Shift work? One adult in the household stays home with the kids while the other works. That would save on childcare. Some places have free preschool (sorry--I don't know how old your children are): look into church before school and after school programs. Call the dentist and see if you can get your total bill reduced. Some healthcare costs can be negotiated based on circumstances. Quit whining about not being able to save for your kids' college. They may not even want to go. If they do, they can find a way. We thought our kids would go to college and they did not. Our oldest thanks us for not "making" him go--he is gainfully employed and very happy. As others' have suggested: can you or your significant other trade labor? Ex: you watch my kids, I'll watch yours; you fix my car, I mow your yard, etc? Can you tutor--that pays well.

Holy cow--I've NEVER heard of brown sugar in any hot drink nor do I know anyone who uses it that way...

Never got a wedding ring and don't wear my engagement ring. Nonetheless, I have never heard of soldering them together.

Yeah, I've heard this, too, but try getting close enough to stare into a snake's eyes while wearing bifocals.

Tools were mentioned--one always needs tools: screwdrivers, hammers, sockets. Kids never would think to buy them for themselves. Not glamorous but they would think of you every time they used them!

Large sign at the end of the driveway. PO box in town. Training so the dog does not chase moving cars--I do not worry about your dog biting the drivers, but rather him getting run over. You can easily set up situations where someone in a delivery vehicle comes to your house and you use it as a training moment. If he has been trained to the underground wire, his prey drive isn't as strong as some dogs (some will willingly take the hit from the fence in order to chase).

This is me exactly!! No one told me about a wider reading area. Mine stink! And, I thought they were all that way.

Get a servant.

I thought this too until he said very specific things and dates--365 days in a year and he picks exact dates that certain things were going on. Trust me--most of my life there isn't much going on. He didn't say things like, "I see you have siblings"..he specifically said I had a sister who had died. He just started talking--he didn't ask questions. He told my friend she has two jobs--she does, and this is something that definitely does not apply to me. He knew my sister has a nine year old son without asking her (he stated it)--she is 50 so statistically, one would guess that any children she has would be older. Plus, he rarely looked at me while he was talking so his observance of my body language was limited. And, he can do phone readings (which neither I nor my other friends have had done so can't verify any "accuracy.")

Pehp--the friend who went with me is a lot like you. In my opinion, I am the least spiritual or connected person that you would meet, so I find the whole subject interesting (I am open-minded, though!). That is one reason I wanted to hear others' experiences and beliefs.

I don't know much about demons--but the man I went to is a Reverend. What would be the demons' motivations--what would they have to gain by having Rev Jim tell me about a family reunion or my son not liking his job?

No connection--I am just explaining who I am. I know we are electrical beings and that energy must go somewhere...

Yeah--he charges only $25 so I don't think he is getting rich. Unlike one my sister went to who charged $150! But, interestingly enough, she said many of the same things this man did.....

Well, I believe the man I went to is a Reverend....

This man did not use cold reading techniques that I could tell: he did not look at me, I purposely monitored my body language, he did not ask many questions nor did he say general things. He mentioned specific dates and said specific statements: "you have sisters, one living and one dead" not "you have siblings etc." I wear no wedding ring yet he talked about my husband. My friend, also my age, wears no wedding ring and he knew she was divorced. My sister, who went later, wears no wedding ring and he told her she is having trouble with her 9 year old son (she never said she had kids and she IS having trouble with her 9 year old son). Specifics like that.

All rightie--this is for fun because it is raining out and I have nothing better to do right now: Have you ever been to a psychic and had him/her tell you things that they could not have known and did it change your opinion on them? Disclaimer: I am an atheist yet tend to believe that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Went with a friend to a psychic for fun and he said a lot of things to me that were NOT general statements that rang true (he could not have said the same thing to my family or friend and have them be true). He did not ask a lot of questions fishing for information, he did not know who I was ahead of time, did not know my phone number or last name. Wanna share?

If you stash it in a cupboard you will probably regret purchasing it. I use mine several times per week (I cook from scratch). Recently I used mine for: making jalepeno/artichoke dip, cutting butter into flour for shortbread, finely chopping onion and green pepper chili for 50 people, cutting butter and Crisco into flour for pie dough, shredding cabbage for coleslaw, "grinding" some pork for sausage (too lazy to get out my grinder).

Yes, I would! It's just paint--if you do not like it when it is done, you can always go with white later.

There you go (bolded). Sorry about your brother. :( Love isn't logical. Son in question is soon to be 22 and not that experienced with girls/women in general. I had met this young woman before he did and really like her. She didn't smell of smoke so there was no way of knowing at the time. Plus she has a 4 year old son so I guess it never crossed my mind... My son and she discussed habits like smoking (drug use in general) and she said that most of the kids she knew in high school had used something, so I bet it was peer pressure/being cool that got her started. Of course, being female, she may have started in order to maintain her weight. She was sort of shocked to learn that my son had not used or tried anything. Parenting isn't for wimps!

This is what I talked about with him: whether or not it is a deal breaker for him. They have so much in common other than this, though, which is why it is more difficult in my opinion.

Same here--I've known lots of people with very bad consequences from smoking. Perhaps that is why I have such a knee-jerk negative reaction to it. I guess I am just surprised that it is making a comeback. Our youth seem more intelligent than we in a lot of respects. Heaven knows, I am not Mrs. Perfect! And, I totally agree with the bolded part above.

Thanks, Laura. That is sorta what I thought, too--what business do I have saying anything. But, our son expressed concern about it himself so we talked about it. I said that he probably has habits she will not like, either.

Growing up, it seemed all the grown-ups I knew smoked. Now, I don't see many in my age category (50s) smoking. I asked a college girl I know about the younger generation and she said a lot of kids her age smoke (cigarettes). My son is dating a very nice young woman who smokes. Is smoking on the rise again? Frankly, I'm a bit bummed learning that this woman smokes. My mom smoked and I have a knee-jerk negative reaction to it. Would you advise your kids not to date a smoker?

Sadly, some places do not allow this. I think it prudent to check before you get too far along in planning it.

I think that anything that affects you deeply and negatively can cause PTSD. You don't have to minimize it by comparing it to what soldiers experience.