Psalm 71 one

A la prochaine, I am aware that both dyslexia and ADD ADHD can be overdiagnosed. My mom was an OT and learned that some so-called learning disabilities could be overcome by having the kids crawling around on hands and knees--something about the alternating of the limbs. Sometimes i wonder if some of Ben's dificulties are hearing related, although standard hearing test at physicals say his hearing is fine. Anyway, i think i will look at his info. Isaac and I sat down today making pro and con lists. Funny thing, if they still lived 3 miles away, as they once did, we both would more seriously consider having him go as a day school arrangement. the friend totored Ben a few years ago, and he enjoyed it--I took her daughter at that time and taught her basic home-ec type classes. WG, yeah, I would like to hear what your hubby says. These guys are not scientologists, but they also have never been around people who have any types of handicaps and such. when I had my operation on my ankle, she kinda stayed away til I could get around, because she didn't know 'what to do". (I needed help washing my hair, other little things) On the other hand, when she tutored Ben, she was extremely patient and had an approach I hadn't tried, and succeeded in getting him to read much better than i had gotten him. She wouldn't acknowledge that he might have a learning disability/difference, and explained away that all kids turn their letters around. but she WAS patient in reminding him to rewrite his backwards letter. That is why this is hard to decide, because, while she won't acknowledge the learning glitch, she will tutor to his needs, most of the time--my fear is, If IF If he should run into a block specific to his dyslexia--or whatever it may be. (Isaac, i mean). Then again, her teaching style may get him over a block. I HAVE mentioned to her that I wished i could get tutoring for one or both of them-- also, there is a school nearby that teaches specifically to dyslexics, and i had told her i wanted to get one or both of them there for at least some tutoring. Since she HAD tutored one of my kids-- and is fairly good at it, I think that got the gears turning in her head. Socks, I hear ya. i wish i could just ask her to help ME out instead, or, like I said, if she was close by, and it could be a tutoring thing--even if one to two days a week. I DO want what's BEST for him. And I'm really not bothered by "different"--that kinda stuff has a tendency to iron out when everybody is adult--ya know, the high school "nerd" ends up being the boss! LOL! Twinky, I know what you sre saying--it may help the "culture shock thing" if he were to do this, but being it's 9th grade, and there are three more years to high school, and i am afraid this will "grow" into all four years. Part of it, is i think if Isaac does adjust, and enjoys it there--if they really are helpful in his schooling, and not harsh, too pushy or whatever, but are pleasant and great to live with, HE would want to stay. Financially every need he would have, they would meet-- they get their kids anything they want. At their house, he'd have a wii, an ipod, current game system. We have one game cube and old cd walkmans. Isaac and i have wondered, too, if maybe having him stay for a few weeks as a trial, before next school year, might be an idea. He and I have made a list today of the pros and cons. HE is aware that with them, some of the academic type needs might be more apt to be met. It's hard! Linda, yeah, they are kinda hard-core fundimentalists. I think maybe we would be seen as that, too. He was a preacher in the Christian church denomination, then I think he pastored at a different denomination, also. We all met at a church in Baltimore. He ran a home group at that church. Eventually, several of the families left the church and we started up an independant home church. He led it. I do trust him to teach my son fairly close to what we believe, although i don't always agree with some of their extreme beliefs. The problem is, Isaac has embraced some of their beliefs--he hangs out a lot with them. He really likes these guys, and while i said he's not a crowd follower, he IS a (this family) follower. Usually if the xxxx's say it, Isaac believes it. We, our whole family really enjoyed the home church we had with them. we did get out of the waybrain thinking in this home church. i can honestly say I am thankful for the time we had with them in their home church--we learned a lot and unlearned a whole lot of other stuff! The friendship between the adults continued after they moved, but when my hubby lost his job, and wasn't doing much to replace it, they separated themselves from us. (the verse, if a man doesn't work, he shouldn't eat. also says not to fellowship with him) while they separated themselves from the adults, they continued to have Isaac over for these occasional weekends. I think, to a small extent, it is kinda like your aunt and uncle trying to fill the void of their older son going away to college. They would definately love and spoil him. I also think there is a measure of them thinking they would be 'rescuing' Isaac. with them, he would have more opportunities for success. With us, he may continue the cycle of poverty--or at least near-poverty. Isaac recognizes the fact that with them, it would definately help him break the cycle he is in with us. Here is maybe the real dilemma on my part. A lot of Isaac's 'pro's to go there had to do with getting somewhat of a break from his dad. He loves us both very much. but I've seen this clash coming since they started clashing when Isaac was little. I tried to tell my hubby back then, but he always shifted the blame. Which is what he does now. Isaac often is the one that backs down, and I think he is fairly successful in fighting down any resentment. He and I have some conversations about this and I try to teach him to not harbor anger. I think he can do that well, just because of his personality-- he's not the quick-to-anger type of person, and has a long fuse. But this is I think a bigger dilemma for me than the school. After reading all these posts, i realize i HAVE to change what i am doing-- get the testing, get the "point in the right direction', do the paperwork. But i am right now, in the same dillemma my mom was in many years ago. My mom had to let go of my two older brothers, one at a time, because of the clash between them and my dad. If they didn't move away, something ugly might have happened. this is not exactly the same situation, but there are a lot of simlarities. There it is

Linda, my Moses (Maltese) loves kleenex, used or new. I can no longer leave a bpx out on the table by the couch cuz he'll chew and shred them all. He'd do the same to toilet paper rolls left out. Both my dogs try to "dry" my legs just after i get out of the shower, and both will lick the lotion off my legs! Moses tries to clean our ears-- talk about a "wet willie" LOL! Mo-mo LOVES chocolate (yes i KNOW they're not supposed to have it!) But a couple times we left a chocolate bar, chocolate chips, and once my LINDOR TRUFFLES, dangitt!--out on a coffee table. each of those times, he has devoured the chocoltae and then preceeded to puke chocolate puke all over the house--at least 15 puke piles! joy joy. . . We once had a cat that would dig used Q tips out of the trash and chew on the "contents" EWWWWWW! Zippie, my female Maltese likes snacks out of the litter box. We try to keep it scooped, but sometimes she beats us to it! EWWWW again!

Thank you all. Today was a hard day. I have prayed, gotten angry, gotten defensive, looked inward, thinking of myself as a failure, then yelling (In my mind! LOL) I AM HiS MOTHER!!!! GOD DIDN'T MAKE A MISTAKE IN GIVING THIS CHILD TO ME! I am wondering what they are really thinking now, too. Are they saying, "you are ruining this child, give him to us so we can fix him" ? Or are they making this offer because they like this kid, they know that 16 yo is gonna miss his older brother, who is going to college next year, lets try to get someone to fill the void. Or is it just because they heard me say i am struggling in teaching these guys, and they want to help me fix things. I HAVE considered public school--or at least the public school's homeschool program. I enjoy having him home. He enjoys being home. Isaac IS different--always has been. He didn't fit in well with his peers even when he was little. Maybe the other kids found him "odd", but the parents always liked him. He hasn't "clicked" with most public school kids, he doesn't have the desire to wear what they wear and play what they play just because everybody else does. He's more mature than most of them I have met. He gets along well with other homeschoolers unless they are "crowd followers". As his mother, i think this is a great trait--he walks to the beat of a different drum! lol. I also know when he goes away to college, he will probably have a bit of culture shock. But i also believe he is strong enough to handle it-- as he would be if i DO put him into public school--he's not going to get talked into drugs or anything-- he has his own convictions. He has a stength of discipline my hubby or I never had in high school. He has the strength to be a Daniel, or a Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. I'm serious. If he were dragged awy to another country like those young men were, he has that kind of strength, that he would not bow. That is my Isaac. That is what these friends see in him. I see the same in their son--the one closest to Isaac in age. I trust these guys to raise my children, should we die. But we are not dead, and this is a choice. But i also have a hard time with their adamency (is that a word?) against learning differences. The man who was a high school teacher was in a small private christian school--I think for only two years. But he's still a stickler for good education, for doing the SAt tests several times, and for good ability in writing. Isaac is NOT a good writer-- that's where the dyslexia really gets in the way. And i believe that is where problems might come in-- they might try to push him to do something he may NOT be able to do. The man has started on me a couple times in trying to tell me where i am doing things wrong. He also has the maturity to back down and not risk the friendship, so the discussion doesn't go too far. But these are the kind of people who also say antidepressants are unnecessary. I think they are uncomfortable with weakness. They are very driven, competitive people. (I want to give a couple examples, but i think I am being too long-winded as it is. I have wondered what his SAT will be if there isn't leeway given in the timed testing. He knows his facts, but does absolutely horrible in times tests. That is just one of the aspects. I don't want to miss acknowledging any of you who posted, but I know how hard it is to read long posts! Shellon, Cowgirl, Purpledays, Zshot, Waysider, WhiteDove, Thank you all so much for your input-- I've somewhat answered ya, but haven't mentioned your name when i did. I hear ya all, and I will need to reread everything here again! I love you guys! Mr Feathers-- yep, you'll live to regret that-- just when you least expect it! Ron, the reason he'd have to live with them is how far apart we live. It takes 1 1/2 hours to get to their house during non-rush hours. If I were driving him back and forth, in the mornings, during rush hour, it would take 2 or more hours to get him there-- them I'd still have to get home. can't afford it either in time or gas money. Mo, I didn't know about the six different types of dyslexia, but i believe it. the ways i worked with Isaac are not working with Ben. I will take yours, and everyone else who suggested it, advice in looking into having him tested-- i stopped persuing it years ago when i discovered it would be as much as $3000 without health insurance (or more). Dooj, I cried again when you said that about Isaac's real life brother. Ben thinks the world of Isaac. Isaac's sentiments are not always the same-- Ben really can be a pesky little brother and i have to call him off Isaac sometimes! lol! This couple has made it clear that they want me to make this decision as a one year comminment (school year). And Washnwear, I have wondered too about the long-term repercussions. I have considered asking you a hundred times if you can point me in the right direction concerning the dyslexia stuff. Socks, Isaac is a phonetic speller, too, but excellent in math. He wants to be an engineer! His "salvation" in spelling is that he can memorize so well. Ben is having a much tougher time, because he has almost NO memorization ability. Plus he is such a kinetic learner he HATES book learning-- he loves science because i try to do everything hands on. WG, I haven't read that book, but I read one about the Visual, auditory, kinetic--and one other that slips my mind! I haven't read too much on teaching the teacher books lately--I read a million in the first few years. I think I'll look that one up at the library. I do think this family does think i use the dyslexia as an excuse. And to be honest, sometimes i wonder if I am, too. Like I didn't give Isaac grades for spelling--I just made him correct his mistakes and quizzed him on the missed words a few days later. Dan, yeah, we are in GA now. I think we know each other, but I haven't contacted you yet! LOL Guess I better now that I've said this. . . Isaac sounds a lot like your oldest--doesn't appreciate being shoehorned into things. I s'pose i oughta stop for now--Some of ya might not even still be here. Sorry for talking so much. I've faced a lot of tough decisions in my life, but I'd have to say this might be one of the toughest! Because I don't think it will be easy to tell them no, if that is what we say.

Isaac would benefit in many ways; He and their 16 yo son are really great friends and would truly enjoy being “brothers”. They would probably pay for his driver’s ed. Also—something we will not be able to do for a long time. (Hubby’s been unemployed since July, and in addition wasn’t very wise with the savings we were living off of, so now we have a bunch of financial problems we wouldn’t have to be going through—enough said on that. I don’t want to go there in a public forum) As a matter of fact, just about anything he would need they would take care of—they would treat him as their own—they are that kind of people and they LOVE Isaac. Isaac loves them. He loves their lively conversations. They are all competitive arguers, and love to get into debates. He is a rational thinker and they are too. Again, I have to admit, I have been seeing my own limitations—not from lack of intelligence or even ability on my part, but because I procrastinate, and haven’t seemed to be able to beat that weakness on my part. Even when I know it may hinder my child’s education. And if I don’t do what I am supposed to do, it would hinder my son’s education. That should be enough for me to get past it, but I haven’t gotten past it. Ben would benefit from better one-on-one time with me, although he’d miss Isaac terribly—he adores Isaac. When I ran the idea past him, he definitely was interested—although he didn’t like the idea of not being with us. (It would be long stretches between seeing him, because this family is really busy—it could be more than a month in between seeing him) But I could see his mind running with it. The point my friend kept saying is that I have to do what’s best for Isaac. It’s possible this IS what is best for him. But he’s MY SON!!! I don’t want him to go away yet! I’m gonna have a hard enough time when he has to go away to college! The more I think about it, the more I have been crying. Because this would really benefit him, but I would lose him sooner! Because, to be honest, it wouldn’t be for just one year, ninth grade—it would end up being all of high school. And what hurts is that he would conform well into their family. And he WOULD benefit—and he would probably end up in a much better situation in his adult life than he would if he was with us. BUT HE’S MINE! I waited many years and many miscarriages to have this child! I fought with my husband for the privilege of home schooling him because I really love being with him. I have loved every age more than the last. He is a really great young man—anyone who meets him, just loves him, and comments on how responsible he is. When Isaac saw that I had been crying, he admitted he didn’t like the idea that he would have to be so far away from us. Ben overheard and asked about it and was in tears about Isaac going too. But Isaac and I know the benefits may far outweigh our family staying intact. Isaac loves us very much, but he knows this might be best for him—even though he really doesn’t want to be away from us for such long periods of time. This would be so much easier to decide on, if we all lived close—I would drive him to their house every day. I would welcome the help—if nothing more than to have some time alone with Ben. I haven’t run this past my hubby. I don’t know how he will react. He is in a deep depression about our situation, but I really think he doesn’t realize a lot of it is of his making. He’s seeing this unemployment as unfair and what has he done wrong. Again, I don’t want to get into it here, but he has made a lot of bad decisions, that he sees only as himself being a victim. He is depressed, and he makes horrible comments against himself. When he hears about this, he will react in one of two ways. Be offended that the friends are trying to interfere, or go into his ‘poor me, I can’t provide, here you might as well have my son’. I’m not sure he will see that this is a situation where maybe we SHOULD look at this from a viewpoint of Isaac’s best interests. If you are still reading, what do you think? Would you let your son go this young?

Today I was presented with a suggestion that has had me in tears a bunch, and put me in a position where I need to make a tough decision. This is gonna be a long post, so I am goig to break it up into two posts. Where do I start? A friend has offered to take Isaac next year to home school him—kinda like a boarding school. (Isaac will be 15 May 5th) They absolutely love Isaac and he loves going there—they have an 18yo and a 16 yo son, Isaac goes frequently to do a long weekend stay. He brings his school with him and stays from Wed night to Sun night. The man has been a high school teacher and is a real stickler for a good education. And that has paid off in his life—he has a six-figure income, and I definitely would trust them to raise my child well. They are my first choice for my children to go to should they become orphans. We have known these guys for almost 5 years. They have been careful to not go too far in telling me this, but I know they definitely don’t agree with my style of schooling. Both of my boys have dyslexia, and these folks pretty much don’t “buy” into “learning disabilities”. Part of the disconnect there is that I don’t have an “official” diagnosis. I am giving them the label based on what I see them do in school, and having read up a bit online, and while in MD, the person who I had do my home school assessments (required in MD 2x a year), was a former special ed teacher who mostly worked with dyslexic children, and saw “symptoms” classic to dyslexia—she wouldn’t diagnose and highly recommended getting the testing—which we have been unable to do because we haven’t had medical insurance in years. Anyway, my friends don’t really believe in “learning disabilities”. I actually prefer the term learning difference because my boys are plenty intelligent enough—in fact they work quite hard at their schoolwork—but they can’t spell and have trouble remembering proper grammar, which sometimes other people interpret as being unintelligent. These friends are really into writing ability. The thing is, they are very patient and diligent in their teaching style and I think they—both Mr. and Mrs. would be a great help in working with Isaac. We are coming into the high school years, and I know his schooling is much more important now—and keeping really good records. I had planned on enrolling him in an accredited online high school, because I know I am too scatterbrained to keep good enough records, and want a better school transcript than I can do. I also know I don’t give either boy the time they really need. They are getting a basic education, but not a lot of extra time. This is hard to admit, but I think my friends might do a better job during the high school years. And they have offered to pay for anything Isaac needs for his education. But he would have to go live with them because they live two hours’ drive away.

Thank you all for the birthday wishes! Ron-- of course-- SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT!! That's how I share my cake! HAH! mmm, wait! this cake is REALLY GOOD! STOP THROWING it everyone! mmm! yum yum . . . chomp chomp! OW!! that was a lit candle!

Zippie is back! She still doesn't eat well, but I think secretly she's just holding out-- we were FEEDING her-- as in with a spoon! LOL! and she is a Princess. (She waits for us to lift her out of her crate in the morning, begs to be carried up the steps, etc, even when she's well! LOL!) Anyway, she runs and plays and wags again, she poops and pees and drinks well. I'm nowhere near as worried as i was! Thanks for the article, Dot. I don't know if I want to feed the cat the meat tenderizer or Accent. I don't think it's good for humans, and since my dogs and cat are all less than 10 lbs, I think it would have to be in REALLY small doses! If I can keep her away from the litter boxes it will cut down on her "treats" to only what she finds in the yard from neighboring cats! (And she has found them-- rolls in 'em! PEEEE-YEWWWW!) I had switched their food to Solid Gold after her puppy was born, (Cat food was switched too) but after a few bags of it, my hubby wanted me to stop--it's more expensive than the Nutro Ultra we'd been feeding them. Now my hubby wants us to switch to this vet recommended food--Iam's Low-residue. It's more expensive than the Ultra, but less than the Solid Gold. I am gonna have to find out more about the "Low-residue"--will they be missing any nutrients on it? Zippie doesn't like it much, Moses likes it cuz he thinks he's getting away with something by stealing it from her! Gus (the cat) likes it too, when we moisten it! LOL!

Belle, thanks for the homemade food recipe--she likes that better! She went off regular food when she'd had her puppies a year ago, and i think you had suggested the rice and chicken back then, minus the mineral oil. I hope brown rice is okay-- that's what we have onhand. And she DOES get into the cat food- bet that had some bearing on this sickness too! I have read up on this cat litter eating and she's not gonna stop--she's got the taste for it! So one of the litter boxes is truly secure-- it is in a bathtub in the basement bathroom-- we don't take showers there-- that bathroom is way too cold. The other box upstairs off the kitchen is another ting-- it is barraceded from the dogs, but the cat can jump over to get to it. But it's a matter of time before "Miss Houdini" (Zippie) gets to it--she is an expert at finding new holes out from under the fence--we can never just let her out in the yard by herself. She gets out of the fence and thankfully stands there waiting for us to come get her, rather than running away. She just wants to show us she can get out! Stinker! Progress report: I was still pretty concerned about her this morning--she hadn't thrown up, but she wasn't eating--and drank only a tiny bit. No tail-wagging yet, either :unsure: But she did eat the chicken and rice later today--I wouldn't give her much at a time, but I did feed her 3 times-- small bits only. She's still not the voracious eater that she's been. And she still is having trouble when she gets cold, shivering a long time, taking awhile to warm up. BUT! she tried to play with Gus, our kitty this evening, and i saw tail wagging! She was even pestering him a bit, but she wore out quickly. Seeing the tail wagging and the attempt at play has really helped me to be less worried! Pond--thank you! I love you! You have a really big heart!! I totally agree with you about vets! Most vets have become vets because of their love for animals! There are a few unscrupulous ones. We had a run-in with one about eight years ago, and this guy MAY have become a vet because of his love for animals, but it grew into love of money. I guess it's too long of a story, but this guy was evidently unscrupulous enough that he eventually lost his license to practice. My husband latched onto this one bad experience and now lumps all vets with this particular guy. Besides that, at this point he's pretty hard to reason with--I've been here before with him--this isn't the first time in our marriage he's lost his job and been this long-- and longer in not finding one. He gets pretty hard to live with and will probably be this way til he gets a job again! <_<

Feathers! You're a brat! (don't tell anyone i said this, but good to read you here! pond, with the head injury, the vet determined it wasn't a serious one, her reflexes were/are good, good range of motion, pupils were good. The litter boxes are up! (One is in an rarely used tub, the other is blocked from the dogs, but we're considering doing away with it-- we only have one cat now, so maybe we don't need two boxes! Zippie is still not herself. She has puked awhile after she eats, but i don't know if she is keeping any of it down, or if she is loosing everything-- and now that I have been watching for it, I don't think she has pooped in about 36 hours. That COULD be cuz she hasn't kept enough food down to have any waste, but I am getting concerned-- we use clumping cat litter and I am starting to wonder if it has clumped inside her. This isn't gonna go over well with hubby, but i am going to call the vet and see what she thinks as to whether we should be doing anything else. This morning when the boys asked why he didn't like our vet, he explained to them that "All vets play on peoples emotions. . . ", telling them that, in other words, vets are really only after your money, and do unnecessary stuff to your pets. He's already told me that he doesn't think she needs bloodwork. I'm gonna be in a horrible position if she needs to go to the vet again, cuz this may be an obstruction--wouldn't that mean operation? and I know he will never approve that--even if he DID have a job! Please keep praying!

Sorry I didn't get back til now! Last night I thought i had lost internet connection (come to find out this morning the durn CAT had sat on the wires behind the puter and jiggled the plug for the router loose!) GEESH! Then I had to work this afternoon, so am just getting to the 'puter My hubby is pretty stressed and absolutely wouldn't even consider the vet last night. I did talk him into it this morning. The vet checked her out thoroughly, and i told her about Zippie being a pukey dog because of getting into the cat box. She leaned more in that direction. As far as I understand, if it WAS a concussion, it was really mild--or maybe just a bad headache. (I'm not good about asking direct questions-- drives my hubby crazy--all i latched onto was that this wasn't a SERIOUS thing). The vet WAS concerned about the puking, since it is fairly frequent. She wants me to get the cat litter boxes up to counter height and wanted me to feed Zippie a prescription diet for sensitive GI tracts. If that doesn't change things withing a period of time, she wants to do blood work, but she leaned toward it being that Zippie eats the cat poop and litter. So it looks like all is well. Thanks for all the prayers and encouragement!

forgive my typing with no caps, i'm holding her while typingand typing one-handed. pond, what you said about not being able to live with myself if i should have gone early and it prevented something worse, is so true. i kinda think that is why my kitty, ellie died last year--we waited too long--she was a puker, too, so at first i thought it was her normal puking. by the time we got het to the vet, waiting til next morning, the thread was too far down in her gut. she went downhill fast. she has stopped puking, her eyes look good, she walks straight, her skin coloring and inside the mouth looks like normal. i did a search for dog concussion symptoms--it seems these are maybe only symptoms of mild concussion. but my worry right now is that she is shivering--cold--and she sometimes is panting while shivering. she does shiver when she pukes, but because of her head getting hit, i worry it's related to that, not cat-poop-puking. I don't have a doggy thermometer-- only one of those you use in your ear--i'm going to get that and check her.

I am wondering if I should call the vet-- it's after 7 pm now, so it would be the emergency vet we'd be calling, and therefore more expensive. Earlier today (about 3 hours ago) my little Dog, Zippie and I collided. Her head and my shin. (She was running through the kitchen at the same time I had made a fast turn-and-run to the sink with a hot pan) It hurt me like crazy--at first I thought I had broken the bone! I have a nasty tender spot and bruise on my shin. So if it hurt me that much-- what about a little six-pound dog? When i went to see if she was okay, she wouldn't let me pick her up, and pulled back. (Not entirely unnusual, she doesn't like to be approached head-on to be picked up--she backs up to us when we are sitting down and likes to be scooped up) She wasn't shaking he head or acting like she was hurt, so i went back to making dinner. Just before I called my family for dinner, i saw she had puked--again, not that unusual-- she eats cat poop from the litter box, and then pukes. But my hubby went to clean that up, and discovered seven places she'd puked--a bit more unusual! We picked her up to pray for her, and she was shaking--again-- she does that when she's puked. I felt around her head, and she evidently has a tender spot, cuz she pulled away from my hand when I touched that side of her head. She is sleepy, but again-- she gets sleepy this time of night. From just after dinner, while we are cleaning up, she curls up under the table and sleeps, and then follows us when we leave the room, and sleeps under my feet wherever i end up for the eveening. The ONLY thing different tonight is the puking (she's done a few more since dinner), and the knowledge that her bones and my bones made quite an impact against each other. Obviously, if I call the vet, they'll say bring her in-- and give a guilt trip if i decide not to. My hubby has been unemployed since July, and we are at the end of our funds--November's bills are paid, and December's mortgage, but come January, things will get iffy--so running to the vet to find all she needs is to sleep it off, would be a poor expenditure of our money. But if she's really hurt and needs preventative care that wouldn't be that expensive-- well . . . Whaddaya think?

OH YAYYYYY! BABY !!!'s hmmmm, wonder if ya hold the baby upside down, does he/she look like this i hmmmm???? Congrats to all of you, especially Jessica and Jay!

Cindy! Okayyyy, okayyyyyy. . . . YOU can be the one Mom loves best.... BUT ONLY FOR TODAY!!! Tomorrow I'm gonna splat ya with whatever birthday cake might be left over-- Only AFTER I eat all the raspberries! I hope you have the happiest of birthdays!! (shhh! don't tell anybody I said that!)

Thank you all, your input is valuable to me. A quick note to Mr P Mosh & Doojable's about the benadryl. That works for some kids--making them sleepy, but it makes some kids hyper--mine were the ones that got hyper--so they were miserable AND hyper ARRRRGGGGGGHHH!! As to my idea about the flyers, I see more people dislike them than are "okay" about them. My guess is that would be the response I would get from the homes I deliver them to. And would have to be aware that if a person who hates them was home while i dropped them off, I might get a face melting. When I read this the other day, George's was the last response, so the count of "okay's: and "No-ways" was close enough. I thought maybe I would carry a few $5 gift certificates--to something like Starbucks or something, and if someone stopped me at their door, I would apologize and give them one of the gift certificates. (I was guessing the percentage of people that would stop me at their door would be small). Being this would be my own little business, I wouldn't miss whole streets or houses. So how can I know that the one house I am going to next might be the one where they were absolutely furious about it, and how can they know I am not the same person who left the flyers the day before and the day before that? And I'm not likely to keep a record of which houses I have gone to and which ones REALLY hate it. I thought it would be more polite to knock and ASK if they want a flyer, but I personally hate it when I have to go to the door if I am in the middle of something-- the flyers on my driveway or doorknob are a whole lot less bothersome (And i would look at every one of them! LOL!) I absolutely hate confrontation, and hate it even worse when someone yells at me, so I'm kinda leaning against this idea! LOL! But the suggestion from ~but now I see~ is a thought --publish a small advertising flyer and put it at convience stores--then people can choose to take them or not. It certainly would be less offensive to the people who absolutely hate the doorknob flyers! Thanks! thanks George! We were posting at the same time!

I have this idea that I've run through my head frequently, as a small business, but I don't know if it would work. Ya know the flyers you get on your doorknob, or put near your mailbox--people advertising what they do--maybe realtors, cleaning companies, distributors for various home-party sales (Pampered chef, etc). I know for myself, I read what they are, and if I have no need for that service, I toss the flyer, or if it's something I know I will need, I keep it. I understand why these people walk flyers to doors. They are too small a business to afford bulk mailing. I have done various "home businesses" and that has been how i have found customers. I have to put out a bunch of flyers to get only a few customers, but it has been worth it to me, to save money on "advertising". I would have been willing to pay someone to distribute more for me. So here's the idea I keep having. Why not find 3-5 people with small businesses like this, put all the flyers into one doorknb bag, and charge per 100 flyers delivered, or by 200? Each business couldn't "clash" with the others, (not two realtors, or two kitchen gadget companies), getting as diversifies as possible. Each person's flyer printed on a different color paper, partly to grab the attention of the homeowner, and partly just to distinguish each small business. Bulk mail costs maybe 23c per piece(? less for higher volume, maybe?) (not counting the initial fees and the cost of a mailing list), so I was thinking of charging $20 per hundred--(don't know if that is too high or not--but I'd charge much more if I am the one who will be making the copies). For one business, that's not a whole lot of pay to do all that walking, but for up to 5 businesses, hmm, now we're talkin! So, my question(s): 1) If you, as a homeowner got a bag of serveral different colors of flyers left on your doorknob, would you be more apt to look at the various flyers? If you're the kind of person who just throws them away, would you be so much more annoyed, that you'd try to find the people who delivered all that junk to your door and burn their house down? (well maybe not THAT drastic. . . ) Would several flyers be too much to look at, but you would have looked at the flyer had it been only one delivered? 2) If you are a small business owner--too small to afford direct mail or other advertising (yet), would you be willing to have YOUR flyer delivered right along with other businesses? Even if their product or service isn't like yours? What's your opinion?

My husband just bought a "new" (rebuilt) laptop computer. We also had a new Linksys router in a box. The old one was working fine, but he bought this cuz the salesperson said it would boost his wireless connection. He always had a Poor or good reception, never "excellent" (His office is two rooms away, with a microwave in the middle room and wireless phones in each room) My hubby knows less about computers than I do, and is impatient! LOL! He did a lot of stuff wrong in trying to install things--i.e., unplugged old router, plugged in new router, to power source, then to computers BEFORE using the install disc--on his laptop, (Not the main wired computer) which is two rooms away from where the router is. I think I have all that fixed--had to reset the cable box, and the three wired computers can get internet connection. Also, the laptop came to us with an internal wireless card, which was not a Linksys--I don't know much about that one--we uninstalled it via add/remove programs, thinking it would interfere with the Linksys. That was probably a mistake. I'm hoping if we needed it, we can get it back via system restore? Lessee if I can make a long story short; I've been on the phone 3 times to Linksys, trying to figure out what is going wrong. First time, we did get a connection-- ONCE. (Thankfully long enough to dl Avast antivirus!) I have uninstalled the network card and reinstalled several times. I have the install disk for it. Each time, when it is first installed, I get the little yellow question mark at device manager telling me I need to update the driver. I have to do this while offline because i have no connection on that computer. Once that is done, I get a gazillion warning popups telling me I have an external exception. I'm sorry I didn't write the info in the popup warning box down--these always happened while i was on the phone with the Linksys rep, and I was already having a hard time with their accent! The last phone call, the Linksys rep told me it is a problem with my computer and I am going to have to take the computer back to the guy who sold it to us, to have him install whatever it is that will make the computer recognize this notebook adaptor. The guy we bought it from is in another state, the dad of a friend of ours--I'm hoping maybe the tech is wrong and there still may be something i can do. (like maybe I need to get it online somehow to get an even more updated driver?) The notebook adaptor is a Linksys WPC54G, the new router a Linksys WRT54GS. The computer a Gateway with Windows XP Let me know if you need to know more of what I have done so far. Thanks! editing because just now, in turning on the laptop, having hardwired the puter to the router, I am getting the pop up warning box: Wireless-G Notebook adapter v2.0 wireless network monitor inside the box it says: External exception E0D7363 as of right now, there are at least 25 of them and they are still popping up. Stop when i pull out the wireless card.

George, I used one foot for the radius because of the definition in Wikipedia for for a unit of torque: "It is also a unit of torque: 1 foot-pound is the amount of torque created by a force of 1 pound acting at a perpendicular distance of 1 foot from a pivot point." I figured the pivot point was the bolt, so the radius was 1 foot (The torque being the "wrench") It was a lucky guess for me--I didn't go beyond highschool algebra, and am only having some knowledge refreshed in my kid's homeschool classes. I can't answer your question about giving the solution with all units included. The questions and answers are on a cd that comes with the curriculum, and the answers are a simple list, i.e. 1) 124,000 pounds (The weight being lifted) 2) 24 (pounds of force), 3) 30,144 I added the words in parintheses--he just lists the labeled numbers. I don't think I would have even attempted this problem if I hadn't had the answer to check against. So what I posted above was the way I did the problem. Most of the questions on this lesson were about regular bolts and nuts and in the dvd lesson he only spoke about the pressure the bolt would be exerting on the item it was bolted to. I don't mean this disrespectfully to the teacher, I think he's wonderful, but might it be possible he is applying a math problem to something he doesn't fully understand himself? (a unit of torque being the same as using a wrench of a certain length?) He used the word "pressure" in the question and maybe he should have been asking "How much force"--maybe? I don't really know, because I barely understood what I just did through this whole lesson--and my son "got it" even less than I did. Rhino, in every question of this lesson, he gave the size of the bolt and that never figured in-- only the number of threads on the bolt. It was fun! Now the next unit he's doing is in negative numbers! woohoo! My son actually likes math, too and is pretty good at it, but with his dyslexic thinking, he turns the order of the equations all around--I keep thinking one of these times it WILL matter, but so far, he still comes up with the right answer. He wants to take chemistry too. . . . (Maybe I'll learn something? HAH!)

FEATHERS! SHHHHHHHHHH! Exie--yeah, as soon as I saw the word "torque" I was lost! LOL! He's 14, but this particular math program isn't listed as grade-specific, so i don't know if he is doing 8th, 9th or 10th grade math! LOL! Thank you all for your replies. Some of them went over my head! LOL! I think sometimes these math problems are worded weird and don't apply to real life as they are worded. But I s'pose if the kid gets the "how" of the math equation, then they have learned it right--er sompin! The whole unit was on simple machines, and the advantages of using inclined planes, pulleys, crankwheels, etc. The last lesson was on bolts and the amount of force created by tightening a bolt and nut--say the amount of force holding two boards together. The threads of the bolt are likened to an inclined plane. The fraction, (3/8, 3/4, or whatever), is the diameter of the bolt, and the thread count is how many threads per inch (a steeper or less steep inclined plane). Most of the questions were like, "How much force will be created by tightening a 3/8-16 bolt, using a wrench that is 6 inches long and applying a force of 11 pounds to the end of the wrench" The engine head bolt and the torque of 40 foot pounds was unexpected! LOL! In the question about the engine head, the number of threads does make a difference, but I don't know if I can explain any further than the above eplanation of it resembling an inclined plane. The size of the bolt or the bolt head is insignificant in this problem. He also had us disregard friction in this equation. Here was how to set up the equation. The one foot was the radius, so 2 ft diameter, or 24 inches, because the thread is 10 turns per inch 24 X 3.14(pi) = 75.36 circumference 75.36 X 40 (lbs torque) =3014.4 3014.4 X 10 (# of threads) = 30,144 (pressure being exerted by the bolt on the engine head) That was the correct answer to this problem. I don't know if it answers all of the questions you brainacs asked me!! LOL! This was kinda fun-- I sat with him doing most of the work right alongside him. I sorta understood how to set up the problems, but explaining them to my dyslexic son was--er--um--interesting! LOL! (because I "get" how to set up the problem, and get the answers right, but can't explain what I just did! EEK!)

HAPPY BIRD-DAY, my fine feathered friend!! Here's yer cake! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLATTTT!

OOOOOOOOOHHHH! he won't even be expecting this!!!! heeheehee. . . . Psalmie sneaks up behind Lifty with her dental floss. . . TRIP! THAT WAS FUN!!! Happy Belated Birthday, Lifty

My son and I are doing his math work. We came across a question not fully explained in his lesson. (his lessons are on dvd) Here is the question: An engine head bolt has a specified torque at 40 foot pounds on a 3/4 10 bolt. How much pressure is being exerted by the bolt on the head. Foot pounds was covered in a previous lesson, but not as "torque". So I googled it. "1 foot-pound is the amount of torque created by a force of 1 pound acting at a perpendicular distance of 1 foot from a pivot point. " Now we are trying to figure out about the "one foot perpendicular from a pivot point" Is the one foot the radius or the diameter? I think then we set up the problem like this: pi X diameter X 40 (lbs) then that answer X 10 (the number of threads on the bolt) I have the answer on the data cd sent with the program, but I want my son to see how to do the problem--but I need help myself! LOL! (We CAN call the teacher that made the dvds, too, but we couldn't get through just now) think I oughta just throw the pi at the teacher?

GEESH! I thought I was the only one! I do the same thing, Bliss. "The Last Sin Eater" was excellent! I started the darn book at 9 pm, and finished it at 4 am! I couldn't put it down-- just like I can't put down most fiction books. When it's non fiction-- some "how- to", or whatever I'm more reasonable--read an hour or so, can actually put it down to make dinner or whatever. . . I limit myself in how many books I let myself get because nothing would get done. I also try to wait for a weekend to get a book so it doesn't affect school hours, etc. (I'm homeschooling my boys). I ususally get my books at the library cuz I remember the story well enough that I won't usually read a good fiction book more than once-- saves money! So. . . um. . . I absolve you. . uh. . . because er um WELL JUST BECAUSE!

((((((excathedra))))) I'm really sorry to read that--was this recently?

Well, um, er we HAVE been looking at medieval weapons and found a site showing us how to build our own catapult and trebuchet. . . . but we wouldn't use 'em fer anything, um ah BAD!