I know that a lot of people like HWT, but I do not like how it looks. The up and down rather than slanted drove me nuts when I was reading it. So, we switched to Cursive First. I also use copywork as practice. My youngest dd is using some of the Abeka workbooks as practice, also. I think it all depends on your personal preferences. It's possible to use the Cursive First as copywork or dictation rather than having a workbook.

Several brands of fish oil were independently tested and found to be safe. The results of the study can be found online. However, my nutritionist has also listed it at her website, http://www.krispin.com/omega3.html#Note%20Regarding%20Fish%20Oil%20Brands,%20Efficacy%20and%20Safety She also has recommendations on how much fish oil to take based on your body weight. I take more during my pregnancies, with a higher concentration of DHA, personally. http://www.krispin.com/omega3.html#Supplementing Since I take quite a bit of fish oil, I take a pharmaceutical grade that is concentrated. Many people are quite enamored with expensive brands of fish oil. There are very few companies making fish oil, so what you are buying at smaller price may be the exact same thing as what you are buying at a higher price. I will say, however, that freshness seems to make a difference. Also, the level of EPA to DHA seems to make a difference. And, oddly enough, I have had more success with Natural Factors brand over Nordic Naturals. I've heard through the grapevine that they are made by the same company. Aubrey, your midwife will probably have a preference for what kind of fish oil to take.

:iagree: with Jenne. I could have written what she said, almost word for word. My daughter loved it. I would use it to fill in gaps. I would not use it for new teaching because it does not have more than one way to introduce new topics. If the new topic is not understood by the student, then there are no alternatives. This was frustrating for my student.

They are and I love them. I've recently tried Alima and broke out after using it in an area of one of my cheeks that tends toward rosacea. I second the Makeup Alley recommendation. I love them. As for skin care, I use the natural stuff, also, but if one doesn't have sensitive skin or isn't bothered by the -cones, then there are products at the drugstore that are inexpensive and work well, from what I have read.

I have WT 1 and 2 and CW Aesop, Homer and Older Beginners Aesop and Homer. I started out with Aesop and had a very hard time implementing it, even with the workbooks. I found WT and have been using it very successfully with my girls. WT is pick up and go. I love the ease of it. However, I do find that the models tend to be longer in WT than CW. Now that I've used WT, I understand a lot more about CW. Reading the Homer Core book was also a very huge part of the process in understanding all that CW is about, for me. This leads me to believe that I would have an easier time implementing Aesop, were I to choose to use it again. However, I like WT. It's a very gentle approach to writing and grammar. I like the story choices and find the games to be fun for my kids. My children also seem to enjoy it. If there were more books, I would have them on my shelves as well. Since there are not, I am going to be doing Older Beginners with my 12 yo after she finishes WT2.

I used CTG some time back. At the time, my children did not like the short lessons. So, I had to combine the history into three days so that they felt like they were doing some sort of school. I felt like it was very simple and easy, though I liked the hands on portion. I don't plan hands on by myself. I need a curriculum to help me with that.

We kept our eggs on the counter in Europe, but they had never been refrigerated. I'd throw away eggs that had been previously refrigerated and then left on the counter.

Some of the mineral make up has bismuth in it, which can be problematic for some people. I have drier skin and found that a good moisturizer really helped. I can now wear the mineral makeup. It lasts a very long time, IMHO.

It's likely, though I'm not sure at this point. I really don't need any curriculum. But I love to fondle all the stuff at the bookfair.

I will. Let me play with a few more functions tonight and I'll get it to you by Sunday, ok? There are a few features that I'm unclear on and I need to spend a bit more time trying to figure out if it's a learning curve issue or an oddity in the software. I will say that it has a check register and budget feature that are interconnected, which I like a lot. I haven't seen that in any other budget software and I've looked at a lot of them.

We're attempting using the Dave Ramsey plan because it's the plan that my husband wants us to use. That said, I am in charge of the money due to the amount of travel that he does, so I end up being able to tweak it a little. Currently, I'm beta testing the Mac version of the YNAB software. One thing about Jessie's plan is that he assumes you use the prior months money to pay the current month's bills. So, it may make a difference in how you use his software. He's very good about returning your money if you don't like the program, though, so I think it's worth it to trial it if it interests you. I also think that purchasing a tool to help save money is a worthwhile investment. We've certainly saved the cost of what we've spend on Dave Ramsey stuff.

I wish I could find my trigger. I have optical migraines that appear to be related to stress and/or hormonal surges. I got my first migraine when pregnant with my 3rd daughter. They've come and gone since then, pregnant or not. I do know that I cannot take some amino acids because they trigger the migraines - SAM-E, tyrosine, etc. But, even after eliminating those things, I still get them. Have y'all received any relief from acupuncture? I may try it next.

It's a compilation of the last couple of weeks. Link is in the signature.

I found pocket diapers with my 4th and am not all that interested in using anything else. They are easy and convenient. Much more convenient than a fitted and/or prefold and a cover. I'm looking into newborn pockets for this new baby. Any suggestions? For washing, I dump any solids in the toilet, run a rinse cycle, then wash as usual. I will sometimes add a second rinse to the wash cycle, but not always. I've not used bleach.

My 12 yo dd began LP1 this last year with no prior Latin knowledge. She had a little over a year of modern Hebrew under her belt, though. We take it very slowly, but she seems to catch on quickly. My almost 10 yo could probably pick it up and run with it as well, but I am going to keep her in Hebrew for another year before we add in Latin, if we add in Latin. Both of these children seem to pick up languages quite quickly.

We received our Parkway today and my 7 yo is in love. I purchased a Compass booster once, but it did not work for my 9 yo. So, I took it back. It was not wide enough, nor did it go high enough.

My step-mil was always very concerned about my girls' education. In the beginning, I think that she was seeking information. As time went on, though, I think that she was trying to ensure that the girls' were actually learning something. She was the same way about vax, truth be told, though she had a higher priority there as one of her dd's worked in that area for the state. The end result was that I often told her about our social activities, and she seemed satisfied that at least the girls weren't "unsocialized".

I can't add anything to what Stephanie said, but I do own Latin Prep and could bring it to a local store common to us so that you might peruse it. ;)

At four, she won't go rear facing anymore. In fact, she's been forward facing since she was three because she didn't want to miss anything. Plus, she, like at least one of my others, gets queasy rear facing at fast speeds. It's best to keep them rear facing as long as possible, I agree. :)

My 12 yo dd passes the 5 step test in our van, but that may change when we get a new vehicle. She's aware of this. She also knows that she is small for her age. My 9 yo is still in a booster, and does not quite pass the 5 step test. Her legs are longer than her torso. My 7 yo is in a booster and I just had to buy her a new one because the old one is ripping and I cannot get a new cover. It's a Britax Cruiser and I love it. My 4 yo is in a Marathon and could still be rear facing. LOL

I gave up on waiting for the samples and just ordered it. I hope I didn't make a mistake.

Your experience is most of what I had heard before I went to mine. I was hopeful that my trip back to my reunion was going to be more mature than what it really was. It was truly an amazing thing. I could not believe how the cliques were still alive and kicking. I went to a large school, but it seemed that those who went to the reunion spent a lot of time together and were definitely not interested in seeing anyone else. I felt shunned, similar to how I'd felt in high school. My step mil and fil went to their high school reunions every year. They died last spring and I think my desire to go was influenced by how I thought they would have encouraged me. I'm sorry that I was disappointed.

If you go to the bookshelf, you can look up what books are needed for each level, in each unit. However, Great Books are read, but mostly through a Norton Anthology.

I lift a lot of weight and I've never bulked up. In all of my reading, I've found that most women will not bulk because they just do not have the testosterone to bulk. The bodybuilding women you see either have a lot of natural testosterone or take it in pill form. There are several theories on the weight lifting thing, though. I personally tend to cycle through them. If I am lifting medium weight, then I do three sets of 12 or 15. If I am lifting very heavy, then I do a set of 10, then 8, then 6 increasing my weight each time. The key is to trick your body into making your metabolism work. For this reason, I will go on 3 to 4 week cycles with the above methods. Then, I switch. I personally like the 10, 8, 6 method, but try not to do it all the time because I don't think it builds much in terms of endurance. It does, however, build a lot of strength. I've worked abs every day and I've worked abs every other. I prefer the every other method because I then give myself permission to work my abs harder on the days I work them. Then, my abs are sore on my rest day. This gives them a chance to repair any muscle that has been torn on the days I work them. It's also important to do different ab exercises and not just the same ones all the time because your body will get used to doing the same thing. I'm not an expert, but I've been working on this for the last couple of years. It's a good idea to try different things and see what works for you. And lastly, diet is at least 50% of the equation. If you are working out and not eating enough protein, and too much fat, it may be all for naught.

I use a little xylitol, which is a sugar alcohol, but also helps to remineralize teeth. Mostly, though, I use agave nectar. It has 60 calories per tablespoon, just like honey, but it is low glycemic. It's also natural (from the blue agave plant) and yummy.