Sophia White8 said:It always strikes me as strange how our politicians love to brag about how public education is "free" here in the States. But what exactly is free about it? I mean, are textbooks, field trips, trips to the movies, or theater visits included? If those things are part of the curriculum, then the school should be funding them through government grants rather than asking parents to foot the bill. It feels like a total mess, I guess.
I find this almost too difficult to ignore because I saw a similar notice at my kid's preschool recently. I honestly don't know how they can feel okay using children as a way to squeeze money out of people. It doesn't matter who the cause is, really; using kids like that just seems wrong. It's shameful, I suppose.
Seriously, bold the whole thing and put it in your signature!!!
I'm telling you, we should just call the Department of Education and demand to see their official syllabus in writing. Let's see if it actually states that students will be graded or tested based on attending a movie trip that the parents have to pay for.😲 fucking unbelievable!! Media literacy could easily be taught by just watching a film in the classroom!! Otherwise, fine, let the school foot the bill for the cinema trip. Public schooling is MANDATORY, which means it HAS to be accessible to every single child!! Pushing these "paid field trips" isn't mandatory, so the school should just adjust its curriculum to fit its actual budget.
Unbelievable!! I can already see myself becoming one of those moms who constantly makes noise at the PTA meetings. But I won't back down—it's not worth it. As if it isn't enough that they force us to buy a million new textbooks and workbooks every year, now they want to fleece us with unnecessary trips to the movies or theaters just because it's somehow "part of the grade"? Give me a break.
And regarding that Red Cross stuff—I remember back when I was in school, they’d hand out these little coupons and everyone HAD to bring in money for it. In the lower grades, the teacher would collect it, and in the upper ones, it was the class treasurer. They’d even keep a list of who paid and who didn't.🙄 What a wonderful, top-tier pedagogical method for teaching kids about charity.🙄
I suppose it's because other kids might turn it into something shameful—teasing, mocking, that kind of thing.
Yeah, I’ll say it again: kids can be cruel. Have we already forgotten that article about the little girl at an elementary school in Chicago who was bullied so relentlessly over being poor that she actually had to switch schools entirely?!
So why encourage paying for all these unnecessary field trips a million times a year? And dragging kids to random fast-food joints? And no, I'm sure a bologna sandwich won't spoil in the middle of December. I honestly don't know how we survived our intense field trips back in the day when there wasn't even a McDonald's around.
It's just unnecessary. And it isn't even about the $6.75, it's really more about the sheer lack of necessity!!
In this day and age, when so many kids spend their entire lives glued to gaming screens, I think it would be way more educational—and honestly, much healthier—to just take them out to a local park and organize some kind of field day, like and the best part? It wouldn't even cost a dime!
But no, apparently it’s more important to go sit in a theater and watch Harry Potter. I mean, what’s actually educational about that? Aside from the fact that the local bus company gets a nice little kickback because of the school's contract. ☕ It's the same story everywhere here; for years, the school has been using the same single local transit provider to drive kids on field trips, and they charge way more than any competitor would. But the administration just won't switch. My brother-in-law tried complaining about it, but nothing happened.
And just to be clear, I'm not blaming the teachers. In 99% of cases, these rigid ideas come "from the top down."
I would attend the next PTA meeting and bring up the issue of these frequent, expensive extracurricular trips directly to the other parents. I doubt the author would be alone in voicing this concern.
Totally! That’s exactly how I’ll handle things when my kid starts school if I run into similar situations. If the school refuses to budge—and goodness knows there are local school boards and even the Department of Education for a reason—then I’d love to see the official curriculum that somehow mandates paying out of pocket to go see Harry Potter at the movie theater 😳 (which is what my little ones ended up seeing—so, it wasn't exactly essential or tied to any actual schoolwork)
I'm a bit lost here—I see we have a teacher in this thread, so maybe they can weigh in. What’s the deal with schools constantly organizing these trips? And of course, there's always a fee involved. The OP mentioned that in just one week, they went to a museum and a movie theater. 😕 What kind of tactic is that? Is this actually part of the official curriculum?
And what is a parent supposed to do? If you don't cough up the cash—even though it's technically optional—your kid ends up missing out on those experiences with their peers. Plus, you run the risk of them getting teased by other kids for being "poor," and let's be honest, kids can be pretty ruthless. If you do pay, you're basically encouraging all these unnecessary "field trips" that seem to be pushed more and more often lately.
I really don't get why all these outings have to cost money. Someone above mentioned how parents are complaining because it's bad if kids aren't taken anywhere—but why can't they just visit a library? Or some local landmark that doesn't require a huge expense? I feel like two trips a year is plenty, which is how it used to be back in my day; everything else stayed local. Nowadays, there are plenty of theater troupes that come directly to schools or preschools to perform—that's definitely a much cheaper solution than driving kids to a theater and paying for buses and stuff.
But things won't change if we parents just keep footing the bill for every single trip the school dreams up, whether it's necessary or not. (I'm speaking from experience here; I have three nephews who were all in elementary school until recently, so I know how this works. It was constant—always needing money for something at school! And don't even get me started on the whole thing where kids are pressured to buy certain magazines, like Scholastic something or other, just because they'll be used for homework assignments. I mean, seriously, wtf? As if they don't already have enough books. It's not like they're short on reading material, yet we're expected to pay extra for more?)
Hey, listen, a huge number of people tend to avoid forums that allow way too much visual clutter and oversized images in signatures. Personally, I’ve steered clear of quite a few niche interest boards just because of that—they become impossible to navigate when posts get lost in all that chaos and massive signature graphics. 😁 Just imagine what those chat threads would look like; you'd have someone posting maybe three words, only to be met with a giant, neon-colored sheet of a signature.
So, I'm asking if a kind and willing moderator could please bold my signature and set the size to 1 🙂 thanks
On another note, I really think we should consider bringing back the ability to edit signatures ourselves. Maybe just limit it as needed, but leave us some control—specifically for things like bolding or setting the size to 1—since I've noticed most people end up requesting 😉
I don't know, it feels a bit silly having to bug a moderator just to tweak a signature... some people change theirs quite often, and then they have to bother someone every single time. 🤷 I imagine you guys already have plenty on your plates, and managing signature edits would probably just make your jobs more difficult.
Believe me, there’s always another side to the story when it comes to people's comments—I actually put on a little weight, and since my hips are wider, my stomach looks smaller by comparison and hasn't really popped lately; so, everyone seems to get so worked up asking how we could be about to give birth when the 🤣 is still so tiny. Then, when I try to explain that it actually has everything to do with my pelvic structure, they just stare at me blankly. It's like I'm speaking a foreign language. Honestly, it’s not just the men—it’s the women too, and even women who have given birth themselves—not even fifty years ago, but more recently—who look at me like, "Oh, how would you know about that?" Good grief, I guess I should just say that my OB-GYNs told me!!
Just retake the test. It’s probably best to wait another two days—because if you are pregnant, the line should show up sooner and be much clearer by then.
It’s possible it might just be too early—meaning, maybe there isn't enough hCG in your urine yet for the PrimaStick to pick up. I think I've read elsewhere that Clearblue tends to be a bit more sensitive 🤷 Just try testing again in two days.
For what it's worth, I had a very faint line on a PrimaStick really early on—before my period was even late (though I knew exactly when I ovulated). I ended up buying the Clearblue one—the more expensive version—and the plus sign was definitely easier to see than on the PrimaStick. Still, it was pretty pale. I guess that's just because the hormone levels in your system are still so low. Seriously though, just wait and retest in maybe two days.
I'm getting grilled just because of my hospital choice.
Basically, I picked one on the other side of town.
People are acting like they're terrified I won't make it in time—like I'll end up giving birth in a car or something.
Honestly, the sarcasm was thick enough to cut with a knife.🙏 🤣 Apparently, it’s all because this is my firstborn.
Of course, I'm just some spoiled brat who spends way too much time reading things online—or so they say—since they won't even listen to my actual reasoning regarding our maternity ward (it's a neonatal unit, for starters, but nobody cares about logic). 🙄
I feel like I'm being treated like an idiot just because I actually prefer listening to medical professionals, doctors, and pediatricians over advice that's at least 20 years out of date.🙄
My mother-in-law has already tried convincing me that breastfeeding alone won't be enough once the baby hits the three-month mark. She's "one hundred percent" sure. I mean, she's had three kids, so she knows everything, whereas I have no clue since this is my first, so I'm just "philosophizing" for no reason.
I might just move to Antarctica until the kid turns 18.
But, honestly? I'm worried even that wouldn't be far enough away.
Environment. The people around me. My inner circle. The ones you’d actually expect to offer some support or understanding.
And then they turn around and tell me I'm being an absolute idiot!!
Why?
Because—go figure—of a car seat!! Or rather, my logic that, as a conscientious future mother, I shouldn't just follow American safety laws, but do absolutely everything to ensure my child's safety—meaning from day one, I'll be using nothing but an all-stage seat.
So, I'm showing my parents the all-stage seat we picked up last night (huge thanks to kukuc 🙂 ) and they look at me all confused, asking how on earth you put a baby in there with a built-in cushion.
I didn't even get a chance to explain why the extra padding isn't bulky, let alone mention the cushion, before the screaming started.
Basically, I'm "unstable," the poor kid is going to be abused from birth, and so on, and so forth.
Now my mom is in the other room crying because apparently, I'm such a terrible mother..
🤷
I can't help but wonder—if they're already judging my mental state like this, what is it going to be like once I actually have the baby..
I'm a bit bummed that Sash hasn't weighed in on the "basal temperature measurement" thread (at least not publicly), because besides being a mod for women's health, she’s been super active there for months—so she probably knows better than anyone just how much ground that topic covers.
Combining basal temperature with other methods—like herbal teas or testing strips—is, I guess, a bad move. It just creates this massive mega-thread overflowing with different kinds of info. That's exactly where details start getting lost and people end up repeating themselves constantly. Since we're talking about totally different things here. Sure, the end goal is the same—helping with conception—but the actual methods are completely different. Not every girl uses the whole package, and before you know it, you'll have total chaos because everyone will just be rambling about "their" specific method. I still think it would be easier for those of us reading or posting, and even for you mods, if we had clearly defined, narrow topics—even if that meant splitting it into three separate threads—rather than one giant, overwhelming mess that tries to cover everything at once.
Alexander Allen5 said:I didn't say there needs to be a dedicated thread; I just meant you'll eventually start asking the mods to send you a private message explaining exactly what happened to your post or thread.
The issue isn't really about the mods or the Admin; it’s actually on you guys too. If a few of you were following the thread and saw exactly what the mod did to clean things up, is it really such a big deal to just shoot your colleague a quick DM and tell them to check out the official link? It's as simple as just pointing someone toward a specific page—it shouldn't be a burden for anyone to do that.
It’s not a problem for any mod to clean up, merge, warn, or remove content. It’s easy enough—you just sit down, type, type, and type. Yet, people will just casually pop into this thread or similar ones to complain and ask, "Why did I get hit with this?" or "Why was that removed?" Well, it's because you aren't reading.
I clean up threads myself, and sometimes they're just like this one—but when the Admin makes a call, that’s the final word. Period.
If we follow that logic, moderators aren't even necessary—unless they're just there to hand out penalties. I guess if everyone on the forum took it upon themselves to keep their respective threads organized and sent a quick DM to anyone who wasn't online to call them out, the job would basically be done. 😕 How exactly is this any more logical or practical than just using a single top topic or an announcement—especially when we're talking about such drastic changes and a total overhaul? 😕 Nobody's claiming things were perfect before—and honestly, I guess we can all agree that changes were probably necessary. But look, that situation didn't just pop up overnight—so I guess we shouldn't expect it to fix itself overnight either, especially if people start trying to force things through with brute strength.
Alexander Allen5 said:I didn't say there needs to be a dedicated thread; I just meant you'll eventually start asking the mods to send you a private message explaining exactly what happened to your post or thread.
The issue isn't really about the mods or the Admin; it’s actually on you guys too. If a few of you were following the thread and saw exactly what the mod did to clean things up, is it really such a big deal to just shoot your colleague a quick DM and tell them to check out the official link? It's as simple as just pointing someone toward a specific page—it shouldn't be a burden for anyone to do that.
It’s not a problem for any mod to clean up, merge, warn, or remove content. It’s easy enough—you just sit down, type, type, and type. Yet, people will just casually pop into this thread or similar ones to complain and ask, "Why did I get hit with this?" or "Why was that removed?" Well, it's because you aren't reading.
I clean up threads myself, and sometimes they're just like this one—but when the Admin makes a call, that’s the final word. Period.
I’m not going to be the first one to complain or push back—mostly because I haven't been penalized myself, and honestly, I’m actually all for bringing some order to the RiD and Pregnancy forums. Not that I'm against it or anything!
I just want to help!! The rules are pretty clear to me—I’ve got quite a bit of experience both posting on forums and moderating them, so I guess you could say I have a decent grasp of how things work from both sides of the fence.
Everything I write and suggest—I don't do it for my own sake, but for everyone else. Honestly, getting a warning and an explanation in the top topic wasn't really necessary for me. But for others, it is. We’d just be looking at a massive wave of bans, a full-blown revolt from half the users here, and a million different questions asking, "Why was this specific thread closed?" It wasn't just about one or two individual threads—we're talking about two entire sub-forums being affected here.
mellowraven22 said:That doesn't make it okay for anyone, though. Sorry, but the whole foundation of being decent online is, you know, actually reading the thread you're jumping into before you start typing.
Look, I'm with you on that. But if we're looking at the facts, things were a bit different. Like you guys mentioned, a ton of threads on the RiD were just chaotic—about everything and anything. And honestly, about 90% of the users, after being away for a few hours or days, wouldn't bother catching up on all the missed posts when they finally returned to a thread. So, they didn't see any warnings, because on the chat threads or those high-traffic topics, stuff like that gets buried pretty fast. In situations like this—where a large part of the sub-forum is in total disarray and most members have no clue about certain rules because they walked into a mess once they opened the PDF—I think it would be reasonable to announce major changes in a separate, dedicated thread.
Specifically, back on the RiD—there was an open welcome thread for the new mods. So, why couldn't a warning about upcoming major changes have been dropped in there? 😕
And obviously, we don't need a whole new thread every single time someone's post gets deleted, just like Alexander Allen5 said. But we're talking about massive shifts here. Huge changes. I still think the situation would have played out much differently if we'd just been told what to expect via a separate thread ahead of time. 😁
Ryan Thomas4 said:1. If it was known that the long-time users wouldn't appreciate the changes, wouldn't it have been more logical to try and avoid a revolt? Perhaps by starting a thread saying, "Hey everyone, some changes are coming to the subforum, please bear with us"? Instead of hitting them with a sledgehammer right out of the gate, especially since they're such a core part of the community? What happened instead was that people showed up after the "sterilization" had already begun, asked what the hell was going on, and promptly got banned. The argument that they "should have known the rules" doesn't really hold water here. They were following the rules that had been applied to them until that moment. It isn't their fault that those weren't the final rules. ☕
2. If the subforum reached a state where an overhaul was absolutely required, it implies the previous mods weren't doing their jobs properly. If they failed to do their jobs and allowed things to get to a point requiring reconstruction, then I suppose one has to wonder why they are still moderating that subforum at all.
Just to be clear, I'm not speaking for the former RiD moderators. I am simply pointing out the flaws in the reasoning provided for why this purge is happening on RiD.
I absolutely agree. I think I mentioned the exact same thing in another thread here once.
RiD has been in shambles for quite a while now; changes are necessary, and of course we support them!!
But there’s still a bitter taste in my mouth after everything that went down about a week ago...
Yeah, I know, you'll probably tell us we were warned via threads, which is technically true.
But, just so you know for the future—and for any other subforums where sudden purges might happen—a huge number of people don't read back through old posts. Sometimes they don't even see the last few posts in a thread.
That's why it would be way better to just put a notification in the top topic or an announcement specifically for that subforum letting everyone know the belt is tightening. 😁 It's a win-win: we're happy because we get warned in time, and you're happy because you don't have to leave bolded warnings in screaming colors across fifteen different threads that most people end up ignoring anyway.
If your period is late and it’s been roughly 17 or 18 days since you ovulated, yeah, you might be feeling some symptoms. It really varies from woman to woman, so I wouldn't use anyone else's experience as a baseline—during the month I actually got pregnant, I barely had any symptoms at all, though I did have this weird little ache deep down quite early on, but it wasn't like your typical PMS.
Anyway, I just wanted to say, since your period is late and it's been a good while since ovulation, if you are pregnant, any test should show a positive by now. (In my case, I already had a positive after 12 days post-ovulation.)
So, just to save yourself the stress, maybe go take a test now 😁 I'm crossing my fingers for you!!
Honestly, 🙂 I know there are plenty of cases much worse than mine..
But it’s just so incredibly frustrating when all your friends and acquaintances seem to have had such easy, smooth pregnancies, and then they look at you—well, they either act like it's some huge tragedy or give you that patronizing, pitying look..
And then there's that damn sense of helplessness—you know, having to practically beg and jump through hoops just to get him to drive me to these ridiculous specialist appointments that wouldn't even be necessary in a normal pregnancy..
Plus, that awful feeling when people treat me like I'm being overly sensitive—especially the older crowd. They're always like, "Oh, stop complaining, we worked in fields all day back in our time".. 🙄
Everything just kind of hit me at once today. I'm going to go see if I should just throw a plate set at the wall or maybe just grab a drink under a blanket.
Sigh.
I don't usually let things get to me this easily 🙂 I'm pretty thick-skinned 😁