When mine had it, it took me all summer to get rid of it. It was awful. Combing for HOURS, every day. I swear I wanted to shave her bald and be done with it! I finally called a professional lice treater person. She came to our house, went through DD's hair with a fine-toothed comb (literally!), and examined every strand of hair. She's a hair stylist, too, so she is better skilled at separating and going through each piece of hair. If it came back, she would come back out and retreat, but it never did. My only regret is that I didn't call her sooner. It was the beset $80 I've ever spent. When DSD contracted lice last spring, I called this woman first. The lice was gone that night, never to return.

I've owned 6 cars in 22 or so years. The first was a piece of crap that sort of got me through college. I bought it for $700 at an auction and my BIL was always working on it. Hated that thing. The 2nd was one I bought the second I graduated from college and got my first "real" job. I really wanted to drive #1 off a pier in celebration, but I didn't want to harm the environment, so I refrained. The 3rd I bought when I had DD#1, because car #2 was a tiny little 2-door, low-to-the-ground sports car. Doesn't bode well for a car seat. I hated that car, though, from the moment I bought it. I traded it in when I couldn't stand it for one more second for a car I liked enough, which was #4. #5 came along when the lease for #4 was up. #6, my current car, was a total whim, 3 years ago. We'd had a gross winter, I was cranky for months, and then we had a glorious, beautiful perfect day. I happened to drive past the car lot and there was a perfect little convertible there, calling my name. It would have been tragedy to ignore it. So, I didn't. :D DH is on his 3rd car in 3 years. He gets tired of them. :glare:

School starts Monday here. Cinder, aren't we in the same general area? We did have one school district start earlier this week, but I have to admit starting in July, even if it's the last day, is weird to me. Anyway, I really like this calendar. My theory is that by the time school gets out around the 20th of May, Spring has been spring for quite some time in the South, and everyone is restless and ready to be done. Then, no matter what date they get out, they're always ready to go back 2.5 months later, and that happens to be right around the first of August. I love the break in September (we'll be on a cruise then, thank-you-very-much), 3 full weeks off at Christmas, a bunch of other long weekends here and there. It works out well, I think. The only thing that irks me this year is that my county and the one directly next to mine don't have the same spring break this school year. That's annoying to me because I have a daughter in one and a step-daughter in another, so no Spring Break plans for us as a family.

So sorry for your loss, Jean.

Me, too! My favorite. One thing about storage.....the suitcases fit nicely under the bed which you probably know. Not sure if the OP knows, though, so I thought I'd point it out. But yeah, I second your recommendation to pack light.

The Getaway is my next cruise! 43 days and counting. Tick-tock. To the OP, I have not sailed the Gem, but I've sailed the Pearl and the Jewel, both sister ships. I really like them both, and so do my kids. We've had 4 in a room many times, and will again next month. It's tight. Cruise ship staterooms are all tight, unless you're in an actual suite. You'll be fine. And I hope you love the cruise! The only exception to the space issue was the one time I got a great upsell deal to a suite. NOT a mini-suite. Do not be fooled. Norwegian really should call those rooms "Deluxe Balconies", because they just have a bit of extra interior space. The suites, on the other hand, or Ah.Maz.Ing. Seriously incredible. I was fortunate to get the price I did the one time, and will likely never be able to do it again, but wow.....unreal.

I fell out of faith quite uneventfully. Honestly, after being very much a believer for my entire life, I just began to realize I simply didn't believe a lot of what I'd been doing/saying/espousing/following for my entire life. Once i realized that, the rest of it quickly unraveled. I have no reason whatsoever to believe in any god or higher power. I do not believe in prayer, except potentially as a self-calming/comforting mechanism. While it might be nice if there were some sort of Second Act after death, I have no reason whatsoever to believe it exists. I simply do not believe. I just don't. You cannot make yourself believe in something that you don't. So, the unraveling of my faith just sort of happened. My anger against organized religion of all sorts, certainly not exclusive to Christianity, and the damage it has caused and hatred it continues to perpetuate on this earth, is something I'm still grappling with. I imagine I always will. But that's another story entirely, and really is separate from the question of belief.

Spoon trick? Is this common knowledge or something she'd be willing to share?

I vote #2 because of the color. I love a little crunchiness on my biscuits.

They told me about the dot-things so I'm prepared for those. Do they bug her, though? I can picture them getting on my nerves and constantly playing with them with my tongue. I asked about gum/mouth irritation, and they said they actually give you a what amounts to an emery board but has some fancy tool name to file them down when needed. Sounds like your daughter's sand paper did the same thing! I'm prepared for some pain. I guess no matter the appliance type, your teeth are still moving. Glad to hear they're working out for her!

Thanks for all the info! I've decided to go for it. I do not want traditional braces, and although these do cost more than traditional, it's still less than what I paid for my daughter's braces a few years ago (different provider). I guess I just expected them to cast more than they will. It's looking like 18 months of treatment, give or take. I'm excited to start!

I will pay for my kids' clothing until they have graduated from college or have a full-time job, if they forego college. DD18 just got her first job. She also plans to start college in January. I'll be buying her clothes for work this afternoon. She's still my child, still lives in my house, and I'm still financially responsible for her. I have no qualms with that at all.

Anybody have experience with it? I'm particularly interested if you've had it as an adult, but any feedback is welcome. I'm sitting here waiting for my consultation as I type this.

Yeah, "poop soup" is gross, but if it it attached to your plumbing and you don't really have to deal with it, I wouldn't mind it so much. In theory.

That's a bummer, except I'm glad that you figured it out without me having to re-buy it. I actually bought one once, but needed to cut the pipe and put on an adapter to get it to hook up to my plumbing, and I didn't want to do that so I sent it back. I was thinking about giving it a go again, but now I won't. I hate cat litter, but I love my cats, so I guess I have to deal with the litter.

It's a myth that you don't need sunscreen if your skin is dark. My maternal grandfather was 100% Native American (Choctaw). He died of metastatic melanoma. A very close friend of mine is African-American. She went through extensive treatment for melanoma (now 3+ years cancer free, thankfully). My ex-husband is Colombian. He had his first ever sunburn when in his 40's. My children (1/2 Colombian), both have dark skin, hair, and eyes. They have both burned when we did not reapply sunscreen. I'm just putting this out there because I think it's a common misconception that if you are dark and don't burn as easily or visibly as those of us who are very fair, light skinned, and light eyed, you don't really need sunscreen. That's entirely untrue, and dangerous.

He's awful, but I find it entertaining. I read some of his stuff, some of the time, just for the laugh-out-loud factor. Oh, and I think Welcome to Sweden, is funny.

I agree with this post. The one difference for me was that my Master's degree, although in the field in which I now work, really doesn't help me much in my career. I know that sounds odd, but what matters at this point is the experience, not the graduate degree. There are, however, certifications that I could pursue that would make a difference, both in my current job and any new one I should choose to pursue in my field. That's really the route I should go now.

Very nice! I love the sleek design (I spend hours in those kitchens at IKEA), and all that light makes me envious! I live in a townhouse, so one whole side of my house has no light, which is stupid because I live in the end unit, so I really could have windows if I wanted. Anyway, my kitchen is sort of small, galley style, but at least I have a window on one side. I'd kill for all that light you have now.

Facebook LinkedIn Soundhound Pandora Open Table Fandango Touchtunes Kindle app Yelp Delta app (I travel a bit) Gate Guru Gogo Concur (for doing work expense reports on my phone) Travel Zoo Amazon Sephora Cartwheel (Target) NPR USA Today US Weekly Weather Channel Waze (social GPS) My Fitness Pal All Recipes Canon Printer (print from my phone) Tapatalk More than 10, but I use all of these quite regularly, many daily.

Same here, except my first job wasn't that short (5 years). It also was helpful for what I did, but not completely necessary.

The salon I go to now has prices for every service that range based on the "level" of your stylist. Presumably the stylists that cost more have more education, training, years of experience, etc. The prices for a woman's cut and blow dry range from $29 from a Level 1 stylist to $82 for a Level 9. For partial foils, prices range from $54 - $119. I go to a Level 5. She has been there forever, so I don't really know why she isn't at a higher level, but I really don't care. She does a great job for me. Come to think of it, I'm going to ask her next time I go, which is on Thursday. If I go to a Level 9 will I come out looking like Jennifer Lawrence or something? Because if so, sign me up!

I started having stress reactions like that a few years ago, particularly the tingly, tight lip thing that makes it difficult to speak, with some of the shortness of breath. It was pure anxiety for me. I didn't recognize it because I didn't feel anxious at the time, but then I realized it only happens in times of stress. I have no known food or environmental allergies. Glad he's ok.

I missed the part that it was a resort town, so that makes sense. My normal manicure includes hand, arm, and shoulder massage, but it's extra for hot wax, and there is no option for chocolate dipped strawberries! When my husband had a manicure before our wedding, also in a resort town, it was I think $60 or so for him, too. No strawberries, but it did come with a martini, I think!

Probably, but that's way too much work for me. :lol: I don't track those things in my working budget. So, then, if you add those things back in, then the percentage will be a bit lower.