Sending well wishes your way!

I hope he feels better soon.

Less is BEST!

I love chicken, steak, and brats on the BBQ.  My hubby does all the grilling, and he always does a great job. 

Less is BEST!

This sounds so familiar!  I actual stopped having parties for my children's birthdays because it got so out of hand.

My hubby's entire family lives here, and you can't just invite a few over for the celebration.  So we end up having to have over 100 people over all the time.  We had tried scaling the list down, but then some of his family got their feelings hurt.  I just stopped the parties all together.

We have the only house big enough to accomodate the entire family, so we always have every single Holiday.  This I don't mind, because all the family steps up to help out and everyone brings a dish. 

As far as cleaning goes, I am trying to lighten up on that one.  It is so hard with 4 children to make sure everything is clean all the time.  Just as soon as I have cleaned it, someone is right behind me making a mess.  They don't mean to, but they are kids. We make a great effort to always put things away where they belong.  It seems to me, that  a house that is picked up just looks clean.

All things considered, I enjoy entertaining.  I am more a spur of the moment kind of gal.  It can be 5 minutes until dinner time, and I haven't decided what I am fixing when a neighbor drops by for a visit.  We will end up just having our dinners together.  No fanfare, no expectations, and no stress.

I LOVE it!

Less is BEST!

I have a suggestion for getting your girls to keep their toys and other personal items picked up and put away.

This is what we do at our home...it has worked wonders!

First, I tell them they need to pick up/put away such and such item.  I let them now that if it is not put away, I am taking it away.  No fanfare, no yelling, and no idle threats.  They are issued one warning if they are not cooperating.

Then, if it is not picked up/put away, I actually take it away.  Then they have to be responsible enough putting away their other belongings to earn the item back that was taken away. (If this doesn't work, you can always donate the items, obviously they really don't care if they have them or not, and someone else might really enjoy them).

It might seem a little harsh, but I want my children to take care of their things, and learn to respect my rules.  They are very good about putting all of their toys, shoes, and clothes away.  It really does work!

I am consistent and always follow through.  It doesn't mean that they don't try and give me grief on occasion, but it works 99.9% of the time.

And let's face it, if Mom is happy, then everyone else gets to be happy! 

Less is BEST!

Hi Heather,

 I w...

Less is BEST!

There are several gas stations close to our home, and their prices are relatively competetive at around $2.95 per gallon for unleaded.  My hubby's car gets great gas mileage, but he drives pretty far to get to work each day.  I recently (within the last 2 years) got a new car with better gas mileage. It is a Ford Freestyle.   I had a Ford Expedition, it was an AFV vehicle and also ran on propane.  The only problem we found with using the propane, was during the summer because of the heat it took sometimes up to 30 minutes to fill the tank.  That and the fact that only one place that wasn't close to our home at the time that was capable of filling the tank, made having that car a pain in the rumper.

I tend to spend only 1-2 days per week running errands.  I do think that gas takes a chunk out of the budget.  I limit the amount of times I drive during the summer because I absolutely have to have the air conditioning on at all times and that uses a fair amount of fuel.  Nothing like getting into the car when the interior temperature is around 150 degrees and that is with tinted windows! UGH!

I also remember the days of a gallon of gas costing less than a buck. I remember thinking how expensive that was then.  Boy, if only I had known....

Less is BEST!

Less is BEST!

Have you tried looking at Motherhood Maternity.  I remember that they had bras there that were larger than some of the other stores.  I purchased nursing bras, and wore them before my baby was actually born.  They were cotton so they were comfortable and they did stretch.

I am fairly small chested, and went from a 34B up to a 38D.  That was HUGE for me!  Hubby was loving it!   After nursing and eventually losing all my weight, I went down to a 34A.

Best wishes....

Less is BEST!

Congratulations on your Legendary Status!

You deserve it!

Less is BEST!

I wasn't as lucky as some of the ladies here!  I got my period right away despite breastfeeding, and I had plenty of milk.  The family referred to me as the "milk truck"!

I didn't have any problems when I  stopped nursing. I had been steadily gaining weight,(again, not so lucky to lose as most people do while nursing), so I cut back  my calories, (I was eating about 4000 a day to keep up with milk production), my doctor said I didn't need to be eating that much.  I disagreed with him, but since my baby was almost a year I agreed to reduce my calorie intake.  It took about 2 days eating 2000 calories a day, and only nursing at night time  before there wasn't a drop of milk left.  My doctor was wrong, but my baby was healthy, happy, and really reading to begin with regular milk.

Best Wishes...

Less is BEST!

Welcome Andrea!  So gl...

Less is BEST!

Thank You so much!

I am honored to be here with all of you wonderful people!

I have enjoyed reading everyone's posts and making new friends.  This is truly a great place to be with the most supportive group of people that I have ever known.

I must personally thank my friend Rhonda.  Thank you my friend for inviting me to join MommyTalk!

I LOVE it here!

Less is BEST!

Thank you so much everyone!

I am truly honored!

Less is BEST!

This is great information! 

We had looked into Viacord when I was pregnant with baby #3.  It was so expensive that we were unable to afford it.  

Thanks for posting!

Less is BEST!

There was a special preview of the movie last night, and my daughter had the opportunity to go with her girlfriend and her family.  She was really excited! 

 I am so interested to find out if she enjoyed herself. She spent the night at her friend's home, so she isn't home yet.  They were originally going to see the midnight showing, but as it turned out there were several earlier showings, and her friends Dad wasn't sure he could stay awake that late.  

Thank goodness it was them having to stay up late!

Less is BEST!