My kids are on CHIPS. I'm thankful for it. The options for care-providers is limited but the places that do take it are good and not necessarily sub-par.

Not using Facebook doesn't make one weak (or disengaged from life, untrustworthy etc) either. There is actually that implication out there. Using Facebook is the norm these days. I think it's ok for people to support each other in not using it.

I quit Facebook about 2 and 1/2 years ago. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one because sometimes it seems like those who choose to do without FB don't even exist. Like you need a FB to be a normal person, a normal functioning member of society and you're some suspicious weirdo without one. There are a lot of reasons why FB may or may not work for a person and my case is basically the perfect constellation of circumstances that make FB more bad than good: My extended family is a fractured, strained mess of difficult relationships. It's time consuming and addictive. I already feel like I'm struggling to keep up with my main priorities in life. I'm not energetic and Type A. My time and energy are extremely limited. I don't need non-essential time wasting endeavours. I don't like seeing pics of my friends vacations and fun adventures while we are struggling and never go anywhere. My personality is such that I tend towards being an "over-sharer" and my statuses would reflect that. I prefer to over-share with my trusted select IRL friends. I find that FB is sort of like the sugary snack to my relational needs. It seems to hit the spot at the time but ends up leaving me still hungry and feeling gross after the sugar high wears off. (There are numerous other reasons, those are just the first few I could think of)

That's just so weird if the bot thing is true. A mildly popular paperback autobiography from the last 15 years costing as much as a used car? I wonder why they don't notice and do something. Can it be that insanely sought after?

Since Prince's death I was reminded of wanting to read this autobiography of Vanity/ Denise Mathews and her Christian conversion. I looked it up on Amazon expecting it to be $12.99 and lo and behold it's listed for $999 at minimum with one seller actually asking over $7,000. How does this happen? It's not like it's an antique collectible. Says it was published in 2004. I don't get it. http://www.amazon.com/Blame-Vanity-Denise-K-Matthews/dp/1878898221

I use the food grade DE but I've used the DE sold as "lawn and garden" product. I would probably even feel comfortable eating the lawn grade stuff as long as it's pure DE. They just can't legally label it as safe for consumption if it's marketed as a pest control/ lawn care item, but I feel pretty confident it's the exact same stuff. DE is very safe. It is very powdery so there is some concern about the dust kicking up and causing respiratory issues, but we've been ok and we've put it all over the inside of our house when the ants were getting really bad. The Terro liquid is a sticky liquid. In outdoor applications it will wash away with rain (kind of true to it's soap type ingredients) but it works best when fresh anyway. During the warm weather bad ant season it's all about being proactive and re-apply, re-apply, re-apply. It's a pain but there's no other option. It's either that or basically have a pest control guy on the payroll. Terro is a "slow kill" product in that the ants eat it and bring some back to share with all their friends. It can take a few days to up to a few weeks to get the nest saturated and killed this way. Strategy. By the way, I just buy the bottles of Terro liquid (about 4 bucks) and don't bother with the pre filled baits. I apply it straight to a surface where I know they are and clean it later or make my own bait stations with tin foil. Ants are very hard to manage. I agree though, learning about their habits and behaviors is key. Research your particular ant species. Know your enemy, lol.

We haven't ever used an exterminator but I feel like I've learned their secrets and can do what they do for 1/50 of the cost. I became a little obsessive about learning how to wage war on ants after I found what amounts to an ant-based horror movie situation in my closet when I had a young infant in the house. But obviously it's up to you. If we had the money to spend at the time, I probably would have hired someone.

Diatomaceous earth is so non-toxic that it is also taken as a health supplement by some. It is very effective in my experience except that as soon as it gets wet (rain etc) it is worthless and needs to be cleaned and reapplied. Other than that Terro liquid ant killer has been very good. It's minimally toxic. I think it's main ingredient is the same that is used in Borax soap. I am basically an ant control expert at this point in my life since moving to Texas. ETA: we have horrific ant problems (multiple species of ant) at this place and can't afford to hire someone, but those 2 above mentioned products have been extremely effective after I learned how to use them. I can elaborate more if you want to go the DIY route.

Again with the putting words in my mouth. I didn't say what should or shouldn't happen with abortion policy. I shared my experience. You obviously don't like it. Fine. Whatever dude. I'm out of here.

I just think your using the same argument that people use towards those who say "black lives matter". It doesn't mean other lives matter less and neither do I claim to matter more than women with non-traumatic abortion experiences. ETA: but I'm really not sure why you're asking me if I'm saying I matter more than other women with different experiences of Planned Parenthood. I never said that and don't mean that. If you don't like what I'm saying that's fine but don't put words in my mouth.

Would you be asking me this question if I said "Black lives matter"?

Abortion does hurt women. I'm a woman and abortion hurt me mentally, physically, emotionally profoundly. My experience matters even if it's not shared. But it is by many women out there and we matter. It hurts unborn women too. Where are their rights? Why don't we talk about that?

And for the record there are actually pro life feminists out there who believe abortion causes more harm to women than carrying out a pregnancy does. That is where concern for the woman comes in. There's New Wave Feminists- Destiny De La Rosa and Kristen Hatten... they are an organization of pro life feminists.

Where did I say my experience of Planned Parenthood was the only one? I feel I made an effort to say it was my view and experience. But just like those who report good experiences of PP that's not all there is to it. Am I not allowed to say that?

I didn't want to open this thread. At this point it's predictable what the general consensus is on this forum. And my views will not win me any popularity contests. I just want to say that my abortion through the Planned Parenthood system confirms the criticism about them. I felt completely coerced and was not presented with keeping the baby as a valid option. I was living in a time and place where abortion was pushed much harder than anything else. I didn't know there was such a thing as a crisis pregnancy center. Personally I feel it's a stretch to say it's manipulation to try and get a woman to keep her pregnancy and not abort. Pregnancy changes a woman's life forever, no matter which way it turns out. Abortion more often results in pain and regret than having a child unplanned but I'm sure many will disagree. That's my observation and we probably shouldn't even get started on Margaret Sanger (PP founder) and how her vision was to get rid of the poor and colored of society.

Learning about the ketogenic diet/ low carb high fat is what the switch flip was for me. I hated the idea of low carb before because I love carbs. When I started going with a no tolerance policy for carbs it helped a lot. Going through withdrawals was hard but good. People think it's extreme but I can't argue with how much better I feel and being a normal weight is really nice.

I can see how this would leave you shaken. I think about this stuff quite a bit, and from a Christian perspective. Why do good people sometimes do bad things? Why do bad people sometimes do good things? Why do good people sometimes have terribly hard lives? Why do bad people sometimes live charmed lives of comfort and prosperity? Someone said to me once - if your kids turn out good it's nothing you did. If your kids turn out bad, it's nothing you did. I don't believe at all that's the whole story, or else we might as well not even try to make good parenting choices, but to some extent we have to believe that in the context of the God of the bible. It's by his grace that anyone makes good decisions at all. Sin and living in a fallen world is a real thing even for the kids "most likely to succeed". And maybe some things we just won't understand until we can ask God face to face.

I think this is huge. All these high-brow 6 figure earning yuppies who write articles, plus all the parents who care so much about parenting that they participate in a message board like this have a hard time even considering what is often the truth: a lot of these parents just don't give a sh*t. It's apparently very controversial to even suggest that. And no, it's NOT across the board the only problem. But it's a huge problem that people don't seem to want to even consider. And as far as race, the mindset of "it's their culture" seems more racist to me. So if you see a parent in the store hitting their toddler and saying "Shut the f*** up little n*gga!" you'd say "It's ok because it's their culture." ?! There are African American parents out there doing their best to raise their children right who would find that highly offensive.

There's a lot of reasons school funding doesn't mean much when the students live in poverty. Going to school hungry for one thing. I know this one from experience. It's hard to care about learning when your most basic needs are not met. Free or reduced lunch? You need a parent who cares enough to sign you up for it. I'm not saying that poor parents are all neglectful but for whatever sad depressing reason it happens a lot.

For my money I'm betting it has a lot to do with the students home lives. All the school funding in the world still can't deal with the realities that poverty often bring like lack of parental involvement, instability etc.

I understand and it's a fair point about criticizing "generations". Maybe it's because my dad is Old Economy Steve with a side of "When I came to this country" lecture, and if he can do it you're a stupid whiny loser if you can't. It does seem to me though that things have gotten more complicated and harder in many ways though. That's all I'm saying. Lots of people who had lower end jobs could somehow end up as homeowners with a decent standard of living. Plus they were not living in a time where they were basically pressured to make poor choices like massive student debt. But then again I don't understand how my current peers are doing so well either and they are the same generation as me.

I've seen that too. The older generation often has these prosperity glasses on based on playing a game that was rigged in their favor and look at the current generation with disdain and smugness. It can be really frustrating.

Has anyone seen this meme series? Do you agree with the criticisms of Old Economy Steve? There are probably a few Baby Boomers here, or at least some of us who remember an economy that was much different than today's. Even I remember in the early 2000's after having worked since 15 (in my early 20's) being taken aback when I applied for a low paying job at a coffee shop and was asked for a resume. I know there are people out there who agree with Old Economy Steve and think people these days are just a bunch of cry-babies who have it easy and don't make good choices. But a lot of this meme series strikes a chord for what me and DH are living. We are trying to raise a family on one income with the breadwinner having no college degree. It's been just as hard as it sounds. His base, full-time pay is a couple thousand dollars a year above the poverty line for our family size. He doesn't like working tons of overtime but he does it and it keeps us off food stamps for now. DH has every good quality someone could want in an enployee except that he's not super ambitious or adept at playing the complicated career game. I don't see that as a flaw but apparently the result for that is near poverty. I guess I just get weary of feeling like everything is our own fault (I know some things are) when there are other forces going on.

My 2 year old woke up at 7:15 this morning. His normal wake-up time for almost all his life has been 5 - 5:30 am. It most certainly made my day. And I hope and pray this is his new normal.

Oh yes. Not finishing something makes me bonkers.