That was the advice I was given too, Laura, although neither of my kids picked up that habit so I can't really speak to its effectiveness.

I got a call turns out she was in a meeting. She thanked me for coming in which confused me because she didn't cancel.

Then I went and got my hair trimmed and was rude but I was frustrated. I hate my hair I kinda want to grow it out and try a Bob again but that means it will be in my eyes a lot.

The stylist was like I gave you options when I said there really wasn't anything she could do to like my hair. The options were cut over the ears or trim the back. Not exactly a style.

She wasn't going to charge me but I made her.

I'm in a mood.

It has been a number of years, but I generally remember using a finger to break an overly enthusiastic latch. I was also grateful that the boys were super late getting teeth!

I do that, but if she's cranky or gassy, she'll keep doing it. So, I was hoping for a way to make her stop doing it altogether.

She also stares intently at nothing and occasionally smiles and coos at nothing, which is a little unsettling.

She also stares intently at nothing and occasionally smiles and coos at nothing, which is a little unsettling.

They are in their own world for sure. Every single thing is new and fascinating. Toes! Mom! Light! Leaf!

The most unsettling moment I had was with Bobby when he was a toddler. Sitting in his car seat in the car he told me all about how he used to be my father with different stories about when I was a little girl and he took care of me. FREAKY!

Toes! Mom! Light! Leaf!

A breeze! Gas! I blinked! I made a noise!

oooh ... FINGERS

The most unsettling moment I had was with Bobby when he was a toddler. Sitting in his car seat in the car he told me all about how he used to be my father with different stories about when I was a little girl and he took care of me. FREAKY!

Apparently it's not uncommon for little kids to tell their parents, especially their mothers, stories of how they used to be the parent or the grandparent. Of course this is often considered anecdotal evidence of reincarnation by people who are looking for that.

Connie, I'm glad you said no to the person who wanted the helmet. It's good to stand your ground on the things that are important to you.

My old boss, the general counsel, always used to say, Ask! you'll never know if you don't ask. The worst that can happen is that they will say no. Which isn't always the case, it *can* make some one feel crappy, which (unless the person is a terrible person), isn't an intended consequence. I'm reminded of how much erickj hates having "been" a teaching moment, but maybe it's a good teaching moment for the requestor! I know, as someone who will ask, that I trust the person to be honest and blunt in reply, the other side of the coin. Like, I asked the brother of my friends Sharon for a pair of earrings that I'd given her that she wore all the time - she didn't like the ones I gave her at first, so we went back together to exchange them, and made a whole day of it and had a really good time, so they really reminded me of her and good times with her. The bro said, she left everything to her niece/my daughter, so, no. I respected that!

My sister had total knee replacement surgery two Mondays ago and is still in a rehab hospital. She had a terrible time the first 2 and half days after surgery because they couldn't get the narcotics right. She's on major stuff - dilaudin and morphine and something else I think - and thank god it's available. It's stunning really that they can do these surgeries at all and people can heal from them but yeah, without ice and major painkillers, gah, no dice.

I think I"m going to use their paypal acct. for donations, the people I'm hosting whose house burned down in the Valley Fire. it's the cheapest. 2.9% and 30 cents, to GoFundMe's 7;9%, and 5% and 2% for processing platform, or Indigogo's 5% and 3% and 30 cents for each credit card transaction. Didn't even look at crowdrise, thanks for that tip. The only thing is that for people who really want to run it through a charity for tax purposes, paypal might be too direct. I'm going to try it, after I run it by them again, because I think it's so close to us, and people really want to do something to help, that it'll still be good. eta typos etc.

Yeah, I know I'm more superstitious than most, but when she's staring at a solid colored couch cushion, I can't help but thinking she must be seeing something I'm not.

ION, nephew J's heart surgery went wonderfully, and his parents posted smiling pictures of him in recovery.