Can I ask why? Dd did R&S 3 last year and I thought it was fine. She's in 4 now. I have been debating about what to next year with DS7 who is an excellent reader and working through LOE C. (And that's really too easy for him.) I had considered R&S grade 2 for him. Why not till 4th grade?

I have no desire to go to Vegas because I don't enjoy that either. I'd rather find a Bed and Breakfast close to a National Park or some other scenic area instead.

But the alternative is pricing your house like it's in perfect condition (when the seller is aware of what issues it may have) so that they can lower the price after the buyer's inspection. That doesn't seem very honest way to price the house. In our situation, the "repairs" that the buyers wanted were either small things or upgrades. I honestly don't even remember anything besides the rain gutters they wanted. If it were something big-- like it was discovered a major appliance needed repair, or there was not-yet-discovered water damage, etc, than I could lowering the price for those things. But sometimes buyers are just being picky.

We sold a house 6 years ago. It was a seller's market and the contract was "as-is." The house was over 80 years old, so obviously quirky and there was always going to be something to fix or upgrade. Nevertheless, after the inspection the buyers wanted to lower the price and had a list of repairs they wanted us to do. (For example, they wanted rain gutters, which is an upgrade, not a repair.) From what I understand, it was all coming from the buyers, not their realtor. Their realtor was so frustrated and afraid the sale would fall through that most of the price decrease they wanted came out of his commission. I don't know if they even knew that. I felt bad for their realtor. But these people were a pain to work with!

You would think that at some point those families with daughters would eventually have the advantage just because there are less of them. Start demanding a dowry for your daughter since pickings are slim. Or just do away with that altogether. Though I realize those traditions are deep.

Well, that's only slightly less yucky. I suppose there will be fewer government-forced abortions. I can't even imagine the trauma those women go through. And I can't imagine being told how many kids I am allowed to have.

I didn't think that the herd plan was all that bad. It probably would have worked if not for the group that invaded Alexandria and caused the noise that attracted the herd. That was just insane. I am also hoping Glenn is still alive somehow!

Judging by the rates your babysitter gets paid for her lifeguarding and swimming coach jobs, I think the COL must be much higher where you're at. Because teenagers (15yo +) around here don't get paid that much.

Wow. I really feel like a cheapskate. The babysitters in the neighborhood that we use are usually 11-14 years old. Much older than that and they tend to be too busy with friends on the weekends to want to babysit. I've asked multipe babysitters what they charge and they've only ever told me "oh, whatever you want." I pay $5/hr. And I have 5 kids. If they've done some basic picking up (like clearing off the pizza box from the table, which is more rare than you'd think) I throw in extra. The babysitters come back so they haven't been too offended, if they were at all. I can't wrap my head about charging $10/hr per kid. With 5 kids that's just not even reasonable. Even $20/hr for 2 kids seems outrageous. Yes, tending to my children is an important job, but whoa.

Is DD 8 months old? Or were the poop samples? Though I'm not really sure why I want the clarification... :ohmy:

Not that I ever really need to do it because I've got DH for this-- but I'd like to be able to back up a trailer hitched to a vehicle. I don't know what kind of sorcery is required to make the trailer turn the direction I want it to, because it defies all logic for me.

I recently started a thread about my one child who has to pitch a fit about chores constantly. He says "but I don't like chores" like the rest of us must love it. Despite routines having been in place for several years, it's always a battle with this kid. For me, it would be easier to give in. But I also believe that everyone in the house needs to pitch in and help. They eat and sleep here and wear clothes I buy, they can wash dishes and help around the house too. For this child of mine, I take away privileges. Chores do suck. Work sucks. Wouldn't we all like to live in a castle and be waited on hand and foot? But IMO life is a lot more work than play and there are just some things you have to do even if you don't like it.

Isn't that the truth. I think about that with my boy who can hardly see. I have another who would have been crippled by a club foot. Treatments are so good now he doesn't have any complications whatsoever bc of it.

So why is Odam a victim of his upbringing but Duggar is not?

I love to hear others' suggestions for books to read. But sometimes it's nice to pick up an easy read with a great storyline that I can finish in a day or two. (I have had to return more than one book to the library before I was done b/c I couldn't finish it fast enough) So what are YOUR favorite children's books? My all-time fave (that I should read again) is The Great Gilly Hopkins. I cry big fat ugly tears at the end every time, but I love it. Bud, Not Buddy Anything by Avi

Does this apply to both Odam and Duggar?

It seems there's a lot more sympathy for Odam (who I never heard of before today) because of his childhood and the challenges his faced. I agree that it's a sad situation all around. And I do feel bad for him. I hope he recovers and can get on with his life. However, I'm not sure that I consider Odam's actions (soliciting prostitutes, spending days in a brothel doing drugs) any less icky than Duggar's extra marital affairs. It seems to me the media is much more critical of the hypocritical conservative than the guy who spent much of his life making bad choices. I agree that our childhood and life experiences affect how and why we make various choices throughout adulthood. However, I don't think we do anyone any favors when we imply that a person can't overcome their past or that somehow their past limits them. (Not referring to you Catwoman, just the overall tone of this thread) At some point we all have to be accountable for what we do. And I think we can have sympathy for both Odam and Duggar. Both have caused serious damage to their families and relationships because of their poor choices.

I wouldn't mind a cat either. We had one earlier this year for a couple weeks until we discovered DS was allergic to it. :(

I could have sworn I read a thread all about this once, but I can't seem to find it now. What's the best small pet for kids (ages 5-10) that's relatively low maintenance, fairly inexpensive and maybe even a bit fun to play with. Low odor would be great too. :laugh: I don't get grossed out by much. I had 2 female rats as class pets when I was teaching elementary school and I loved those rats. But let's face it, my classroom stunk! I'm leaning towards a reptile of some sort. And maybe even something we could have 2 of in the same cage because we have multiple wanna-be owners. So, in your experience, what's the best small caged pet for kids?

Also, the problem with sending a letter is you'll never know if he got it. He might have been relieved to get it. But maybe the mail isn't forwarded. Maybe He read it and was annoyed and didn't respond. If you don't hear back from him, you'll never kow why. I would track down a phone number or something.

Tell her grandparent time is for fun, not school. My mom taught elem for years and I would love to have her help. (She passed away) But she would never, ever be pushy like that. Your mil is risking ruining a good relationship with your dd if she makes their interactions about fixing her mistakes rather than just having a good time. Is there something else she could teach her? Crochet? Sewing?

That is so sad and disturbing. What kind of sins did they expect them to confess? So sad.

Okay, I am relieved to hear that. I should just say no. The other thing he's asked for is Minecraft but I don't know enough about it. I should start a separate thread for that. But ds talks about being able to prevent any younger siblings from using it, so it would have to a family gift that I own.

Dh is in the Natl Guard. We haven't attended any military activities either. However, a few years ago we did get pictures of DH and I in his dress uniform. It was kind of a fun photoshoot. We each have a grandparent who wore their military uniform in their wedding pics, so we thought it would be fun to at least have some couples pics of us. We have a handful of pics of the kids and DH in his regular uniform from when he was coming or going to various tranings. (He's never been deployed) I think it'll be nice to have those to look back on. But I am not really interested in being active in any military family activities. We have enough going on.

My almost 10 year old is researching electronic devices and insists he wants one for Christmas. He's undecided about what exactly. I am not opposed to getting him something, however he seems to think that having his own tablet or laptop or 3ds (or whatever he's wanting at the moment) will mean he's got unrestricted access and control over it. I'm not quite ready to give him that much freedom considering he has a tendency to be a bit obsessive and impulsive and selfish. So I'm dragging my feet so far because I anticipate it would just end up being a constant battle. What kind of electronic devices do your preteen boys have? And how do you monitor and control their usage when they "own" it.