DS21 had many, many food allergies when he was younger and one year he got tickets to sit on the Green Monster at Fenway. He was thrilled! I'm stealing this - thanks! Religious items! Excellent idea, thanks! The kids are always trying to steal the dainty rosaries - maybe I can get them each each their own.

I didn't even think of that. Thanks!

Between the middle of March and the end of May we have a birthday every two weeks. DS4 will turn into DS5 on Good Friday. There will be so much cake that I'm trying to come up with some non-candy ideas this year. I'm also not wanting to spend a fortune on 5 kids, so I'm coming up blank so far.

What will you put in your kids' Easter baskets (if you do baskets)? I'm going to make bunny-shaped rice krispie treats, dipped in chocolate. Other than that, I'm stumped this year. Maybe a gas card for DS21. (The baby will get an avocado - we are about to introduce solid foods.)

This is something that I will look into! Probably. We will call a professional at some point to tell us what we can/should do. The plan was for DS21 to move out next spring, so if I can wait to tear the place apart until after he leaves, I would prefer to do that.

We have one downspout, and it actually runs into a pipe in the ground near the corner of the house, about 15ft away from where the leak is. I'm not sure which direction the pipe runs underground - we only bought this house 18mos ago. Thanks for the tip about french drains - off to google!

It does, but not until the hole is full *all the way* to the top. I feel like, maybe, if I set it off before that point, the water from the other side of the basement might redirect to the lower level of the hole. I mostly do it to make myself feel like I have some control over the situation, which I obviously don't.

Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman Before that, I read Matilda and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Kids (that are listening) are 8, 5 (next week), and 3 (end of the month).

It snowed two weeks ago. We've been in drought conditions since last summer and had very little snow this winter so, yeah snow! Then, it warmed up and rained. And rained. And rained some more. Yesterday it was downpours on/off all day. The finished portion of the basement has been underwater since last Wednesday. I can keep up with it during the day, if I go downstairs every 90 minutes or so and swap the soaked towels for dry ones, vacuum up the puddles, set off the sump-pump (other side of the basement), put the wet towels into the washer to spin dry, put the damp towels into the dryer, empty the wet/dry vac, and set off the sump-pump again (for good measure). Two-thirds of the floor is wet every morning. Yesterday, I was outside during the downpours shoveling puddles towards the other side of the yard. It's been nine days. I'm so over this. My back aches and I have so much that I've had to put off (like laundry, and some of DS8's school work) and the kids have watched way more tv than usual while I'm downstairs cleaning. It wouldn't be *that* big a deal, except that DS21 has his bedroom down there, and I would prefer to not end up with a basement full of mold. As it is, we will probably have to take down one finished wall to have someone come look at the basement stone wall and see if we can repair it so this doesn't happen again... Home ownership is awesome. </snark>

42 over here as well, and my littlest is 5mos! Even though it is probably true, I hate thinking of him as my 'last' - I love being pregnant and having a new baby to adore. I'll miss it.

THIS. My oldest squeaked out of high school - to this day I am still astonished that it actually happened. I was so happy watching him graduate! BUT - he wasn't interested in college, CC or otherwise, and just wanted to work. Family and friends wanted us to push him towards taking CC courses - actually expected us to fill out the forms and enroll him ourselves! - but our philosophy was that he had graduated high school and was 18 years old. He was an adult and, as such, needed to be treated as an adult.

Boy #1 - 5.5 months (It was a medical necessity and it nearly broke my new-momma heart.) Boy #2 - 2yrs 3mos (I think it would have happened sooner, but I lost the baby that I was carrying right after he turned 2 and my milk came back in and he he took advantage of it.) Boy #3 - 2yrs 9mos (We tandem nursed through pregnancy and then with his baby brother for 9 months, mostly just at naps and bedtime.) Boy #4 - 2yrs 8mos (He tandem nursed with older brother, through the next pregnancy, and with baby brother for 8 months, naps and bedtime only.) Boy #5 - 5.5 months and going strong! As of April 14th I will have been breastfeeding for 5yrs straight. I'm pooped!

DS21 has two. This is my issue. They make me nuts.

Crap. I love their shoes for the boys! My kids mostly wear hand-me-downs, but everyone gets brand new, brand name sneakers & sandals every year. Boo!

Born and raised! (Well, my parents moved us to Bradford in 1989 and I moved to Lawrence in 1995 when I married and then back to Methuen in 1997.) PMA class of 1992. Go, Panthers! :thumbup1:

I'm in Methuen, MA here, about 20 minutes north of Boston, and on the NH line. My school district required a form be filled out, that included these things: statement of intent (with student info), goals, content, materials, assessments, and length of day/year. I mostly copied/pasted from the MHLA website examples and was pretty vague. I received a letter of acknowledgement from the school department about a month later. Easy peasy. Good luck!

There is a little corner store in my city that, from the outside, looks like a run-down market. It is so famous for its British meat pies that it has been featured on multiple television shows and people drive for miles to come buy them. I haven't been there since my Nana died - it might be time to go again!

Thanks for this. Several of the other books you listed were sent home with us from the librarian! I think I'll ask him to finish one other book first, and then he can move on to Order of the Phoenix. He does have three younger brothers, so it's not like he won't get a chance to re-read/re-listen to them again! Thanks, everyone.

DS7 (he'll be DS8 next week) finished reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. DH took him to visit his grandfather this afternoon and they all watched the movie together. This is how we've handled the first four HP books with *this* child. Now, DS7 wants to start Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix immediately, to continue on with the story. I think that I want him to wait. Book #5 is where the story gets darker, beloved characters start getting killed off, and the action is scarier. Also, Harry is a bit of a miserable punk in this book and I'm not really interested in my darling child getting any hints on how to become a surly teenager any earlier than need be. He's mad at me for not letting him start it right away. The librarian gave him half a dozen other books, all 4th-6th grade reading level, but none of them as *dark* as Order of the Phoenix. He doesn't seem interested in any of them, yet. How do you handle it when your child is capable of doing the reading but might not be ready for the topics? Should I just let him read it? FWIW, DH hasn't read any of the books and defers to my decision.

I think I love you both! :001_wub:

I have 10 emails, total. Four are 'unread', though I have read them. They are necessary for somethings coming up in the next two weeks. The other six include things that I would like to keep for future reference (I reread them occasionally). Everything else is deleted as soon as I am done with it, and I empty the trash regularly. Too many emails in my inbox make me anxious... ETA: I unsubscribe from things that show up in my spam file. I don't need that kind of stress in my life!

Same issue here. DS21 is on depakote for seizures. We get it through the mail, so he gets 90 days at a time but, from every once in a while, they are a different manufacturer that the last delivery. I used to try to mix the bottles together to mitigate the problem.

We rent out two condos (neither of which we've been able to sell, we don't want to be landlords). Tenant #1 (my old home) pays with bank check that is dropped off in my mail slot the day it is due (15th of each month). Tenant #2 (husband's old home) requires multiple text messages/phone calls/emails to remind him that the rent is past due. When he finally shows up, he pays with a starter check, usually post-dated. Last time it bounced. :cursing:

My recommendation would be to continue using the CWP book that you have, but work it out together. Solve the questions out loud along with him, and model your thought process to him. He will learn from doing it with you!

They don't buy food for this school program - it runs entirely on donations. (I donate cash to other food pantries/kitchens for the reasons you mentioned.) They have a small list of items that they request, and I always include those (mac n'cheese boxes, oatmeal packets, granola bars, etc). I have had two students attend this school in the past, so I am familiar with its demographics. I am trying to send things that are gluten- and nut-free (we have allergies here, I know how hard that can be). This program send kids home with bags of whatever they have on-hand, so diapers, formula, and menstrual products are not useful in this program, because they may go to families that don't need them. I will keep an eye out for small soaps, toothpastes, etc. Thanks.