HOD CTC is the newest program that was released over the summer. It is covering Creation to Christ (CTC). Here is a link to the page: http://heartofdakota.com/hearts-for-him.php

So is it better just to pin the bangs back once they start growing out in that awkward stage?

How about this?

The worst that should happen is an upset tummy. My parents live on a farm and the dogs and cats are always eating some of the other animals food and have been doing it for years.

In trying to help my DD learn how to read, I may have failed her. She seems to have a mild form of dyslexia. She often inserts "r", "s" and "t" letters into words that don't have these letters. She also commonly confuses the words "saw" and "was". As well as "of" and "for". My DH has a mild form of dyslexia and says that he also struggled with issues like DD. So of course these issues made learning to read difficult for her, but at the time I thought it was the program I was using so we bounced around some trying different programs. We have used (through an off and on process) all of WinterPromise's Pre-K (which uses Explode the Code A, B and C) and Adv K (which uses Explode the Code 1, 2 and 3) LA programs. We also used most of 100 Easy Lessons. And some of Progressive Phonics. Though she still doesn't remember rules like the controlled "r" sounds such as "ar", "er" and "ir". She also has trouble with the "ow" and "ou" sounds. She has also not done any form of spelling yet since we struggled so much with the reading. So at this point, what do I do and where do I start? Is this just something that we need to keep reviewing these until she gets them? Do I move on to WP LA1 like I planned? Please help me so I can help my DD become a confident reader.

Thanks for the help. Sounds like I'll be getting a good trim but keeping as much length as possible since DH mentioned he likes it long. And we'll try growing the bangs out (if I can keep my scissors hidden long enough). Until they grow, I'll be trying the split bangs look in a picture that was referenced since that's where my natural cowlick is and I usually fight with it. Now I'll just work with it.

Thanks for the suggestion of guest hollow. I like the looks of it, but I need to buy books no matter what use since our library doesn't seem to have a lot of the books listed for either curriculum. And since I can find the WP packages used, it will probably be cheaper that way.

I must admit, I rarely watch tv that isn't a children's cartoon so I have no idea what celebrities are wearing now. You are right, my DH loves me no matter what my hair looks like. He's the only guy I know that can say "You look great" and really mean it before I've had a chance to shower in the morning. I too am paralyzed with indecision which is why I've rarely changed my hairstyle much. I did have it really short once just to cover a terrible cut.

My hubby is looking forward to another season (been watching together since the beginning). I think this one should be interesting since you already know some of the personalities and can watch them try to replay their game.

Ladies, I have had the same hairstyle virtually my whole life. I would like to have an easy hairstyle that is in style for a soon to be 30 yr old and not super short. When I googled hairstyles, I found some really crazy looking things. I'm pretty conservative, so I'm looking for suggestions or places to look for reasonable examples since I desperately need at least a trim and my discount offer at the salon expires on Sunday. I've included a photo that was taken in early Dec for reference.

Thanks so much for speedy responses. I certainly want to encourage this since it's for a great reason (the educational value is just a bonus). I'll have to look at our library's video section once the snow lets up.

Thanks! This is a great idea to help her while she is still learning.

My DD is a 6 year old 1st grader who has tried to make friends with a young boy at our church. He is not deaf, but for medical reasons can not speak so he uses sign language to communicate. DD has asked if I would help her learn sign language so that she can understand him. She knows some of the letters, but since they are both young, they don't know how to spell a lot of things. Nor is it an efficient way of trying to communicate. Does anyone know of a resource that will help her learn real signs used in everyday life that she can use to learn to communicate with this boy?

Since you like the layout of Sonlight, you would probably be ok with WP too since they too do the grid schedule. WP does have a few suggested order of sequences in their catalog. From what I can tell, MFW also has a grid schedule layout and has the ability to combine a variety of ages. I've been told that they also have some hands-on things too. (I've never actually used MFW so I can only go by what I've seen or been told.)

Thanks for all the replies. Since my hubby wants DD to study American history now and we want the ability to combine my two kids when it's possible, we will be trying WinterPromise for now. Our last try didn't work out because I think DD was too young for the program as written and I was too new to homeschooling to fully understand how to tweak it. HOD was great for her early years and I wish that the spine books in Bigger weren't so dry for her since I have enjoyed the layout and approach so far.

We used this version too since a friend of ours had started reading it to DD and she wanted to finish the story.

I was worried about this since my DD is younger than the ages you mentioned. I guess we'll be searching out some used WP packages. I love the idea of HOD with the unit study feel and the Bible weaved in. But I guess I'll be looking at other sources to help me do this.

I agree the independent thing is a big turn off to me. My DD and I enjoy working on history together. I'd miss the great conversations we've had. And We seem to enjoy science as an entire family. So maybe this isn't such a good fit for us in the upper levels. I still love LHFHG. I think it really helped lead my daughter to the Lord and then strengthened her early faith.

:lurk5: My DH feels we should start, but I hate to spend the money on anything quite yet.

I've always been told that the closest is NASB or KJV. We use KJV because that's what our church used growing up, so that's how I know all my verses. Our current church also uses KJV, so that's another reason we use it.

While I appreciate that the upper levels have only 4 days scheduled, I can get that with other programs now such as WP who also has a very fun looking American history set. I guess I'm really trying to talk myself out of WP due to the price and stick with HOD which seems to be a solid well rounded program instead of being very pricey and possibly history heavy like WP.

Give it some time. My DD at 4 could sound out the words, but is only now at age 6 actually doing real fluent reading without the sounding out each word. It really is a developmental thing and one day it'll just happen. At least that's been my experience.

We do this through our homeschool group which gets us a great group discount.

We use a coffee table bought at WalMart with kid sized chairs. THe table was $30 so I don't mind using it for crafts and playdough. Then table is the right height for my two kids right now. Though we also have an old booster seat that is in our dining room in case we do any work in there. The booster is small enough that it allows some room on the regular chair for her feet to rest. Though it's not the perfect design for her my son seems to fit it perfectly.

Thanks for the responses. It seems like the history and science should be enough for a 2nd grader. I see now that Rod and Staff is the recommended grammar which is also a WTM suggestion, so I'll have to give that a closer look. We've been enjoying Beyond with our own math and spelling this year, but I just wasn't sure if Bigger was doable with a 2nd grader and if it was meaty enough since my DH really wants DD to start digging in more. Looks like we can put those concerns to rest.