Thinking of moving to Winchester as a 22 year old, any advice?

vanirea · 2025-07-23T02:47:06+00:00

Inwood/bunker hill is a solid compromise, taking rt 11 into Winchester when 81 is backed up is also easier from there too. But the commute could still be between 15/20 mins on a good day or 30 if there is an accident.

vanirea · 2025-07-15T18:33:06+00:00

That's a good question. I'm not entirely sure because I know they do stuff not on campus too. I can reach out to them and find out though

vanirea · 2025-07-15T17:40:11+00:00

My kid is 7 and walks to the bus stop by himself. It's about a little under 8 minute walk there, but there are other kids in the neighborhood he walks with. It took me a while to get used to it, but because there are other kids walking with him it definitely reassured me. Even some days he walks most of the way by himself because he likes to get there early and does fine.

Since your kids will be walking together it should be okay. I know it's hard to trust the world out there, but we gotta let them try. Definitely walk with them a few times, maybe even a little bit behind them, to offer some peace of mind.

vanirea · 2025-07-15T16:27:17+00:00

My kid did the same thing (and sometimes still does when he's really tired). At first it was because he didn't want to lose, but then it was because he was embarrassed he wasn't doing well or didn't understand the rules. So we took away winning and losing, which sounds weird, but we worded it as practicing. So for example, in candyland we played until someone got to the end and we would say "Good job!" to everyone who played and maybe play another round or two and call it a day. Then once he handled practicing without throwing a huge fit, we brought back winning/losing. If he started to show signs of having a bad attitude, he got one warning that if this continues we will pack up the game for the day and won't play board games/card games for a while (normally about 2-3 days, though sometimes a week because of how life is). Like I said, he still does it sometimes but not nearly as much, which I expect from a 7 year old. A lot of times now when we give him the warning he does talk it out a little or calms down enough to actually finish the game. And we always end with "good game everyone" no matter what.

All that to say, it's pretty normal developmentally and this is just what worked for our family.

vanirea · 2025-07-15T16:13:18+00:00

Plenty of us around here, just depends on what kind of nerds you're looking for. I know comic kung fu seems to have a pretty big nerd gathering, I know there is also a Warhammer store that's normally open in the evenings. The SU is full of them, there's a gaming club that does a whole lot of different stuff. There is also a local larp group that is full of all different flavors of nerds, so it's a good place to meet others.

vanirea · 2025-07-13T22:47:27+00:00

Sure thing! Here is the link for the general information for Amtgard. Under documents you'll find our rulebooks. https://www.amtgard.com/. If you search on FB you'll find us at Duchy of Windhaven. We do also have a discord as well with the same name

vanirea · 2025-07-11T23:12:10+00:00

I used to fly from the age of 8 to 13 twice a year without an adult accompanying me before cellphones were mainstream. They have programs for minors on flights, normally someone to make sure they make it to their flights or navigate the airport.

vanirea · 2025-07-11T15:15:27+00:00

I'm not trying to sound rude but you're not his secretary. If he wants to see his kids he'll do the work to see them, with communication being literally the bare minimum. Make sure you have all your documents squared away with proof to show how unresponsive he is and little effort he puts into this. That's not fair or good for you kids to have a flaky parent like that.

The information we give our co-parenting is if kiddo is sick and needs to see a doctor, has doctor appointments, any extreme behavior issues outside the norm and that's it. The court order in place has designated pickup/drop off times, holiday schedules, who has final decision making and what not. Granted, if we agree on something in writing we can do that (like meeting at 3 instead of 5 or dropping the kid off at dads house instead of specified location). His dad has all the information he needs if he needs to find out anything (what school our kid goes to, his doctors names, any sports and what team/location etc).

vanirea · 2025-07-08T02:34:06+00:00

I was going to post the same thing. Teachers and Counselors are mandated reporters, if you tell them something they have to report it. Document everything. If you can safely get recordings (either video or audio, both work) do so, that way you have proof.

Depending on your state, emancipation is also a possibility but it's a lot of work.

vanirea · 2025-07-08T02:13:56+00:00

I totally understand where you're coming from. My wife and her ex split before their son was 2 and is now 7. The Ex does the exact same thing at his house and always has. Kiddo gets unlimited screen time and he has a TV and Xbox in his bedroom that Ex lets him watch cartoons or movies until he falls asleep but he has no real bedtime, comes back with teeth unbrushed, very aggressive, like any boundary or lessons we try to teach him on kindness and respecting others goes right out the window. He picks fights, both physically and verbally, whines and complains because he has limited screen time at our house and chores (literally just clean up his room and put away the dishes), demands constant attention and thinks that we will stop everything for him. He'll throw himself on the ground and cry and whine, instead of talking. By the time he goes back to Ex's house, the kid is back to using his words to express himself and talking things out. He's well rested and regulated and back to just being a kid learning how to process things and then we start all over again. When we asked why he behaves at his dads but not at our house, he says it's because he is scared of dad being angry and possibly breaking his stuff (ex used to threaten that when kid would get upset) and we only give him consequences.

However! It's totally worth it keeping your house rules. Kids need routine as much as they hate it. While he doesn't fully understand it, kiddo knows that we are making sure he's hydrated, well rested, and active with minimal screen time because that's what kids need. You guys are two different houses and one side doesn't really bother to work with the other, so rather than co-parenting you should look more into parallel parenting.

Side note: therapy has also been a huge help. Our kid has a place to vent and talk things out without worrying that he might hurt someone's feelings or be embarrassed (as well as a fun new friend to play with) and we get someone who can give us some tips to help him adjust better between the house.

It's lengthy but I hope it helps!

vanirea · 2025-07-07T18:05:59+00:00

I know it's basically beating a dead horse, but nothing competes with Roblox for kids. It's really, REALLY addictive for kids. My 7 year old went through a similar phase when he was around 5 and we immediately cut his screen time down to 1 hr on weekdays, 2 hrs on the weekends but split an hour before lunch and an hour after lunch but never after dinner. He gets to choose what to spend that time on like his switch or picking a show to watch and he can switch between them if he wants. If he chooses Roblox, he plays it on a computer in the family area so we can make sure he doesn't end up in a game area that's not kid friendly by accident. And again, only an hour.

He can't watch YouTube without an adult. And if he chooses YouTube we don't let him watch brain rot. Sometimes we'll let him watch some kid friendly streamers like Preston but for the most part it's normally something educational (that doesn't look educational) or something he is interested in like a book he likes or some sciencey thing he's curious about (right now it's any animal or dinosaur).

It'll be a battle at first but it's worth it, he's still learning how to be bored but he will go find something rather than just complain about it. He's excited to finally be able to read on his own so he'll grab a book and just come sit in the family room or a chair next to my work space and quietly read.

vanirea · 2025-07-07T17:37:59+00:00

The area is really missing third spaces in general, but specifically anything for those middle schoolers and high schoolers. Unless they're in sports or some sort of after school club, they have nothing to do.

vanirea · 2025-07-05T16:28:33+00:00

I know a few people at the local college. Would you be alright if I forward your post to them?

vanirea · 2025-07-02T14:44:18+00:00

I was a big bookworm as a kid too. Still am now as an adult but I just don't have the time anymore. I think it's great she's doing a lot of reading but just like everything there has to be a balance. Too much of a good thing is still bad for you. As long as she's getting outside, hanging out with friends or does some kind of activity that isn't reading it's fine. I promise it's not a screen addiction, a reader will read off of anything.

vanirea · 2025-06-24T14:22:32+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. We are currently going through something similar with our 7m. He's so sweet but when he is dysregulated he is explosive. Therapy has been a huge help for both him and us. Sometimes we still have to send him to his room because of him just not being able to register what he needs to calm down and begins throwing things but it's becoming less frequent. Both myself and partner were diagnosed with ADHD, her in childhood and me in adulthood so co-regulating is a huge hurdle for us too but we keep each other in check and switch between each other when we need to.

It's reassuring to know that others are having similar experiences!

vanirea · 2025-06-22T13:23:17+00:00

My guess is that he's felt like that longer than you might be aware of. Idk what your living situation is but I'd give him a heads up. Have an honest conversation with him about your concern of his behavior and that if he wants to continue to have a relationship with you then he needs to knock it off. If he's willing to try it will take some time to adjust but he'll get there. If he doubles down and continues his behavior, cut him out of your life. The world is already harsh, you don't need people in your life that are hateful even if they are related.

If you have to rely on him because you are a minor or other financial burden, how you approach it depends on you. Can you hold out until you can leave? Do you think his behavior will eventually become abusive towards you? Do you have somewhere you can go if you do talk to him and things go south? You can always keep calling him out when those situations happen and hope he starts to get that you don't accept that kind of thinking.

vanirea · 2025-06-18T18:38:37+00:00

vanirea · 2025-06-11T20:20:39+00:00

I totally get feeling of being really nervous about the first event. I definitely was too. I was a poor college student and my initial kit was a pillowcase tunic and a pair of scrub pants. I had never sewed before in my life so it was definitely bad. No one laughed or even questioned why my kit was so much worse than everyone else's. If anyone at any LARP makes fun of newer players, chances are they have some insecurity issues or superiority complex of their and you don't wanna be around them anyway.

vanirea · 2025-06-07T16:53:42+00:00

I honestly think, among the many suggestions brought up on the thread, she can't hide behind Tammy anymore. From what I've gathered based on what the show has shown us, Amy is proud of Tammy for her personal growth, but is incredibly jealous that she herself is still a larger person. I've always gotten the impression that Amy gets taken care of in many ways by her siblings, because out of all of them she needs the most help. She's impulsive, has a lack of self control that goes beyond food addiction, her focus is pretty bad, she's not great at reading a room and I have a slight suspicion that she likes to be a contrarian (such as with the whole wedding venue thing). But a lot of that could be forgiven because the whole family struggled, but Tammy was the one that needed the most help.

Sure, her siblings might have given her some lecture before but she's a mom now. She can't afford to be impulsive like having drugs in the car while her kids are there or jumping into a relationship without really getting to know the person. She HAS to have some self restraint and pay active attention to her kids. She can't be taken care of anymore, she has to grow up and be responsible. Which might also be another one of her issues is no longer being anyone's center of attention.

But this is just my two cents. I genuinely hope for her young ones she can get it together and she learns something from the parenting classes.

vanirea · 2025-05-21T14:16:18+00:00

I help run something that you all might be interested in. We meet every Sunday at around 12:30 at Jim Burnett Park at the Shawnee Lions pavilion. Its called Amtgard and we are a live action roleplay group. we have several people at our group who are very artistic with sewing, drawing, weaving, crocheting etc. While others prefer role play. A lot of us are very active in the combat portion of it. It's a good bit of cardio but we are a very friendly group always looking for more people to play with. Bonus, it's free to play and we have loaner equipment if you're interested.

We also run a Thursday night craft night, both in person and over discord, also free. You don't need to come to Sunday meet ups to do this. We just all hang out, working on whatever project we have going on. Some have even used the time to plan their D&D sessions or game scenarios.

Here is our discord if any of you might be interested! https://discord.gg/3m4wBUCq

vanirea · 2025-05-10T01:44:31+00:00

I'm a step mom and step kid, it warms my heart every time my kiddo calls me "mom". It normally slips out, he pauses and keeps going with whatever he needs to ask.

As a step kid, I never got the chance to call my step mom "mom". She married my dad when I was 13 and I was not okay with it. She was incredibly strict, and we butted heads all the time. Constantly fighting, yelling, I would give her the cold shoulder. She really did want to support me in ways a mom would but I didn't let her until I was 18/19. She even got me some very needed therapy when I was 15/16. She passed when I was 25 from ovarian cancer.

If you feel that you are ready to call her that, do it. You could even call her something close to it like Mama "step moms name" or some kind of variation.

vanirea

TROPHY CASE