Boy, I could have used this thread about a year ago. It got to a very ugly point. Dh was moody about work and dd was a hormonal mess. I did nothing but referee last fall. It was exhausting. My dh is another man who takes the moods of others personally. Honestly, I didn't think I would survive. But dd's hormones seem to have evened out and that has been a big help.

Awww! I love kittens. They are so cute. Congratulations on the weight gain.

I agree with everyone else. I would finish the attic. Is there anyway to add a sunroom, or something like that?

It has been a few years since I bought My Twinns for my twins. I was not very happy with the quality - their hair was a total mess in a short period of time - and they are very heavy. My girls played with them for a very short period of time and then quit. They have gotten a lot more out of their American Girl dolls than their My Twinn.

If there is carpet, I would rent a steam cleaner and use OdoBan in it.

I went through the same with one of my twins last year and the first half of this year. She ended up starting her period at the end of December at 10.5 y.o. Within about 3 months the sleeping got better and after about 6 months, the moodiness started to even out. Honestly, I thought I was going to have to put her in school it was so bad. I dreaded the start of this school year, but it has been a breeze so far. The only recommendations I have for you are to have patience and to set clear boundaries with consequences for behavior outside those boundaries. The sleep problem is hard to solve. You might try earlier bedtimes or giving her things to listen to while awake. I told dd to see how many Hail Marys she could say or to see how slowly she could say the Our Father. :grouphug:

In a word, YES.

We have one. We bought it at Bed, Bath and Beyond and used one of their 20% off coupons. They also sell refilled cartridges for $15, which helps with the cost. Throw on top of that one of B,B&B's $5 off a $15 purchase and the cost of the refill is only $10. (I love BB&B.) I prefer mine unflavored, but my girls will add a little juice to their glass and dh uses a fruit flavor he bought. I do think it is a lot cheaper that paying 79 cents for a bottle of store brand seltzer; it certainly is more convenient.

I would probably eat it, if it still tasted good. Cream cheese is pretty stable. Mayo might be a different story.

I didn't because he was working. He has said that he has no interest in going with me if I go to any other reunions in the future. He is a bit older than I am, which I thinks affects his decision about wanting to go. Also, I went to a fancy prep school (on scholarship) and my classmates are financially successful or married to financially successful people. I think he would be uncomfortable in that environment.

One of my twins slept best on her tummy. In the NICU, her O2 sat was always near 100% when on her tummy. Put her on her back and her O2 sat would drop. She also had problems with reflux. I had a portable bassinet that allowed me to incline the back. That helped a lot. After feeding her, I could have the back in the "up" position. After about 30 minutes I could lower the back. Here is a new fangled bassinet that would allow the same thing: Sleep System

Belgium. Reasons to study it: 1)It is a country that hasn't had a government in about 3 years. 2) It is bilingual. 3) The Flemish and the Walloons can't stand each other and talk endlessly about dividing the country in two. 4) Caesar said the Belgians were the most fierce. 5) The beer and chocolate are delightful. And, finally: 6) A remarkable number of people in the US have no clue it exists.

One of our cats was like that as a kitten. Our vet had us give her a tsp-TBS of yogurt everyday. Within days it cleared up. We did the same with the kittens we got in 2011. Now we have 3 yogurt addicted cats in the house (they go bonkers when they hear you open the container). It might be worth a try for you.

If you can find the Land's End girls jeans that are not "pencil" leg, they should fit her pretty well. My jean wearing dd has those and they fit her quite well (she too has well built thighs and butt). Another option might be the "Not Ready for a Boyfriend" jeans from Hanna Andersson. We haven't tried them yet, but I plan on ordering a pair shortly. The cut look about right. I hate the name, though.

In that case, I would go with Cassius. Otherwise, I would pick something German: Johann Bach Hans Conrad Fritz Franz Gunther Gustav Wolfgang (call him Wolfie) Ludwig Klaus Ralf

It depends. What is your house listed for? $600,000 - then $18,000 is not so bad. $100,000 - then $18,000 is low. But, as someone mentioned, it also depends on what the comps are selling for. Around here a well priced house sells for about 92-94% of list price.

:iagree: I would do that or I would delete their posts from my wall.

Has he signed up with a private school recruiting firm (Carney Sandoe comes to mind, but I know there are a couple that focus on southern states)? Many private schools use those firms as a prescreener and don't advertise their open positions publically.

Which Hoover Steam Vac did you get? I am in the market for one.

I use this recipe (with some modifications) as a base for all my muffins: recipe I use mostly white wheat flour or mix whole wheat and all purpose. I leave out the chocolate (but sometimes I get convinced to put in a handful of mini chocolate chips). I put in mashed bananas and other fruit that I have on hand (blueberries, strawberries, etc.).

Usborne Books has a new fundraiser called Cards for a Cause. The group doing the fundraiser doesn't have any upfront costs, so that is a real plus.

I completely understand what you mean. It has been almost a month since our dog died. Despite my saying over and over again, no dog until we have a more sane schedule and a different house, I keep looking at puppies on PetFinder.com. I found one I am in love with. He is a 4-5 month old Great Dane/German Shepherd mix. 45 lbs already. If I had a bigger car, I would get him. Now.

An 8 year old can't (at least shouldn't) have a FB account, so the only way she would be seeing the pictures is if the mom is showing them to her. I would try to figure out a way of asking the mom about the party, just to clarify the situation. She could be ticked off because you didn't show up for the party. Approach it from that direction. Then you will know if you should be ticked off or if there was a genuine mistake. Knowing the truth is better than stewing over something that could very well be a non-issue.

Do the ratings numbers catch the people who watched live online? I watched most of the convention on my computer. Fox News had all of it live and CNN had most, if not all. Let's hope that when you add in those numbers it would beat Honey.

My niece graduated from nursing school last year and started at $50,000/year, great benefits, and a sign-on bonus. My sister has her 2 year RN (associates degree), and she is making in the $60k-$70 range at a health club. Around here nurses can write their own ticket - sign on bonuses, nice salaries, pick their hours, etc. Some hosiptal systems are so desperate for nurses they are paying for their schooling in exchange for a 2-3 year job commitment. Hospitals and doctor's offices are more dependent than ever on their RN's and are paying handsomely for it. Perhaps all this is regional, but I do know that this is the case here in VA, TN, NC, and other places I have lived.