Ouch. Queen bees abound. I did sign in yesterday to post, but I realized that I wasn't nearly as proficient at typing from my iPad as I would like. I never made it over to the laptop. Anyway, I suppose I don't need to defend myself, or even explain my current status, but I do lurk on this board often, and I still miss homeschooling and have so much respect for those who pursue it. The first time I quit homeschooling was in the course a big move, and I chose to send my kids to PS. It went well. Their second year found my middle son in an unsafe environment with an awful teacher. My husband and I chose to bring them all home for the rest of the year. We did, and during this time I wrote my post. I knew several other homeschooling moms at the time, both online and IRL that had lost their motivation and their children were "behind" where they probably should be academically. We had a great time during that spell of being home again. We pushed hard, and they learned so much. I was employed, and my job duties and policies changed. It became a choice of work or homeschool, and I loved my job. My husband preferred that if the kids could have a good PS experience, that they remain there. We re-enrolled them the next year. They're doing great! We continue to take it one year at a time, but we're pleased with their progress and continue to set high standards for each of them. Anyway... It *is* an old thread. Whether I still homeschool or not is hardly the question. You do. Teach your children. Push them to work hard. Have fun with them, and be nice. Just like you'd like them to be. :)

Oh we love our games! We have 2 XBox 360s, an original XBox, a PS2, a PS3, 2 PSP's, a GameCube, a Wii, a DS, and 2 GameBoys. 3 desktops, 2 laptops, 2 iTouch's, and a mini-computer. Whew. Happy gadgety geeks! We LOVE being home together and playing games. Very seldom does this lead to anyone being off alone, as we generally play together as a family, or we watch each other play. DH and I have recently beat Borderlands, Left 4 Dead (which we let our kids watch *gasp*), Res. Evil 5, and the list goes on and on. Our boys will ask, "Mom and Dad, can't you play a game together so we can watch?" :D No shame here. We don't play all the time, but it's great fun when we do. :D

My boys LOVE this, and it was a huge hit at 11 yr. old ds party. I was going to post the same thing. Cheap, quick, and easy!

My husband and I had this problem with our Sony frame last night. He ended up putting the pictures into two separate directories, and then it worked fine. He said the problem was too many files in one directory...

Yesterday, I finally cleared my homeschooling shelves. The boys are in PS this semester, and doing well enough that they'll stay there. I said "well enough," but by my own standards it's just...barely. I only put them back in because some of the childcare parameters changed at my workplace, and it was no longer feasible for us to homeschool. I was okay with it, for the most part. I miss them, and I miss that they were doing so. very. well. We really accomplished so much together, especially my oldest. He is the perfect homeschooled child. In PS, he does...ok. He performs just average, but he's really an amazingly brilliant child. I miss having an "identity" and a place that I belonged. At least, when homeschooling, I was a "homeschooling mom". Now, I'm just like the rest of the rest of the world :D I love my life, but I miss being a homeschooling mom. I was really getting good at it!!!! Anyway, I lurk, but I miss you, and I miss sharing in your struggles, discussing curriculum, planning, preparing, and learning with my kids. I cried yesterday (maybe just because I'm 9 months pregnant, right?) as I was clearing shelves. My husband tried, but he doesn't get it. Homeschooling was precious to me. A dream, and one that I was fit for, and my kids loved (2 of the 3, anyway). Right now, though, we're in a different place in life. I'm still happy, but I miss the "good old days." Enjoy your Christmas break! May you all start the New Year feeling renewed and refreshed!

We have a 2 story house, and I felt exactly like you do. The master bedroom downstairs is DH's office, and I use the massive closet. Upstairs, we took the smaller of the rooms, and the boys use the other 2 BIG rooms. One holds their beds, and the other is their "media room." They like it, and I sleep better knowing we're all together. DH thinks I'm ridiculous. :D

If our lil one is a boy, he will be named Cassian.

I LOVE spiders! I think they're fascinating to watch. My husband hates them. The boys always come to get me when they find them and we observe them and talk about them. I put a Black Widow in a jar once just to watch her. It was neat, even though the kids thought I was crazy. :D I don't much like snakes because they can be hard to see, but I have held a few non-poisonous ones. I don't think I'd be too thrilled to find a copperhead in my garage...

As a youth sports director, I suggest you take this to whomever appointed your child's coach. I personally find his response unacceptable. If my coaches behave this way, I need to know or I can't do anything about it. He may just need some guidance on how to handle the issue, but let your sports director make that decision.

Having #4 late in Dec. Very excited. Very tired. Very nauseated. My three boys are thrilled!

I'm 7 weeks along, and dealing with this now. It's been a rough few days. I sleep constantly. I was watching the House marathon yesterday, and I didn't make it through a single episode without falling asleep! I did manage to cook dinner last night, and then went to bed at 8:30. Here it is, 5:30 and I'm up...for a little while. I hope it passes. The morning sickness isn't too bad so far. Just a constant nausea that doesn't ever really pass.

Apparently, there will be a "Ruthless Romans" game, based on Terry Deary's books for the Wii. It's expected to be released around June 12th. DS is ecstatic! He's been planning to get the rest of the books for his birthday in August.

We're still deep in the midst of our studies, but we will take off for a week in about a month. We'll also take 3 weeks in July for art camp, science camp, and oldest DS will go to overnight camp. We're looking forward to it, but that's pretty much all for our summer break.

We joined our local Y when we moved here. My boys have made tons of great friends this way, and so have I. Most, but not all, of their friends are in PS but they are *great* kids with very involved parents. I run the sports leagues, and so we're at the Y quite a bit. I'm sure that plays a part in the friendships established. We also have a great childcare area that allows the kids to hang out and have fun together.

I think donnayoung.org has some great planners, too. I've been giving this some thought since I always plan a week at a time on Sunday evening. I think I may sit down and plan a year at a time, just to have the big picture, and then break it into weekly chunks. I think it'll give me some starting/stopping moments just to say, "Wow, we did it," before moving on to the next thing.