I don't have time for a whole post, but I wanted to chime in and say I have been where you are, particularly when I was still working. The unrelenting stress takes a huge toll. I was seeing a therapist for a little while, and she was great, but we didn't have money or time for me to keep going. What I ended up doing was starting to take 50-100 mg of 5-HTP (a supplement that has positive effects on mood for many people) per day. I take it first thing in the morning with the rest of my vitamins/breakfast/lots of water. It totally takes the edge off of the anger for me. It was that or antidepressants for me, and I didn't want all the side effects that came with those if I could possibly avoid them. I'm sorry :grouphug: I remember exactly how it felt to live that way, and it was awful. Not only do we take it out on those around us, but then we turn the recriminations inward as well, and that doesn't help ANYONE.

:lurk5: Stacey, I hope you're either resting quietly or holding a new baby by now!

I have no advice. I just wanted to say you are so sweet for taking such good care of her, and please post pictures afterward!

That's one of the brands I love. Soooo good. I stand corrected on the avocados! I had no idea. Ours never actually last long enough to be an issue :tongue_smilie:

Now THIS I can see!

I know you said you didn't want to co-sleep, but have you tried sidecarring a crib next to your bed? That was the best thing we ever did. I could slide the babies into it for sleep and out of it for nursing. When they were old enough to roll, they rolled away from me into that extra space. It didn't stop the night waking, but it did allow me to get a lot more sleep than nursing elsewhere would have. It would require a drop-side/removable-side crib though--not sure if anyone uses those anymore...

Yes! I've never made my own though--I never seem to have all the ingredients at the same time, plus the inclination to make it right then :lol: I don't love most of the ones my grocery store sells, but Whole Foods sells a few brands that are to die for. Yum! Now I want hummus...

Mine has picked up smells from other things in the fridge though. Blech.

No and yes. :D

IMO, the difference is that we're talking about current dresses in current styles. If the brides know that they're not going to want to box up their dresses to save, I'd imagine it would be very easy to find a taker for a practically brand new dress. Put me in the "appalling" camp. I do think we're a very spoiled nation.

Now here is where that Mr. Bean mask would come in handy.

Done :D

Well, my nickname isn't Veruca for nothin'! I'll get right on it! :D

You know, you're probably right! I wonder if I could convince DH to let me get the kids a pony, even though he's already said no to kittens and chickens. Hmmm... Pony diapers :lol::lol::lol::lol:

Is it a Mac or a PC? I know on my Mac there's a setting for "smoothing" the fonts and edges of things, and I think that can make everything look sort of soft and blurry. There used to be a similar setting on my work PC too, but I don't know if the newest OSs still have that option or not.

That is awesome. Your ponies are just too gorgeous. I wish I lived in a place where I could have a pony trap *sigh* I'd look pretty odd riding around my suburban neighborhood in one :lol:

I know plenty of senior citizens who tip very poorly too. Should they have a required gratuity as well? Should families with small children? And there is no such thing as a required gratuity. If a menu refers to it as a service charge or a fee and prints the policy in nice large letters on the menu or front window, then I could see it as some kind of theft of service. While it's referred to as a gratuity or a tip, it is a gift. To consider it anything but when it's referred to as a gratuity is a bait-and-switch.

When I've done things like this, I've discussed it with the kids and explained that I was probably going to be a little grumpier than usual and I was sorry in advance. We had some really good discussions about chemical dependence and even carb dependence (breaking away from carbs was really, REALLY hard that first time :(). And when I was trying to get myself into a habit of taking a supplement that helped my moods, I gave them permission to ask me if I'd remembered my vitamins that day (because often, I hadn't!) :tongue_smilie: Weaning slowly is good, but if you really feel like you must go cold turkey, talk to the kids and maybe make it an easy day for all of you. :grouphug: I still miss coffee, but I pay so badly when I have it that it's not really worth it *sigh*

I think that really depends on the seller, but eBay definitely frowns upon negotiations and deals closed outside their system (meaning, they wouldn't get their cut). If you get a friendly seller, they won't be offended by your asking but might say no thanks. If you get an obnoxious seller, they may be peeved that you even asked, but so what! That's business. If you get an amenable seller, they'll agree to your offer, end their auction (as long as there are no bids yet), and set up a Buy It Now so you can go through eBay the correct way (and you receive eBay's protection). If you get an amenable but unethical seller, they'll agree to your offer and want you to go outside eBay's framework for purchase, which I wouldn't do, personally. HTH!

Amethyst, it sounds like you're putting a lot of your own issues onto your DS17. I also think you're talking to a lot of people (myself included) who were very much like your DS17 when they were younger and have grown up to be fully functioning, happy, well-adjusted people. So you're envisioning doomsday scenarios, and we're here telling you that yes, doomsday is always a remote possibility, but it's FAR more likely that your DS is just a laid-back, relaxed, go-with-the-flow kind of guy who will assert himself if and when he cares to and needs to. Unless you see him being passive in truly dangerous situations, I really would not worry about this at all. As for your DS19, well, I think that ship has sailed. As his mom, you can cultivate a good relationship with him and share your own knowledge and experience with him and hope that he takes it to heart, but I don't think you can force him to be something he's not or do things he hasn't decided are important to him personally. One last perspective on people who say, "Call me if you want to do something..."--I am one of those people. It doesn't mean I don't love my friends or that I'm not grateful to have them. I do, and I am. I'm an introvert, and for me, it is often enough to know that these people I love are in my life, even if I don't see them a lot. I'm somewhat overwhelmed by my responsibilities on a daily basis, so I don't actively make plans very often. However, if someone in my life calls and says, "Let's do X," even though my own need was already being met (because it's different from hers), my friend is saying, "I have this need, can you help me fulfill it?" and I'm usually happy to say yes for them. I hope that makes sense. It sounds like you're seeing other people's lack of active planning as some kind of slight, but in most cases, their emotional needs are probably just different from yours. Maybe that's true in your DS's case too?

National Lampoon presents "Night Elf's Vacation"! I hope you're right that it's not some kind of omen :grouphug:

ITA with you. But the expectation doesn't make what happened at the restaurant right or legal, and it doesn't mean that just because a restaurant says it adds a gratuity of X% onto a party's bill, they can be forced to pay that amount. I do think it's a messed up system, in a lot of ways. I can see where the tipping system can motivate servers to be attentive and provide better service in a way that a flat wage might not. It also keeps prices down (theoretically) by putting a certain amount of pressure for payout on the diners. On the other hand, I get decent service from flat-wage employees all the time because they want to keep their jobs, so that incentive works just fine too! I often wonder how servers themselves feel about the tipping economy. Would they rather it just be a flat-wage based system, or do conscientious servers feel they benefit from tipping in general? I mean, waiting tables is HARD work, so there must be some kind of advantage in order for them to choose that kind of job over, say, working at Target or Starbucks or something, right?

OMW, this made me laugh so hard I almost fell off the couch!

:lol: So many people are talking about this Gotye song, and every time I hear it, I get Elliott Smith playing in my head for the rest of the day! You're not alone :D

Is that what happened? I wasn't having a huge amount of trouble, but even the little delays I was noticing are gone. It's lovely. I agree. Thank you!!!