One thing I've always hated about pads is the smell. I always feel like I can faintly smell blood if it's not a fresh pad. Do these have the same problem? I wonder if they'd be good to wear after giving birth.

My toddler daughter loves Magnatiles. Those things are great. She also gets a lot of use out of her micro scooter, chalkboard, and rocking horse.

There's a name for the style I like best...what is it, again? Oh yeah. Expensive. I like pretty much anything expensive. :lol: Seriously though, rustic is probably my favorite. Stone, wood beams, dark wood floors, big fireplaces, lantern type fixtures. Maybe something that has a medieval feel to it. We're actually house shopping right now. I can tell you that we're probably not going to get any of that.

We only do stockings for Christmas, so in a way that's great because the number and size and price of gifts is rather limited. On the other hand, those limitations make it hard to find high quality, non-junky gifts. I haven't bought anything, but I'm trying to brainstorm. For my almost 3 y.o.: Cloth butterfly wings Lacing Cards Dazzler Ribbon Hand Puppets Baby Doll Glow Bracelets For my DH: DIY Desk Catapult from ThinkGeek A real fossil of some kind (probably a trilobite) New card game for us to play together (not sure which one yet) External phone battery For myself (I do all the Christmas shopping): Maybe this olive leaf ring if I'm willing to splurge (I never buy jewelry but I think it's so pretty) Or maybe a Kavu sling bag Dark chocolate ???

I don't know. Technically, unschooling and not-schooling are different. But if the overlap is so large that if, say, a majority of self-proclaimed unschoolers are not-schoolers, the distinction doesn't seem to matter. We don't have any hard data to really know how big the overlap is. But in my experience, actual unschoolers are the exception, not the rule. And that seems to be a lot of other people's experience, too. I can think of a dozen different families I've personally met who unschool, and only one really merits the name. Heck, my DH's parents were unschoolers, and they were definitely the lazy variety that boasted that DH didn't need formal education because he was so naturally curious about the world, but they had no motivation to put in the work of encouraging him to pursue his interests (there was basically no parental involvement in his education at all, even when he asked for it).

From what I've heard, they are relocating both guests and their workers to the safest resorts.

I used the Persona for about ten years with success. It is the same the principle as FAM but uses eight urine tests per month to directly measure your estrogen and luteinizing hormones, giving you the "green light" based on the results. It's 94% effective, which is about the same for the typical use of barrier methods. Edited to add: We don't use it now because I'm pregnant. We'll return to using it when we are done growing our family.

Sleepy Hollow / Mr. Toad was on there last I checked.

No problem! I use it all the time. In case I was too vague, you should download the Spanish language keyboard for it to work properly, but that's not hard. :)

If you use an iPhone or another device with voice transcription, you can use that instead of writing (when it calls for writing you hit the microphone icon and speak instead so it transcribes it--you need to download the language keyboard and speak clearly).

One of my favorite cookbooks is Keepers: https://www.amazon.com/Keepers-Tried-True-Weeknight-Happiness/dp/1609613546 The recipes are simple and filling. Monday Shrimp Alfredo Tuesday Rotisserie Chicken from grocery store and roasted broccoli with cheese Wednesday Crock Pot Beef Stew Thursday Spicy Black Bean Soup Friday Steaks or Burgers or Hot Dogs on the grill with chips

Magnatiles! They're probably the most expensive toy we've bought, but they are so worth it because they will be played with for years.

One reason I carry is that I've been in a situation before where if I had been able to defend myself, or someone nearby had been carrying, I would not have been hurt. It was a public place in a low crime area in daylight. So while I don't think I will ever have to use it (it's not like I strap it on like a cowboy hoping to get in a gun fight), I also think it's important to realize that it could save someone's life. The police hardly ever show up in time to actually stop a crime from happening, and there are many cases where a citizen who was carrying prevented tragedies from happening.

I have a permit and I carry a lot of the time.

I just want to step in to say that my DH teaches precalc (along with calc, calc II, brief calc, etc.) at a community college. Regarding drawing the lines and taking off for it, he says, "That is one of the most bizarre things I've ever heard. I don't know of any coworkers who take off points for things like that, and if they did, they'd probably not be hired back by the college when the department found out what they were doing." He is also surprised that he wouldn't be fired for refusing to give her one-on-one attention during office hours. That's the whole point of office hours. Blowing off a student and just telling them to get a tutor is beyond the pale. This is not normal.

Because based on previous statements, we are talking about people who have incomes are so high that they are NOT choosing between groceries and a homeschool class. Their income is such that they are choosing between a homeschool class and another discretionary spending item, like how much is spent on video game systems, TVs, new cars, toys, eating out, entertainment, etc. I know a family who makes about twice what we do. They live in the same area and because of family connections, were able to build their house for about $80k. So they have a lot of financial advantages going for them. But they're always saying, "We can't afford that," when what they really mean is, "We're spending our money elsewhere." And that's fine. But saying, "We can't afford that," implies that it's not a choice. It implies that they have no power over how their money is spent. Like you said, if it really was between groceries and a non-essential item, then of course saying, "We can't afford that," would be factual. But for a lot of people that just isn't the case. Heck, even when we've been at our poorest, living well below the poverty line, I was still cognizant of the fact that for the most part, that wouldn't apply to us, because we still had luxuries we could cut if we needed money to go to something more worthwhile (within a certain amount, of course). For almost a year we lived without Internet, cable, a TV, Netflix, etc. in order to limit our spending, and there were still several things we could have cut on top of that if it'd been important enough to us. I'm not saying everyone can afford $300 in private music lessons a month or whatever if they just budget correctly. Of course not. But I'm just saying that having been poor, it made me appreciate how we still lived a "rich" lifestyle as Americans in a lot of ways and we were lucky enough not to be deprived of a lot of non-essentials in order to have the essentials. And it's for that reason that it irritates me to hear people who are NOT living in those conditions use phrases that imply that they are painted into a corner and there's nothing they can do because they aren't rich enough to have x or y, when it is clear that they could if they had different priorities. I hope that makes sense.

If you buy regular charcoal, just be sure it is activated charcoal.

You can buy charcoal deodorizer that fit under your air vents. THey actually filter smells rather than just covering it up. They also sell charcoal deodorizers for cars that you could place on your book shelves. I don't know how well it'd work against dead body odors but it's the most scientific solution I can think of. Unless you also want to try closing and covering your vents with towels, but that would mean you couldn't use ac. Might want to set a rolled towel by the bottom of your door leading to the hallway though.

Were taking our almost 3 year old this winter. But I don't expect it will be our only trip, so that changes things. I agree that going when the youngest is 5 seems good. They won't be napping during the day, won't need a stroller, and most people can remember vacations from when they were 5. The oldest would only be 11, so plenty of the wonder will still be there. That said, if now is a better time for your family, the three year old will still enjoy it, and even if they won't remember it, they'll still enjoy looking back through the family photos later on.

I found this article useful: https://touringplans.com/hollywood-studios/attractions/fantasmic It doesn't sound like FP helps with Fantasmic much, unfortunately.

I just broke my pinky toe a few weeks ago, and my Internet research led me to the conclusion that if it's not your big toe, and if it isn't a major break (toe sticking out at unnatural angle or bone protruding through skin) then there's no need to see a doctor at all. They will just give you a walking boot and possibly wrap the toes to each other (which isn't even usually necessary). You can buy a walking boot at your local pharmacy or on Amazon. They say it should start feeling better in a week, and heal in 6-8 weeks. You probably won't need the boot the whole time--I wore regular but loose fitting shoes about a week and a half later. Of course, if going would make you feel better, and you don't mind spending the money, you can still visit UrgentCare! Edit: Take anti-inflammatory meds (like Aleve), soak it in a pot of ice water when you can, and keep your foot elevated above your heart when lying down to prevent swelling. I hope you don't have a toddler in the house...mine unintentionally stomped on my foot about two dozen times.

I can't see a resolution at this point, even with the principal, unless you think he might be able to erase the class from her records. She is NOT going to pass this class if she stays.

Some professors keep tests so they don't have to make new tests every semester (if they let students keep tests they could be used to cheat in subsequent semesters). It's lazy imho. My dh teaches pre-calc. I told him about this and he is appalled. But it would be hard to actually do anything if the guy is a tenured professor. I agree she should take the W and retake the class next semester. Maybe at a community college instead.

Do you have any really easy shortcut recipes you'd like to share? By that I mean, you "cook" a meal using things already prepared from the grocery store, e.g. chicken pot pie using rotisserie chicken and precut or frozen veggies, etc. It doesn't have to be healthy or cheap. I'm focusing on EASY right now.

I'm not Catholic, but I thought might enjoy this blog: http://www.catholicallyear.com/ I think she's pretty funny. She mostly uses Mother of Divine Grace, but you could check out her homeschooling posts for more.