This might be what I have been hearing about around here. I have a friend who is a home inspector and he is wanting to help another friend who has been out of work for 6 months start a business doing this. It's some kind of Green Energy inspection thing. My understanding is that certain homes are exempt - homes newer than 15 years or so, homes being sold due to divorce, and distressed sales. My guess is it's just like with cars, Cash for Clunkers, but you can't regulate that you get old, and non-energy efficient homes off the grid. All you can do is work harder to improve their efficiency.

I'm getting started today. Having only 1 T of 1/2&1/2 in my coffee is tough - I think I already fudged a little and had more. But I only had one cup and I will work harder tomorrow to make sure I only have the one T. Baby steps! One of my meals was hard boiled eggs and grapefruit, so that worked out perfectly for a breakfast. I'm excited about this. I would really, REALLY like to not weigh myself until the end of the 11 days, but we'll see. I'm also due for a certainly monthly issue this week (sorry if TMI) so that always affects my weight loss. I don't want to get sidelined by that. Here we go friends!:D

My favorite is my couple of SAHM friends that put their kids in school all day AND have a maid once a week. They complain and complain about how they have so much to do and no time to get it done. :svengo: One of them just got home from taking some much needed time off at an exclusive spa in Arizona. :glare:

Okay, so I quickly joined earlier, printed everything out, and then took off for the grocery store. Then I'm looking at my "meals" and it's combos like [peanuts and cottage cheese]:confused: or [ham slices and cashews]:001_huh:. Just kinda weird. But, hey I'm up for anything at this point. And obviously I see the lack of carbs except from fruit and veggies. My mantra will be "I can do anything for 11 days!!!" An I can make the coffee work I think. I usually use around 2 T of FF 1/2 1/2, so I will reduce that to 1 and measure it, and I will survive.:chillpill:

Okay, I'm in! I can't lose with Atkins or WW either, so here's hoping this helps. I have printed everything out and will make sure I have it all from the grocery store tonight. I'm bummed that I didn't plan ahead for the 4th, but there will be another 4th, I'm sure! The only think I spot immediately is my coffee having to be under 10 calories a cup. :svengo: Don't know how I'll manage that one. And don't look for me to post my weight or anything...suffice it to say I have a LOT to lose. I like the idea of mentally only having to stick with it 11 days. I can do anything that long! Then a break and then I'll do it again. Off to make dinner and situate the kiddos so I can get to the store. It was 106 here today and I have sworn off the grocery store during the daytime this summer, so finding this thread was timely!!!:D

My husband is on Paxil for anxiety. It has helped him tremendously. By hyper-sensitivity do you mean emotionally? Paxil is mainly for anxiety/worry/depression type problems and has helped him so much that it probably saved our marriage.

We're watching it in Spanish and trying to figure out what they're saying. Not having much luck, but it's so fun!!:thumbup:

:smilielol5: You guys are so funny! How many of you are secretly hoping I'll do it - just to see what happens?!:lol::001_huh: I'm going to call around and see what I can find out. I DO NOT want to return to the snooty salon I went to last time. The know-it-all-ness of her attitude is what gave me to Bozo head in the first place - she didn't listen to me. I always assume that with big enough rods, the home solutions are so weak the worst that could happen is no curl at all - which happened a lot when I was younger. But that was before pregnancies and aging that may have affected my hair's texture and reaction to the solution. :leaving: Backing away from the home perm now... I'll let you know if I decide to get one professionally or just live with my straight and lifeless hair!

Okay, okay!!! :lol: Just so ya know, I color my own hair all the time. Maybe that's what makes me think I could do it. And for the record, the worst my hair has looked in a very, very long time was from the professional perm - because she didn't listen to how loose I wanted it. What part of "body wave" could she not have understood? So now I am way too afraid of doing it professionally. :001_huh: To pay over $100 to have Bozo hair, no thanks! Guess I'll have to live with the straight limpies. :glare:

My mom used to give me perms in jr high/high school. They were fine I guess. I used to give them to her, and to my husband 20 years ago (:eek::rolleyes: - on his mullet no less!) I got a perm about 4 years ago, professionally, and it was WAY too curly and reacted badly to my color. Amy walked in, Bozo walked out. It took a long, long time to grow it out and I even bought a perm to use as a straightener. Talk about damage. I clearly reacted very strongly to the professional stuff. What I want is for my somewhat fine - layered, straight, and limp hair to have just a touch of a bend or wave in it. Something so that on a hot day when I get out of the shower I can "scrunch" and go. Now I have to blow dry, and curl, and set with hairspray, and UGH! It's too much!! And if I don't, it's a straight, limp, nothing style. I usually wear a headband, and that's fine, but the hair under the headband is still lifeless. I long for something soft and feminine, but more like 5 minutes, not 30, KWIM? So that my morning routine is 5 min for hair and 5 for makeup and out the door. ETA: I forgot to mention the reason this has come up is we've been to the pool twice this week. I want to look better there and after getting out and back at home! Have any of you ever done your own perms? On yourself? Is that impossible? My mom is 2000 miles away, so she can't help me. I may be able to find a girlfriend to help, but if they've never done it, I might do it just as well. Am I crazy?

I'm so sorry to hear of this! I hadn't heard it earlier. So sorry for your loss!:grouphug:

I just bought one of these hangers! I probably have the space, but didn't think I really needed it. Since I have a place for our art supplies and games, and my dd is old enough to read and find what she needs, I figured anything too large for the pocket will have to be on the shelf. I think it'll work out great! My little guy is too small for this yet, so I will just manage his supplies myself, but I am hoping to make idea lists of things for him to do when I need one-on-one time with dd. I also like the velcro chart for chores! I think that's great!:D

We have a piggie that we got at 6mo old, at Christmas for my dd. We love him! What a fun little critter to have around. But he does still run and hide when we approach his cage. My dd can approach slowly while talking to him and if he thinks she has a carrot he will stay out. When he wants his salad around noon he will whistle and squeak and pop-corn around in his cage so loudly you can hear him through the whole house! So fun! I doubt that temps of 80 degrees would be harmful...:confused: I mean, these animals are indigenous to South America, right? So sad that happened.

I'm in too. I've been in tears this morning over my local homeschool group disintegrating amongst a flurry of hateful emails. Um...hello...we are supposed to be Christian homeschool moms!! It's all very disappointing and disheartening and I am very hurt and confused. Not sure how to respond, or even if I should. "A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult" (Prov 12:16) I also have at least 4 friends battling cancer right now. My in-laws are needing more and more help from me - on their way to becoming dependent. We are facing foreclosure and not sure what will happen with our house...fortunately DH has a good job (just not enough income) so that we can rent. It's all falling apart, so I will scream too! :scared:

I finally got to watch Monday's episode last night, even though I said I'd boycott it :001_huh: - HEY! I'm not a Nielsen household! :tongue_smilie: It struck me as 2 of the MOST selfish people I have ever seen. Jon is like a child waking up. He's excited about his future? And if Kate says one more time "for the kids" I will puke! "I'm doing this for the kids" "I am 100% in everything I do for the kids". Blech! Then hold your marriage together! Put aside your materialism and self-centeredness and greed, turn off those cameras, and put your lives back together! So many people blame Kate for alienating all their other family and friends, but Jon was right there all along. Like Adam watching Eve eat the apple and doing nothing to stop it. They are both to blame. Spoiled rotten brats is what they are. Somebody mentioned the Duggars will be going down a similar path, and I don't think so. They were stable, loving, and not about the money before TLC ever came knocking on their door. Their home and possessions came from working hard and having a plan. They don't seem to be profiting in the same way - at least outwardly. If they use all their new found money to truly support their existing lifestyle, or to create future security for their kids, then good for them. I will not watch any more Jon and Kate shows and hope more people will lose interest. Maybe they will be canceled. Doesn't seem like anyone is losing interest though.:glare:

My dd was pulled from PS so she is naturally sensitive to grade level. She gets to call herself what she'd be in school. My ds has an 8/29 birthday and I debated and debated about calling him K this year. He really is only ready for pre-k work, but somehow it seemed like calling him pre-k and dd moving into 4th seemed to grow the gap between them. But dh put it into perspective for me, helped me see that it doesn't matter how far apart our kids are, what is important is placing ds at his level. And he reminded me that placing him in pre-k keeps him with me one more year! :001_wub: So he will stay "behind" in church in the preschool dept and move up next year to k. Better now than when he's 10 or something. Besides, he needs the year to mature and grow. He was a preemie and is still small for his age. Lot's of factors play into the decision.

My good friend does and now that I am not quite as new at homeschooling I might do it in the future. It just looked overwhelming to me, but i was just SO new I didn't know what I was looking at. She spends almost nothing for materials other than printer paper and ink. She goes strictly by the AO schedule. She borrows a lot, finds free resources and uses our suburban library and also the larger city one close by. She has purchased a few resources like MUS, but that's about it. You can do it!!!! Sorry about the work situation!:grouphug:

I'm curious to keep up with the outcome of this. We are also in default, but are trying to see what can be done through a "workout package" that the mortgage co sent to us. Supposedly they can lower our payment and some other options. I have a feeling they can't lower it enough, in which case we'd like to try to sell. But because we can't really talk to a human at the mortgage co (or if we do they just say "your file is in review, just hold on for now") we are not sure if we have permission to try to sell it. A short sale is probably the only option and I think we have to have their permission for that. I doubt a realtor would touch us with a 10' pole without knowing if we can even sell. We also experienced a bad hail storm a month or so ago and need a new roof. We can't afford our deductible right now. Fortunately the damage is not very bad, just needs to get done, but we are on hold for that. Can't sell it without a new roof probably. We feel very stuck. We have a lovely home and dh has a good and stable job (our issue was pymt increase with income decrease) it's just that this house is too much for us. I wish we would have tried to sell a long time ago but it kind of all happened at once. We'd make great renters and would pay a higher security deposit, and even a slightly higher rent (depending on the amt) and even do a direct check each month. I am now getting scared that if we do go into foreclosure, who will rent to us?:confused:

Thanks for the ideas so far!!! Keep em coming! I like the idea of a sewing kit that I can add to. She is always wanting to borrow mine. And the knitting needles/yarn/book is a neat idea. She and I could learn that together. She has read pretty much all the AG books and is at a higher reading level anyways. We go through books so quickly from our library and for our school work that I hesitate to spend money on that. And she has a CD player in her room and an mp3 player. She also has all the Webkinz she needs but always wants more.:confused: She loves jewelry, and I have been thinking of a charm bracelet that we can add charms to for each special occasion, but somehow I think that is something that should wait until she is 10 or so. She still loses too many earrings! The Nintendo is so expensive! I don't want to buy it if she won't play it. I thought maybe if I didn't buy it in pink I could always give it to her brother if she tires of it quickly. :tongue_smilie: I see so many kids having fun with them, and she does enjoy the games in Webkinz. Again, many thanks for your opinions so far!

We're kind of at a loss this year. She's getting to that "tween" age I guess. No longer into Barbies so much, or baby dolls, but does still play with the ones she has some. She does like her American Girl doll, so I will get her some clothes for her ($$$:glare:). I don't think I want to get her more board games because the age spread with her and her brother is too great for much of that, and we have plenty really. Maybe some craft kits, but it seems like most of them make one thing, and then it's done. Hmmmm, maybe jewelry making? I am going to teach her how to sew, but just with my machine for now. Curious about a Nintendo DS. She's not into gaming per se, but maybe just hasn't been exposed to it. Should I consider that? Does it have any redeeming value? Any other good 9/10yo girl gift recommendations would be great!!!

What's that quote...by Phyllis Diller I think..."Cleaning your house while the kids are at home is like shoveling the sidewalk in a snowstorm!" I think our husbands just don't get the daily grind of it. My dh did a similar thing in going through the garage and storage shed. Well, um, okay. But we (meaning the kids and I) don't use those spaces, so if they are bad, that's really his deal anyways. But he's kind of strutting around thinking he "helped" a bunch with the housework. I'm not bashing my dh, just relating. Friday I started getting a bad cold, fever and chills, body aches, sore throat - been sick all weekend. DH still went about his business and I still had to go about mine...cooking, laundry, dishes, pet care, putting kids to bed. If I would have asked, he would have helped, but I thought "why do I have to ask?" I guess all I can say is to try to be glad for the help, that maybe him doing this will help him appreciate what you do more, and how quickly it has to be done again.

I have a great one but it's kinda long to post. If you want to pm me your email, I'll shoot it over. I have a mac, so it'll be a pdf you can copy and paste into a word doc to edit as needed. It's long because it's detailed, but most of the things are small and fit into one "cooking" tub and one "general" tub, not including the tent and bedding and wood.

I'll boycott it with you. I'm disgusted by the whole thing too. And as for dying down, I haven't seen that at all. Not with Kate parading around the mag covers in a bikini! My dd used to love that show, but now I can't let her watch it. Like you said, we'll find out the next day, or within 10 minutes of the "announcement" anyways!

Taylor Swift maybe? Her lyrics are a lot about high school and boyfriends and such. But so is HSM! And dd definitely likes bubble gum pop, so maybe I'll get Taylor Swift.

Wow. Coming from a newbie homeschooler, these words will be precious to me. Thank you so much for having saved that, for thinking today of sharing it, and to Tracy who originally wrote it. Many blessings to you both!