I'm taking my kids (13, 11, & 6) on a big road trip this summer, and we will be listening to audio books (both fiction and non-fiction) along the way. It occurred to me that we could match the setting of what we listen to to the place we are visiting, but the only thing I could think of was "Tom Sawyer" or "Huck Finn" for our trip along the Mississippi (probably "Tom Sawyer" for the sake of the 6 year old). So, our planned loop, with some of the things we plan to see, is: Green River, UT (Arches and Goblin Valley) Farmington, NM (Four Corners and Aztec Ruins) Albequerque, NM Sante Fe, NM (Living history museum for the Spanish Missions era) Amarillo, TX Oklahoma, OK (Bombing memorial) Talequah, OK (Cherokee living history museum) Fayettesville, AR (Trail of Tears and Civil war monument) St. Louis, MO (Arch and some big train museum my son is dying to see) Hannibal, MO Carthage and Nauvoo, IL Altoona, IA (to visit Grandma) Red Oak, IA Omaha, NE/Council Bluffs, IA North Platte, NE (Mormon Trail, Oregon Trail) Chadron, NE (Museum of the Fur Trade) Rapid City, SD (Mount Rushmore, Custer's State Park, Badlands, 1880 Railroad) Yellowstone Idaho Falls, ID

Had some reading time waiting for my daughter's theater rehearsal... 16. "The Collapse of Parenting" by Leonard Sax. Very thought provoking. I'm one who wavers between too soft and just right. I need to work on consistancy. 15. ""Flying Too High: A Phyrne Fisher Mystery" by Kerry Greenwood. 14. "Cocaine Blues: A Phyrne Fisher Mystery" by Kerry Greenwood. DH and I have been watching the TV series on Netflix, and I've read one of Ms. Greenwood's Corinna stories, so I thought I'd give it a go. Deep and meaningful it was not, but a nice diversion. 13. "Let It Go" by Chris Williams. True story of how Mr. Williams was able to forgive the drunk teenager who t-boned them in Salt Lake City, killing his pregnant wife and two of their children. This story was recently turned into a movie called "Just Let Go." but I haven't seen it yet. 12. "Writing From Personal Experience" by Nancy Davidoff Kelton. 11. "Writing the Memoir" by Judith Barrington. 10. "Boys Adrift" by Leonard Sax. 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

I'm taking my kids (13, 11, & 6) on a big road trip this summer, and we will be listening to audio books (both fiction and non-fiction) along the way. It occurred to me that we could match the setting of what we listen to to the place we are visiting, but the only thing I could think of was "Tom Sawyer" or "Huck Finn" for our trip along the Mississippi (probably "Tom Sawyer" for the sake of the 6 year old). So, our planned loop, with some of the things we plan to see, is: Green River, UT (Arches and Goblin Valley) Farmington, NM (Four Corners and Aztec Ruins) Albequerque, NM Sante Fe, NM (Living history museum for the Spanish Missions era) Amarillo, TX Oklahoma, OK (Bombing memorial) Talequah, OK (Cherokee living history museum) Fayettesville, AR (Trail of Tears and Civil war monument) St. Louis, MO (Arch and some big train museum my son is dying to see) Hannibal, MO Carthage and Nauvoo, IL Altoona, IA (to visit Grandma) Red Oak, IA Omaha, NE/Council Bluffs, IA North Platte, NE (Mormon Trail, Oregon Trail) Chadron, NE (Museum of the Fur Trade) Rapid City, SD (Mount Rushmore, Custer's State Park, Badlands, 1880 Railroad) Yellowstone Idaho Falls, ID

I'm behind again! I have three books halfway through, but can't seem to finish one.... 15. ""Flying Too High: A Phyrne Fisher Mystery" by Kerry Greenwood. 14. "Cocaine Blues: A Phyrne Fisher Mystery" by Kerry Greenwood. DH and I have been watching the TV series on Netflix, and I've read one of Ms. Greenwood's Corinna stories, so I thought I'd give it a go. Deep and meaningful it was not, but a nice diversion. 13. "Let It Go" by Chris Williams. True story of how Mr. Williams was able to forgive the drunk teenager who t-boned them in Salt Lake City, killing his pregnant wife and two of their children. This story was recently turned into a movie called "Just Let Go." but I haven't seen it yet. 12. "Writing From Personal Experience" by Nancy Davidoff Kelton. 11. "Writing the Memoir" by Judith Barrington. 10. "Boys Adrift" by Leonard Sax. 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

We like Prang and Lyra for colored pencils, and K.U.M. for a handheld sharpener. (I read here on the forums several years ago to buy a sharpener with a German made blade, which led us to K.U.M.)

A couple of quick reads, to help me catch up. (Only one behind now.) 14. "Cocaine Blues: A Phyrne Fisher Mystery" by Kerry Greenwood. DH and I have been watching the TV series on Netflix, and I've read one of Ms. Greenwood's Corinna stories, so I thought I'd give it a go. Deep and meaningful it was not, but a nice diversion. 13. "Let It Go" by Chris Williams. True story of how Mr. Williams was able to forgive the drunk teenager who t-boned them in Salt Lake City, killing his pregnant wife and two of their children. This story was recently turned into a movie called "Just Let Go." but I haven't seen it yet. 12. "Writing From Personal Experience" by Nancy Davidoff Kelton. 11. "Writing the Memoir" by Judith Barrington. 10. "Boys Adrift" by Leonard Sax. 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

:grouphug: Hope it goes really well.

I've fallen behind. Ebbs and flows in life, but might be a "good" thing, because it means I haven't sat in as many doctor's waiting rooms this last month! 12. "Writing From Personal Experience" by Nancy Davidoff Kelton. 11. "Writing the Memoir" by Judith Barrington. 10. "Boys Adrift" by Leonard Sax. 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

DH had pancreatitis about five years ago. The pain caused him to pass out twice. They got his lipase at 21,000. (Normal is 75-150.) They traced it quickly to his gall bladder, and removed it. He recovered pretty quickly and hasn't had any problems since. (He was already diabetic, but nothing got worse after.) The only "side effect" has been how he rates things on the pain scale. Now he always says, "If pancreatitis is a ten, this is only a ____." (A lot of things he used to call an 8 or 9 only get a 3 or 4 now!)

They are posted! Whoot! Whoot!

I'm looking at the bolded part. Do you have experience pitching your tent alone, or with only the help of your young children? It's doable. I've pitched our tent with only the help of our then four year old, but by then we'd already used that tent many times, and DH and I had it down to a routine. If you haven't already, you might want to practice and assign each child a task and make sure each knows what to do. The boys who went on Klondike with DS's scout troop were instructed to change their socks right before bed so that they were absolutely dry. They all brought hand warmers and extra blankets to put in their sleeping bags, and the leaders brought even more blankets to pile on top.

The transaction fee in an ATM is usually a flat one and not a percentage. I think ours charges $1.25 for using an out-of-network ATM and $1.50 for taking it in a foreign currency, no matter how much we withdraw. We take a debit card from each of our bank accounts and a back up credit card. The first day there, we each take the maximum amount allowed from each debit card, and put one day's worth of cash in our wallet and the rest in a money belt. Our debit cards also go in the money belt. (And we alert all the banks whose card we plan to take which countries we will be visiting.) We put the rental car on the credit card, because our card offers an insurance policy so that we can waive the CDW. We usually use bed & breakfasts, rather than hotels, and pay cash, so unless there is an emergency, the car is almost always the only thing that goes on the credit card. We visit another ATM when we only have two or three day's cash left, or if we are leaving an urban area for a rural area.

Has anyone used this book: Nutrition Fun with Brocc & Roll? DD11 wants to learn about what she should be eating, but what I tell her verbally does not velcro to her brain. She needs something with good illustrations and straight-forward text. Any other possibilities out there? Thanks.

So now comes the part where I find myself compulsively checking every couple of hours to see if the talks are available to print yet .... Fastest so far was last April, I think it was, when they were posted Tuesday morning.

And now, Elder Oaks....

We haven't heard from Elders Oaks, Hales, or Holland yet. Think we'll get all three this afternoon?

Wonderful to hear from President Monson, even if brief. Loved President Uchtdorf's talk.

I liked "Your Baby's First Year Week by Week" somewhat better than the "What to Expect..." series. Not so much a parenting book, but I've given Jim Trelease's "Read Aloud Handbook," with a couple of our favorite board books as a new mom gift before.

Seems to have. I was at the grocery store and the men and boys in suits started coming in heading for the ice cream in the deli about 7:40!

I'm trying to. My favorite so far was the talk Elder Hallstrom gave this morning about remembering our eternal identity.

I showed the link to my two dyslexics, DH and DD11. That's not what they experience, though DH says now that he's old and needs multi-focus lenses, if he's reading text without his glasses, so it's blurry, he experiences minor jumping. (Not like the link.) For both of mine, it seems to be more processing speed than visual issues. DH reads, even massive certification texts, just slowly. Takes him a year, but he compensates by having an extraordinary memory. (I'd forget the earlier chapters by the time I finished if it took me that long.) His mother paid for Irlen glasses for him when we were first married. He got a colored overlay, too. He used them about a week, and said that while it was a little more restful, it didn't help his reading. (He doesn't like bright, white paper, or bright lights in general. If he steps out into bright sunshine from a dimmer interior, he sneezes violently. He says it's because he's part vampire :tongue_smilie:, but only part!) DD11 also has ASD and generally has a slow processing speed. Verbal conversation is a struggle for her. She reads "at grade level" and got her dyslexia diagnosis because her IQ is two and a half standard deviations above that. She reads aloud fine, good flow, and pronouncing everything correctly, but can't remember what she just read. So if she loses her place, she can't find it again.

One of my first clues was when I was trying to dose one of my sick kids, and I couldn't read the label. (I handed it to the child, of course, and had him read me the instructions.) I need bifocals, but I'm not giving up my contact lenses just yet.

My sister-in-law's library is doing something like that. She gave me a copy of the flyer, which I lost. It sounded a lot like GeoCoins or Travel Bugs from Geocaching, in that you take a book, read it, log it online somewhere, and return it somewhere else. You can donate some of your own and watch to see where they go. 10. "Boys Adrift" by Leonard Sax. Counterpart to the last book I read. Discusses the recent phenomenon of young men who live in their parents' basement playing computer games at the age they used to get jobs, get married, buy a home, etc. 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

Hey, I'm on track! 9. "Girls on the Edge" by Leonard Sax. Very thought provoking. It makes some differences between how my older daughter learns compared to her brother make sense. She does prefer to know the story behind what's being taught, for instance. Working on "Boys Adrift" now, and I'm on the hold list for his latest book. 8. "Christ and the Inner Life" by Truman G. Madsen. (LDS) This book illustrates the advantage of getting old! Ha! I'm pretty sure I read it twenty-three years ago when my husband was taking a class taught by Dr. Madsen, but not a single word rang a bell. I don't have to get all new books; I can just start over with the ones I've already read! 7. "Gaze into Heaven" by Marlene Bateman Sullivan. (LDS) So this is also an NDE book, but a different twist: all the stories come from Mormon Pioneer journals, so they aren't contemporary stories. Remarkably similar to modern reports. I'd love to read other historical accounts from any or no faith background, but I don't know of any others. 6. "To Heaven and Back" by Mary C. Neal, MD. 5. "When Will the Heaven Begin?" by Ally Breedlove. 4. "Four" by Virginia Roth. 3. "Allegiant" by Virgina Roth. 2. " Insurgent" by Virginia Roth. 1. "Divergent" by Virginia Roth.

He may have been a Mormon, but he can't have been a missionary. The young men missionaries are required to wear white shirts. He may have been a member of a local ward "on a split" with the missionaries. This is when two local members of the same gender as the missionaries volunteer to spend the day with the missionaries so they can split up to get twice as much done (since missionaries are also required to always work in pairs). If you hadn't said he also had a tweed coat, I would have suggested he perhaps made a laundry error. I had a mission companion who didn't know you had to separate colors, and she tossed a green sweater in a batch of whites we were washing. Fortunately, sister missionaries are allowed to wear colored blouses.