I liked this because I agree with you and understand what you are saying, but of course I don't like that you had to deal with abuse and addiction. :grouphug:

and he will try to come up with the money for them. I'm angry. What is your reaction? He already has me on an "allowance" of $100 per week for food for the 3 of us and gas. That doesn't include anything else we may need. I have to ask him for money if I need something. Things are tight but there is no reason we can't do a budget together, (all the more reason to in fact) but he refuses Do you give your husband itemized lists of school books before he gives you money for them?

What's an SRO?

Ugh! Feeling overwhelmed just thinking about it! Dh working all day I have to pick up ds at friend's house (45 min away) Meal planning/coupon clipping Grocery shopping Finish unpacking from camping Put camping gear in storage Get homeschool books for sale out of storage Sort & price books in prep for sale on Tuesday Call my sister (who cancelled her wedding because she thinks I don't care because she misinterpreted my actions/non-actions) & pray it's not a 3 hour conversation Lesson for Junior Church Go to bed early! (Unlike tonight!)

Friends here is a possible option for maybe one of the days. We have no family nearby. Very dysfunctional family. Which is why I live far away. Cousins are into drugs and alcohol and we are not in touch. So y'all don't think I'm overreacting not wanting to leave him home alone too much?

I wish he could stay with Mom! But she has dementia and is delusional and since he is not experienced with dealing with her since we live so far away & he hasn't seen her in years, I would not leave him alone with her for hours yet. He's nervous about seeing her as it is.

My sister, who lives 600 miles away, is getting married. It's a 10 hour drive. I have to drive out there soon to go dress shopping & for the shower. The wedding is only 3 months away. I wanted to do the dress shopping & shower in one trip to save money, but might have to do it in two. It costs at least $215 in gas & tolls, depending on gas prices. Then there is food. What do I do with my son? He's 15, an only child & I'm not comfortable with him spending however many days I'm gone (at least 5) alone. If I plan it around a weekend: drive Saturday, stay Sunday, Monday & Tuesday, return Wednesday night - he will be alone 3 days while dh is at work. I'm not for teens spending too much time alone - I fear they might get into trouble - mostly online or on tv in our case. I don't think he'd go out and get in trouble. But my other concern about him being alone is he is an only child & is lonely a lot and I fear he will get depressed. He's had some occasional depressive thoughts lately. Plus he got a concussion only a month ago and is doing well, but I still feel the need to keep an eye on him. In addition, my Mom (has dementia but still knows and love ds) hasn't seen him in 3+ years & I'd like to see her while I'm there while my sister is at work & take ds to see her. I'd plan it in a separate trip, but can't really afford more trips than necessary. I can't afford the 2 or 3 I have to take (gown shopping, shower, wedding) & kind of have to combine goals or purposes. My sister initially said it was okay to bring him, but now is perplexed and almost offended that I want to bring him. It will be awkward. What does he do the 2 days we go dress shopping? And he would miss church and youth group, which he likes. Can't leave him alone, can't bring him. Any suggestions?

It's for my sister. They plan on about 35 guests. In mid November. They have a (very) small budget, but want a church wedding (evening), and a reception with dinner and dancing (and alcohol-but limited). She attends a church in Newark, but they don't meet in a church building. She wants something cute and classy, but not expensive. We are also hoping to find a florist and a baker, photographer, caterer that have a home business and maybe have more affordable fees than some of the larger places that cater to the big, expensive weddings. She won't have any family help (money or labor) and I don't think she knows a lot of people at her church, so it's not really an option to do a lot herself or to have people she knows make food and things. I will be coming from out of state. I feel so sad for her. She was so discouraged today. To make matters worse, our Mom has Alzheimer's and it is a huge messy disaster - she isn't under a doctor's care, no one has guardianship and it just keeps turning into one crazy situation after another. Mom won't accept that she's getting married, won't talk to her and probably won't be at the wedding. If she was, who knows what her behavior would be like? Anyway...any suggestions for finding affordable venues and vendors in my sister's local area would be awesome.

My sister is getting married in November and today she was really discouraged about finding affordable venues and vendors for her wedding in November. They have very little money & our family has none to contribute. I had a very low budget (but nice) wedding ($1200) but that was 20 years ago and in a different area where I had access to a wedding vendor clearinghouse and contacts and resources in my area. The ideas that worked for me won't work for her. I live 600 miles away from her and I'm trying to help, but don't know anyone in her area anymore. Everything she's finding is for the bride who can spend 10s of thousands of dollars on a wedding. She was so sad today. She doesn't want "ghetto" wedding. She attends a church, but not sure if she really knows anybody there and they do not have a church building she can get married in. They want to have the wedding in a church, but can't have the reception in one because they want to have champagne and dancing. She's in the Elkton, MD/Newark, DE area.

I second The Getty (they have a children's room and self-guided tour and outdoor grounds Long Beach Aquarium Scripps Aquarium near San Diego (smaller than Long Beach) The beach of course! We liked Westward Beach (south of Zuma) but Leo Carillo Beach was less crowded and had a small cave. Hollywood Bowl depending on who is playing. They also have fireworks during some of their summer concerts. Griffith Park Observatory That's all I can think of for now. I lived there for 19 years and am trying to think of what we liked to do, or what I miss.

I miss the Getty! We used to live in L.A. and we took our son there several times between the ages of 4 and 8. He loved the tram ride and when he got bored we would walk around the grounds outside.

Thanks for sharing your personal stories & suggestions. We have him totally off electronics & movies until tomorrow. He had headache on bending over the first day & then 1 or 2 mild, short lasting headaches this week which may have been the weather or may have been the injury. He has been sleeping 12 to 14 hours per night and we are letting him. He went to youth group Wed night but didn't ride his bike there. His main symptoms these last few days seem to be tiredness and he feels foggy. He seems alert, but occasionally a little spacy for a few seconds. He's been on self-imposed rest the last few days. Yesterday he read a lot with no problem. Basically the doctor said he can return to activities as tolerated & call him if he gets new or worsening symptoms. I'm at peace with that. I've learned a lot about concussions this week. And one of the things is yes, you can get a concussion without hitting your head. I'll share more later, when I have time. Right now, ds just got up and I want to spend time with him. He wants to go to a movie with a friend, then to the friend's house, then a youth group activity tomorrow. I'm worried it might be too much at once, but the poor guy has been cooped up for a week.

My son had a mild concussion Friday (minibike accident), went to ER, followed up with our doctor yesterday. The doctors seem surprisingly casual about it, but the some of info online (from hospital websites) seemed to take it more seriously & recommend more rest and limitations for a while. Other online sites were more casual and vague. I'm not a hysterical parent, but...it's his brain for pity's sake!! Isn't that rather serious!! I also like to be well informed. It seems hard to get the clarification I want from any one place. Anyway, after putting the E.R. doctor's recs, hospital website recs & our doctor yesterday, I do finally feel a lot better about how to help my guy (15 yo) recover. But why the discrepancy of attitudes and caution/lack of caution about recovery and return to activities? Ds is doing well - passed the tests they do to test coordination, etc. still has symptoms (mild) & is going to youth group tonight (no running around) after resting at home since Friday. Can return to light activity as tolerated. I'm also surprised a the lack of concern among our homeschool friends and church friends. A handful of people expressed concern, like, 5, but other than that people seem completely unconcerned or silent. Even the youth pastor, even when I emailed him asking him to pray. What are your experiences with concussion treatment, recovery & return to activities? Is it unusual for the doctor not to want a follow up visit in a couple of weeks. At least one hospital recommended a follow up at 2 weeks and 4 weeks.

Is she still teaching Latin In A Week? I noticed her most recent blog posts seem to be date Jan 31.

Yes! I highly recommend it. I was asking the same thing a few weeks ago when there was a small college fair at a local high school that was open to the public. My son is in 9th grade. I am so glad we went. It got my son's feet wet a little bit and exposed him to some of the colleges out there. He is shy and it was good for him to meet admissions counselors. I told him he was just required to look them in the eye, say hi, shake their hand and answer any questions they asked. He did better than I expected. I think it's good practice and the more we go to them, the more comfortable and interested he will feel about college. And it will increase his confidence. So now I'm looking for another one to go to. There are also articles online for students about what to do at a college fair, which would be helpful for him to read first. I would give him a target maybe: we were just looking at Christian colleges that had a pre-vet program which significantly narrowed the field.

One that includes everything related to homeschooling in high school: course planning, credits, transcripts, non-traditional ideas, volunteer work, jobs, job shadowing, summer academic camps etc. and college prep: testing, applying, visiting, dual enrollment, scholarships, etc. Does such a one volume book exist? If so, what's your fav?

What does a class have to have to be classified as an honors class? Have you designed your own high school honors class? (Any subject)

It seems like a lot of work, enough for 1 credit, yet it is not a complete English course. Do you recommend using it as your English course for the year? Do you add other things to complete your English credit? Or do you treat it as a Creative Writing elective and still teach a separate English course? Not sure how to handle it if I use it for 10th grade next year. I still want to teach academic writing, vocabulary and literature, possibly some grammar.

"One Year Adventure Novel" is on sale through the Homeschool Buyers Coop for only 1 more hour. It's at 15% off. I thought it usually went on sale through HSBC in July. If it's on sale via the coop in April, is that it for the year? Or will it be on sale again in July? Does anyone know? I'm considering it & like the idea of saving $36 now, but do not want to be rushed into a decision before I'm ready, especially before I've purchased the other classes.

We need a sofa in a bad way, dh wants a sectional. I want something comfy for everyone and pretty. What I'm finding while searching online is a lot of junky ugly (to me) furniture that is really expensive. My tastes are eclectic but run along traditional (but with fresh touches), neo-Victorian, English country lines some American country, if not too rustic. Cheerful and soothing, not too staid, but not froo froo either. I used to like Ethan Allen and Thomasville and Bombay Company but that was ages ago & I haven't had time to check them out recently - they've probably all changed. And of course I can't afford them - never have been able to! :) I want something pretty, but that we all can be comfortable in. We are using our tax refund, which isn't much & has to go a long way: redo our entire apartment & buy homeschool books & supplies. So any ideas? Where to get good furniture (new or used) for a real steal? I don't even know where to look. Surprisingly, Target has some attractive living room chairs for good prices. No sofas. We need a sofa we can all lounge on (all 3 of us & a beagle).

Our book (McDougal Littell Algebra I 2001) seems almost too in depth to me. It covers some topics that are not familiar to me, especially in an Algebra I course such as exponential growth & decay models. These are 2 different lessons within an otherwise normal chapter on exponents. (I find it strange that the exponent chapter isn't earlier than chapter 8, but I digress). I am not mathy enough to feel confident knowing what it is okay to skip. I don't want to skip anything foundational that he will need to build on later. This book is really bogging us down, mostly because of these "side topics" but too late to switch. How do I determine what is essential and what is a "side topic" that is okay to skip?

I'm worried that I won't be able to pull this off. Give ds a good college prep, let alone classical education. Our first year of high school is not going well. We are both having a hard time this year with , distractibility, organization, making decisions and getting things done. I went into this confidently, and my son is very very bright (I think gifted, but because we have no money I've never been able to have him tested) but our first year of high school is not going well. I have learned that online programs for foreign language just do not work best for my son. Online for any subject actually. He responds better to book programs and in person tutoring. I feel like I'm not getting anything accomplished, yet I'm always busy & I feel overwhelmed. I think I just can't take the stress of our financial situation anymore. Planning high school is hard and complicated enough, without constantly stressing over where I'm going to get the money for necessities, let alone books. Ds needs a bunch of things right now, not school related. Dh is only working part time, paid per diem, reduced mileage and no benefits. And I'm worried about my Mom. I'm also thinking about my future. I have to start planning what I'm going to do after ds graduates, especially since getting a good job will mean going back to school. I try to be content. We struggle to pay the bills, but we always have enough to eat. I really need in person classical support too. We've been going to the same co-op for years and I love everyone there, but it's just for enrichment & it's very eclectic. We don't share the same educational philosophy. it's our social support and PE & Art support. I go to a different co-op for Spanish. Only a couple of us are doing classical - some of them started a CC group this past Fall, but just for elementary. I like CC for elementary, but I'm not sure I really like their high school program. I wish there was a WTM in person co-op. But if there was, I'm sure I couldn't afford it. i feel like I'm doing this alone & without resources. And I worry he's behind. In terms of bright, college bound students. And I'm not creating a very enriching environment at home. He only has 3 years of homeschool left. I want to make them to be really good: culturally, academically, spiritually & socially enriching. And prepare him well for college. But ill equipped to that at this level. It takes money, even if it's just for gas to get to the free day at the museum. Oh - and for some strange reason, in high school, our homeschool group stops having field trips for the students & just has social events. Which are fun, and important, but I'd like to see educational field trips as well. And today I have to go pick up my husband at the airport in a snow storm. I have to take money from the food money to put gas in his vehicle to go pick him up.

So sorry to hear this. You have a lot to handle with your mom and your daughter. I think some of the other posters had some good ideas and you are on the right track wanting to be there for your mom. :grouphug:

No suggestions, just sympathy here. My 15 yo ds, 9th grade, is the same way. Especially with Algebra. It's getting worse as he gets older, not better. He seems to be very self-motivated to do Biology on time, though, and that is an outside class, with an outside teacher setting deadlines & requiring assignments to be turned in on time & she grades their papers and tests. (Trying not to be annoyed, just grateful). So outside accountability seems to be a motivator for my unmotivated student. I'm also thinking I have not taught enough time mangement skills, especially the last few years as I have been distracted by outside family issues. When he was young, I was better at scheduling and time management and sticking to it. I myself have been very distracted the last year or two. I checked "Smart But Scattered" out of the library, but haven't read it yet. Hope it helps. I did scan it & they seem to mostly attribute it to just not learning some of all of a wide range of executive skills, which they list. Good luck & let us know if you try anything that works.

I have the whole evening to myself tonight, but for the life of me I can't figure out what to do. Dh & ds are gone overnight. My lifestyle is so centered around them, when they are not around, I feel clueless as to what to do or who to do it with when I have some unexpected time alone. For fun of course. I can think of many things on my "to do" list to do, but I want to do something fun. Any ideas?