We did a Flat Stanley project one summer. We sent a bunch of Flat Stanleys to people in different states, even a few different countries. We recruited friends, family, friends of friends, online friends, etc to send our Stanleys to. We sent him with introductory letters and questionnaires. People were asked to answer some questions about where they live, to "dress" Stanley (in whatever way they wanted, whether it was with markers, construction paper, fabric, etc) in a manner that depicted the area or climate where they live, were encouraged to send (via email or snail mail) photos, post cards or any other souvenirs they felt like sending, that would show what their area was like and show Flat Stanley "doing" things in their area while he "visited" and so on. It was a lot of fun getting our Stanleys back and receiving updates and seeing photos and so on. We got some interesting things back in the mail and learned some fun facts about different places. I kept a Flat Stanley blog for a while so everyone could share in his adventures. I eventually stopped updating but you can check out much of our Flat Stanley project here: http://travelingwithflatstanley.blogspot.com/2009/06/flat-stanley-joins-family.html (That's the very first entry, then you can see they are numbered on the side bar to the left so you can click through as many entries as you want. For some of the reason when I click on some of them, I get an error message, but then when I backspace and try to click on it again, it goes through). There are lots of fun pictures of "Stanley" in all different locations and doing fun things- we really had a lot of fun with that project! :)

I don't like snow either! Bring on the sunshine and swimming weather! Bring on the fruity blender drinks with paper umbrellas! The cabana boys! I mean, er... you know. Summer. :tongue_smilie:

Interesting article.... http://caise.insci.org/uploads/docs/FalkandDierking95perc.pdf (A reprint from American Scientist, the magazine of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society)

I don't know, but i came across this: Finger knitting Finger knitting is a simple form of knitting in which yarn is knitted into a shorter but thicker twine. As its name suggests, the knitting only uses the hands during the entire process. Uses Finger knitting has been used to prepare to teach children how to knit traditionally, with needles. It shows the child that knitting involves a series of loops strung together, which helps in their future understanding of knitting. Because of its simple execution, it is ideal for this purpose, as its concept can be grasped even by small children, and continued without aid. Finger knitting has also been practiced on airplanes that prohibit knitting needles. --- And on a Waldorf site: Begin With Finger Knitting Finger knitting is an easy introduction to handwork that requires no equipment beyond fingers and yarn, and is a good starting point as part of the homeschool curriculum. Once mastered, finger knitting is a soothing activity that allows children to create their own little scarves, belts or ornaments. For highly active or excitable children, knitting can be a great tension reliever during seatwork or story time.

I never memorized prepositions, and I do not expect my kids to, either!

:lol:

:iagree: These are very good points, too!

7 is probably old enough to entertain a toddler for a while :D And a day of TV won't kill anybody!

:party: Wonderful!!! :)

Polite, but reserved.

:iagree: I'd have her pay a portion of it, not all of it, based on this.

It sounds like you handled the porn conversation just fine! In this case, maybe I'd go to her with the underwear and the note and give her a confused look and say something like: "I'm a bit confused by your note. This is just a pair of underwear. People like to wear different styles of underwear sometimes. What somebody wears privately under their clothes has nothing to do with being "dirty," it has to do with personal preference or comfort or just playing around with style, and it's really no-one else's business, including yours, what sort of underwear I or anyone else wears. But if you have any specific questions you would like me to answer for you, please let me know." Or some such. ETA: I just read your follow up post, too, and it sounds like you handled that fine, as well.... but it also seems that your daughter is having a hard time coming to terms still with what she saw, if she's still bringing up things like that a year later, so maybe something else has come up that you don't know about, maybe she has mixed feelings about what she saw, maybe she has unresolved questions...maybe you should pick a time when everything's fine and have a little casual girl talk with her and see if there's anything on her mind that is coming out in the form of these digs at you.

I've never had kids even WANT to watch movies on playdates unless it was a sleepover. In that case, we'll rent an age appropriate (PG in my 10 y/o daughter's case, PG-13 in my teen's case) movie and let them watch it before bed (we watched "Because of Winn-Dixie" on the last such sleepover/playdate).

By 5 or 6 when my kids started asking questions, I'd read them a book geared toward kids, but which were forthright and DID describe the mechanics- in basic, simple terms. I believe the most recent book I used with my now 10 y/o was one by Dr. Ruth Westheimer. I never really kept it a secret or anything.

Sure, Dana. Here's the portion that describes what we're using: HERE'S WHAT WE DID: 1. We started using a humidifier in her room every single night. I know this makes a difference because there were two different times she forgot to turn it on at night, and the following mornings, she'd have redness under her eyes. 2. I had already been making sure she put on lotion every single day. Now I began making sure she was doing it A FEW times a day. At least 3X a day I have her go in and put lotion on/remind her to do it. After doing some reading and getting some input, the lotion I decided to use is called: CJ's BUTTer which can be purchased here: www.cjsewingroom.com/ I exchanged a couple of emails with CJ and she was WONDERFUL. Extremely nice, extremely sympathetic, threw in a little extra something for us, shipped very fast...and I'm happy with the product and will be continuing to order it as needed myself. We're using CJ's chapstick under the eyes as it's small and easy to use there, and the lotion on all of the other areas. We've got both the lotion form and the 'stick/roll on' form, both of which work great. 3. I had her stop using soap altogether. I stopped even the Dove for sensitive skin and decided to go with Cetaphil, a soap-free cleanser, instead. I ordered it from Walmart. 4. I switched to All Clear laundry detergent for her clothes only (I still wash the rest of ours with the generic stuff, and in the summer when eczema isn't an issue I'll probably use that for her too, but for now we're using this All Clear stuff). I just bought it at my local supermarket. 5. I bought Zyrtec non-drowsy allergy medication at the pharmacy. I give her one pill a night. From what I read (including on the Ask Dr. Sears site), this will help her not itch. And if she doesn't itch, she won't scratch. And if she doesn't scratch, she won't make the eczema flare up even more. See, it was like a vicious circle. I read it is safe to give for several weeks at a time. Then you should take a break. But if I think I need to, I'll go back to using it. This will only be in the winter months anyway. 6. I continue to use the prescription ointment, Triamcinolone Acetonide Ointment, on flare ups on an as-needed basis. Over the past two and a half weeks or so, the flare ups when they occur have been only in VERY small patches, and NOT happening every day, and I use just a bit of the prescription stuff and it goes away. I check her trouble spots daily to see if she has any of those flare ups. We've been doing this routine for almost three weeks now and there have been NO bad flare ups, NO itchiness, NO red eyes, NO misery or complaining, NO huge, red noticeable patches all over her arms...she's like a different kid. P.S. Here is the link to the eczema page on the Ask Dr. Sears site. It contains further helpful information: www.askdrsears.com/html/11/T081800.asp Hope this helps :)

:grouphug: I'm sorry, that's rough!

Aw. You're not an idiot. It is really, really hard!!! Anyway, you can't look back and beat yourself up, you can only do what you can do now, and look ahead. But I do know how frustrating and disappointing it is to find yourself starting over again! I've been there. Many times, unfortunately! :lol: Put that way, it sounds so.... strange!

Those of you who are trying out some of these things, I'd love for you to give me an update as to how it works once you get started! Maybe you could even drop a brief comment on my livejournal site (link in first post) so that anyone else coming across that page might further benefit from seeing other peoples' results. :)

I think you should decorate however you enjoy, and then leave them up as long as needed until you feel ready to take them down! Maybe make and freeze some meals in advance that can just be popped in the oven? Make sure you've stocked up on your food shopping, caught up on your laundry, etc. Make a to do list for everyone else in your house for things you'd like them to keep on top of while you recover. Get yourself a pile of good books from the library and maybe some videos and some other things you enjoy (crossword puzzles? I don't know) that you can have on hand while you're resting and recovering? Good luck!

Thanks for taking a look :) Yeah, TOPS does that- they give you a bracelet when you lose your first 10 lbs, and then you get to pick out a charm every 5 lbs thereafter. They also have fun little 'contests' where you can win a few bucks for losing the most weight and so on. And more of a 'round table' feel, as opposed to sitting in rows listening to a leader like at WW... I like TOPS! (And it's WAY cheaper than WW too)! But TOPS is more for the support and accountability and weigh ins as opposed to being an actual diet plan, so WW is my diet plan. (And I do love the WW diet plan)!

I hear ya!! I only hope I can keep up with my own success, I'm notorious for starting but never finishing, starting out strong, then losing motivation and slipping off the wagon and taking a VERY long time to climb back on, usually starting from square 1. Or negative 1. I need to just stick with it this time, which is why I am trying to be as accountable as possible this time (that's where you guys come in lol). You should come check out the weight loss challenge social group, too :)

Yep. Flawed logic sums it up pretty nicely!

Thanks :) I have a HealthOMeter digital scale. It seems to work pretty well, it's usually within a couple of tenths of a pound of what the scale would say at Weight Watchers or TOPS.

Thanks for all of the replies and for the additional tips and information! If this thread or the page I put up on my site ends up helping even ONE kid, I'm happy...because I know how miserable that poor kid is when they're itchy and miserable and self-conscious and so on. I can't even tell you what a huge relief it is to have gone a few weeks in the winter months here without a single bad flare up... I thought we were just destined for miserable winters for the rest of our lives. This is a really good sign/really encouraging for me- if I can keep it under control for a few weeks in the winter, I can keep it under control ALL winter, right?! I can't believe that there were such relatively SIMPLE ways of getting this under control and that neither a pediatrician nor a dermatologist could or would tell them to me. I wish I had known sooner, like last winter, which was the worst winter we'd ever had. All I knew was I didn't want a repeat of THAT this year, and when I saw that her eyes were already affected in November, I knew that was exactly what was in store for us unless I could figure something else out... and it seems I did finally figure it out... I'm so grateful for that, and I know my daughter is, too! This was SERIOUSLY a quality of life issue!!!

:lol: