We have been getting flu shots as a family for over 20 years. That is why I think we didn't get it this year although the shots were much less effective. All those other shots together with this one probably pulled us through. I am normally on some type of immunosuppressant and can't have family members get flu. Dh is military and we get free shots.

My kids have a horrible time adjusting, especially the ADHD ones. My middle child is ADHD, is not on her regular medication right now and today was not a great day. SHe did work starting at almost nine but her thinking is off more than usual.

IF my dh gets a job he is in the running for, we would be moving overseas and get the choice of either getting a load of money for homeschooling (around 5000 for 6th grader and 7200 for 10th grader) or they would pay for the tuition at a private school (which would cost them a lot more). My older does not want to stop homeschooling. She is an introvert and wouldn't want to change tracks either. Her younger sister is a different matter. She claims she wants to be homeschooled but she does so much better working for others. SHe is an extrovert and craves social interaction. She has several opportunities a week but wants more.

We are military so we have been in many congregations over the years as we keep moving about. Some of the churches had pre-schools and the one we are members at now has this too. It is an outreach and a way to minister to children. We get families involved in the church this way. It serves a need in the community. I wouldn't use it if I had little ones most likely but I did use a Mother's Day Out program at a church when my oldest two were little. It helped with doctor appointments and other errands. Our current church has an Easter egg hunt on Good Friday which is a school holiday. The Mimister talks to the kids, there are Bible themed games and activities, we had a Christian magician perform last year, and each child receives some Christian message and symbols amongst the eggs they collect. Other churches we have been at like the base chapel overseas had an easter Egg hunt outside after the communal Easter Dinner we shared after service. Again, it can either be an outreach ministry or a fun recreation activity for Christian children or both. No Easter bunnies were ever present at these Christian events and no one seemed confused. Sunday School helps some children learn Bible basics. For others like my kids, it reinforces knowledge they already have and gives them some feloowship time and fun craft time.We don't just leave Bible learning to Sunday School. In older grades, we have homework for the teens. If I find something very objectionable, I would go to another church. I would not expect the church to change for me.

We have to prioritize rights. I won't tell you that you can't smoke in your own home since I don't need to come visit. But don't have your smoke whether it be from a wood burning stove, fireplace or bonfire invade my space. Asthma and heart attacks caused by particulate pollution kill people.

I am so sorry to hear about both of you. I will be praying. Christina in Florida

I have to agree with banning wood burning fireplaces and yes I am a conservative. Yet I believe that ones rights stop when they greatly interfere with others rights and in this case, the rights that are being interfered with by wood burning stoves are the right to breathe without problems. Smoke from wood burning fires precipitates asthma attacks and has been shown to increase the rate of heart attacks. I am fine with wood burning stoves if they has some effective way of filtering the particulate they produce.

Here in Florida, in order to get certified you have to spend months student teaching at a brick and mortar school. I was looking into this in order to see if either I or my husband (a PHD physicist) could do some online teaching. It had nothing to do with thinking I need this for homeschooling. If I was in a state where I just had to pass a test, I might do this just to get the certificate. But again, I only am considering this as a career expansion for either teaching online, tutoring, or setting up a service to help other homeschoolers (like doing state mandated evaluations). I did look at some test that was required in one state we lived in (which I don't remember) and the test had nothing to do with knowing the material being taught and everything to do with educational theory and history of educational theory. It was very dull and if you hadn't taken really boring ed classes, you would definitely have to study the material. I had taken an education class on how to teach college class and that didn't help me any with the test. (I had just checked out the practice test cd from the library and tried it) My dh didn't want to try to look for a job in CA due to high cost of living. Now we can add homeschooling problems to the mix.

I always hated this generalization. Yes, I drive my kids around. They have played soccer in the past though now no one does due to injuries.They do watch DVDs sometimes but but for longer rides like 1/2 hour minimum. Yes, I have professional hair cuts and dye jobs. No I don't get nails. Yes, I am involved with committees and groups. No, I don't drive SUVs or vans but a nice roomy sedan. No, I don't have one or two kids but I don't have a vanful of kids either. (Two at home, one at college). I homeschool. But the most important difference in the generalizations is that this idea of married moms with kids all voting Democrat is simply untrue. The fact is that married women tend Republican particularly if they are not poor. This election year my most important issues are national security followed closely by economic policy.

We are military and follow the lead of the local area laws. Here in Florida, afterschool care doesn't exist after age ten. So we started with very short trips of ten minutes or so. Now she is eleven and she stays at home for near doctor appointments. I do not leave her for more than about two hours and her father works only four miles away. Her fourteen and a half year old sister babysits at night if we are going out.

Two years ago, I was in Belgium waiting to hear if and where we were getting orders. We knew we should be packing out in late April but at this point, we still didn't have orders. This time around, we don't know what we are doing. Dh may nbe retiring and that may caus two moves ina short time since our lease is up end of June and he might retire later. If he stays in and gets promoted, we will have to be ready to move with two weeks notice. That is how its been going lately -very short notice moves. Take breaks, get help, and know that all of us are pulling for you.

My kids were playing this when we were living in Belgium. They had found out about it from their other homescholing friends. Other than obsession issues, the most important thing was that someone got ahold of my then 10 or 11 yo daughter's email and starting sending inappropriate and threatening messages. Runescape is one of the only programs that is permanently blocked at our house.

My husband did most of his work including almost all research and all coursework, comps, everything but the dissertation in three years full-time. We had no financial problems because he was an active duty officer during this and was receiving his normal pay. However, I was also working on my Phd at the time and had a four year old and a new baby. I ended up doing all my coursework and my exams in a year and a half and then I quit since I got ill and could see that my family would suffer. My husband left the institution without his PHD and moved to his next base. About a year and few months later, he came back (with me at home with my third) did two weeks of supplemantary research and then got his dissertation finished, went back and did his defense, and got his PhD. He never went back for the ceremony because we were living 2500 miles away at the time and the airplane tickets weren't cheap. So for him the total was 3 yrs fulltime and then two years finishing up not at the institution whle working long hours in his normal job which included travel and more coursework for that job. How did I deal with it? I knew the payback would be great in many years hence (it has been 10 years since his degree). He is still AD but he some better assignments becasue of his PhD. Furthermore, we don't have any of the worries of the less technical people as he nears retirement. With his degree and his clearances, he will get a good job.

Our children are older so I will put down things for this era in our life (youngest is 11). TV Columbo Dragnet Flintstones Night Stalker Star Trek Twilight Zone British Comedies Movies Many science fiction and cheesy horror from 30s to 50s James Bond movies

BA in Economics, MS in criminal justice, ABD in criminal justice (got chronic illness and started homeschooling)

Thanks for the suggestions. I haven't really thought about her as medically fragile since she isn't prone to other illnesses except her main one. I completely sympathize with the poster who talked about three emergency room visits. Last week we had four doctor visits and one er trip.Plus she has opposite side effects from medicines. SHe is on one that is supposed to help prevent headaches and normally causes sleepiness. She is in the 5% who get insomnia as a side effect.

I see lots of sites dedicated to homeschooling children with learning disabilities and such but I am looking for homeschooling children who are medically il. TIA

I have talked about her a few times. However, it is getting so long, I really have to change my ideas about homeschool. She is 14 1/2, normally very smart and very hard working and has been sick with as yet undiagnosed illness since Nov. 23rd. It started as a headache which has never ceased except for sleep and now has moved into joint pains, fast heart rate, ganglion cyst in her wrist, various muscle pains, occassional breathing difficulties, etc, etc. She finally got blood tests a week ago and we are waiting on those results. They are checking for rheumatological and thyroid issues along with other things. Anyway, when her headache is low, which is less and less, she can do schoolwork like geometry and chemistry. When her headache is an 8, she can't do hardly anything. If it is a five, she may be able to listen to a teaching company lecture or study Spanish. I live in a stupid state that requires me to send in test results or portfolio evaluations and she is signed up for a test in May but I don't know whether she will be up to it. I don't think it is just the pain but also that she has very bad brain fog at times. I will be able to give her 1/2 credit for choir, 1/2 credit for PE, one credit for English, one credit for Spanish. She may be able to finish Ancient History (she has slightly over 1/4 done). She is slowly working geometry through ALEKS. It claims she will be done in 13 weeks. Her chemistry won't get done in 13 weeks since she has 15 chapters left. We are likely to be moving at least once if not twice this summer. By the end of May, she will have four credits in total (one from Algebra in eight grade) and maybe another 1 or 1 1/2 if she gets a bit better. This isn't great but is it enogh not to get the authorities from harassing us? What gets to me about anyone looking over my shoulder is that even with this illness, my daughter is the best prepared student for her outside classes, the most conscientious participant in youth praise band, and Police Explorers and keeps volunteering whenever her health doesn't prevent her from doing so.

1. Her great attitude with chest x-rays, IVs, oxygen monitors, two doctor visits, one Er visit, multiple blood tests, and constant pain from headache and now also joint pain. I just about start crying when I think how hard she has it and how hard she has been trying to do good work. 2. Her constant striving to do work including doing work in the middle of the night if she is awake and can't sleep. 3. Not only does she still try to do her schoolwork but she is also trying to enter into an essay contest, sings in the choir, went to police explorers only hours after the ER, etc, etc,

My name is really Christina and I am now Christina in Space Coast, that is I see the shuttle and rocket launches from my house if I don't go to the beach to get a better view. I am married to dh for 21 1/2 years and we have three children. DS/18 is in his third year at Hillsdale, dd/14 and dd/11 are still being homeschooled. We are still a military family though my dh is trying to decide whether to retire or not. I used to be Christina in Belgium and Christina in NM. That makes is at least 6 years that I have been here but I think it is more like 7. We are in a great state of flux as to what I like right now since we are having major medical problems with my middle child. SHe is still having her non-stop headache of now over 2 1/2 months. She now also has joint pains and something that seems like carpal tunnel syndrome. We don't have a diagnose yet but we are probably going to have at least three doctor visits this week with one last week and one next week scheduled. I have my 14 yo doing two-three classes online and another two with a co-op. She is getting behind but I am trying to just have her not get too far behind. Her younger sister is doing at least two lessons a day with an online Canadian program. I just want a diagnose and tratment started so that we can start getting back to more normal. Christina in Space Coast

I am interested in what works, any books or any websites that may be helpfu. This is for my youngest who finds everything boring, too hard, stupid, etc. She is 11 and is certainly not working up to her potential. Thanks.

I have three children and my youngest two are who I am writing about. My middle child (14yo girl) is awaiting surgery on her shoulder and has been having a non-stop headache since the day after Thanksgiving. She is finally seeing a neurologist this Thursday. She has become more apathetic and very discouraged about the lack of relief from pain. I am really at a loss on how to encourage her. I was encouraging her about her doctor visit which was supposed to be yesterday but that Doctor had a death in the family and wouldn;t be able to see her for another month. So I called the insurance and insisted that they find me a new doctor. I hope he will give her something on Thursday to rid her of this headache but even I am getting morose about this. Then my youngesst turns out to have an abnormality on her femur and now we need an MRI and another consult with a pediatric orthopedist for her. If she has one thing, they won't have to do anything else. If it is another thing they suspect could be wrong, they will have to do an invasive procedure but it would be a same day thing and then she would be fine. If it is cancer, I don't really know what they will do. If you have read this far, can you give suggestions for making the mood in a house lighter with sick children? Even if number three is completely fine, number two's headache are putting a big damper on everyone's mood.

Just finished watching the Republican debate here in Florida. I already voted for Giuliani (and am campaigning for him) but I watched the debate anyway. I also watched It Happened One Night on our computer from Netflix on demand with my high schooler who is in Movies and Lit class and had to find a Frank Capra movie to see.

I don't believe in ghosts but I think some of the things could be related to electrical fields.

We have been at it since 1994. One graduated homeschool in 2005, last should graduate in 2015.