Depends on the blue collar job. My dh makes more at his blue collar job than most of my acquaintance's dhs do working in an office. We live well --squarely in the middle/upper middle class.

:grouphug:

Recital fees are standard where I am, although our studio is only $35.00 per student. The recital fee includes three tickets--if you want more, you pay.

My 18 yo has had a really tough time finding paid work. She is in her 5th year volunteering with the zoo and her 3rd year doing an unpaid internship at her dance studio. Even with that experience, she did not even get a call after filling out applications for every business in town and the town just north of us. However, I have a friend who manages a small adult assisted living facility and dd was able to get on there (after turning 18) for 6 hours a week. It's not much, but it's a start. My ds started being a paid soccer referee for our local recreational soccer league two years ago (12). He works steadily through the fall.

We kept full coverage on our '04 Sienna and '06 Jeep Wrangler, however, we only have liability on our '00 Toyota Corolla--it's only worth about $3,500.

I don't have much to add and this thread is huge--- I was so sad to hear about this accident and have nothing but sympathy for the driver. I can't imagine the guilt he is going to have to live with. And Mom. The guilt will eat at them and hurts my heart. The legalities of it all will come out and, for his sake, it is my sincere hope that all was well on that front. Having driven 8600 miles cross country and back in a 30 ft Class A RV pulling a car, I was immediately drawn to this story and just have a few things to add. *Yes, 80ft is illegal to pull in a motorhome BUT this was a converted semi and was probably classed differently. *All the Class A's I've seen have passenger seat belts. Not 16, but ours has a total of six belts. Our RV is older, a '99. *The issue with seat belts in RVs is that only Winnebagos bolt the furniture to the frame soooo the seat belts we have in our Fleetwood are only good if the furniture remains stable (ie, minor, not major accident) *Statistically speaking, RV accidents are rare. I tried to find a study to link, but couldn't find one in my quick search. I will say that our insurance for our RV is a mere $25 a month. *The only times we had issues on our trip was with other drivers, especially semis and other RVs, not accounting and compensating for the wind that hits the back of the rig as you are passing or someone is passing you.

You can use the EHE as a standalone. It appears that SL has incorporated some aspects of the EHE into the new IG.

I'm one that *LOVED* the EHE. I used 5/F with a 5th, 6th and 7th grader and it was perfect. I used the old and the new EHE--I even used some of the old pages of the EHE for my younger two --there use to be a great chart that you filled out with each country's population and form of government. Very cool. My dc didn't love the EHE, BUT they learned and retained TONS. Even now (we did 5/F last year with my younger two and 6 years ago with my oldest) they remember bits of information that they learned while doing the EHE. eta: I think some of the angst w/the EHE comes from those who have used SL for years. The EHE is very different and time consuming. I started SL with Core 5 and was surprised at how little time Core 6 took the following year.

Dh packs his lunch. I don't know what he wants to eat every day-- AND, he's not always in the office--sometimes he is out in the field without access to a microwave or fridge.

Totally OT BUT Oh, don't miss out on Core 5! I've done it twice--without the missionary books and it is my favorite, favorite core with some of my favorite SL books--ever. If you don't do the missionary stories you free up a ton of time for all sorts of fun educational side trips. What's great about 5 is that you study all sorts of countries that a typical Western world history skips--The Golden Age of Islan--China--Japan--Australia--

I'm very grateful your dh is in remission. I have MS--I would *highly* recommend that you reconsider your position regarding injectables and consider Copaxone which operates vastly differently than the interferons. Research shows that damage can happen without any outward signs. The vast majority of people with MS do NOT end up severely disabled. I certainly wish your dh to be one of them!

I am so jealous! How exciting! We have tx for IMAX at noon on the 23rd. Report back!!!!!!

Oh, I'm so excited!! :lurk5:

This. I've heard that the Quality labs were an excellent fit. I ended up using something else (Castle Heights, iirc) and it was OK. I would have went with Quality if I would've known. My dd used Kolbe's schedule and tests and it was a fantastic year. She loves that book and won't let me sell it.

I'd stay home, but go visit him for a few days in the middle of it.

Definitely hit Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

I re did what was on my mantle, organized my tupperware cabinet and made a bunch of yummy stuff.

Wow! Awesome!

I liked it, but if it's not hooking you I'd go ahead and read the last chapter and move on. I recently read "The Forgotten Garden" by Kate Morten. It was a nice, easy, get-lost-in sort of read.

My dh bought me a treadmill for Christmas. I got a Live Strong one after doing some research. The brand is new ('09), however, it is built using the same components as Vision and Horizon (made by Johnson Health Tech). I was teetering between the Live Strong LS13 and the Sole F63 since they were the same price (at the time). I went with the Live Strong because the L13 is more comparable to Sole's F80 model which was a couple of hundred dollars more than the Live Strong. It folds up, is stable, has a slightly longer running board. I'm happy with it.

Was just going to post this. Good luck!

Whenever I can. Usually either at night or mid afternoon. I do change and shower again and I've just gotten use to doing that. Now that my dh bought me a treadmill for Christmas, I have no more excuses.

Here--between 10 and 12 an hour which is a bit over minimum.

We school at the kitchen table. Here are a couple of pictures. I hate it, but it is what it is. My oldest has a basket of her day to day books and another one of those white bookcases in the family room where she does the majority of her schoolwork.

True....BUT when it snows in Oregon (in the valley anyway) it doesn't stay SNOW--it's slush which then freezes. Now, I grew up in New England where there was snow on the ground for months at a time--very easy to drive in. Icy, slushy mess that we get here? Not so much.