I really like it , but I like my coffee pretty strong. I make a simple syrup to sweeten it: 1 c water, 1 c sugar melted and kept in a mason jar in the fridge.

The meat truck was here last week! I laughed and told him we had a whole pig in our freezer and we are waiting on a cow to finish. He was rather pushy. They aren't supposed to be in the neighborhood because of licensing issues so I called the police as soon as his ratty pick up pulled away from my curb.

Ds6 is in the third seat of our van in a Frontier 85. He can buckle and unbuckle himself but I do have to climb back there often to untwist or tighten his straps.

New American Cursive from MP has a 1st grade workbook.

We used MP last year for K and are using 1st this year. I just placed an order yesterday for most of the books for 2nd. We did not use First Start Reading in K. We used OPGTR with SRA 1, so I really don't know how much of a jump the reading is. We started this year with ds comfortably reading the Little Bear level books. I did find Storytime Treasures to get a little overwhelming with all the writing on top of SRA 2, copybook, and NAC, so we were doing most of it orally by the time we moved into More Storytime Treasures. We are hit or miss with the spelling and are out of sync with SRA and math. I use the read-alouds as recommendations, getting the books that I am interested in and skipping or replacing others. Like a PP, we pick and choose what works for us. Angie, I was pleasantly surprised by Rod and Staff math. DS really enjoys it and I am finding it very solid. And I think NAC is a great introduction to cursive. Since many children make their handwriting their own once they get the hang of it, I would think it an easy transition to Z-B later on if that is what you wanted to do. Blessed mom, I agree that concise and thorough is a very good description of what we have used so far from MP.

I'm on day 6. I had a couple of rough mornings earlier in the week, but I felt better after breakfast. I am having to remind myself to eat because I am just not hungry. That is very unusual for me as I usually snack myself through the day. late breakfast: coffee with coconut milk, bacon, and eggs with salsa dinner: chicken and vegetable soup I just had a snack of apple slices drizzled with almond butter. I don't mind the coconut milk in my coffee and I had weaned myself off my regular tsp. of sugar just before I started. I can't function without my morning coffee, so I'm relieved I can still enjoy it.

I made a quiche tonight and baked some chicken to throw on salad. Dh takes his breakfast and lunch to the office. If I don't have something ready ahead of time, he'll order out and most likely won't stick with it. I just finished reading the other thread and bookmarked a few links.

Dh and I are starting tomorrow. I need to break my sugar addiction. I wouldn't complain about losing a few lbs. I do need to keep my calorie count up because I am nursing. This afternoon I'll be making mayo, hard boiling eggs, and doing some salad prep. I need my breakfast/lunch/snacks to be quick or I won't make time to eat during the day. I've gradually cut out the sugar in my morning coffee, but losing the soda is going to be a big challenge for me.

We'll work up until the 21st, then take two weeks off. My oldest might do a little work on his outsourced classes the second week, but I'm not going to make him. I know I can use a break.

I finished mine today and they will go out as soon as I make it to the post office.

If money wasn't an issue, I would buy this castle. But, oh the price! My boys have been drooling over it for a couple of years now. The same site sells farm items as well.

I used FLL with my oldest and had planned on using it alongside WWE for my youngers. I haven't found them necessary with the MP 1st grade package though. Writing and grammar skills are covered in Storytime Treasures, along with reading comprehension. I use the comprehension questions to have my ds come up with sentences, which I write out and he then copies into his book. Classical Phonics is just word lists. I purchased it with the K program and figure it is money well spent since it is used in K-2 and I have two more children coming up behind him. I use it because I have it, but I think SRA would be enough on its own.

My ds13 is getting: wireless headphones for his iPod a gift card for his favorite pizza place a mountain bike this mug and a couple of video games It has been very hard to come up with gift ideas for him this year.

Thank you!

:) Thank you