We have slowly been buying holiday gifts as they pop up. Kids will likely get new bikes as main gifts. Most extended family will likely get somewhat generic gifts but it is what it is this year. I did decide to get DH a massage gun so I am shopping for a decent value. Gas is creeping back up here. Orthodontist is replacing our broken bite plate at no cost. It went through the washer in a shirt pocket and came out in 6 pieces. It is making me rethink Invisalign in favor of traditional braces.

You'll never be able to travel with all of those activities tying you down. I would cut to park day and one extracurricular per kid per season until you have more peace and more control. Instead of putting them all in school, why not put the two littles in daycare a few hours a day or a few days a week to focus on the schooling with the older ones?

This part. Send help! I do love most everything about it, but like anything, it can become a drudgery at times. File it under: The days are long but the years are so short.

If you like sausage potato kale soup like at Olive Garden, I like Pioneer Woman's recipe best. And I am not even a sausage fan.

My second child is a month into 1st grade. He is also 75% done with CLE math for 1st grade. He is very bright, typically motivated, and something of a perfectionist. He is 5 years younger than my only other child, who is quite advanced in math, so I cannot compare the two to get a feel for what is "normal". I have read some state benchmarks and Homeschooling Year by Year, etc. Basically I just want someone to say this is normal and right on track and won't even be an issue in 3 months. Feel free to tell me to chill. What he CAN do... Count by 5s forwards, and 10s forwards and backwards Count well past 200 without error Read clock hands to 5 minute marks with occasional mistakes if xx:55 Use manipulatives to show demonstrate basic math skills Understand process required for verbal math word problems Understand 1s/10s/100s place Use a ruler Identify and draw basic shapes Identify and count bills and coins Reliably tell doubles to 6, all +/-0, +/-1 Use fingers to do quick subtraction at times Read and make bar graphs Use number lines What he cannot do... Count by 2s beyond 14 without a chart Tell doubles beyond 6 Tell any basic addition facts that are not +0, +1 without counting mentally or dots on paper or fingers Tell any subtraction beyond (inexplicably) 10-2 His math book has daily speed drills, 24 problems in 1 minute. I give him 2 minutes and he can generally get all correct in that time on addition days, and half or so on subtraction days. I have taught him that in timed tests he should skim for problems he knows instantly, and then look back through and spend time working on more instead of spending 30 seconds on problem 2 and missing 20 others. I am trying not to compare or stress. He doesn't hate math and he isn't bad at it. We do skip counting regularly, and he has the 100 chart to refer to. I am just not seeing any facts 'stick' despite our efforts. Is this just a brain-age thing? Will he have a lightbulb moment and start seeing the fact families soon? Advice? Thanks

I was going to pull out my TMs to look but Mona got it. I 👍🏻

@Ting Tang you can use CLE placement test, or you can order book 501 and see how he does since the -01 books are always review. There are approximately 30 problems a day in CLE 500s.

Along with gifts sent after the birth of twins, that would fall under 'few exceptions'. I am glad you found something that works for you. Postable sounds like something useful for a variety of reasons. Shutterfly etc now offer similar services.

This is an issue beyond a thank you note. That is an extreme reaction and that person obviously has some other issue. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Sending thank you notes is important to me and I am teaching my young boys to write them. With few exceptions, it's not hard to write 3 sentences and sign your name.

Can you drop geography for a bit, and maybe even handwriting unless they are truly in need of it? Or even cut to once a week. That seems a bit extra if you can't easily get math and LA done. The oldest one should definitely be doing atleast spelling solo.

We use Ecos regularly, and Tide on occasion if we start to notice a smell (usually towels or sweaty man shirts).

Good morning. Yesterday was a chaotic mess, beginning with a visit to the doctor, and ending with my first ballet class in 18 years (which nearly necessitated another trip to the doctor 😆). Today's agenda: Animals✔ Breakfast ✔ School ✔ Work✔ Tutor @2✔ Garden✔ Work out✔ Scripture✔ Prayer Balance budget

I remember now how much I hate the pub ed math sheets. Ughhhhhhh. Finished tutoring early, running to library, then back home for algebra and logic.

Good morning. It's week 4 here, but only week 2 of all subjects. Last week was so intense I stopped even making lists because we were in survival mode. I wonder why it affected me so much when this is our 6th year? Maybe because it's middle school and 1st? And yes, the days are darkening faster and the kids asked for extra blankets on their beds as it is actually cooling off now at night. Animals✔ Dunkin run✔ School✔ Work ✔ Tutor @ 2✔ Dishes✔ Laundry✔ Garden✔ Work out✔ Scripture Prayer

I remember ages approximately 4-9, nothing of 5th grade except that I got my only C ever, and nothing of 6th grade. Then clearly I recall everything from 7th (we moved across the state that year), then another gap for 8th and 9th.

I am reading Because of Winn Dixie for the first time and LOVE the story and the characters. My kids like it well enough. They like the plot of The Tale of Despereaux but think the book is too dark overall. My boys are 6 and 11. Which other DiCamillo books might they like as a read aloud? Which might I like best as a personal read? Basically, sell me on the next title. 🙂

I have memories of the house we lived in before I started Kindergarten. Pretty much the whole house and yard, where the TV was, where the dog slept, decor, etc. Most of my early memories are places and people, not specific interactions. Editing here to add: I have memories of being in the backseat of a car my parents totaled when I was 4. I wasn't in it during the accident; the memories are of the vehicle interior prior to the event. My husband had a surgery at 2 and recalls his terror and screaming for his dad to help as he was wheeled down the hall.

When I brought my older boy home after Kindergarten, I chose 2nd grade work for him because that is what level the publishers I liked started at, or what he placed into. At 5, he read fluently, was a natural speller, and did basic multiplication. We didn't do every subject, I didn't work him for hours, and I didn't make him write more than what was appropriate for his hand stamina. We just kept plugging along and decided this year he has effectively skipped a grade. He is 6th on paper doing 7th grade English and 8th grade history according to publisher, finishing Algebra 1, and doing other middle school level science and reading etc. At this point, it is more that he only has about a year left with our chosen curriculum and is already earning high school credits. I am aware I could keep calling him 6th and give him another 6 years but we don't feel it's necessary. If we hit some roadblock and have to slow down, that's fine. At the moment, I plan as if he is in 7th grade.

Tried to edit a post and somehow duplicated it.

We aren't newbies but workload has naturally increased here and I am curious how many hours of work your kids in grades 6/7/8 are doing each day. Feel free to add your homeschool style or any other pertinent information.

I love my Swedish dishcloths and they last a very long time but I only use them to clean sutfaces, not dishes. I also throw them in the dishwasher.

IDK if I will have time to check in but we have school, work, orthodontist and tons of errands. Have a nice day everyone.

Second part is so important, too. With another 2-3 kids, can you offer the same opportunities for any number of sibs who want to do something as expensive and involved? Should their lives be dictated by one kid's schedule at 7? I have a former coworker whose son played baseball on very competitive teams. Tons of travel, very expensive. Every. Single. Weekend. For years on end they were at an event. Many times the daughter's birthday was totally eclipsed by a baseball tournament, and she had no extracurriculars at all.

Quit. Everything you are saying is reading to outsiders like you need to quit now. Better now than when she is 11 or 14 and just "tired of it". I can't tell you how many people I know invested thousands and thousands for over a decade just for a tween or teen to suddenly be over it and drop.

My friend's dad was in 5 days last month for the same thing and it was days between discovery and procedure. Editing for clarity... He waited a few days for procedure and was in hospital total of 5 days. I don't believe he waited 4 or 5 days.