pickyshopper - My son and I spent 2 weeks in Ireland in October and I received conflicting information from everyone - even a native Irishman. We stayed at hotels in Killarney and Dublin, and Bed and Breakfasts in Galway and Kinsale. They all had their own hair dryers in the bathrooms and they were hard wired into the wall. Even if I had taken my own hairdryer I wouldn't have able to use it in the bathroom - It's against the electrical code. I bought a set of converters at The Container Store and I was able to use my curling iron with one of them, but I had to use it in the bedrooms, not the bath. My son took his Mac computer and it wouldn't work with any of the converters. He had to stop at a computer store and purchase a special adapter for a Mac. His computer worked but the download times were really slow. I didn't want to take my smart phone with me so for $20.00 I rented one from Verizon and it arrived with it's own convertor. I had heard horror stories of people who returned from overseas trips to discover a huge data bill on their smart phones. The one I rented was just a regular old fashioned flip phone, but it worked great. One travel agent told me to just pick up a converter at the airport. She even suggested that I just buy a curling iron at the airport and then I wouldn't need an adapter. For what it's worth - my trip was wonderful however it was one bad hair day after another. We spent a lot of time on the west coast which is quite blustery in the fall and we were near the ocean the entire time. Dublin was milder and not windy at all. have a fantastic trip - where will you be going?

I let my son fly alone early this summer, he was 11 years old. I would only let my son fly alone if he was somewhere where I could drive to get him if something happened. We once had to layover for a night because of the weather - I wouldn't want my son having to spend the night in a strange place with a stranger. I have a friend who is a flight attendant of 20+ years, she says the amount of "attending" the unaccompanied minors get varies greatly between flight attendants. She says some take great care of the kids, others do very little. When my son flew alone, he got very little assistance or attention. He didn't get his snack or drink, the attendant never checked on him, he came off the plane and walked to me, while the attendant went somewhere else first. I knew that I needed to sign paperwork, so we waited for the attendant to finally come over, but I could have easily walked off with my son. The fee we paid for the extra "attention" they gave our son was almost as much as his ticket. So, although recent world events haven't influenced my opinion on letting my son travel alone, I definitely wouldn't let my kids travel alone until they are mature enough to stay calm and handle unexpected events. I still feel they are safer flying than carpooling with a friend to soccer.

Wow!!! You did a beautiful job and I bet your mother was just overwhelmed with pleasure. It looks so restful and sleek with everything you've done. I especially love the look of the corner drapes with the chair sitting there....it turned out great.

"has to balance what's best for him and best for you. And sometimes they just aren't going to work. IMO, childs needs come first." See, this is interesting. I think what is so interesting and diverse about this forum (or even when talking to friends in RL) is that EVERYONE is going to have their own opinion; and that opinion is one we have formed based on our own experiences and perspectives. Nivea, you were treated in a really cruel and hurtful manner by your SM, correct? (or am I mixing you up with another poster?) I believe it was you. Anyway, naturally, you are more inclined to empathize and identify with the child (stepchild) and perhaps even project a bit of your own feelings; and that's normal, we ALL do that. Just as I am more likely to identify with someone like Ima or Lamom or Silver, someone who is a SM dealing with difficult situations. Anyway, I know what you mean about the child needing to come first; but I think you are saying this out of your own experiences, which included being emotionally hurt by your cruel and emotionally immature SM who insisted HER needs come first. Correct? That is awful that happened and it's sad that your father allowed you to be pushed aside. (And please correct me if I am mixing up your history with someone else.) Our situation is a little different in that DH had continually made the mistake of doing things to harm our marriage---all under the guise of "it's best for SS." But a lot of what he was doing wasn't even really best for SS. DH wanted me to smooth things over and be nice to BM, even after she attacked me in front of SS. Sure, it might be superficially easier for SS if everything seemed hunky-dory again. But in the long run, what lesson is that teaching him? That violence is acceptable? That it's okay for his mom to behave like that and I will just pretend that everything is okay? Those aren't lessons I want SS or DD learning. So sometimes what IS best for SS isn't necessarily what one might think at face value. Sure, it would be more *pleasant* for him in the short term, but in the long run, I think it does more harm than good. (I don't think this particular weekend issue is even really about anything being "best" for SS, though.) And one thing our marriage counselor has been helping both of us see is that sometimes what's best for the marriage has to come first. And I will say this with 100% conviction: it would NOT be in SS's best interest for DH and I to divorce. Not at all. That would be one of the worst things that could happen for both him and my DD. I may be "just a stepmother" to him but I have been a positive and caring person in his life for almost 7 years. He views my daughter as his sister. He genuinely loves our family and feels a TOTAL part of our family unit...because he is! We are not just some people he spends a few days a month with, he has two families and we are one of them! If that unit were to dissolve, it would honestly devastate SS. It would devastate my DD, as well, but I really think it would be worse on SS. He is very sensitive to these things, and he is the type of child that turns his upsets inward. I know if he were to lose his family, it would really impact him negatively in an emotional sense. So in marriage counseling, one thing DH is having to focus on is sorting out when SS's needs really DO come first, and when it's just BM manipulating "in the name of their son." Obviously, there are times that the child's needs have to come first---heck, that is 95% of parenting! But it is my belief that this is not one of those times. SS's mom is doing well and there is no reason he can't be with her.