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VA6336

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Posts posted by VA6336

    Am I just being a wimp?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    We are currently in a similar situation, with dh's 1997 truck needing expensive repairs we don't have the cash for. So, we're down to one 2003 minivan until we have the money to fix the truck. After running the numbers and realistically agreeing that being a one-vehicle family long term (more than 6 months) just isn't a good idea for us, we know that it will be cheaper for us to fix the truck than to replace it with a cheap car in 6 months. We have culled our budget and found a way to have the needed cash within 6 months. Here's hoping our situation is very short-term!

     

    I've wanted for years to seriously consider being a one vehicle household. My dh, however, has always had a very similar reaction to yours, in terms of emotional response. His reasons are different than your particular ones, of course. What kept me (the one wanting just one vehicle) from pushing my dh (who desperately did NOT want that situation), was to run the numbers and see that it really wasn't worth the savings and sanity toll. If you present your reasons to him in terms of money and can calmly explain the toll it will take on you, perhaps he'll be less determined right now.

     

    The only other thing I can think of is considering the amount of time and stress your job involves, have you thought about giving up work? I'm sure it was worth it when you started, but with how tired and stressed out you are now, maybe you can reevaluate it? You said this situation wouldn't be as big of a deal if you didn't have the workload. Would it be possible to work until the money is there to fix/replace the truck and then quit, or reduce your workload?

    Co-op Policies

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    In our co-op, the forms parents fill out before the year starts include a few lines for each child labeled "Allergies and/or Special Notes." I made an announcement at the beginning of the year during Opening Assembly (when everyone is together) that food treats needed parental approval before distribution because we did have a few allergies, namely X and Y. Each class leader knew if they had a child with allergies and if so, which child and what allergy. For the group as a whole, however, the general announcement was enough.

     

    I'm surprised that the information forms that must have been filled out didn't have a place for that kind of information. Maybe there was, and your kids are just in the classes that don't have food restrictions.

    Tell me about New College of Florida

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    A dear high school friend of mine is a 2004 grad. It was at that time extremely hard, academically. She was a bio major and now has a PhD. It was not somewhere that an insecure person would have done well. My first visit had me thinking the student body was mostly hacky-sack kicking pot smoking hippies. :). Everyone I know from there is very creative, thinking, opinionated...driven, but they all vary greatly in what they are passionate about. Does NC even have sports teams?? Overall, it was very liberal in almost every definition I can think of. High stress. Hope that helps.

    Want to join me in "doing the Puyallup" today? What do u think of last min. invites?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Doing the Puyallup was part of my childhood and I wish we could go! It would take me...a couple of days, so I'm thinking I won't make it by 10:30 AM. :D

     

    Regarding last minute invites, I have no problem with them. If that was the only type of invitation to do stuff that I ever received, I would probably get cranky because I can't always accept them. They're just that: last minute, if you're not doing anything else or desperately need to go to do something right now invites. When I send them, I do NOT expect everyone to accept and am just excited if one person does. We go through phases where we need out more often, and phases (like this one we're in) where we have to stay home and need to make longer term plans.

    Phonics Pathways vs Ordinary Parent's Guide

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I checked both out of the library, and read both cover to cover. The major differences that I saw were:

     

    Phonics Pathways is not scripted. OPG is.

    OPG has built in instructions for review. PP does not.

    OPG starts slower and has more time with individual consonant sounds.

    PP has more practice with blending 2 and 3 letter short vowel syllables.

    PP has some games included and suggestions for making reading lessons more active/kinestetic. OPG has none of that.

    PP starts blends with consonants first, like ba, be, bi, no, bu. OPG starts with vowels first like ab, eb, ib, ob, ub.

    .

     

    :iagree:My eldest daughter hates scripted lessons with a passion, so OPG just wouldn't work for us. We used the games in PP for review. I found that PP was easier to work through with each kid going a different pace. OPG was just monstrously slow for my middle kid. My youngest is a totally different personality and I think he might enjoy OPG. They're both great, but the above are the differences. If you use PP, someone told me once to use a blank piece of paper to cover what's not being read and that was a lifesaver tip for us. Helped with eye tracking and being overwhelmed by lots of black on the page.

    Love and Logic

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I think if you are naturally a drill sargent type parent, then there is a good deal of good advice. It's mostly common sense, but for some families it is really helpful. For a friend of mine, it would be a waste of time since their family is naturally very good at allowing children to experience the unmitigated consequences of their choices, and are also good at not dictating everything. I like things MY way and struggle to NOT lecture over things that don't need it. So, the LL books help me refocus sometimes.

    Homeschooling in Colorado.. A few questions...

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I am not a certified teacher, and do not send in a NOI. We use HomeLife Academy. No testing requirements, just turn in grades for the subjects I choose twice a year. It is all online. Easy peasy. Many people I know here do the Options program, so they submit NOIs and do the testing. There are pros and cons to each. A friend with a Texas teaching certification has had to jump through LOTS of hoops to get a CO certification, just FYI.

    How do you budget for food expenses if your family doesn't have traditional meals?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I like couponmom.com for seeing easily what is on sale and for how much less than normal. I guess if I were you, I would stock up as much as possible on the things you know you eat, but when they are on sale. For example, we have 10 two pound blocks of sharp cheddar in the fridge right now. They are usually $8-10 each but were on sale for $5. The expiration dates are long on the kind we eat (about 6 months) and I know it will get eaten before then. I don't know that buying more meat will help your budget, but eating whatever produce is in sale in greater quantities each week might help. For example, peaches and pears are our fruit this week because they are cheap right now. Maybe a cheap extra fridge for the garage would help?

     

    Good luck!

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