Free Republic

Parents would get new federal tax breaks for sending their children to private or religious schools or teaching them at home if the final Republican tax overhaul bill becomes law. For that, they can thank Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who offered the original amendment to extend 529 college savings plans to grade school and high school, including costs for homeschooling.

A Florida couple just became a family of nine after adopting seven children - all brothers and sisters and all at once! Sofia and Dashoan Olds said they always knew they might adopt some day, according to Today. The Olds said once they saw a news story about the siblings, it just felt right to adopt. "I like to say I felt like it was a calling. Honestly, when I saw that picture, it was automatic.""There was no question, if they allow us to adopt these children, we will do it," said Sofia. "I like to say I felt like...

We’ve been writing at length about the dangers of the new Paul Ryan/Patty Murray bill, the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act (FEPA), which requires federal agencies to share and analyze Americans’ personal data in the name of “evidence-building.” The theory is that all this new evidence will enable Congress to cut programs that aren’t working and save taxpayers boatloads of money.As luck would have it, such a demonstrably ineffective program is now up for review in Congress – giving Speaker Ryan, Senator Murray, and their comrades-in-arms a golden opportunity to prove that more “evidence” will lead to better policy.The program...

The 31-year-old mother of four made an announcement to family and friends on Facebook: She and her husband of four and a half years were expecting a fifth child. “We’re blessed,” wrote she. Most Christ followers believe an automatic blessing awaits mothers- and fathers-to-be, no matter the circumstances under which their newborns are brought into the world. But the Bible does not say that the actions of expectant parents can displease God, yet the arrival of their newborn guarantees the Almighty’s blessing. In fact, it teaches us the opposite – that God does not reward parents-to-be whose actions run contrary...

The Newtons have received thousands of emails and Facebook messages about the lynx, Cathy said. Responding to demand, they started selling calendars, posters, magnets and Christmas ornaments featuring the playful cats. "We did not intend to do these projects. It was all customer demand," said Newton, a part-time mental health counselor. Packaging and shipping the products and responding to questions is like a full-time job, she said. Tim Newton, a semi-retired engineer, said the couple doesn't expect to make money, or certainly not much. They're still paying off up-front costs. But it's been fun talking to people from other continents about lynx and Alaska. So far, he's shipped...

A Google search for “family at Thanksgiving” yields disturbing results. An article authored by Dr. Marie Hartwell-Walker and posted on Psych Central’s web site offers “10 Tips for Surviving Thanksgiving with the Dysfunctional Family.” Another article, written by TODAY contributor Gail Saltz and posted on the morning show’s site, is headlined “Thanksgiving stress: How to avoid holiday family conflict.” And still another article, keyboarded by Esquire.com writer-at-large Dave Holmes and posted on the magazine’s site, begs the question: “Is Thanksgiving Better With Family or Friends?” Hartwell-Walker advises lining up “some co-conspirators” before the family gathers for Thanksgiving. “Chances are you’re...

Ok, what's everyone making today? Besides Turkey, I'm making: Spiral Cut Smoked Ham Sweet Potato Casserole Real Mashed Potato's Meat Stuffing in the Turkey Apple Pie (baked yesterday) Pumpkin Pie (baked yesterday) Green Beans Almondine Crescent Rolls Salad Cranberry Sauce

<p>The musician and actor, 67, who starred in TV's The Partridge Family (1970 to 1974), has died in Florida after being hospitalized with organ failure, according to a statement sent to USA TODAY by his representative Jo-Ann Geffen.</p> <p>"On behalf of the entire Cassidy family, it is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our father, our uncle, and our dear brother, David Cassidy," the statement said. "David died surrounded by those he loved, with joy in his heart and free from the pain that had gripped him for so long. Thank you for the abundance and support you have shown him these many years."</p>

A British Government education watchdog ordered the Holy Ghost Catholic Primary School in London to remove “mother” and “father” in their admission form in order to please “separated, step and gay parents”. The Bishops’ Catholic Education Service, known for accommodating to gay ideology, is now drafting a new form for its 2,230 Catholic schools. The form will only refer to “the family”. Many schools already use “parent 1” and “parent 2”. The Sunday Times cites an expert who called this decision “profoundly undemocratic, illiberal and a capitulation to a form of politically correct fascism”.

“When women go wrong men go right after them.” – Mae West “Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy; its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” Winston Churchill wrote this over a century ago. During my junior year in high school, the nuns asked about our plans for after we graduated. When I said I was going to attend State University, I noticed their disappointment. I asked my favorite nun, “Why?” She answered, “That means you’ll leave four years later a communist and an atheist!” What a giggle we girls...

An Italian couple and their 11-year-old son died in a freak accident on Tuesday when they fell into a 10ft-deep hole that suddenly opened up in a highly active volcanic area near Naples. Police said the child strayed beyond safety barriers and was swallowed up by the pit, plunging into boiling hot mud at the Solfatara Crater in Pozzuoli, part of a huge volcanic area known as the Campi Flegrei or Phlegrean Fields. His father, 45, reportedly rushed to his rescue but also fell into the sink-hole. The boy’s mother, 42, then went to their aid, but she too was...

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on a statement issued by evangelical leaders August 29: The Catholic League has a long history of mutual cooperation with evangelical Christians on a host of cultural issues. In that spirit, we condemn the unfair attacks against the statement on marriage, family and sexuality that was signed by more than 150 evangelical leaders following their conference in Nashville last week. “Hateful,” “homophobic,” “anti-LGBT” are among the hysterical condemnations of the statement flying around print, broadcast and social media. But the statement is none of those things. While restating long-held Christian teaching that marriage is...

I'm asking for Prayers for My Mother and the Family Tonight and over the next days please. Mom is 92 as of 08/03/17. We held a small Family Birthday Party for Her that day and She was doing fairly well at the time, She recognized Me at the time and it was a fairly good day for everyone. I got a call Today that She is no longer eating or drinking and it won't be long before She goes to be with God. I'm leaving ASAP to be with Her. She is in Hospice Care at the Nursing Home. She...

‘It is no longer unusual for us to live to be as old as 80, 90 and 100 years or more’WASHINGTON, DC – Reports of physical and financial abuse of the elderly are on the rise throughout the country. It’s a crime that, experts say, is largely under-reported. But, a new light needs to be shed on this dirty little secret, says Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC].“Older Americans are easy targets in most cases. Many of them depend on caregivers for survival and that makes them beholden and vulnerable. It also can make them...

People once again need to rise up like the Vendée Catholics and Royalists, the cardinal addedModern Western advocates of abortion and population control in Africa are like the French revolutionaries who massacred the people of Vendée, Cardinal Robert Sarah has said.In a homily honouring the Vendée martyrs, published online by Famille Chrétienne, Cardinal Sarah praised the region and its inhabitants for resisting atheistic republicanism during the Revolution, but said that the Church and the traditional family still faced persecution.“Who will rise today for God?” the cardinal asked. “Who will dare to confront the modern persecutors of the Church? Who will...

Just about four years ago we published a post on 15 Manly Smells. The article received a ton of comments from folks who wanted to add their own favorite manly smells to the list, and the other day I found myself lost in enjoyment reading over them all again. So many of the additions were so great and evocative and so worthy of mention, and as the first post was one of my all-time favorites, I couldn’t resist compiling another edition. Enjoy and add your still unmentioned favorites to the comments!Black Coffee “My favorite scent, not just manly scent,...

Disney Junior released an episode of a cartoon aimed at preschoolers that depicted two "married" lesbian moms. Doc McStuffins, a show about an aspiring doctor who "fixes" toys with help from friends, featured a family led by two "moms" in its August 5 episode "The Emergency Plan." Although Doc McStuffins has been praised by many cultural critics for its depiction of a young African-American female doctor, it's now under fire for its most recent episode pushing same-sex "marriage." Here are 12 facts about Doc McStuffins. The creator of the show, Chris Nee, is in a same-sex 'marriage.' Michelle Obama...

In 1960, only 10% of children were raised without a father in the home.Today, 40% are.There are many reasons behind this sobering statistic. The clichéd case of a man knocking up a woman, and then leaving town never to return certainly still occurs.But sometimes a man’s ex-wife petitions for primary custody of their kids, and sympathetic family courts unjustly grant this request about 80% of the time.And there is an increasing number of women — who for various reasons cannot or do not want to raise their children with a boyfriend or husband — who intentionally choose to become...

A little light to share in this world of Wrong. Sitting here waiting for my eleventh Grandchild to be born. :) It never gets old or normal and it is always such a joy... :)

I just wanted to let the community know that my Dad past away last night at 95 years . He was an American hero, a World War II B17 pilot with the 8th Air Force 379th Bomb Group out of Kimbolton Airfield England. He flew 25 missions and returned to be an B29 flight instructor at Roswell New Mexico. He became a petroleum engineer after graduating from OU and travelled the world with his family drilling wells for Mobil Oil and providing energy for all of us. BTW, I asked him about the Roswell incident , he was there at...