Dating with Children

What NOT to Say on a First Date …
by Liam McEneaney
8. I used to have a real bad bedwetting problem … but the last couple of weeks I’ve gotten it under control.

7. I know we just met and this might seem a little sudden … but could I borrow two thousand dollars?

6. Go ahead and Super Size - I found spare change in the sofa today.

5. Something tells me that you’re very special … but with medication I can usually ignore it.

4. I don’t see my ex-girlfriend that much … thanks to the U.S. Department of Justice.

3. Do you want to play doctor? That’ll be five hundred dollars.

2. Wait till my wife hears about this!

and last but not least…

1. I had a good time tonight. I’d love to see you again in six to eight months with good behavior!

first date

5 ways to decode your date
By Amy Spencer

Go ahead, Google your date all you want. But the fact is, you can find out even more about that special someone by sharing a few particularly telling date-night activities with them. Certain activities, you see, bring out the best or worst in people—and contain hidden clues about how they’ll treat you. Suggest doing one of these things during your time together and you’ll have plenty of private info.

Activity #1: Share a communal meal
Instead of choosing standard dinner fare, take your date to a place that encourages — or better yet, requires — that you share what you order, whether that’s fondue, Korean barbecue, or Spanish tapas. Suddenly, the “I’ll order mine, you order yours� rule is out the window, so you’ll get the real scoop on how well they compromise. When you suggest something exotic, does your date seem open to it or make a face, then steer you toward something else on the menu? Once the food arrives, there’s more to learn. Those who get territorial about the dish “they� wanted or seem leery of infringing on “yours� or “your half� all suggest that the give-and-take that relationships require won’t come naturally to them, warns Ian Kerner, Ph.D., author of the upcoming DSI: Date Scene Investigation. The true keepers are those who will voluntarily dump the last morsel on your plate and won’t mind if you’ve double-dipped. (After all, if they can’t handle swapping a little saliva over nachos and salsa, how are they ever going to handle more intimate moments involving the exchange of bodily fluids?)

Activity #2: Play a game
Want to know how your date plays the game of life? Pit yourself against your partner in pool, ping-pong, miniature golf, or stay home and have a battle of the Xbox. As you’re playing, ask yourself: Is your date playful or serious about scoring? Does this person curse when losing or gloat when winning? “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to win, but you’ll learn a lot if your date has to win,� points out Sharyn Wolf, Manhattan psychotherapist, and author of Guerilla Dating Tactics: Strategies, Tips and Secrets for Finding Romance. If your date’s got a serious competitive streak, you’d be fooling yourself to think it doesn’t carry over to other areas—like his or her love life. “These people will see arguments as win/lose propositions, too, and they won’t quit until they’ve won,� warns Kerner. If, however, your date cheers you on when you score a point, that’s a sign of a truly supportive partner, so take note.

Activity #3: Put on your dancing shoes
The next time you’re out, consider dragging your date on the dance floor—and fear not, this isn’t about having a dance-off. In fact, seeing your date do the boogie-woogie isn’t even about the dancing; it’s about their willingness to dance in the first place. “There’s nothing that makes a person more self-conscious than dancing—especially men,� says Wolf. “If your date dances, this shows the person’s good at surrendering, at not being in complete control in front of others, and that your date is less concerned about what others will think.� Which is all good information!

Activity #4: Take a stroll
Instead of sitting down for a movie or coffee, step outdoors for a walk through a park and see what happens. Can you two keep the conversation going away from music, alcohol and people watching? “It’s life without props,� points out Kerner. See how your date can handle lulls in conversation: The longer this person can wait before filling the silence, the more comfortable your date is with him or herself—and the lower the chance that what you’re seeing is a “front� put up to impress you.

Activity #5: Go for a drive together
The next time your date offers to drive you somewhere, pay attention to how they react on the road. “Driving is very, very revealing,� says body language expert Patti Wood (pattiwood.net). “Years ago, I was on a first date with a man who’d turn left at yellow lights, and take lots of risks on the road. That told me he was a person who would always live a little on the edge.� Other insights from Wood: Lane-changers will probably always be on the lookout for someone better-looking, smarter, or richer than you. Picky parkers who always want to go around one more time to see if they can snag a closer spot probably have problems with commitment. Herky-jerky drivers who accelerate and brake so quickly they leave your stomach queasy may have poor sense of pacing in all areas of life. Plus, if you’re driving, see how they handle it—nagging that you should slow down, speed up, or otherwise do things differently is a sign this person probably won’t love you just the way you are (starting with your bad driving).

Amy Spencer writes for Glamour, Maxim, New York and Real Simple. And she can’t wait to see how well the trick for “getting men to communicate in a car� works.

——————————————————————————–

Article courtesy of Happen Magazine, www.happenmag.com.

Amy Spencer, Happen Magazine, Glamour, Maxim, New York, Real Simple, communication, investigating, psychology

Cary Tennis is Salon’s advice columnist. The key harm of porn, he argues, is that it saps users of their motivation to build human connections. Cary’s critique is also relevant to “sex work” in general. Even if it’s entirely consensual, it’s still problematic to have your sexual needs met by ‘vendors’ instead of a true partner. Some excerpts from “Porn in theory, porn in practice”:

Apr. 11, 2007 | Dear Cary,

…I know it’s common to look at porn. And I like it, too (though I wouldn’t say it’s part of my regular routine). But for some reason, I have this primitive and unenlightened hope somewhere in my subconscious that my boyfriend is only turned on by me. Am I deceiving myself by considering myself open-minded? Am I really a Victorian?…

Vicky Victorian

Dear Vicky Victorian,

I have gotten many, many letters from women over the last year or two with questions similar to yours…

…whether you approve of porn in theory or not, its effect will be to displace you. Like crack, it tends to take over, to push out other hungers that tend to nurture the human community by making us dependent on one another. Since we are dependent on each other we must be civil and loving. If we are not dependent on each other then we needn’t be civil and loving. We needn’t have community and family. That is the way in which any drug breaks down family and community by isolating its user. Porn isolates its users also, meeting their needs outside the social compact. The social compact becomes a commercial compact between anonymous people, while those in the actual human community are relegated to bystander status. It introduces a third party into the erotic economy of a relationship…

See also:

Young New Yorkers Talk about Porn’s Effect on their Relationships (explicit language)
They have since broken up, and have stopped talking. “He was a lot more innocent when he was younger,â€? she says. “He was looking for love and companionship. Now he just wants a good lay. I’m sure he’s looking for some huge-breasted, tight-assed bitch…â€? These days, she feels “very jaded about love and sex,â€? but every so often, she finds her cynicism dissolving… “I think it will be really rare, and hopefully it will happen, that I can meet a guy who will be happy with only me.â€?

Time to Explore the Links Between Porn, Testosterone, Sexual Behavior and Violence
…[T]estosterone is highly susceptible to environment. T levels can rise and fall depending on external circumstances–short term and long term. Testosterone is usually elevated in response to confrontational situations — a street fight, a marital spat, a presidential debate–or in highly charged sexual environments, like a strip bar or a pornographic Web site…

The Psychology of Porn for Men
Morgan’s experience of counselling men addicted to porn has convinced him that “the more time you spend in this fantasy world, the more difficult it becomes to make the transition to reality. Just like drugs, pornography provides a quick fix, a masturbatory universe people can get stuck in. This can result in their not being able to involve anyone else…”

Voice Male: “Intimacy and Porn: A Contradiction in Terms”
Personally, I know using porn never left me feeling particularly proud. It was more likely to bring up feelings of shame after the fact–seldom a good sign. My reflections sparked by the Jensen article inspired a revelation: Jasmin and I strive for intimacy in our relationship. Using porn hinders that. Whether alone or with my wife, viewing porn takes time and energy away from our union and squanders it on a pseudo-relationship. Even using porn as a stimulus for marital sex is problematic because porn rarely reflects healthy modes of connection. Porn is wham, bam, thank you, ma’am–at best–and not reflective of the kind of sex I really want in my own life. No surprise, I find it easier to achieve sexual pleasure and intimacy with my wife when images of models paid to perform male fantasies are not playing in my head.

porn, intimacy, sex, marriage, relationships, porn addiction, fantasy, love

Why I dumped her…
By Dave Singleton

“Things were going great until she…�: That’s the refrain I heard when I asked guys what happens when they date a woman and then dump her. I’m not saying that women should bear the brunt of all breakups or feel as if they are to blame. My goal here is to illuminate the kind of behavior that most often turns a guy from happily dating toward thinking, “This isn’t going well….� Hear what they have to say, and see if you can gain a little insight into the male mind that can help you in future relationships.

Miss Overly Dependent. “The first six months we dated, she took care of herself and did everything that she needed to do on her own,� says Tim, 33, of St. Louis. “Then she started asking me what I thought about everything. I understand some questions, but it was the daily stuff that I never got asked about before that bugged me. She wanted to know what she should pack for trips that we took, even though she’d already researched the weather and knew the itinerary. She asked me whether or not she should watch a television show or catch up on work. She wondered whether she should tell her friend Joanne that she had been hurt by her remarks the other day. On the nights we were apart, she’d call and ask me what I thought she should have. I tried talking to her about it, and encouraged her to be independent, but she wouldn’t listen.�
Lesson to learn: Most guys aren’t genetically programmed to be as talky as women are. If you want to hash over the minutiae of everyday life, call your mom or your girlfriends. If you need his advice on something a tad weightier than Coke or Pepsi, though—do ask. Guys love to feel as if they are helping resolve problems.

Miss Nag, Nag, Nag. “At first, I could do no wrong,� says Bill, 32, of Hoboken, NJ. “Then we started hanging out more, and she’d make occasional little comments like, ‘Honey, didn’t I tell you to take out the trash?’ or ‘Sweetie, that’s the third time I’ve asked you if you could change that light bulb… please?’ Her little comments escalated into constant criticisms like, ‘You’re not wearing that light blue shirt again, are you?’ and ‘Why do you have to see your friends every week?’ I tried to ignore it for a while but when that didn’t work, I straight-up asked her to curb the nagging, but she kept at it. In my opinion, she was trying to exert control, but she didn’t see that. I was working hard at my job and at our relationship. But her control games didn’t work on me. I finally told her the relationship made me depressed, and I didn’t feel close to her anymore.�
Lesson to learn: Understand that too many requests won’t get results…they’ll just get annoying. Choose your issues wisely, and then approach them in a constructive way. Sit down and use “I� language—“I feel lonely when you spend so much time with your friends,� or “I feel as if we’re not a team when I make dinner but you don’t help clean up.�

Miss “I Do,� But Too Soon. “Here’s the thing. I really enjoyed my relationship with Sharon,� says Mark, 36, of Ocala, Florida. “But she pushed marriage on me all the time and kept reminding me that she was 36 and needed to make decisions about her future and kids, which I respected. Yes, I want to be married one day, too. But her pushing constantly made me pull away. It got to the point where the only thing she seemed passionate about was getting engaged. Finally, after just six months, she gave me an ultimatum to get engaged. I don’t take ultimatums well and didn’t want to be pushed down the aisle. So that was that.�
Lesson to learn: There is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to get married… or making that fact very clear to the guy you’re dating. However, you can’t push a man into marriage before he’s ready. Sometimes it takes a leap of faith to wait and see if he’ll step up. But if you can’t give him the time he needs — or if he’s sending you signals that he doesn’t feel as strongly as you do — it may be time to cut your losses. Pursue your goals, but know that if he isn’t the guy for you, no amount of hinting, pushing or pleading is going to change that.

Miss Lack of Affection. “We were so hot for each other at first,� recalls Tony, 28, of Brooklyn, NY. “But her interest dropped off and she wouldn’t talk about it. I got the message that my girl really doesn’t enjoy sex with me. I was very attracted to her, but the excitement went away after a few months of dating. She seemed perfectly content with our relationship. But I was bothered by the fact that she didn’t seem to miss affection and intimacy. Kisses were perfunctory, and sex basically stopped. I want a woman who wants me in every way. The relationship needed to end.�
Lesson learned: If there’s a reason he’s not pleasing you in bed — or there’s another issue that has you avoiding intimacy with your guy — talk to him about it, but outside the bedroom. Let him know that you want to get over whatever hurdle there is, and enjoy the intimacy again. On the other hand, if you don’t desire sex as often as he does, seeing a counselor can help you two better manage your mismatched sex drives instead of throwing in the towel.

Miss “Don’t Make Me Over.� “I needed to feel understood and loved for who I am, but that was not happening,� says Jim, 29, of Austin, TX. “I think my girlfriend Jenny was more interested in finding the perfect man or maybe just an easy-to-mold man. But she wasn’t interested in getting to know me. She would always tell me that I had great potential, and that I should go to law school when I had dropped out for a good reason: I hated it! She wanted me to be more social, like all the things she liked, and be more ambitious. Who was she to say that to me? When I woke up one morning and realized that I felt terrible about myself, I knew I had to break up with her. I want someone who likes me for me, as I am now. Genuine concern and support are great. But all I got from her was conditional love, and I needed more. If there’s one thing I wish women would remember when dating, it’s this: Don’t try to make me over. I like me pretty much the way I am.�
Lesson to learn: Sure, you want to help him be his best… with an emphasis on the word “his.� Let him be who he’s gotta be. Try to take an interest in his interests and hobbies and draw out what excites him in life. Share in what makes him special, and see if you can appreciate it, even if it doesn’t suit your concept of what your dream guy would be. And if it isn’t enough for you, well, sadly—he’s not the right guy, and it’s on to the next.

Dave Singleton’s books, The MANdates: 25 Rules for Successful Gay Dating and Behind Every Great Woman is a Fabulous Gay Man (Advice from a Guy Who Gives it to You Straight), are available now.

Why I wouldn’t date him…
By Dave Singleton

When it comes to sizing up our dates, don’t we all feel a little Seinfeld-ian from time to time? When I interviewed women for this article, I heard many, many complaints—from the universal, easily understood to the mystifyingly personal. Let me give you some samples: “He smoked.� “He wasn’t nice to the waiter.� “He put ketchup on his eggs—gross!� “His shoes were too pointy.� “His nose hair needed grooming.� “He looked like he’d be a slobbery kisser.� During those early dates, many of us turn into Jerry, Elaine and George, and nitpick our dates into obscurity.

But after you’ve made it through the first few obstacles and dated him for a few months, what are the next series of “should we continue or not� hurdles you face? I discovered there are some common themes when it comes to why women give a guy a chance… and then give him the old heave-ho. Listen in as women share what turns Mr. Maybe into Mr. Not-If-You-Were-the-Last-Man-on-Earth:

Mr. Bad Manners. “While eating spaghetti, he practically buried his face in the bowl and slurped the noodles, then tried to talk to me with noodles dangling from his mouth,� says Jenny, 29, of Washington, D.C., who dated Todd, 32, for three months. “I wish I had seen his bad manners earlier,� says Jenny. “What I learned is that people can stay on their best behavior for a few weeks, or even months, but eventually, the truth comes out. I guess that Todd was on his best behavior the first month or so. He didn’t show such poor table manners at first. But after asking him repeatedly and politely to stop chewing with his mouth open, I finally gave up. He wouldn’t listen to me and was very defensive about the whole subject. I learned one thing about myself. Bad table manners are my deal-breaker.�
Lesson to learn: Stay on your best manners—until they become your everyday manners.

Mr. Cheapo. “Barry, the man I was seeing for five months, is cute, but I hate that he’s cheap,� says Linda, 37, of Norfolk, VA. “He’s my age and makes a good living as a lawyer. So he has no excuse, really. Cheapness is the kiss of death for me. I hate when a man you’re seeing turns into an accountant at the end of a meal or event. Barry would turn to me and say, ‘And your half comes to…,’ until it finally drove me crazy. The final straw was when, on my birthday, he gave me a tacky “re-gift� out of his closet. To top it off, he never wanted to spend money going to plays or cultural events. I’m not saying a guy needs to spend a mint on me, but I believe money should be used in moderation to create great shared experiences and convey affection. It wasn’t about the money as much as it was his attitude.�
Lesson to learn: Be open to spending some money on shared experiences that bond the two of you and create great memories. Also know that there are plenty of women out there who expect a guy to pay until the relationship is rock-solid (not saying it’s fair, just that’s the way it is).

Mr. Zero Ambition. “We had fun at first,â€? says Stacy, 35, of Pasadena, CA, about her short-term boyfriend Allan, 36. “But I had to leave him after six months. Yes, he was a nice guy. It just didn’t feel right with him because he has no future ambition, like getting married or wanting to have a stable career. He works at a video store, which would have been fine, but he just doesn’t seem to care about what he does or have any plan for his life (hey, he usually didn’t even have a plan for the weekend!). Eventually, I want to buy a home and fix it up with my husband. I also want to have kids, which costs a lot of money these days, so I need a guy who cares at least a little about finances. I enjoyed his company for the months we were together, but his passive approach to just watching his life go by got to me. It got boring to be with a guy who never wanted to do anything but watch TV.â€?
Lesson learned: Think about where you want to be in 5 or 10 years, and take steps to go after it. Take a small risk, show some initiative. And if your job doesn’t thrill you, try sharing something else that you are passionate about — Mexican food, kayaking, whatever — with your date so she can learn from you and feel a deeper connection and an excitement about being with you.

Mr. Neglectful. “Once we got into the comfort zone of dating regularly, he started ignoring me and I couldn’t take it anymore,� says Sharon, 39, of Hartford, CT, of Lou, 42, her boyfriend of four months. “What started out as an exciting relationship turned into such a lonely affair. When we first met, he surprised me with calls during the day, funny emails, and nights out on the town. But little by little, he stopped doing all of that. He made excuses for not spending as much time with me. He either saw his friends alone several nights a week or wanted to, in his words, ‘chill out from the long work day.’ The funny thing is that I don’t think he was planning to break up with me. Even though I’d been telling him for a few weeks that I wasn’t happy with the lack of time and energy going into our relationship, he seemed surprised when I broke up with him. It’s like he wooed me and then once he got me, he didn’t want to make an effort anymore. Lack of connection seemed fine with him, but it didn’t work for me.�
Lesson learned: You don’t have to be with her 24/7, but do know that there’s the expectation by many women to see their guy once during the week and on the weekend—once they get into a dating groove, that is. If you can’t spend that much time with her, let her know you’re thinking of her with a quick email or text message now and then, or just a voicemail saying that you’re heading out to hockey practice with the guys but are thinking of how much fun it will be to see her on the weekend.

Mr. Independence. “What happens when you realize you’re dating someone who isn’t sure he wants to be dating?� asks New Yorker Diane, 32. “I met Tom through friends and really liked him… but as we began dating regularly — three or four times a week — I noticed that he kept joking about how he’d never marry until he was 50, how he was thinking of going on a guys-only vacation over the summer… it was as if he wanted me to know, don’t get too serious about this guy. He still treated me well, but I couldn’t ignore the signals he was so clearly sending about his priorities, and broke things off.�
Lesson learned: Not looking to get serious? Send those signals out from day one. Don’t start seeing someone and then back-pedal like crazy. It’s much better to find someone who’s also looking for something casual, too.

“We all have deal-breakers in our relationships,� says Dave Singleton. “There’s nothing wrong with that. But hopefully, they aren’t a laundry list of impossible standards.� His books, The MANdates: 25 Rules for Successful Gay Dating and Behind Every Great Woman is a Fabulous Gay Man (Advice from a Guy Who Gives it to You Straight), are available now. To read the other side of this story, click here.

Sometimes when we become single, we find our finances for things like pedicures go completely out the window! A friend of mine on a social site I belong to had a great idea for a foot and elbow scrub that she created all on her own. Directions are as follows:

Scrub Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon KY Jelly or Hair Conditioner

Presoak your feet in chamomile tea, if you have any. Scrub your feet and elbows in the mixture listed above.

She said that her feet turned out as smooth as a baby’s bottom, along with her elbows. She did warn against using it on your face as it is pretty harsh and works like something of a chemical peel! Ow!

I’m going to try this today and see how it works. She used the KY, but I don’t happen to have that on hand so she suggested conditioner instead. Will be interesting!

feet, pedicure, elbows, spa, cheap spa, homemade foot scrub, smooth feet, pretty feet, elbow scrub

idea #: Go fly a kite!

First date ideas are not always easy to brainstorm. Here are some inexpensive, expensive, and extravagant ideas to get your creative juices flowing as you plan the first date:
Inexpensive First Date Ideas:

1. The beach
Take a picnic, a bottle of wine and a rug and spend the day catching the sun together. Or you could take a dip together. All that splashing is bound to be great fun.

2. Picnic by a river
Prepare a basket of goodies, a chilled bottle of wine, and enjoy the day relaxing in each other’s company.

3. The movies
Let your date choose the film. It will show a good gesture if you don’t have the same taste in films. Select a unique theater (i.e. leather seating) to enhance the experience and arrive early to provide plenty of time to get to know each other.

4. Theme park
Big or small, everybody loves theme parks. Triple loop roller coasters, dodgems, etc. is the ideal date for the big kid in us.

5. Eat in
Show off your culinary skills and ask them round for dinner. Don’t over do the candles and music or you may frighten them away.

6. Indoor ice skating - or roller blade in the park
You can lean against each other for balance and warmth.

7. A sporting activity that you both like
If you are both big basketball fans, then take a trip to see a professional basketball game together.

8. Kite flying
It’s a lot more fun than you may think!

9. A trip to the zoo
Everyone likes animals so a trip to the zoo makes for a perfect date.

10. Local museum or art gallery
This is only a good idea if you are both interested in museums.

from godatings.com

Welcome to Southeast Idaho Singles premier website!

We are a social club dedicated to providing unmarried persons with a safe and friendly environment for fun activities and events. This is the place to meet new friends, laugh a lot, share experiences and receive strength and hope.

This club is for persons over 30 years of age. It is a non-denominational club with all of our events developed around the highest ethical and moral principles. Click here to find out more about us. Continue to monitor this website for the most current and updated information on all your favorite activities. Be sure to tell all your single friends and don’t forget to sign up for our email up dates!!

Don’t forget to check our calendar for whats happening this week.
Click on a calendar event for contact and venu information.

southeast idaho, singles, singles site, singles activities

Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund

April 16, 2007, will be remembered as one of the darkest days in the history of the Virginia Tech community and the world beyond.

To remember and honor the victims of those tragic events, the university has established the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund to aid in the healing process and generate financial support.

The fund will be used to cover expenses including but not limited to:

• Grief counseling
• Memorials
• Communication expenses
• Comfort expenses
• Incidental needs

If you plan to give, please click the link below:

See full article and comments HERE!

A passionate kiss is sure to make the heart melt.

But it is no comparison to the sensation of chocolate melting on the tongue, a study has discovered.

Young volunteers’ hearts and heads were hooked up to electrodes and asked to taste pieces of dark chocolate before kissing their partners.

The deflating discovery was that chocolate provides a buzz lasting up to four times as long as embracing the special person in our lives.

The findings would be supported by former Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson, who recently said chocolate was better than sex.

But neurophysiologist Dr David Lewis, who led the study, said he had been taken aback.

“These results really surprised and intrigued us,” he said.

“While we fully expected chocolate - especially dark chocolate - to increase heart rates due to the fact it contains some highly stimulating substances, both the length of the increase together with the powerful effects it had on the mind were something none of us had anticipated.”

The volunteers, all in their 20s, took part in the experiment in an area designed to look like a place of work to create the impression of an office romance.

Each had electrodes attached to their scalps and wore heart monitors as they popped a piece of dark chocolate on their tongue and, without chewing, indicated when it started to melt.

The young lovers then had to kiss each other in the same way they would normally - while researchers in white coats and carrying clipboards “studied their monitors”.

As part of the controlled experiment, measurements of heart and brain activity were also taken when there was no external stimulation of the senses.

The study revealed that, at the point chocolate melts in the mouth, all regions of the brain receive a boost far more intense and longer lasting than the excitement produced by kissing.

The chunks of chocolate also made the heart beat faster.

For some of the 12 volunteers, the number of beats per minute more than doubled from a resting rate of 60 to as much as 140.

Kissing also set hearts racing but the effect was shorter-lasting.

Although woman are generally considered to be bigger chocoholics than men - and bigger romantics - both sexes showed the same responses in the tests.

Only one volunteer bucked the trend - a 21-year-old man who had recently met his 24-year-old girlfriend.

Former Sussex University academic Dr Lewis, who now runs private research company The Mind Lab, said: “The results were given to the volunteers. I don’t know if this couple are still together.”

He added: “There is no doubt that chocolate beats kissing hands down when it comes to providing a long-lasting body and brain buzz - a buzz that, in many cases, lasted four times as long as the most passionate kiss.”

But Deanne Jade, an expert in the psychology of how people relate to food, warned kissing someone in a ‘non-erotic or non-personal environment’ wouldn’t have the same effect as embracing in a private moment.

Chocolate contains a number of substances that give ‘natural highs’, including phenylethylamine, which is produced by the body when people are in love, and theobromine. It also contains caffeine.

The research was conducted using a new chocolate from Cadbury called Deeply Dark which is not yet on sale.

It is made from a 60 per cent cocoa recipe similar to one used exclusively for the Royal Family since the days of Queen Victoria. Earlier this year, research revealed dieting increased women’s cravings for chocolate.

Funny Videos

basketball, proposal, marriage

Phenomenal Woman
by Maya Angelou

My favorite poem…It’s me!

Phenomenal Woman, Maya Angelou, beauty, attitude

For the longest time I have been inviting the ex over for the kids’ birthday parties and for Christmas. Now that he’s married, he has begun having parties at his house as well for these things, so I finally asked him why he needed to still come to mine (I said it in a sweet way, of course). He said.. Wow I guess I don’t! Good point! To compensate, even though our parenting plan says that they are to be with me every birthday and for Christmas, I said that if a birthday or Christmas happens to fall on a regularly sheduled visitation weekend, they could still be with him.

So what happened? The very next birthday to be celebrated, my son’s 12th tomorrow, falls on his regularly scheduled weekend! I’ve been doing this parenting thing for 12 years as of tomorrow, and it was going to be my first one without him.

I was SO sad. But then the impossible happened. He has a class in Hunter’s Ed tomorrow night where he actually gets to shoot some rifles and he doesn’t want to miss it! Since we get out of school on Fridays at 2:30 and Hunter’s Ed doesn’t start until 6:30, I will get him for his birthday dinner! Wahoo!

That is the best news I’ve had all year. I get to baby my big boy on his birthday!

birthday, son, parenting, ex, Hunter’s Education, school, 12th birthday party

Uh…Which one is she dating? This site might just work!

LDSMingle has this to say about safety and online dating:

Online Safety
Safety-wise, meeting on the Net is inherently similar to meeting offline. As long as the same standard dating precautions are followed, cyber-savvy daters can feel truly at ease while getting to know each other. The main thing to remember: trust your instincts and use common sense just like you would offline.

You can rest assured that you’re in the right place because Spark Networks, the company that brings you LDS Mingle, has been in the online personals business since the early days of the Internet and goes to extra lengths to ensure that its sites stay clean and safe. We do our best to monitor and block emails of anyone who uses profanity, hustles or is not serious about finding a relationship. We also keep all contacts between members onsite so your email address remains confidential.

Before you get started, here are a few guidelines to keep in mind.

Helpful Hints
* Remember that you are in control of your online experience at all times. You can remain completely anonymous until you feel ready.
* You are also in control when it comes to taking an online relationship offline. Plus, you have an advantage online because you can get to know each other before you meet. Remember that you don’t need to take anything further than the computer or phone wires until you feel completely at ease. Go at your own pace!
* When you do decide to meet face to face, pick a public place and provide your own transportation to and fro. Tell a friend where you’re going and check in when you return home.
* Never include your personal contact information in your profile, especially telephone numbers, email, home address or your last name, and only give them out when your instincts tell you this is someone you can trust. It’s okay to take your time.
* Set up an email account just for online personals.
* Ask a lot of questions and watch for inconsistencies.
* Stay away from members who won’t take no for an answer or pressure you for any kind of personal information. Serious cyber-savvy daters will respect your space and allow you to take your time.
* If someone asks you to go to their personal web site or asks you for money, use common sense not to oblige and then report the situation to us.
* If someone gives you a phone number with a strange area code, check it out to make sure it’s not a charge number before you make the call.
* Using your own good judgment is your best bet because ultimately you are responsible for your personal dating experience. Trust your instincts and then have fun with the right people!

Hmm…Yeah sounds like common sense to me! Don’t give any information that you may later regret!

online dating, ldsmingle, online safety, common sense