As a follow-up to my shopping mistake (buying whole coffee beans rather than pre-ground), I've been convinced to buy a grinder. What kind do you have and do you like it? Is it easy to use, easy to clean? Is the coarseness of the grind adjustable? Electric or hand? I looked at Walmart and the least expensive one they have on the shelf is a Hamilton Beach electric for $15 but it doesn't look like it has very good reviews. I looked at Amazon and they have lots of choices, including hand grinders. I'd rather keep it less expensive because we aren't big coffee drinkers. I usually make a small pot on weekend mornings and when we have company. Thanks, Pegasus

Oh, we drink tea daily and go through gallons of tea in this house. Coffee is actually a weekend treat. It looks like most of the responses so far are to buy a grinder or use the in-store grinder. I'm looking forward to trying it! Pegasus

I have a 12-yo girl and it sounds perfectly normal to me, to be honest. Your DD is just being more open and verbal about it. My DD clams up but is clearly mad and won't have anything to do with whoever made her mad until she calms down. She will sometimes write down her feelings and yes, it includes things like I HATE MOM, if she is mad at me. Does she have a private place of her own to go whenever she needs to? My DD will retreat to her room until she is in a better place, emotionally, to handle being around other non-perfect humans. Pegasus

I'd throw geometry into the math coursework. Beyond that, you need to check what the "likely" colleges and universities are asking for entering freshman. I only looked at your list quickly, but I didn't see economics, P.E., health, personal finance, computers. These are not necessarily required, of course, but are common enough required subjects for high schools, if not colleges. Pegasus

May I gently refer you back to your own post? You've been using MUS. It is working well for your student. It has everything you are looking for in a math program. . . IMHO: You should stick with MUS. It is enough. Really. Even for STEM. Even for strong math students. We will be using MUS through pre-calculus. Oldest DD is in Algebra 2, having used MUS all the way from Foundations (yes, the old MUS). I have 2 engineering degrees, DH has a degree in architecture. We think MUS is enough. We keep gaining insight into how math works from Steve Demme. DH has been known to stomp around the room asking why HE was never taught that nugget of information when he was in school. The grass may always seem greener but have you noticed how well your own grass is growing? :grouphug: Pegasus

That's what I get for speed shopping. I am weighing my options: 1. Take it back next shopping trip and get ground 2. Buy a coffee grinder because once I try it, I'll not want to go back to pre-ground 3. Attempt some sort of coffee grinding experiment without a grinder (blender? grater? mortar and pestle? hammer?) WWYD? Thanks! Pegasus

I've only seen the show a few times. It seemed that each show I watched tied the hoarding to a previous traumatic loss (loss of a child, loss (though death and divorce) of several spouses, etc). Very sad. I also can't help but feel the show is not really helping these people, but taking advantage of their situation to make a show. The folks really need serious and long-term mental health intervention, not a couple days of "clean up." Pegasus

The student does NOT have to accept all the loans and I've never heard of it being held against the student in terms of grants. For all the school knows, the parents are taking out a line-of-credit loan against the house, etc. Pegasus

It's not a good idea to borrow more than the student can get through Stafford loans. For dependent students, that amount is: Freshman year - $5,500 Sophomore year - $6,500 Junior Year - $7,500 Senior Year - $7,500 So, that's a total of $27,000 loans for the student. I highly recommend aiming for fewer loans for folks who aren't heading for solid earning careers. Parents could take out additional loans (PLUS loans or line-of-credit on their homes, etc.) if they are eligible and feel comfortable with the amount of loans they are taking. Pegasus

Ummm. . .yes, we definitely had/have a perfectionist who would get extremely upset at doing anything wrong. I don't know if anything we did actually helped or if it was just a maturing process, but DD15 is much better than she was (still not perfect though ;);)). We emphasized that no one was perfect and that we didn't expect perfection from her. We made it a point to tell/show her when we made mistakes and when other people made mistakes. We downplayed mistakes on her part, not only with schoolwork, but with a spilled drink, for example. Finally, we made sure to challenge her so that she would get practice at NOT being good at something. She was used to things coming easy and would easily get frustrated and upset when it didn't. So, she started playing banjo at age 8. She experienced over and over again that she wasn't good at the new material that the teacher showed her. However, she would work and practice at it and get good at it over time. I tried to give her schoolwork that would provide challenge without being impossibly difficult. Best of luck. Having the parent stay calm and patient is the biggest factor, I believe. Pegasus

Stained concrete can look pretty amazing!

It is important to consider how all 4 years are going to be funded so you are wise to be thinking about this now. Too many students have to come home after a year or two because they can not fund the next year of study. Have you considered DS doing the first 2 years at a much less expensive community college and saving the funding that you do have for his last 2 years at the college he wants to attend? That would be MUCH better than getting 2 or 3 years in at his college and then having to quit for lack of funding. Plus, his degree will still have the name of his preferred college on it. Of course, you would need to check if the course credits will transfer, etc. Alternatively, if he takes the non-subsidized stafford loans each year, will that be enough for you and he to fully fund the rest? If not, I would consider his college too expensive and look elsewhere. Finally, I believe that the non-subsidized loans start accruing interest IMMEDIATELY. You just don't start paying it off until after graduation. So, you'll graduate already owing more than you borrowed. Oh, I wanted to add that beyond the non-sub stafford loans already mentioned, any additional loans will need to be either by the PARENTS or co-signed student/parents. Your DS will not be able to get the additional loan funding on his own. Pegasus

I think it is common for cycles to go nuts at your age. Mine started going haywire when I was about 40 but I wasn't on BCP at the time. When it got to be too aggravating, my GYN put me on Loestrin 24FE. I don't want to sound like a commercial but I love these pills. I have almost no bleeding now, ever, and my other symptoms vanished. I don't know if it would work for you or if you would still get break-through bleeding but it's worth asking about. Pegasus

Despite your examples to the contrary, many cats do get along with one another. Still, as long as there are people around, one cat is fine. I'd recommend 2 cats if they were left alone a lot. We have 2 cats, gotten from the same litter, and they get along very well, groom one another, etc. In the past, I've had 4 unrelated cats, each gotten separately as adults, and while they got along ok, they weren't cuddly with one another. I did have 2 unrelated adult cats one time that became great friends, playing tag up and down the hall, but I think that is probably an exception. Pegasus

I love my new flooring but it is nothing fancy. It is a multi-colored vinyl sheet with a stone tile pattern. We put it everywhere on the main floor of the house. With kids, cats, and dogs, it is awesome. Dirt doesn't show and it is a breeze to wipe up spills. I couldn't find the exact pattern but this one is close: http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/vinyl-sheet/havana-truffle-resilient-vinyl-sheet-G6102/floor-120650.asp I thought I wanted tile but installation was too expensive and DH was worried about it being very cold. I'm happy with our compromise. Pegasus

This happened years ago but I just dreamed about it again last night and am curious how often this happens. When my youngest DD was a newborn, her cord dried up and fell off like normal but the little stump (belly-button-to-be) was staying wet looking and not healing. At a regular ped appt, the doctor applied something to her stump. The next morning, when I went to change DD's diaper, I noticed large blotches on her belly where the skin appeared darker. I went to run my finger across the blotches and the skin started sloughing off! I was horrified and suddenly afraid of touching her any more. Of course I took her straight back to the pediatrician where we were seen by a different doctor. She was totally dismissive of my concern, said it happened all the time, and explained that when she got a drop of it on her fingers, the skin would peel off. She followed up by saying that it looked like the stump may need another "treatment." I got the feeling that she was being dismissive as a way to cover that the first doctor made some kind of mistake (too much of the stuff, maybe too strong). So, to settle my curiosity for something now 12 years in the past (my, does time fly!), anyone else have a similar experience? Any idea what they may have put on the stump? Pegasus

please respect my choice to sit by wiping the seat when you are done. Thank you, Pegasus

So, are you going to make the call for him? Because if you do, you are just encouraging future similar requests. Pegasus

I think it is important to know the culture of the company that you are interviewing for. Plan to dress at least a step better than the folks working there. For example, if they wear printed t-shirts and torn jeans, I'd plan on tan slacks and a button down shirt. If they wear tan slacks and button down shirts (or better), I'd plan on a suit and tie. Pegasus

Cut the chicken into thin strips, saute in a tiny bit on olive oil until almost cooked through, add a sauce of your choice (we use BBQ or teriyaki), finish cooking. Chicken is always very moist. I think baking tends to dry it out. Pegasus

I wasn't aware of that yahoo group. Thanks! I've requested membership and will try there. I'm sure I have some extra badges around somewhere as well, so I will be sure to offer those up to the group. Pegasus

In my personal experience, the answer is YES. We spent almost 10% of our gross income in unreimbursed medical expenses one year (meaning that insurance didn't cover it). We paid everything directly to the various medical providers using our HSA debit card. This was in 2009. We recently completed an audit (in late 2011, so plan to keep things a LONG time) in which they questioned the full amount and asked us to pay income taxes, interest, and late fees on it. *ouch* Fortunately, I had saved all my HSA statements that showed the dates, amounts, and payees. I used these to prove where the money went. I did NOT send in receipts. It was enough documentation for the IRS to close our case. Pegasus

I have one Cadette who very much wants to earn the old Cadette Interest Project badge for Fashion Design. Of course, this one is sold out at our local Girl Scout shop as well as at the national Girl Scout online shop. I tried looking on E-bay and no luck. Any other ideas? Anyone here happen to have an extra? Long shot, I know, but my troop really prefers the old badge work to the new journeys and badges. I've found a few other badges for them to work on but would love to find this one. Thanks, Pegasus

I do not think grades are meaningful for home or self study so I would rather not use grades at all. I used pass/fail in the early grades but my umbrella school requires the standard A-F grades for high school. For most uses, I do not think "mommy" grades are given much weight and, as everyone else has been saying, outside grades and test scores will be much more closely evaluated. It is in all our best interests to be sure our students have some outside verification of their academic preparation. Pegasus