Things my quirky daughters taught me: Cultural norms are not the same thing as laws, rules, or ethics. It is ok to break them, really. Wasting energy on “what other people may think†was MY hang-up and I needed to get over it. So, if one daughter wore every stitch of her clothing inside out for years and the other daughter wore her super soft fleece Mickey Mouse pajama pants out in public, it was ok. They were both clean and modestly covered. Accept and even embrace your oddities. We joke, within the family, about being weird, odd, quirky, and even warped. We laugh at ourselves and attempt to be nonchalant if someone else points out how we do not fit in (DDs are MUCH better at this than I am but I’m learning). I lost count of the number of people who told DD that her dress was inside out when she was in that phase of her life. DD would just state “I know.†I had to learn to quit trying to explain beyond that simple answer (see # 3). And the big one. . . Socks really are more comfortable worn inside-out. I'd love to hear additional lessons our non-conventional children have to teach!

I've been concerned that my water bill is high so I looked up household average use for a family of 4 and found values ranging from 7,000 to 12,000 gallons per month! I guess our 4,400 gallons per month doesn't look so bad. So, if I'm paying close to $50 per month for water/sewer, are typical families paying 2 to 3 times that amount? Yikes!

We've had several cats over the years but this is the first time we've had one that likes to play fetch. She is so funny to watch as she runs after it, picks it up in her mouth, and returns it for another throw, dropping it at our feet. DH insists she has some Jack Russell blood in her because her play can be relentless. Our arms get tired from throwing!

First of all, the quote above is not going to garner you much affection from many of us on these boards. :crying: If your username is an indication of the place in your life, I think that explains your different approach to life. It makes a HUGE difference when what you do affects your offpspring.

I'm assuming you mean all the various Star Trek series but if not, Deep Space Nine was a favorite here. Also, the old Twilight Zone shows. *shiver*

Wow. Thanks. I appreciate all the input. Seems like a lot of folks suffer from allergies! I've considered adding a HEPA air filter to her bedroom but get discouraged when I research consumer reviews. How much do you need to spend to get one that really works well?

DD14 has year-round allergies and takes a daily Zyrtec. Even so, her symptoms spike in the spring and fall seasons. Is there anything else that she can take/use in addition to the Zyrtec during these times? If you have found one of the nasal sprays to be helpful, please share. She tried a nasal spray that the pediatrician prescribed a few years ago and HATED it and wouldn't use it after the first couple of times. She is a little older now and may be willing to try again if it would really provide relief. I guess I'm also wondering if giving her a Benedryl at bedtime is ok while she is also taking Zyrtec.

I didn't take my babies to the dentist when they started teething but I did start at about age 3 and they have been every 6-months since then. Honestly, they didn't do too much the first visit, it was just to get the child comfortable and "count the teeth" while looking for any gross problems. They started doing a gentle cleaning with the second visit but I don't think they did x-rays for the first few years. We have never had dental insurance so it is all out-of-pocket costs. I consider it well worth it. I'm trying to do better than my parents did. We were taken to the dentist once we complained of pain, never for regular preventive visits. I have needed a lot of serious invasive dental work in my adult years due to damage that started as a child.

I would contact the schools you think may be of interest to you and ASK. I'm not familiar with DoDEA. Is your DH considered military personnel? My experience is only second-hand. My BIL lived in Tennessee when he joined the Navy and he and his family were able to maintain residency in Tennessee even though they no longer lived here and did not own property, etc. Approximately 16 years later, his oldest son was able to get in-state tuition to the University of Tennessee and was even eligible for our state lottery scholarships. The family was in California at the time. A few years later, his daughter was able to get in-state tuition in California and is currently attending school there. I'm not sure what qualified her for in-state tuition in California since she was living in Singapore when she was accepted but it may have been because she graduated high school there the previous year (BIL was stationed in San Diego during her high school years). All that said, schools can be pretty strict about in-state status but I do think that military families are given some leeway that other families aren't. It makes sense because they can't control where they will be stationed!

From memory so I hope I'm not leaving something out: 9th: Lightning Literature American Lit (both semesters), Jensen's Format Writing, SAT vocab book 10th: Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings, Jensen's Format Writing, online vocab site 11th: Lightning Literature Shakespeare (both semesters), Wordsmith Craftsman, online vocab site 12th (planned for next year): English composition (both semesters) dual enrollment at local community college - this is the basic Freshman comp

Sorry for the delayed response but I really appreciate everyone's input. I've made a list of the recommendations and DD and I will be looking into these sources.

I appreciate all the input. DD is doing ballet, jazz, modern, and tap. Except for the accidental foot stomp in tap, most of her bruises come from jazz and modern. I think the comment about moves that aren't as controlled as they could be pretty much sums it up. DD loves her dance classes but is definitely at the recreational level.

I don't know about social norms but birthday parties naturally faded away for us by the pre-teen years.

DD14 comes home with new bruises from her dance classes all the time. They heal quickly so I'm not too concerned about an underlying medical condition. Just curious if all the other dancers are going home bruised as well or if DD is just lucky. :glare: Sometimes the bruises are understandable as when one of the other tap dancers landed on top of DD's foot. Other times, it is just from sliding on the dance floor in jazz or various other dance moves. Edited to add: Don't try Googling dancing and bruises. . .mostly pole dancing links come up!

DD14 has asked to do a mythology study. She is very familiar with Greek, Roman, and Norse mythology and wants to learn more about the mythology of other cultures, maybe from African, Asian, Native American, etc. cultures. Does anyone know of resources that they would recommend? Thanks!

The GED can be taken by any student over the age of 18. I'm not sure what you mean by "people out of the system." A GED would provide the ability to check the box for schools and jobs that require a high school diploma or GED. A GED is not looked at as favorably as a diploma BUT is much better than not having either one. Your friend should start with finding out what the young adult wants to do going forward. Does she WANT to take college courses? Considering that the last year of high school wasn't completed after 2 years, it may be best to start with one class at the community college and see how that goes and build up from there. I wouldn't even consider a full schedule at a 4-year school until she has proved herself. Edited to add: I've been thinking about this situation. I wanted to come back and add that I would seriously consider having her work full time for a year or two. This would give her time to mature and decide what she wants out of her life. If she decided to go back to school after a couple years, she would likely take it much more seriously.

I just asked DD, who spent last year immersed in Shakespeare. Her three favorites were Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Hamlet. She says that Hamlet wins hands-down for having the most quotable lines. Plus, she really enjoyed "Rosencrantz and Guidenstern are Dead" which she watched after reading Hamlet.

My state (TN) has a graduated driver's license program for teen drivers. If you are under 18, you have to start with a learner's permit and log 50 hours of supervised driving before you can get an intermediate license. Finally, once you are 18, you can get a full license. So, my eldest DD is not eager to start driving. My plan was to wait until she turns 18 and enroll her in a local driving school. She would be able to get to a full license. We would still take her out for plenty of supervised driving but we wouldn't have to bother with logging hours, etc. A friend recently told DH that it will be more expensive to insure her if we do this, since she didn't go through the graduated license program. Does anyone have any experience with this? We plan to call our insurance company to ask but I wanted to ask here because, let's face it, we collectively seem to hold all needed knowledge/experience. :hurray:

Couple ideas. You can use a black light that will cause organic matter to light up to try to pinpoint the area that needs attention. I would then try an enzyme cleaner.

This is the first time I've tried cooking from dried black beans. I soaked them overnight and started simmering them this morning. Well, it seems that the black is washing off - the water is dark and the beans are gray. What did I do wrong? Will they still taste the same?

Would it bother you? If it would, can you articulate why it would bother you? The neighbor boys (ages 13-16) that live across the street from us have started riding their bicycles through the side and backyards on my side of the street. The backyards on their block are mostly fenced and I'm guessing that they like the slopes and "off-road" experience of riding through the yards. I find this very annoying but cannot pinpoint why it bothers me. We do not have a picture perfect yard so I do not think they are doing significant damage to the grass. I slightly worry about them running over some of our smaller plantings but so far they haven't. DH doesn't think it is a big deal but is willing to go over and talk to them if I want him to.

Well, that didn't work! I tried to find some information on an offical website to reassure you. However, "Foodsafety.gov" says to keep raw poulty in the fridge only 1 to 2 days. Wow. We violate that all the time. I guess you should throw it out.

Can you set a few eggs aside for future boiling purposes and let them age a bit? Peeling fresh eggs is almost impossible!

We used Sequential Spelling for several years. Learning the patterns of how words are spelled rather than memorizing rules and exceptions just makes more sense to me. We used the regular Sequential Spelling books and they didn't seem to be set up as different levels (they didn't get harder as you moved from book 1 to book 4). Instead, they just introduced and re-visited spelling patterns over and over again with different lists of words. I think you could start anywhere in the series. I'm not familiar with the adult level material.

Yeah, DD turned 17 in November and I feel a bit cheated too to lose the child tax credit. However, I got to claim her for the year she was born and she'd only been around for a few weeks. It balances out.