I didn’t think I would like guacamole because I don’t like avocado. I love guacamole! It’s a texture thing. I consider them entirely separate foods.

The leggings are compression leggings, but they are nylon and Lycra and dry beautifully. https://us.2xu.com/products/motion-shape-hi-rise-compression-tights-wa6474b-womens-black-nero The top is actually designed for swimming. https://www.coolibar.com/women-s-long-sleeve-swim-shirt-upf-50-clearance.html I got them both on Amazon.

I grew up on swim team and don’t care that much about people seeing my body. But I now, for health reasons, I swim in full length leggings and a long sleeve top and I absolutely love it. I don’t have to even think about my body or sunscreen! Modest swimwear is great. I’m so glad we have options now.

Hey, I’m Autistic. I totally *get* rigid thinking! The path we took is one that we know is safe. And so few things feel safe. In my daydreams my Autistic daughter ends up studying at a university very much like where I studied, then she studies abroad very near to where I studied abroad, then she does almost the same grad school… And this is me trying to be open minded! It’s so hard.

I was a highly motivated, academically focused kid with a lot of anxiety who despaired about the lack of future prospects for my high school classmates who weren’t equally academically focused. Turns out there are *a lot* more ways to be successful than I thought. Like some of the straight Cs students with amazing social skills are working in medical sales and making way more money than I do. Or the classmates who opened restaurants! Or teach kids to mountain bike! (I would be horrible at all of these things!) The world needs and values a huge array of skills, only some of which are reflected in high school GPAs. As much as I can see a wider perspective as an adult, I can still imagine freaking out if it was my kid who might not follow the highly-academically focused path. Anxiety is a beast. I feel for your husband.

My favorite is probably Envy, but the grocery store has Honey Crisp. Apples are such an important part of my very limited diet that I’m willing to pay the premium. The ones I get are good year round, but the vary occasional underwhelming Honey Crisp is such a “sad trombone” moment!

“We think it’s important to raise our kids with a sense of community and tradition, and we really like the uniforms even if the music is somewhat lacking” was not something she wanted to hear. I couldn’t possibly make parenting choices different from the choices she had made for her children. Even if I totally understood and respected the reasons she made the choices she did! I couldn’t have separate reasons, because then we would be separate people! And that was not allowed.

My mom did the inverse. She was the one true Atheist, and how dare we raise our children Catholic, didn’t we understand how we were hurting her!?! Plus interrogations about whether I actually believed in God, because she needed and deserved to know. And obviously this was “just” a simple yes or no question, she had no patience or interest in an honest nuanced answer….

I finally figured out that *M*emorial Day is in *M*ay. It only took me 38 years…

Wanted to add, the ULAT is completely text-free at the beginning levels. The first 15 lessons are free if you want to give it a try.

California kids have instate options too, if they are willing to look outside the big name CSUs. There are a ton of CSU campuses that are not impacted for CS or engineering. https://www.calstate.edu/attend/impaction-at-the-csu/Documents/ImpactedProgramsMatrix.pdf (Hey, I was a California kid who wouldn’t consider UC Davis back in the day, much less Sonoma State, so I know it isn’t easy, but the options are out there.)

Okay, so I knew I would bleed after a c-section (because they covered it in my birthing class) but I totally thought I would avoid the painful postpartum sex because my vagina would not be recovering from trauma. Nope! It’s shifting hormones that cause postpartum vaginal pain! Such fun!

I would continue with Paul Noble. It’s a very good program. I would add this work book: https://www.cle-international.com/adolescents/grammaire-progressive-du-francais-niveau-debutant-complet-livre-cd-appli-web-2eme-edition-9782090382754.html There is a separate answer key: https://www.cle-international.com/adolescents/grammaire-progressive-du-francais-niveau-debutant-complet-2eme-edition-corriges-9782090384529.html You can get these on Amazon or elsewhere, but the CLE website has samples to review. I absolutely adore the CLE Progressive series. Each lesson has explanations on one page and exercises on the facing page. Very straightforward, very thoughtful progression through the material. Perfect for self-teaching. When you finish one level you can advance to the next, and each level reviews and builds on the one before it. They have other books (phonetics, reading, orthography, conjugations) at each level, but I think just the grammar would be a fine place to start. Especially since Paul Noble would help with speaking.

I’d love to see a daylight pic!

POTS is just one flavor of dysautonomia. Covid can mess with the autonomic system in a variety of ways.

Plenty of LongCovid patients with Bradycardia. Covid messes with your autonomic systems, and that can potentially manifest as either Bradycardia or Tachycardia, sometimes both in the same patient. This sounds so frustrating. I’d take him to the pediatric ER next time.

My dad’s WASP family was quite wealthy. Their wedding tradition was simple ceremonies in the family living room with a small handful of guests, followed by a home cooked meal. A wedding cost the same as a regular Thanksgiving. My mom’s Catholic family was not at all wealthy. Their wedding tradition was big weddings with all 28 cousins, a buffet and dancing. Big didn’t necessarily mean fancy, I fondly remember a rehearsal dinner that was the Friday Fish Fry at the local bowling alley, but weddings were large extended family events that were a significant expense. Your idea of an appropriate amount to spend on a wedding doesn’t really say anything about your financial situation, but it says a lot about your family culture. It’s totally okay that your family culture doesn’t include big “event” weddings. Some families do, some don’t.

I haven’t used cursive since fifth grade. But my manuscript writing is clear and easy to read. And I can write quickly, I had no problem hand writing exams in college. I’m all for requiring legible handwriting, but honestly I don’t see why that needs to be cursive. If he doesn’t care for cursive by now I don’t see how extra years of practice will change that.

I would try to pick a single trim color for the whole house. Makes painting easier and provides visual cohesion. If your various wall colors go well enough with each other, there should be one trim color that goes well enough with all of them. Whether this is a warm white or a cool white or even a cream is going to depend on your color scheme.

Crosshatch.

They look great! Can’t wait to see them next to your counters!

Let me third the bus tours! I lived in London, and I loved when we had guests so we had an excuse to ride the open-top bus. It’s lovely and really helps you get a feel of the city and how it is all connected.

I can’t imagine driving that long for anything that didn’t involve life saving medical treatment. I know people do, but if you want permission from a stranger on the Internet to quit, you have it!

The workbook uses the audio recordings extensively. When I was using FIA, I used the audio a lot and didn’t really watch the videos.

This would actually be a good diet for your daughter! Low inflammatory, probably low-histamine if it’s the right vegetables. (New histamine sensitivity is so common after COVID.) As someone two plus years into LongCovid, here are my thoughts for someone dealing with severe fatigue post-covid: 1) Rest, rest and more rest. (This is obvious, but so important.) 2) Look into feeding her Mitochondria. They seem to be damaged by Covid. There are various supplements including CoQ10 and Acetyl-L-Carnitine. This is fairly mainstream stuff, so I would ask her doctor. 3) She can be tested, and if needed treated for reactivated Epstein-Barr virus. This is the virus that causes mono, and it seems that Covid can cause it to flare. (Everyone gets Epstein-Barr at some point.) 4) Check to see if she has orthostatic intolerance. Does her heart rate go up when she stands up? This is easy to check at home with a pulse-ox meter. Lots of people have this as a problem post-covid, and there are easy ways to help maintain blood flow to the brain when she stands. (Extra fluids, electrolytes, compression clothing, possibly medications.) This is 100% mainstream and easy to discuss with a doctor. 5) LongCovid is serious and disabling, but many people do show improvements over time. Months and years, not days and weeks, but still optimism is totally appropriate. I’m so glad you can be with her!