I like this board for similar reasons. On the old board, I couldn't STAND that a person could write her entire response in the subject line! I felt as if people developed a one-liner, sound-bite response style that could be snarky. And it was hard to miss when someone's snarky response was in the entire subject line!

I love iron and wood! Isn't there a trend against matchy-matchy decorating? (That's what dd and I call it) As an aside...I looked quickly at your name and thought it was a shout out to that 80s band WangChung! "Everybody have fun tonight! Everybody WangChung tonight!" :lol:

Oh, dear! I hope the new meds ease your pain soon! Was the surgery on your knee? Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

Many people think Thurs. is the unofficial start to the weekend!

The best I can come up with is: "The Smith Family" If mom's boyfriend isn't named Smith, he ain't on the invite! ;)

urinary tract infections?

Where can I find more information about what happens to the sons that are thrown out? It reminds me of pack animals when the young males get run off by the male packleader.

I'm so sorry to hear this. But the pain of loss comes from deep love and it is a blessing to be able to say goodbye (and be heard.) You all have my prayers.

I would write down all your favorite/happy memories that you have shared with her. Maybe you can come up with 70! I did this for my brother's 40th. He really liked it.

Things have really changed since I was a child. In our neighborhoods, we played with the kids we wanted to play with, who we liked. We stayed away from the "mean kids." We fought, we made up. We didn't involve our parents. If we got hurt, we cleaned it and put a bandaid on it. The times I was hurt so badly that a bandaid wouldn't work, I had to go to the hospital. This is not said as a judgment or proclamation of how things should be. It's just that I had a childhood w/playmates that is very different from what parents do/deal with today. (I'm not saying that gamom's son should have taken care of his own foot :) ) Gamom, it sounds like you realize that the mom's inconsistent parenting is part of the root of this. Maybe you 2 show go out to lunch or for coffee and try to find some middle ground. Share what you want for your children. ("I want the boys to play games that burn up their energy without hurting each other.") Just a thought.

Best wishes! It is such a personal decision...even though we don't agree, I hope your dd enjoys her earrings and birthday! :D

Our whole family is strongly visual-spatial. There are some great articles on: http://www.visualspatial.org/index.htm Plaid Dad, My dd often talks of being a nun --- she already lives such a comtemplative life! These children, the thinkers, th slow, deliberate ones, have a place in this world. Don't get me wrong: there are times I struggle with doubts about her. But I believe there is a different world waiting her. A world that is the antithesis of flash cards and timed tests. I can see her arranging flowers or comforting the grieving or analyzing government policies. Anyway...

This is not to scare you... But my dd is a slow, deliberate thinker. She developed epilepsy at 6 y.o. She had complex partial seizures but then when she was 12, she was also dx w/absence seizures. For years, I thought something else was going on but attributed it to her personality. Hindsight isn't even 20/20. I can't really tell where her personality starts and the seizures begin or vice versa. She always tells me she is thinking of something or got lost in her thoughts...and she does! She has a bunch of deep complex thoughts. Again, not to scare, just throwing it out there. Her "big picture" learning is great. Her attention to details is much poorer. But if my brain keeps winking on and off...who knows if I'd be able to do anything! Good luck!

Piercings are an adult decision, IMO. You are letting a child decide whether she wants either permanent holes in her body or permanent scars. 6 year olds don't understand the permancy of piercings.

You know...I trust that you trust your dh :001_smile: It's other drivers I wouldn't trust. At my dh's hospital, they are called donorcycles.

That's funny...it seems like this board is always talking about root canals! But I have a horror of dental work so it might catch my eye.

One of the biggest reasons I took the road less travelled: My senior year in high school I was -- removed? unenrolled? kicked out? for about 24-48 hours (can't remember the details) from the private, Catholic girls' school. Reasons: my mom hadn't paid the tuition, I had skipped about 30 days of school, been late about 30 days, had gotten kicked out of the only class I needed for graduation/diploma (U.S. gov.) b/c of lack of attendance. My dad was dead, my mom was drunk, I was going from friend to friend for a place to sleep b/c mom and I were fighting... I felt this absolute seething rage and helplessness. I needed the one class for my diploma, not all the other courses and I wanted OUT of high school but with a diploma so I could move on with my life. Well, the short version is: I was re-admitted and 2 nuns helped me get through my senior year with my diploma. They also helped me start going to Al-anon. This was a bigger blessing than the diploma because my relationship w/my mom stabilized enough for me to go home. We got along so well, and thank God b/c she was dead within months of my graduation. I don't want my kids to go through what I did. It is a lot more than education but I want them to know that learning is not about jumping thru hoops to get a piece of paper...but at the same time, I want to facilitate them getting that piece of paper!

"Tell your most embarassing moment." Of your day. Or your life.

I don't know what this is called: When I was 3 years old, my dad was taking our neighbor, my brother and I for a fish fry. Our neighbor's wife, her mom and my mom were going to play bingo. My dad just got us bundled in the back seat of his new-to-him car when I started screaming for my mom. We all piled out and started for the backyard (my neighbor's mom lived behind her and they were walking through the backyards to go to the mom's house.) We had just taken a few steps away from our car when another car came squealing around the corner of our street, drove a few yards, then smashed into the back of the car we just exited. Our car was struck so hard that the bowling ball in the back of it flew out the windshield. Our car crashed into our neighbor's car which was parked in front of it. If I hadn't wanted my mom, my brother and I likely would have been severely injured, if not killed. The car that hit us was stolen and was driven by the thief. cue haunting music

Here is a blog post on how to unravel a sweater: http://chaoticcrafter.wordpress.com/2008/01/21/reclaiming-yarn-from-a-thrift-store-sweater/ HTH

I googled reclaimed yarn and found this flickr picture. All those yarnballs look so neat! http://www.flickr.com/photos/asecondchance/2147692665/

You all are in my thoughts. Our Ginger (boxer) took a bad turn in Dec. The kind words the board wrote helped so much. I couldn't talk about it to people in person b/c I'd cry so hard. We had to euthanize her, too. Nothing is like the solid, furry, warm love of a dog. And beagle ears are so great to stroke and play with. Beagle ears are the perfect size! Our vet made a plaster imprint of Ginger's paw. Maybe yours can do that? Or you can get a kit at a craft store? It is comforting for me to have it. You are doing the right thing, the loving thing to end his pain. I tell my kids that all the time! Kind regards, unsinkable

I always throw mine in the dryer before I hang them to dry. I mostly hang towels, though. No problems w/wrinkles.

You know what is funny --- my older brother is 6 ft. 2 in. and he slept on a twin "mates bed" until he was 21 (and moved away!) Looking back, I wonder how he did it!

oooh...and I meant to ask: Have you been watching Forest Gump? :D