I’m incredibly sad about this too. The world lost a true gem today.

Praying!

My oldest two are close in age and then a 5 year age gap between the youngest and the middle. The youngest has friends and activities but does feel like the older two had each other and youngest feels left out while they’ve stretched their wings.

Is she looking to adjust their meals to include healthier foods or are you hoping you can encourage her to make adjustments? My kids aren’t young like that anymore but I do have a high stress full time job and lots of emotional labor with my family. Yesterday I “made” grilled brats, corn, cantelope and sautéed peppers and was ready to nominate myself for the cover of Martha Stewart Living. It is hard being physically and emotionally drained at the end of the day and needing to rally to do more caregiving like getting dinner on the table.

Goodness, what a great thread with so many book memories from the days of littles! My eyes are a little misty

I would be super frustrated over the culture and the negative assumptions that you are just blowing off the meetings. It sounds like you really don’t need to be there because you document the information the other counselors need to have. What are the pros to staying at this school? Are you able to let this roll off your back because you did all the right things and you really don’t need to attend these meetings? Or would you be happier at another school with presumably better culture and collaboration?

What about a journal or sketchbook?

Our dentist has done wisdom teeth removal for my older kids - one kid had 2 impacted and the other kid had all 4 impacted. Both were back in action less than 36 hours later. The one who had 4 impacted did alternate Motrin and Tylenol for 3 or 4 days after. We have pretty “good” dental insurance and the out of pocket was about $1700. The IV sedation wasn’t covered by dental or medical so that was a big part of the cost.

If only I had kept up with scrapbooking, I would have so much physical proof of all the things I have been accused of not doing. With my most stubborn / selective remembering teen kid, I have started to tell him I’m videoing our agreements before it’s considered a legally binding discussion due to his selective memory 😉

I would divide it by whatever number drove the booking of that AirBnB. Meaning, if I had to book it with a certain number of bedrooms for people the have the sleeping arrangements they wanted, I would divide it per room. If the place had more than the bedrooms needed, I guess I would divide the cost per person. That’s an off the cuff answer and haven’t been in this situation yet.

Ring security is adorable! Do you need drinks and something for toasts? For the food, I agree to go with a food truck, mediocre BBQ or find a great sub shop in town and do party subs. Or could bbq wings from a wings place get her closer to the bbq menu she wants?

It definitely sounds like an abrupt text but I would give grace and chalk it up to being super busy or distracted when she sent it. And I would own up to the block not working for you “Thanks for sharing time that works for you. I would love to see you, but I’m working when you’re available. Let’s get together the next time you’re in town”

Thanks for the recommendations and advice. Kbutton, my experience with my providers on other health things has been very similar to yours - my GP is great if I know exactly what I want but not great at solving more complex issues. I know it will take time, some trial and error and me advocating for myself to get this figured out. I just wish I wasn’t so worn out from stressors to gear up for this 😊

Do you feel like this person has always been a glass half empty person? Or do you feel like they are tip toeing into depression? I think multiple things can be true at once: Some YA’s can be contrary and believe their parents know nothing. Some YA can be verbalizing things that they haven’t really peeled back and formed a true opinion about. Some YAs may have some negative thinking patterns that are starting to form and it may be an opportune time to try to get them to see an alternate side to consider. My FOO always assumes negative intent. It’s taken a lot of work to challenge my thinking patterns and choose positive intent. Maybe a heart to heart to see if they are struggling with some blues and if that’s not a factor ask them what role they want you to play when they verbalize some of these negative thoughts.

Praying for each of you!

The last few years have been one emergency / high stress situation to the next. I have a job that is very high stress and for a lot of reasons, including getting excellent health insurance from it plus a husband with fragile health, I need to stick with it for the foreseeable future. The weight gain is getting ridiculous. My favorite exercise has always been running, but lately I’ve noticed my body feeling in a constant state of alarm and I’ve started wondering if running is creating more cortisol than as an outlet for stress release. It got me looking into high cortisol and adrenal fatigue and then I thought The Hive members are so knowledgeable that asking here could be a great place to learn more and find out about your experiences if anyone is willing to share including how you were able to course correct and heal your body.

Yes, you tip the driver in the app. I usually tip 20%.

I would hire movers to pack a Pod(s) and movers on the other end to unload the Pod(s) and drive my most valuable items loaded in my car(s).

Agree with the PP that mentioned car rentals. We also will try Costco first when buying tires. More than pays for the membership.

Get both apps on your phone. There are dedicated pick up areas for ride share services at the airport. I wouldn’t recommend scheduling ahead of time bc that usually costs more. Once you arrive and have your bag, you can see how much each service would cost for your ride and pick. You should be able to meet a driver within minutes. The apps are super easy to use.

You are not responsible for dealing with their baggage - emotional or otherwise 😉 You are communicating what the orphanage needs and they are being difficult. The baseball cap guy would really bother me, too. It’s like choosing a tag off the Angel tree and the child asks for a bike and insisting they really want a dollhouse. Bad analogy maybe, but yes, you are communicating clearly. Don’t think twice about taking on extra work so they can feel better about “contributing”

From my understanding, someone with “normal” cholesterol can see this rise significantly during peri menopause or menopause. I would reflect on the diet and lifestyle changes I was willing to make and also probably bring the medication into my toolkit temporarily while navigating other menopause effects. (I had natural births so don’t run right to meds). SIl who is super healthy in lifestyle and diet now has high cholesterol- her doctor also believes it is menopause related.

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DH wanted to be a photographer as his career and BIL wanted to be an artist. They were strongly discouraged / swayed away from those careers by their parents. DH wishes he had still pursued it. BIL’s child is entering college as an art major, they have always had talent and passion for art and BIL is encouraging them to pursue their passion. I know my IL’s were well intentioned but the heart wants what the heart wants. Not music related but my child is deciding between two colleges. One is considered “prestigious” and the other one has so many intangible advantages over the prestigious school. Goodness, the number of unsolicited comments my child has gotten that it’s “a clear choice where to go” you would think these commenters are funding it themselves.

It sounds like your middle school has had a tough year, but I’m not sure why you wouldn’t call and ask about your daughter shadowing. It’s likely a pre-determined option from the district/county level if they allow it. I personally wouldn’t guess the answer from someone else before at least asking the question.