http://livingmontessorinow.com/ is a great blog with many ideas for Montessori activities and DYI materials. Besides being a great resource as is for Montessori home schooling, they have a giveaway currently for materials from Montessori Print Shop and Montessori at Home. Here is the link to the giveaway http://livingmontessorinow.com/2013/04/04/3rd-blogiversary-giveaway-montessori-print-shop-montessori-at-home-products/ Good Luck!

Just an FYI for those that may want to purchase this curriculum. There is a group buy this month that may get up to 50% off depends on number of buyers. I am hoping it gets to that level of discount so I can get the light blue series bundle. Here is the link to the group buy page https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/math-mammoth/?c=1 Hope this is useful to some of you and we can get that huge discount :001_smile:

Ah! Now I never even thought of that. Thanks for the idea. I'm pretty new to boards (have more experience with yahoo groups) and the ignore feature is something I had never even seen before this. Thanks

Thanks! My concern was not if she was ignoring me but if she could "hide" from me that way I could not try and find her to get either my book or the money back. However after my post she sent a refund right away so all is worked out. Now I don't need to find her or deal with it anymore so she can ignore or not don't care. Thanks Carla

in the statistics of their profile? I am having a problem with a seller in the For sale forum. She is a relatively new member and after a couple weeks I sent her several pm's to see if my package had shipped and when. She never answered my pm's and has no email associated with her account so I emailed the paypal address. When she didn't answer there either I became concerned that I may have been scammed so I started checking her profile to see her last activity to know if perhaps she just had not logged in for some time and that is why she was not answering. To make things worse each time I checked I found her last activity almost daily and posting often so I know she must have been ignoring my private messages. Then today I checked her profile again and caught her online while I was online so I sent a message right away asking her to respond because I knew she was online through her statistic information. She did not pm but finally did email. She claimed the package had been redelivered to her, was all beat up and offered a choice of resending or refund. She claimed the lack of response was from being out of town (does not really explain it since she was active and could have responded to my pm's if she was logging on to the forum). I asked for a refund but obviously haven't received it yet. Wanting to see if she was still on I checked her statistics page and now I cannot see her last activity information. I have checked my profile customization options and cannot find a way to keep the general information on the stats from being visible so I am wondering could she have now put me on her ignore list and that is why the activity is no longer visible? Only reason I ask is that if it is not a forum quirk and it is that she has put me on her ignore list I will take it as an official attempt at blocking me from proving her deceit in regards to our transaction and will begin the paypal dispute process early rather than wait any longer for a refund. Please lmk if and how she could have blocked me from viewing her stats. Thanks Carla

Wow! What a great and long thread. I got to page 14 and now my sight is too blurry to continue. I can't say I agree with copyright laws as they are written. I think once I pay for something I should own it and be free to do with it what I please. That is not to say I am willing to break the laws to do that. I prefer to act ethically and legally but I think copyright laws should change. I do think it is a waste of paper and financial resources to have to buy new consumables for each child or not be able to even gift a consumable. This wastefulness is to me a "sin" because I do think we are supposed to care for our earth as a matter of moral responsibility. To throw something out because of copyright issues is wrong imo and I cannot throw away like that but my house cannot become a landfill either. So what is a person with a moral environmental conscious to do? In this case I am referring to issues like the Calvert or Winter Promise curriculum. Obviously with consumables if you consumed them filling the pages out then reselling is not an option. However could you gift a consumable (even written in) to say someone of limited financial resources (that would therefore not be a potential customer for the publisher) to use say on separate notebook paper etc. They are not copying it or paying for the used consumable but taking the questions and using them orally or writing the answers on separate paper would that still be "stealing and just as unethical? I guess I sympathize with the have nots of the world and can justify this in such a scenario. Of course it would be great if providers had a recycle and reuse program for materials that are not supposed to be resold. They could be returned and then gifted through the publisher/company to hs families with limited resources via applications so the company could determine if they really qualify. Someone else mentioned this option and I think it would be awesome. Hsing is still viewed by many as an option for the elite only and the high cost of good curriculum is one of the reasons it is seen this way. For those of us who believe HS is a better option for many families and children then we should try and give a hand up to families who would love to HS but cannot afford to. Perhaps we should be more vocal and push these companies to start such programs. Yes there are free curriculum online but often they still require many literature and other books to implement and the sum of these can be costly as well. I have been on both sides of the spectrum with regards to financial resources in this lifetime. There was a time when I had the resources to buy new books and consumables without monetary concern but in one of lifes turns things changed and we no longer have the financial comfort we used to (not meaning that we were affluent in any way just comfortable and not squeezed to near choking). Now things are so tight we cannot afford the curriculum plans we desire for our children and often have to set our sights lower which is painful because among the many reasons we hs is to give our children an education that fits their style and that can challenge them in ways that schools often don't. My girls are bright and love to learn and often want to learn things that are not standard core subjects. Currently we cannot afford to add those to our budget when we can't even afford the basic books. So I am going to buy used as much as I can and I am not going to worry whether it was copied or not by the seller etc because I need to save $ if I want to keep hsing. If something I have can be resold I am also going to sell it to try and get my dd's next books. I can completely understand the need to share, sell and maybe reproduce to resell in order to afford hsing (mostly share because that is the one that is really cost effective for those that are on truly tight budgets). Again I have not done it but cannot say the thought has not crossed my mind as I look at curriculum online and think about how I would love to use them but cannot afford it. That said if someone has to pay for photocopies then it hardly is a savings to do so for the purpose of reselling. The cost of copies alone is going to be more expensive than the consumable (at least by my calculations) unless you have your own copy machine or a huge family and the possible selling price for even a like new consumable is going to be much less than the new cost so really it makes little sense to do this and I cannot figure out then why one would. This thread has also opened my eyes as to the possibility of what buyers are thinking when they look at For Sale posts. I am actually selling a couple workbooks I never used and have found it very difficult to sell them. Now I wonder if people think I copied them and am selling them "consumed" in that way and not actually like new. It had never occured to me that they might think that because I did not copy them but now I wonder if I should state that they are new never used or copied to make them less questionable for buyers. But then if they think a person possibly copied them to resell would they trust their word as to not having done so? I mean if they think a person might be unethical (stealing by copying to resell) in one respect why would they not be unethical (lying) in another. My personal solution to all this would be to have more e-book consumables that have PHP type copyright allowing copies within families and with reasonable pricing since all the printing and overhead costs is taken out. I have not seen any of those though and most the hsing e-books I have seen do not give previews for me to know if it would be a good fit for us. Being on a tight budget I won't risk buying an e-book if I cannot get a good preview of it especially since e-books in my experience cannot be resold whether consumable or not. This is just my personal opinion after reading the first 14 pages of this thread. I could not finish all 26 pages, my eyes could not take anymore.

That is great! A big sister or anyone that can comfort and encourage is good. Feeling like I need one of those today but I am the big sister :001_smile: I am glad you and your dd are seeing the brighter side. The guilt is a big thing for me. I feel it in the same way you have and then with dd2 because we have not been able to provide any of the things we gave dd1 (and likely will not be able to in the future). God bless Carla

I know the feeling. We had dd in violin and ballet lessons for years and then much like someone else here DH's income went down by half. We had to pull her out this year. I felt like you do and still do sometimes. She still has her violin and practices what she learned but cannot progress without classes. I am a zero with music have no understanding on any level other than appreciation. It has been hard and I have to keep reminding myself that there are more important things. The hardest part for me is the feeling that our finances might affect her potential talent in life. She was really excelling in both but especially violin and often spoke of it as what she wanted to do in the future. She had big dreams of traveling and playing with big names and was really showing the potential her teacher was very enthusiastic about her potential. I wish there was a scholarship program here but there isn't and the free programs are by county and ours is one of the few that doesn't have one. We are even having difficulty affording HS materials. In know there are free curriculums out there but even those require some books for reading etc and used prices aren't even cutting it. So I know how difficult it can be and am very sorry you are going through this. We just have to keep the faith and know that at some point things will get better again. Hope things get better for you soon and that your dd can adjust happily. :grouphug: God Bless Carla

Thanks! I did a forum search for French but because of all the post most not related to my question it was taking too long to weed through. I got lucky though and scored a very gently used PowerGlide French program for cheap. Going with that instead due to cost (it was a better deal than even French in 10 minutes a day) since I don't know much about the program.

Most men I know can get pretty stinky LOL but seriously it depends on how you sweat. Some people get smelly others don't. For those that do sweat a lot and have strong body odor hair will retain that odor. I am one of those and I know for a fact that even when it has only been a couple days from the last shaving if I don't shave again before there is 1/4 of an inch of hair my underarms retain the sweat odor making it stronger and harder to wash off.

Waxing is not the same as depilatory creams. Veet and Nair have nasty chemicals and I would not want dd using those. Wax can be found natural or you can sugar. I would be comfortable with my dd using those as it does not necessarily have any nasty chemicals just read ingredients in case (you never know these days). They are messy though which is why I would prefer salon waxing/sugaring to home kits. Shaving may be quicker but for people like me with dark thick fast growing hair the hair free silky smooth phase is so short lived it is futile. In order to have lasting results I would have to shave way too often and when I used to do that I suffered from irritated dry skin not silky smooth or pleasant.

What is threading?

Wow, this is an interesting thread. One thing I found most interesting is that the original poster posted no personal opinion just a fact and a question yet in the first 2 pages many answered in a hostile manner as if the poster had suggested it was wrong. I don't know if the op later posted against honoring Confederate soldiers or not since the thread is now 10 pgs (too long for me to read every single post) but apparently it is a hot button issue who would have thought.

Ooh yeah, forgot that one. If I ever have enough money (once things get better I am going to save for this) I want to get all my hair laser removed. While I totally agree with the fact that removal of body hair is cultural and completely unnatural I have to live with my husband and appeal to him. Besides I don't see the need to marginalize myself or my dd's on this issue. By no means do I believe in a follow the herd mentality but you pick your battles. For some things I have no problem getting ostracized by those that disagree but body hair is off-putting to way too many and many people treat you very differently so depending on your need of good public relations it is not always optional. It can even affect you or your husbands work relations. It is wrong but people do discriminate. If dd has thin hair I will try to convince her to keep from shaving or even any hair removal but if she gets my thick dark hair I will help her with other hair removal options.

By the way she has been exposed to French through audio cd's, Dvd's and music since she was 2 or 3. So any suggestions? anyone? Thanks

I learned the hard way that no visible to them consequences leads to serious problems. I totally bought into that idea that teaching principles didn't require punishments but example and natural consequences. I won't even go into what happened due to this style of "discipline" because I think it is embarrasing to my dd and a breach of her confidence but the problems we had to deal with were serious infractions on our innate authority and really confused my dd as to her role in the family. There were no modeling of behaviors even near to the ones she exhibited on the part of my Husband or I so there was really no other factor for them other than she could not see the natural consequences and did not care about those when they were pointed out to her enough to stop the behavior. There is no way to "not be" with your child you have to be with them and be present to watch and care for them. After much torment and consulting with our spiritual leader we realized enforced consequences are necessary for them to see the effect their behavior had/has. Of course try to keep it natural but to just talk or point out natural consequences and expect a small child to care and understand that it is wrong doesn't work. I have heard lots of online testimonies about how no punishments work and their kids are just great yada yada but fact is I have never seen those children and cannot confirm those testimonies. The one family I do know in real life that preaches this actually has children that in my opinion are very disobedient and rarely listen to their parent's. I am good friends with this Mama and while she is a great person in general she is blind to the things her kids do in front and behind her back. She praises them constantly to others saying how well-behaved they are etc but I have yet to see them do as she asks once whether the issue is serious or not and they backtalk each time. Now I am not talking about silly requests like sit still that would be insane or that kind of authoritative stuff but I expect my child to listen. For example if at the park she starts throwing rocks where it could hurt other and I ask her to stop, she should stop or if when dd2 was an infant she went to pick her up and I asked her not to etc that is the kind of things her children ignore and continue to do or lick peoples faces, hurting or disrespecting others etc. So while it sounds great in theory I no longer believe it. I once heard someone say to look at children you like the behavior of and attempt to do as their parent's do because while books and talk may sound good they lack visible proof. After my own parenting experience I am inclined to believe this and try to follow the example of those I observe to live and be as I aspire to be and have my children be. Of course not basing on superficial appearances but those I can observe up close often.

Thanks! I am checking all the links now. I am surprised that the tests are all for grade 3 and up. I thought with the present attitude towards advancing kids early there would be testing for grades 1 and 2 as well.

Sounds like a Flylady :001_smile:

and in case of earthquakes, learned this the hard way recently. We had a 5.8 here and it was at 1 am :sleep: all I had on was a T-shirt no pants :eek: :blushing:. Unfortunately I don't have full PJ's because I am used to just using shirts (it is hot here even at night) but after this experience I have PJ's on my shopping list soon ;)

Not sure this can apply anymore with the CFL's lasting so long. We haven't changed a light bulb in a long time so the nastiness would build up for sure if we waited for when we have to change them.

This is my mom's favorite. Drove us nutty last time she was here she repeated it so many times LOL

Hi I have always felt more than comfortable and pleased with my dd's (age 8) ability in most subjects. I have never tested her in any way. Most of my evaluations of her have been oral and through observation. I am getting curious as to what level she would test at but seeing there is no real need for testing and we are broke (DH's business has gone down a lot since the economy went south here) I do not want to spend much or preferably any money on testing. Anyone know if there are free or really inexpensive assessment test out there? Thanks in advance Carla

We have not posted ours yet as I am still tweaking the rules wording but we plan on posting them like this http://lindseycheney.blogspot.com/2009/09/family-rules-canvas.html The consequences will not be posted in this project but they are aware of them and then we just follow through. I have found that consequences here need to be established ahead of time or I get too frustrated and overreact or dd takes advantage of my not knowing what I am going to do right away. I am all for posting and predetermining consequences even though there may be exception from time to time based on individual situations. After all we have "...be swift to hear, slow to speak..." James 1:19 right ;-)

I think people want to express their appreciation and reciprocate and sometimes don't know another way to do that or feel they don't have another way. I think for the most part it is their way of showing kindness in return. I don't think it should be looked at so negatively or warrant getting so upset or offended. Getting upset over that is a waste of energy and robs you of the blessing much more than someone offering to reciprocate in their own way ever could.

Hi Currently we HS in English and Spanish. While we are fluent in Spanish and live in a Spanish speaking territory most our HS work is in English. My dd now 8 has been interested in learning French. I found an inexpensive book on sale at Borders that has taught her a few words but no actual conversational French or grammar. It was really a warm up to see if she continued to be interested and she is. We don't have much money this year so expensive programs are out. I was considering French in 10 minutes a day because of cost. Has anyone used it? Can you give me a review? If you don't like this program why and can you recommend something else? Thanks in advance! Carla