornery neighbor's house, even if just for a couple hours, she taped nasty notes to their cars. We had to warn people to park anywhere but there. She claimed it made it hard to see to pull out. But her giant, overgrown bushes in between our houses that really did block the view she wouldn't let us trim.

When DH and I both logged into our gmail accounts on the same computer it merged our calendars, never to separate again.

I told my kids Obama cancelled Halloween this year, but they didn't believe me. I'm not one for cruel pranks. I don't like to be pranked either. But I think it also depends on long it's drug out and if the child is used to light-hearted joking. If the child is melting down, it's gone too far. But I have 1 child that can't seem to take a joke at all and it makes me think I haven't joked enough with her.

True. There are 30+ grandkids in my family so unless someone is having a birthday party and inviting same-age cousins, we don't do anything for nieces and nephews either. My mom was great about taking each grandchild birthday shopping, but since she passed away, my dad has kind of dropped the ball. So unless he gets reminded he doesn't do anything for them. DH's family has a lot fewer grandkids, but we still don't do anything for them either.

Last year my kids got a few basics, like socks and underwear and some small things in their stockings. And then they put together a puzzle I had made announcing we were taking a trip to CA and the beach. We immediately packed up and left and spent a couple days having fun. Best Christmas Ever!

My kids had unlimited access to their loot this morning, making them all wild and hyper. The candy has already been confiscated. They were apparently playing some wild game of keep away from each other and broke a closet door. So they get their candy back after that's been repaired and paid for. Also, I told them for every wrapper I found on the floor I would "tax" them another piece from their baskets. So far I've got 24 pieces. And that's after they cleaned up. I really hate this holiday.

I have no problem with real little kids peeing outside. Though I try to steer then towards private places where people aren't likely to walk. That mom was weird. I travelled to Guatemala as a teenager and was shocked when walking through a very crowded market (with cement or asphalt floors) a woman bent down to help her daughter squat right in the walkway and pee. Of course that was probably the least shocking thing I saw. :-) So peeing in the grass seems pretty tame.