OK, do I worry about this? About 1/2 hour ago, I was talking to my mom on the phone. My voice started going "squeaky" - within 10 minutes, I could not talk. I can feel my larynx tightening - I can still breathe :o, but talking is mostly impossible. (Thankfully I can still type). So, what gives? I've had laryngitis before, after or with a cold, but nothing at all right now. Do I worry? Just drink liquids? Of course, dh is not home - he's at orchestra for the afternoon - sigh - Any thoughts?

Our pedi recommends starting with sprinkles (shots? Jimmies? depends on where you're from!) and then moving up to tic tacs before the real thing HTH!

I had pain off and on - but my dr.'s office didn't handle things well :( and I ended up in the ER in the middle of the night. Everything ended up fine - it was an ovarian cyst that was causing the biggest issue - but could have been quite bad. This is not something to treat lightly. My neighbor did, indeed, bleed out in the middle of the night from a ruptured Fallopian tube due to an ectopic. Me? I'd call the OB/midwife for reassurance. Keep us posted. . . . . .

Beyond Gates of Splendor - much, much better (and a different focus) than End of the Spear. FWIW!

Don't know how you stand on this, but some doctors will give an anitviral prescription - I can't remember the name of it - but when my kids had the pox, one dr. would prescribe it, one wouldn't. It basically shortens the course and makes it less uncomfortable. Wish I could remember the name - might be worth a call to your pedi, given how old your patient is. yuck! I had them when I was 14 - I envy my girls who had them at 2 and 6 mos. HTH

I'd really like to move my dh and myself downstairs to the small bedroom, and put our 3 girls (ages 9,7,3) in the master bedroom. Then dd 15 could have her own room - of course, then she'd want hardwood flooring and a ballet barre - BUT - we may put the house on the market soon, and such a rearrangement would not work for potential buyers. Am I right?:confused:

OK, wondering here - What do y'all do to limit/monitor you time on the boards? (It's almost 11 CST, I've had waaaaay too much Diet Coke tonight, and should have been in bed an hour ago.) What works? I would post a poll, but I don't know how to do that yet, then I'd spend yet ANOTHER hour figuring it out. . .and. . . well. . . you get my picture! :(

Funny - we moved from Central CT 2.5 years ago and are contemplating a move soon - I LOVE our county library system here! The internet catalog has a "Shopping Cart" - so I can pile up my books and request them all at once. It has been a HUGE $$$ saver for me (we use mostly TOG). Can I put "good library system" on my housing wish list?

That would make a difference. We have used http://www.sharmusic.com for good instruments. When my daughter was ready for a semi-professional model, Carriage House instruments in Boston is very good and had a terrific trade-up plan. FWIW, I'm not too thrilled with pay-as-you go plans, unless you have no other choice. Usually you end up paying more than you would have outright. Many companies will send you 1-2 instruments to try. Have your child's teacher play them and give a recommendation. OH, and DO NOT!!! buy one off of ebay! They will be $9.99 but with $40 shipping, and are worth about the price of a box of toothpicks. The toothpicks will sound better, too ;) (FYI: My dh and I are musicians - he's an orchestra director - but we both play woodwinds. AND none of our kids are playing violin any more! So maybe you should ignore this post - ha ha!!! :D )

OK, this cracked me up. . . . in the new Veggie Tales movie, kids-in-mind.com listed this in their ratings. . . . SUBSTANCE USE - Pirates are shown in a pub drinking root beer and ginger ale and singing. A few sailors are shown drinking a beverage from coconut shells (it is not clear what they are drinking). I can't help it, it made me laugh!

My dh doesn't have a job, but we're making sweet memories at home together. Boy, can he get my kids to clean up! I'm so thankful he has a heart for the kids. . . . . Thanks for reminding me to be grateful :)

Anyone seen the new American Girl catalog? Julie is the girl from the 70s, and yes, she has a Barbie Stylin' Fun head! AAAAACK!! I'm history!!!!!!! Thanks for the laugh - I sure remember singing "When the Deep Purple Falls" and watching purple socks tumble down on Donny Osmond. Anyone else remember that? finishing world war II projects with my kids - what will MY generation be remembered for? Cheap pop culture????

We've used ETC through 4 kids - oldest dd started them 10 years ago (!), and her little sister (7) is now working through them. one more to go! Love the silly sentences, too. Sometimes, I've had the kids cut out the pictures and make a spelling-rules book with them. That has been motivating and reinforcing. HTH!

Here's a smattering! Geometry Honors - Math-U-See Honors, with a smattering of Stewardship Chemistry - Apologia Spanish - Rosetta Stone Spanish Level 2 Thinking Toolbox (with Dad - hooray!) Tapestry of Grace covers: Twentieth Century World History Writing and Composition English Literature: Twentieth Century Arts Credit heavily involved in ballet and piano And as I read this, I think I must have forgotten something! Seems like she's not doing enough. . . . .sigh. . . . . . But I forgot! She's earning a credit in Home Economics - on her own - by organizing recipes, and teaching herself knitting and sewing. She's pretty motivated!

I've used TOG 3 & 4 so far - these are the classic versions, not redesigned. How easy TOG is to use depends on how many you are schooling, what levels, and your goals. I am schooling 4 right now - rhetoric, dialectic, upper grammar, lower grammar (these are TOG distinctions - they're a bit different from WTM) - and without TOG I would be LOST. Yes, there is teacher prep. I'm a former SL'er - and I miss those days, but I also had fewer to teach. SL only worked for me when I had 1, but I'm glad I have books. TOG teacher prep gets MUCH easier after the predicted "four-week fog". The reason it looks so complicated - let's face it - all of the materials for all the levels is a LOT to wade through. Once you know what you're looking for and how the flow of your week goes, it all clicks into place. No, TOG is not GB heavy. Yes, they do read enough to get a feel. And yes, especially in lower levels, TOG is heavily historical fiction (much like SL) and for me, that is a terrific draw. I would say, from my limited experience, that TOG lit for high school is more of a "standard works" approach. Twentieth Century lit has included Ivan Denisovich (Solzhenitsyn), The Chosen (Chaim Potok), The Glass Menagerie (Williams), and the like. Hope this post doesn't run on. I don't post much, but had a couple of moments and thought I'd chime in!

This CRACKS our family of musicians up. Now my 3-year old plays her broccoli! Enjoy!