I don't get it, Chaz... I'm blonde and slow! Duh... explain it slowly, please. Skip-Bo sounds like fun, and Uno has always been a blast! The ex and I played with another couple in the complex when we lived West Chicago. Uno nights always included plenty of booze! What a riot! As kids, my Dad taught us to play War, Poker and BlackJack... and they played Pinochle, and a card game called Donkey with their adult friends. Bozo the Clown... and Ringmaster Ned, and the original Cookie the Clown! Watched it every day! Even went there once and was part of the audience! Egads, I'm old!

Very strange but there might be something to a rename thing. Trophytaker series has Jen Melon as Jen Melon. Oakes does not list their own Jen Melon but list Star Struck and is listed as Star Struck in the All American series. Why market one with one name in one series and then rename it in another series makes no sense to me, but it becoming to look like Jen Melon and Star Struck are one and the same. Whatever it is, it's a beauty. I have a feeling the Starstruck in my garden is Jen Melon aka Star Struck. One would think the industry could market a daylily under one name especialy if the reason for the name change is 'more marketable name' but then continue to market it under two names. Tanya, enjoy your daylily as I enjoy mine, it's a beauty and worthy of awards no matter what the industry decides to call it ;) Rhonda

Don't know this one, sorry...but all the above say Guacamole, so probably that one. It's pretty nice, whatever it is. Don B.

Of course you don’t discipline the child and there’s nothing wrong with participating in major holidays. But I would take a step back from the household duties and party planning. Dad can do his kid’s laundry and cook dinner once in a while. Also, let him handle the party planning for the birthdays. Sorry, but you sound like a cook and maid - do you work? Don’t feel that your taking a step back means you don’t care. What Kroopy and others are trying to warn you against is doing too much. It sounds like you do A LOT and while right now you say you’re okay with that, are you still going to be okay with doing ALL the household chores while dear ole SO sits and watches TV? Think about it, if you weren’t there, he’d have to do it all by himself. What would he do then? Right now you might not see anything wrong with the way things are, but doing all the work around the house, becoming maid, cook and chaffuer for a kid that isn’t even yours is going to get old after a while. You’ll start to feel unappreciated and resentment will start to set in. Remember, if you and SO were to break up, you’d have no legal rights to this child. All this time, energy and emotion you’ve invested in this child can be taken away at any time. So many times I’ve read on forums like these of women who put their heart and soul into caring for their step children, only to have it blow up in their faces. If the two adults break up, the SM has no rights to seeing that child anymore. Or one day the child starts to hate you for the simple fact that you are not his mother even though you've been caring for him for years like a mother. You think he'd never do that, but I've read of it happening. That is what folks are trying to warn you about. I would just let SO know that you feel that you are taking over too much of the parenting duties and you’re going to “let” SO do the lion’s share of the parenting. Say that you are doing this BEFORE resentment starts to build. It’s not that you don’t love SO and care for his child, but you realize that you are doing too much and dad needs to step up and be a dad to his son. Stress that it’s about dad being a dad to his son, not that you don’t want to do anything for his son. And remind him that if you weren’t there, he’d have to do it all on his own anyway. He’d have to figure out a way to pick his son up if you weren’t in the picture. He’d have to do all the cooking, cleaning and laundry himself. Of course, you don't have to go cold turkey, but I'd definately find ways to step back a little.