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

:iagree: My oldest earned his black belt in TKD before switching to Uechiryu karate. His dojo brings in a Krav Maga instructor a few times a month as well. In our experience, the instructor makes all the difference in the world. Ds prefers karate and Krav Maga to TKD. I also feel that if it is self defense you are looking for, Krav Maga will definitely offer that. Taekwondo is a great, competitive sport, but ds feels that he is far more capable of defending himself in more realistic scenarios with what he is learning in Krav Maga. That said, as ds has grown older and more interested in martial arts, he has spent more and more time at the dojo. Right now we are up to about 12-14 hours a week. He would not be able to be there as frequently if it were more than 10-15 minutes from home. He is able to ride his bike to some of his classes during the nice weather. Since the dojang near your home offers a self defense class, I would be leaning in that direction.

Mine is up. It was my 1st grader's week 6 and my 8th grader's first full week (he was working on a few subjects all summer).

:party: Congratulations!

This was me a week ago. I was so frustrated. When I did finally go into labor it was sudden. My water broke and I had my baby an hour later. We barely made it to the hospital. It was the morning before my last midwife appt. They were planning to schedule an induction for the end of the week.

My youngest ds tested as severely anemic in two different doctor offices with the fingerprick test but a CBC test revealed that his iron levels were low but within normal range. Hopefully your results will come back much higher than the in-office results.

Mine's up, link in sig. I doubt I'll be very consistent about posting these once the baby comes, but I'm going to try to keep up in the meantime.

Our pediatric dentist gives out new toothbrushes, floss, and a sample toothpaste tube. The kids also pick a prize out of the treasure box. However, the pediatrician we just stop going to (not for this specific reason) gave us a coupon for a personal pizza at Pizza Hut.:001_huh:

My third baby was almost born on the side of the highway because we had to travel so far for a hospital that would allow me to VBAC. Even though I had a successful VBAC with my second baby, the four local (and not so local) hospitals had VBAC bans.

I'm due mid September. We're running a light schedule through the summer and plan to start full days next month to get a head start. I am spending the summer planning and stocking up the freezer with quick to reheat meals. I'll have a 1st grader and an 8th grader. My 2 yr old is pretty good at staying busy or joining us with crayons and paper at the table. I am outsourcing a few classes for my oldest and some of his subjects he can do more or less independently. The subjects we really need one on one time for will have my school day priority. I am not overly concerned about my 1st grader. We will do the best we can to stay on pace, and catch up later if need be. This will be my third baby while homeschooling and I have found the newborn stage to be a good time to sit and nurse and read. I find it harder to keep up with housework than school with a new baby around.

We will be. We used most of MP K this past year. I pick and choose from the read alouds and I'm not sure about the math either. Ds loves math and I may find myself supplementing. We'll be starting next month to get in a few solid weeks before New Baby is born.