We have always done four days right through high school. It does present its challenges as the kids get older. But Dad is off on Thursdays and so there is no hope for school that day. No way will Saturday work for a school day, although we do often get reading done on that day. So I keep Monday through Wednesday as clear as possible of outside activities and we make sure we hit every subject on those days. Fridays are good for those things that need the most work. I am using Sonlight this year and they have a 4 day schedule through 7th grade. That is a big help to me.

I am one of those people that LOVES C-sections. My first was 36 hours of labor and my second 24. With my third I had a C-section because of some previous surgery. I went in at 8 and had a baby by 9! Then they let me stay four days in the hospital! Very willing to have another one after that.

I never heard the news about starting in R & S 5. I did 6 last year with my two girls (5th & 6th grade) and we didn't have any problems with it.

Just checking to make sure you have been on a treadmill before. I had always wanted one and finally was given one a friend wasn't using. I found out very quickly that although I love to walk my balance system does not like "walking in place" at all. When I get off I am soooo dizzy. I suppose my body thinks the things around me are supposed to be moving if I am!

I know front load machines are supposed to be better for the clothes, etc. I just can't see my way past the HUGE price difference between these two types of machines.

I was 31 for my first and 41 for my last!

We used the DVDs and that made it soooooo easy. I don't remember needing any prep time for it. The teacher taught the whole lesson and then we did a practice page two or three other days (it's been two years so I am struggling to remember). Then we would review the flash cards, latin sayings and paradigms we were learning.

<<But I feel like a complete loser. Is my image tied up in my car? >> Boy, I know, Misty! I find myself often feeling sorry for myself and I HATE that. I really have so much to be thankful for. TONS!!! But some days I just seem to focus on what I don't have. You know, really I tend to focus on what OTHERS have that I don't have. I seem to do better if I don't get in groups of moms that are talking about their summer vacations or the pool they installed in the back yard. But that is envy and that is sin. Hang in there is great advice.

We really love World, too. It is biweekly and is written from an evangelical Christian persuasion. There are lots of short news stories and movie reviews in the front which my older two read. I like the longer articles and editorials.

I need to get a new typing program for my 11yod. I didn't realize we had the time for her to work on this in the mornings. I don't want to pay shipping, though! So it may have to wait.

I thought I would try to get my 50 posts in so I could sell some things here. So here is my post 7 after a month! There is so much going on here. I don't really have any questions and probably even fewer answers. So I don't think I will ever get to 50. I saw someone at one point that had over 20,000 posts. Oh my!

That is one of the few curriculums that did not last at our house. It was just too much reading and too much information for my girls in 3rd and 4th grade at the time. It was not their attention span. I read to them for hours and was surprised by this response. We have never been a big science family, however, and prefer reading fiction, biography and history. I used Considering God's Creation this past year. I am not recommending it, just that it worked for us because the lessons were shorter, usually 3 pages of reading with an activity. If you like the book, save it for when he is a little older and try again. I think first grade is young for all that science information, but that is just my .01 worth! There are many animal books at the library with lots of pictures that you can read side by side and enjoy.

I finished with SOTW 4 this last year and for health reasons (I am just not up for planning this year) I decided to go with Sonlight for 6th and 7th grades. Guess what! They start back with SOTW 1 and go through the 4 books in the two years. I am NOT reading them again! So, anyway, we bought the CDs.... :-)

<<So what is the purpose of learning Greek anyways?>> We are learning Greek for the purposes of Bible study. About 8 years ago, along with my oldest daughter, I studied through Latina Christiana 1 and most of Wheelocks Latin. Neither of us ever used that Latin and we forgot most of it. About 4 years ago I took a Koine Greek class and I use it constantly for Bible study. I know that my Latin studies have made Greek so much easier for me and that there also many Bible study tools that help with using Greek. So I know I am giving my youngest tools for Bible study and if they have a burning desire to read the ancients in the original languages, they can pursue Latin studies on their own (and it will be easier from having studied Greek!).

We use Elementary Greek. I have had an adult Greek course in the past and this is a good program and another option. www.opentexture.com/products/greek/yearone/

The reason the shipping is so high is that MUS uses those "flat rate" boxes. Once it actually gets shipped it should come fairly quickly. I have noticed other small businesses starting to use those boxes, too. I'm sure it makes things easier for them, but I have to need something pretty badly to pay such high shipping. I think they lose business with those rates. I paid for MUS shipping this year because my homeschool conference was going to cost over $70 to get in and all I needed to buy there was MUS. So the $10.50 was a steal! :-)

I am starting my 6th year of MUS (Zeta). We have settled into a routine of Monday - Video, use blocks and do Page A together on the white board Tuesday - Pages B & D (this day and the rest are independent) Wednesday - Pages C & E Thursday - off (dh's day off) Friday - Test We rarely do the F page unless we need a few extra problems of a certain type. Some of the later F pages get used as review once a week during the summer. I did not use this routine for Alpha & Beta and noticed that my children fussed much more later in each course when the lessons were more challenging and the pages took more time. So we started each level thinking math was a breeze and ended thinking math was hard! My girls liked to fly through the early lessons and got CRANKY when the later ones didn't go so quickly. I have found the last 3 years that the routine has eliminated that. They know what is expected and Monday is always pretty quick since we are working together. They rarely get more than one problem wrong per page and it is usually just a dumb mistake that they can quickly correct. I do have one child who likes to discuss the word problems. I think she is more auditory and needs to say them out loud. Because each book has only 30 lessons, we also take a week off of math from time to time when it is convenient. There really is no reason to hurry through any level. One per year will put your child in Algebra for grade 8. Very few children can handle algebra before that age anyway. My 13yo daughter did Alpha in second grade and will start Algebra in grade 9. So, anyway, when you feel your child is where you want her to be as far as grade level, I would try to get MUS into more of a routine that works well for your family.