I support any and all stem cell research, government or private.

What she said.

I don't get it, either. I guess I'm just amazed that any family would put itself under such public scrutiny. Ego? To make money? I heard about this family here on the forums. I don't watch much TV but when I do I'd opt for Jeopardy or the Simpsons over something like this. Another family I hear about is John and Kate plus 8. Not sure why they invite all the scrutiny, either.

I'm glad you're going.

I have to agree. I can't imagine my husband having a final say like that. We compromise. My grandmothers would turn over in their graves if they thought any of their granddaughters were submissive in this context. My mother and stepmother, as well. Perhaps this works well for some families, but it would not for mine.

Add my two cents to this reply. You and your daughter needn't get involved simply because you both feel it's wrong. And I also agree a sermon on gossip is a good idea. I haven't read all the posts, but are these girls aware of the upcoming ambush? Have they asked for religious counsel? If I were either of those girls I'd never set foot in church after learning that a private confidence was now public knowledge.

I think to be truly educated, you have to take at least a fair glance at the Bible. Many authors reference it, and if you aren't at least a little familiar with the Bible, it will be hard to understand the reference right away. I hope to teach my kids a class using the book "The Bible and its Influence" in the next year or two. It comes recommended from a lot of sources, and I do want the kids to be familiar with Bible and its references before they head off to college. We also study Hindu verses and the Koran, as well. Good to be well-rounded. I guess I should say we have a secular homeschool.

I've an old Stanley (Aladdin) thermos that I filled with coffee at 2:15 p.m. today. It was still quite warm at 10 p.m., but then I wasn't outside. I would think that with a good thermos, you could keep something hot in the bitter cold at least a couple of hours. If he can keep the thermos out of the wind, wrapped in a blanket or something, it might do even better. I hope that helps. Pam

Just finished a book by Christopher Hitchens. Now I'm heading into "The Ode Less Travelled" by Stephen Fry. Everyone sounds like they're doing well. Let's keep it up!

Well, we like the Latin Prep and So You Really Want to Learn Latin products from Galore Park, a UK company.

My kids despise Latin. Tough. They can hate it all they want, but I think eventually they will figure out its worth. My daughter takes French along with it, and she's not falling behind in either one. I'm going to add Spanish for my son in a week or so. You're right about not many kids learning Latin (not including these boards). A woman I know wanted to start our own chapter of a Latin club whose name I can't remember. We needed five students. But with her 1 and my 2, we only had three (see, I can add!). We have almost 150 kids in our homeschool group and we are apparently the only ones learning Latin. Your child can do both if he really wants to do it. And if he's been studying Latin for any time at all, he'll see parallels right away. Good luck.

I just remember to post for the 1st week. My book was "Descartes' Bones" by Russell Shorto. A terrific book.

We have 80 acres which we rent to a man who farms it. We still have the run of the place for hikes and such. Our place used to belong to my husband's parents, so we bought it to keep the property in the family. I agree with the poster who said if you have land, you should be a good steward of that land. Our renter practices crop rotation and doesn't use chemical fertilizers (you should have seen the mountain of turkey poo he used last year). My husband clears downed trees to use in our wood furnace, and the hayfield that used to serve as our horse's pen is baled by a neighbor who gives us a share. We don't remove hedgerows so the little animals that share our farm have a place to live. We feed wild birds, just like a lot of other people do. Having a large property means a certain amount of work. If you don't have the time or the inclination, then a house with a yard might be enough. Sometimes owning a lot of land sounds great until you actually have to do something with it.

My son had his put in almost 2.5 years ago, when he was 11. He had an upper palate expander and a full set of braces complete with a series of rubber bands. He should be getting them out this month. Anyway, his ortho said he wouldn't have done anything sooner because of facial growth, just like a previous poster said. He also wanted to wait until as many baby teeth as possible fell out. And if they didn't fall out by the specified time, they would be pulled. Age 7 is very young, I think. Sometimes there is a degree of discomfort that even older children find difficult to deal with. I'm not sure how a 7-year-old would handle the discomfort, put on her own rubber bands, etc.

I paid $60 for a cut and full highlights. That included the tip of $10.

I'd be leery of rewarding good grades in any other way than in words. I got away from that when I started homeschooling three years ago. Many kids in PS work to earn prizes, not for the satisfaction of seeing their hard work come to fruition. Even worse were the classrooms that gave every single person an award, right down to "prettiest eyes." I'm just not sure material awards are the way to go. But every family has to do what it thinks best.

I also like how you talked with your son and that you both were willing to compromise. That shows maturity on his part and and a certain latitude on yours. Kudos. Here's what I also wonder: How many of us would hit the books at our age the way we demand our children do? Some of us would likely jump at the chance, but what would we do if we found the material dull or boring, or simply not to our taste? Would we still jump at the chance and do everything cheerfully and without complaint? We have to factor in here that we are (maybe!) more mature and can see the value in it where teens sometimes can't. And I do know that's why we make these decisions for them. I can't say I would always do what I demand of the kids. But they don't know that. Pam

I don't love winter. I don't even like it. So I guess I'm not answering your question, am I? I plan to retire to Texas, my favorite place on the planet. Except for London.

My kids came across my Thumbelina doll the other day. I've had that doll since I was 5 and I'm 48. The doll's head fell off (my brother yanked on it when I was about 10) but I kept the head and the body. The two parts were held together with an evil-looking metal spike. When I showed it to my mother, she said just be careful with it and tried to tape the head back on. It's a wonder any of us survived childhood. This proposal smacks of overreaction.

I knew before my second one was born that I was done. We replaced ourselves and I'm a firm believer in zero population growth. That said, I come from a family of five and I love each one of my sibs to death. My husband also comes from a family of 5 and his dad from a family of 12. So we're used to large families. Nothing wrong with having lots of kids if that's what you want. I was 35 when I had my son and I knew I wouldn't have the patience or the energy to have any more little ones after that. So two reasons for me. Thanks for asking. It's an interesting question.

according to Jeeves. However, I prefer more variety. Romance, detective, nonfiction, bios, etc. Count me in. This is a great idea. I haven't read all the posts. Should be update weekly?

I know you can get Transatlantique in iTunes, but it doesn't have Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry singing on it. Some I've looked at: mp3sparks.com musicmp3.ru/soundtrack igamusic.com

I noticed iTunes had the jeeves and wooster theme song. Some sites offer the whole album for download which is next-to-impossible to find as an original CD. Should I not trust any site with which I'm not familiar? I'd really like to have the whole album but not at the expense of losing my credit card information to crooks.

Does anyone have a favorite music download site that works easily and is reliable and honest? There appear to be dozens out there, but I've never heard of any of them. I specifically want to download theme music to "jeeves and wooster." If anyone has an favorite sites, please let me know. And Happy Christmas. Pam

in the quarterly magazine Education Next. I picked it up at B&N a few weeks ago and it's full of articles that represent many sides of education and the issues involving public and private education. They have a lot of homeschooling references in this quarter's edition. Try the link below: http://www.hoover.org/publications/ednext/