And I'm another vote for Babylegs legwarmers, too. They're great for diaper changes (as opposed to putting pants on and off the baby 15 times a day), and you'll love them when it is time for toilet training!

You'd be surprised at how many people consider homeschooling right away out of preschool. Out of dd's preschool of 20 kids, two other moms from a random park outing confessed considering homeschooling. (The local Kindergarten has just announced as many as 30 kindergartners in each class this fall). And I learned that I picked the wrong preschool for dd; apparently all of the homeschooling families sent their preschoolers to Prairie Flower Preschool in town. *just kidding: our preschool is perfect for us!*

*too heartbreaking to share*

Heartbreaking.

My evaluation said, "You are a Classical homeschooler. For more information, read the Well-Trained Mind." :lol::lol::lol:

This is a thread hijack. Our library is too awesome to lack anything. I'm chiming in because I have a great resource for elevators: Nova: Trapped in an Elevator http://video.pbs.org/video/1631361631/ (I hope the link will let you watch online!)

Wild About Books http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=bookmobile+zoo&x=0&y=0 ------------------ We also have a book or two written by one of our local librarians about our town's bookmobile.;) I think you'd have to contact our local library to purchase a copy. Dog Tales: The Adventures of Smyles http://catalog.amespubliclibrary.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=13062T701O497.90981&profile=main&uri=link=3100018~!413490~!3100001~!3100002&aspect=basic_search&menu=search&ri=3&source=~!horizon&term=Marner%2C+Kay.&index=PAUTHOR

:grouphug: Hope you feel better soon. So glad you have the support you need. We love our men, and we hope we can be there for them in the ways they need, when they need it. **Duckens has a sweet and supportive partner, too.**

I threw up so many of my prenatal vitamins during this last pregnancy! Then my iron level was flagged as low at a WIC screening. I was given a strict talking to about going home and telephoning the obstetrician IMMEDIATELY!!! The obstetrician's nurse told me to take 2 children's Flintstone chewables a day. Get the big bottle. I hope you find what works for you.

Perfect Practice Prevents Poor Performance Procrastination is the inability to understand the TRUE BENEFIT of doing something. And, stolen from a thread last week on WTM: Hard work is the only solution for frustration.

"Santa in a Skirt" Okay, maybe it's not exactly a saying, but it is a member of the town we live in. There is one gentleman who has a full beard and regularly wears skirts during his daily walks around town. In December, his skirt is accompanied by the red coat of a Santa suit.....hence "Santa in a Skirt." This is one of the true harbingers of the Christmas season in our town. In a town of 50,000 people, we all know who we are talking about when Santa in a Skirt is mentioned on a Facebook post or in conversation. It can be a little confusing for the preschool set though....:001_huh:

Here is some more info about the tonsil stones everyone is talking about. (I have them, too.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsillolith I hope you find the solution your family needs. :grouphug:

I don't know if anyone else got this joke, but it makes me :lol::lol::lol:!

Look for Suzuki recorder lessons if you are lucky enough to have a teacher nearby. Children as young as three can start recorder if they show interest. 1)Recorder lessons are usually slightly cheaper than piano lessons. 2) The purchase of a good recorder is a fraction of the price of even a cheap keyboard. 3) Fingerings for a recorder are similar to clarinet/sax/flute, if your child should take lessons for one of those at an older age. -------------------------------- I don't know what age your child is, but our 4yo is enrolled in group piano lessons. 1) The price is a little cheaper than individual lessons. 2) Our child looks forward to piano lessons for the sake of the group dynamic. She wants to be part of the group, as any 4yo would want to be. 3) Musical games can be used to teach concepts in a group setting because it is a group lesson. ------------------------------- As always, sit in on any music lessons your child takes, if possible. Then you will know what is taught, what is covered, and can reinforce it to your child at home. (This is a Suzuki tenet). Since you mentioned that money is an issue (and it is in our home, too), sit down and practice with your child every day. Show an interest in their music to get the most bang for your buck. In our situation, I practice with dd nearly every day. I reinforce things the teacher says and focus on things the teacher emphasized. We look a few pages ahead to see what will be covered in the next lesson, so dd will know what to expect. I also pay dd 25 cents every day we do this. To me, after the cost of piano lessons, a quarter is a drop in the bucket to motivate her to practice every day. Again, we want to get the most out of these lessons.

Paige says: :iagree:---------------------------------------- Can you let the boys pick from a reputable list? Let them take turns picking from the list. After all, this is a book that they or their brother chose! Complain to brother, not to me!!! It is up to the boys to research whether a book would interest them or not. Lori D. has posted the 1000 Good Books link. ------------------------------------------- Or, you could limit the boys to Newberry Award and Honor winners. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal.cfm ------------------------------------------ Another worthy list is from *audible gasp* Cliffs Notes! This is especially a good list if you feel that your boys are ready to jump to a high school/college level reading. http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature-study-guides.html If you go the Cliffs Notes route, consider splurging on the Cliffs Notes guide, too. There are often author biography and historical notes in Cliffs (which can put the book into context). Sometimes there is a summary of certain chapters (sometimes not) in case you get lost in the text. The literary analysis provides good discussion of what you have read; you could read the text of the book, and take a break by having one of your boys read the literary analysis for that section aloud to the group. There are also sometimes questions about content or for discussion. ------------------------------------------ Does your school system do Battle of the Books? See this website: http://www.battleofthebooks.org/ Students read grade level books, then compete by answering questions about the books. And we homeschoolers LOVE to win competitions. :D:D:D Oh, and there are recommended books by grade level.

:grouphug: Be good to yourself today. You care for so many others, and soon, with a new baby in the house, you will have one more to care for that will need all of the love and attention you can manage. Wishing you a healthy delivery and a healthy baby. Oh, and get that extra sleep while you can. --Duckens whose 6mo baby STILL isn't sleeping through the night :D

1) No, no advance directive. It's on the list of things we need to get done. 2) I would like my children's father to make these decisions for me because I have discussed with him what my wishes are. We are not married...so that advanced directive is more important. Better get on that! 3) Age: 40yo. Live with Loverboy and two dds aged 6m and 4y. Health issues: morbid obesity (over 100lbs overweight). No complicating issues from obesity YET, but I know all of the risks.....

Keep a simple atlas near your reading area to look up locations of stories. I've also used it to point out publisher locations ("London is in Great Britain; find it on the map!") for each book we read. I highly recommend this one: Rand McNally Junior Classroom Atlas http://www.amazon.com/Rand-McNally-Junior-Classroom-Atlas/dp/0528177346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1305230189&sr=8-1 ....but it's oop and costs $62 secondhand. :confused: ----------------------------------------- I've used this World Geography set from "Audio Memory"before with kids, with great success! http://www.audiomemory.com/geography.php The kids I nannied/homeschooled were older (2-4th grade) and had to fill in the maps, but your 4yo could learn the songs. ------------------------------------------ Disclaimer: I have not done the below project. Finally, a few years ago, this (below) was posted on another list to which I belong (Letter of the Week). It sounds like so much fun!!! I wish I was as brilliant as the mother posting below! Hi, My 7 year old son, 5 year old daughter and I are doing Country of the Week as our "social studies spine" in our homeschool this year. We gleaned the basic program structure from the Brightly Beaming website (thank you Katrina) and then built on from there. We are enjoying this year! For science each week we have chosen a plant and an animal which are representative of that country's flora and fauna (ie Bamboo and Pandas for China), On a page of "story book paper" (one can download this paper from Donna Young's free homeschool printables website), we have printed a picture of the plant on one side and a picture of the animal on the other, written facts about the animal/ plant on the lines below their pictures, three-hole-punched the page and placed it in a 1/2 inch binder (our "nature notebook") in the form of a two page spread. We also use DK's animals around the world sticker book for a fun review of animals and continents. Each week we listen to songs from the country we are studying on the "Wee Sing Around the World" CD. This exposes us to the language and music of that country. We do one craft each week from the book "Around the World Art and Activities: Visiting the 7 Continents through craft fun" by Judy Press. We try food from each country we study. Some of it hasn't gone over so well; but some the kids have really enjoyed. We try to play a game or do an activity from each country...I've asked some friends on Facebook who live in different countries to help me with that one :). For Japan we flew kites. For Mexico we made a pinata and busted it. For Brazil we played soccer... For story time we have been reading selections from "Around the World in 80 Tales" by Saviour Pirotta/ ill. by Richard Johnson, and DK's "Children Just Like Me" in association with UNICEF. I then give the kids short writing assignments (or oral assignments that I write down for them rather) such as "What if you lived in this child's country and were his/ her friend? What would you eat? What kind of house would you live in? What would you play with? What would you wear?", etc... I write their answers into separate special notebooks which I've labeled "__________'s Journey Around the World Journal" Oh! At the beginning of the year we made passports (little notebooks with dark blue cardstock covers and 1/4 sheets of plain typing paper inside) complete with a small photo and information about the child on the inside of the front cover. Each Friday, when we have finished studying a country, we go to the pretend "consulate" and see our "head official" (none other than my dh)and the kids report to him all that they have learned about the country. Then he solemnly takes stickers of flags from that country (from Dover "Flags of the World" sticker books) and affixes them into each of their passports as a "stamp". :) For math, spelling, and phonics we do our own workbooks/ games/ programs--we don't try to tie that in to the Country of the Week program. That's all I can think of for now. I hope that some of this post is helpful. Thanks!

I invite over a homeschooling friend of dd4. It makes it worthwhile to pull out the mess/planning of an art project if it is for more than one child. Plus, if the time is blocked off as company time, it will get done when the friend arrives. I have to have my act together before the friend arrives. The friend has an older brother who goes to a coop class one afternoon a week from 1-3pm, so I invite them to our house while brother is in class. So far we've: --decorated tongue depressors with 10 jewels each for a math counting game --made purple paper purses (and decorated them) for Lily's Purple Plastic Purse --glued coconut trees (construction paper) onto large sheets of paper and added foam letters to the page for Chicka Chicka Boom Boom --used the vinegar/baking soda volcano --mixed and measured colored water in various containers and formed hypotheses about what we expect (How many cups do you think will fill this container? What color will the water turn when mixed?) Our next project is to paint paper plates and bowls and use blue crepe paper to make yellow hats for the book Madeline's Rescue. Dd is only 4yo now, so I don't know how this will work out as the girls grow up and have more demanding schedules. ---------------------------------------- I've also considered making time for these projects in a "Family Home Evening" sort of event. Loverboy is Mormon, and in the Mormon faith, it is recommended to have family night once a week with several (but not all) of the following topics/jobs each week: --song --bible story or moral lesson --activity (craft, game, etc) --treat In the households of friends, each family member is assigned a role. So, if dd4 is in charge of song for that week, she will need to pick a song. If she is in charge of treat, she will need to tell mom a day or so ahead that she needs help to make _______ for a treat. It creates leadership and offers performance practice. I've wondered about creating a secular homeschooling night with some or all of the following: --read a book together of dd's choice --dd shows what she has been learning on the piano --dd recites a poem (she has several memorized) --family does art project together (I have several craft/drawing books. Dd could pick a project each week, or we could work through a curriculum as a family). --family does science project together (I have several experiment books. Dd could pick a couple to do each week). --games --treat I think about this, and then I remember that we have a new baby in the house that is not yet sleeping through the night. Nevermind.

Loverboy's nieces and nephews used to fight over "Math Blaster." I also used Math Blaster with a 6yo girl I babysat. Our versions were software, but it seems there is an online version available. http://www.mathblaster.com/Default.aspx Has anyone played the online version or does anyone know if it covers multiplication, too? (The online version says "math topics from 1st-6th grade"...but who knows?)

I can find a Children's Encylopedia of American History, but not U.S. History. Who is the author/publisher? ***I'm taking notes for when my girls are older.***:D

Here is a documentary about online colleges from Frontline on PBS. If I remember correctly, it is only an hour long. It raises the good, the bad, and the ugly about this growing segment of education. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/collegeinc/view/ Good luck at making the choices that are best for your family.

:lurk5:

What's the book?

Rules in our home: (Our children are aged 4 and infant). 1) You can be naked if no company is expected. 2) You must wear clothing if company is present or expected; or you must stay in your bedroom. 3) If you undress yourself, your clothes must be put on your bed so you can find them if you need them (in the event of unexpected company, or if you get cold, etc). 4) No nudity outside the house, other than the occasional toddler in the yard in just a diaper. 5) Any babydolls that want to leave the house must have clothes. (This is from the normal phase of kids to undress their dolls at a certain toddler age. It also sets a standard for kids to know they will need clothing to leave the house in the future.)