I am going to a winter wedding in December for a BIL. I am having a terrible time finding something I like, and I keep gravitating to things that are not black, but are like navy/midnight blue, or dark gray, or plaid skirts that have large amounts of black in them. I realize many people don’t care about black at weddings, and if think it’s as silly “rule ”, but the bride-to-be ‘s mother seems very invested in some wedding tradition things, so I feel like she is maybe not one of those people. Is dark blue okay? Is no black at all the thing, or just no all-black dress? i have never gone to a winter wedding. I would have no trouble at all with summer or spring , but in the fall and winter if I wear a “dress” it’s denim skirt + a sweater or a shirt with cardigan almost invariably and I feel like denim is just a little casual.

I can see the appeal of that. This was our hometown cemetery. There were people I knew in there!

Obviously whoever wrote that list is spoiled. I mean, the real list of worst places to go on a date (first or otherwise) should include the cemetery. I mean, not that it was the whole objective of the date (I think we went bowling first) but he was a carpenter and wanted to show me the gazebo he’d helped build. It was still weird.

Mine is male with an Australian accent. I changed it the first day I got the phone because it bugged me that the default for the “assistant “ voice was female.

When I’ve made shepherds pie ( but with beef, so actually Cottage pie?!?) it has no bottom crust, and mashed potatoes on top, no actual crust anywhere.

Thank you! You know, I really think if I can do it anyone can. My first quilt was quite different, and had unmatched seams and (unintentionally) wonky pieces galore. It really is practice over time that made the difference.

Last crafts of October for me, I think. I made two table runners for my soon-to-be sister-in-law’s bridal shower. Each is reversible. They took way longer than anticipated, so due to incompetence at time management, I was up very late last night finishing them for the shower today. Nordic Stars table runner, free pattern here. The other side, no pattern anywhere. I improv pieced it, and it was lots of fun. Used up a lot of scraps. This is the least “me” quilt I have ever made. I love all the bright colors. I have an almost physical disinclination to work with cream/white/tan neutrals like this, yet I love how it turned out. Christmas table topper. I made up the block pattern to use up charm squares. I wasn’t sure how I would orient the pieces, and so fiddling with that too a lot longer than anticipated. Reverse side of the Christmas topper. Quick and the most simple of all, but I like how it showcases the ornament fabric. i quilted them both with an all-over pattern that was simple and looked okay from either side.

Cute! I love all the color.

Our elementary is more easy-going than our high school. In elementary and jr. High a parent can call in an absence and have it excused. In high school, won’t be excused without a note from a doctor (or other corroborating evidence; my DD had to bring the funeral program from her grandmother’s funeral to have that absence excused, even though it’sa small town and everyone at school knew what happened and where she was. Several teachers were there.) I find this ridiculous. I don’t want to send a child who is contagious to school, but neither will I take my kids to the doctor for something that will likely be a one or two day illness. (Our insurance is not good; it won’t be a$40 copay, it will be at least $100 because I’ll end up paying the entire cost.) so when they’re sick I just have them take an unexcused absence. Luckily we haven’t been sick much high school started.

Also puzzles are risky. Sometimes they’re complete, sometimes 1/4 off the puzzle is missing and you don’t figure it out until you’re halfway through. So I’ll buy them if they’re a quarter or fifty cents, but not much more. I’ve had good luck buying used games, but I do it knowing that it will be a risk. Not as frustrating s as puzzles, though, because you figure it out before you play, so the time investment is less.

I try to avoid buying computers/phones/that sort of electronics used unless they are professionally refurbished. I think refurbished electronics are great, but I don’t know enough about computers to buy a used one that someone hasn’t gone over. I feel like there could be all kinds of things wrong with it, and I would be unable to do anything to fix it.

You would think so, but my Goodwill definitely sells bras, and I’ve seen other thrift shops selling underwear. And honestly, it’s a mental ick for me, but i figure that realistically, once you wash and dry something, it’s clean whether it is underwear or a pair of jeans. So I’ve donated clean toddler underwear that was not very worn to a local non-chain thrift shop, because underwear is expensive, proportional to the amount of fabric used, and some families may not be able to afford to be as picky as me.

Sometimes a “whole family” celebration on the actual day of the holiday just can’t happen. In my family, we try to prioritize when everyone can make it over calendar day, and my parents are super accommodating and flexible, unlike some of my extended in-law family and my siblings’ in-laws. It makes things so much easier. So my parents haven’t had all of us at Thanksgiving for years. We just do our Thanksgiving on Friday or Saturday. Do what works best for the majority, and make sure everyone knows they are welcome even if they don’t make it. Try to keep things low stress and still give Navy boy some of the homey things he’s been missing. But in the end remember it isn’t specific foods or a calendar date that really matters, it’s family.

This weekend I took a break from some projects requiring precision to do some stress relief sewing that required no precision. I made a crumb block of some teeny tiny scraps and made it into a potholder. Bonus, I also got motivated to color sort and organize my scraps.

I thrift shop a lot, and I’m fine with clothes (wash them as soon as I get home) and shoes off they aren’t too worn. I wouldn’t buy underwear or a bra (or a swimsuit) at a thrift store. I wouldn’t buy mattresses or upholstered furniture. Sometimes the Goodwill here has food items. Even unopened, I won’t buy those. i don’t like the idea of getting a coffee maker used because who knows what the reservoir is like inside, could be all moldy and impossible to get clean. Same for humidifier. I won’t buy makeup used. I’ve seen it at garage sales, but no.

I understand your friend’s viewpoint entirely. Once, when I badly needed it, I was served the best latte of my life by a young man. If I had not already been married, and a lot too old for him, I think I would have proposed on the spot!

My kids are all public schooled now, and once in awhile I despair, because I did not graduate from a challenging high school program, but it was decent and the emphasis was on academics. I graduated salutatorian in a small class and found college classes at a small liberal arts class challenging, but not terrible. There was definitely a step up in expectations, though. i can’t believe how unprepared my kids are going to be for college if college hasn’t changed. I learned all high school math: geometry, algebra, trig and pre-calc without a calculator. My kids know how to put in the numbers on a graphing calculator, but not how to think it through and do it on paper. Geometry was very loosey goosey as far as graphing anything out by hand went - the teacher didn’t even care if they used a straight edge or not. Don’t get me started on writing or Spanish. The lack of grammar instruction is really sad, as is the lack of requiring simple things like capitalization and spelling. If you don’t teach English grammar, than I guess teaching verb conjugation in Spanish would be an exercise v in futility. Maybe that’s why they don’t teach it at all. And the endless retaking of tests and redoing assignments for a better grade, teachers who take late papers that their own policies say should be a zero already. i have to be hands off. If I go down there griping at the school, it accomplishes nothing. Ask me how I know. I’ve let teachers know that I’m fine with my child flunking if they aren’t putting the effort I’m. They need to be accountable. But I think college will be an eye opening experience for them.

Pennies. We do not need these.

My DD started on a full size acoustic at age 10. It looked huge, but she wasn’t bothered by it. I, on the other hand, play the ukulele, and guitars seem terribly unwieldy. I would want a parlor guitar or smaller if I were taking it up myself. my kids learned in person from my DH’s grandpa and I think in person is probably better, but there are a lot of free resources for beginner guitar out there. I think Justinguitar.com is mostly free, though things have changed some I looked at it last. I think it is better to go with a site or YouTube channel that has a well-thought out progression of lessons than just random YouTube tutorials. I tried YouTube tutorials at first with ukulele, and there’s so much out there but without a good progression I skipped around and didn’t get a good handle on anything. I ended up going with a book instead. Many now have videos that go along with the book, and that’sa feature I appreciate. More have audio only , which is helpful but not as much, for me. The Ukulele for Dummies is well-regarded, though I don’t know anything about Guitar for Dummies. I also like the Complete Idiots Guide for Ukulele, though again can’t say whether the guitar version is good.

I wear hoodies, either Womens a size or two up, or a Mens. I always wear a tee or tank underneath. In the winter it’s a flannel or a hoodie and jeans everyday for casual wear. I love them, and I use the hood part sometimes outside to keep the wind out of my ears.

You laugh, but I bought one for my niece last Christmas and ever since I’ve been tempted. I would only wear it around the house, though.

Now, my kids are all in public school and I am not working outside the home, so I can read whenever, though I usually don’t because I feel like I’m “wasting time”. I’m mostly in the habit of reading after the kids go to bed, plus carrying books around when I’m going somewhere like the dentist or laundromat where I know I’ll be waiting. I’ll take books on car trips, because I can read in the car for limited amounts of time before it makes me feel sick. The actual majority of my reading is audiobooks, though, which I listen to while I’m at the gym, cleaning, or taking walks.

Sorry, I have the actual cookbook, so I was just looking for a linkable copy. It has 3 c. of broth, of which you use 2 T to sauté the onions (I don’t; I use olive oil). edit: 3 c, not 2 c. of broth

I got it out of The China Study Cookbook. It’s all vegan recipes, but the soup section has a lot of recipes that my decidedly not-vegetarian family enjoys.