Right now we are using SOTW1 but I would like something a little more Christian, a little more workbooky???, I don't know. I have looked at Mystery of History and definately have that book marked for older years but that isn't appropriate for DD right now. I think I found this board (which I love love love) and jumped on the entire WTM curricula which is not exactly what I wanted in the end. I have tried it all (all parts of it) and have slowely moved away as it was too dry for me and my teaching and dd's learning styles. What else is out there? Thanks (for indulging my curricula hopping attitude for now :lol:)

I think that the families should pay for stuff like glue sticks, crayons, scissors, pencils and even Kleenex. I think the school should buy the markers/pens/copy paper etc that the teacher uses. I do not think that the teacher should buy anything for the kids use...they aren't her kids and it is her paycheck. That would be comparable to me as a nurse paying for the diapers that my patients are going to use for their children....they are their kids...they can pay for them. I didn't have a problem buying all of that stuff when my DD went to school, although she went to our church school with only 12 kids. One thing did irritate me about when she went there. One of the moms decided she was going to do an art class every Friday and so she sent home a list of all new things that DD already had at her desk but they didn't want to have to bring all of that back and forth to the art table...then the art class never happened! UGH!

I put our pork chops in a cake pan, cover with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup ( you can put in some sour cream too) and cover in tinfoil, bake at 350 for about 40 mins, serve over rice or noodles with the soup as a sauce.

absolutely horrifying! This is why I am an absolute believer in the death penalty..not to start a debate...just my oppinion! I absolutely will not allow my children to play video games (of any kind, let alone killing, carwrecking etc) watch violence on TV etc. I think that it desensitizes our children and future generations against death and so that death, murder, abuse etc is just another thing in life to do. Sad, Sad, Sad...I have a baby about Brianas age and I can tell you, they wouldn't need the death penalty for anyone that abused her! I am a wonderful shot with a gun!

Yes day cares can be good but the daycare she uses is basically a corral for kids... my other sisters stepDD used to work there...sad.

I love my sister and we have a great relationship but boy can she irritate me! Yesterday while talking on the phone she said to me "Sarah's (my little DD) is going to need a lot of help when she gets older for her delays" I was so stunned I didn't know what to say?:confused: My DD is 18 months old and I have never once thought of her as delayed. Am I missing something??? She knows all of the following words in sign language...kitty, milk, more, I love you, please, thank you, cookie, cracker, cup, eat, candy, and I am sure a few more that I can't think of. She can also say kitty, more, milk (chocolate milk sounds like nono ma) but she says it and we know what she means, ninny (our word for breastfeeding) cup, cookie, cracker, sissy, daddy, mommy, doggy, up, down, walk, spoon, icecream, candy write, NO!, please (sounds like peas), bite, diaper, Megan, Mary, Livie, Sarah, nigh-nigh for night night, byebye, and more. She has been using signs regularly since about 12-13 months, started walking around furniture at 7 months and independently at 9 months, sat up unassisted at 4 months after only a few tries, feeds herself with a fork or spoon very well and knows what the potty is for, even if she doesn't want to go on it yet. We ask her when she is pooping and if she says no, we don't force her too. She can follow simple directions like pick up your blocks and put them in the basket, give your baby kisses, give that to daddy, get your shoes, put that on the table, etc I am at a loss why she thinks she is delayed? I have racked my brain and couldn't sleep last night because of it. The only reasons I can think of is #1 Her DD who is 6 months older than Sarah is talking better and in sentences but my 6yo DD said literally 4 words at age 2, mom, dad, kitty and Skyla (her sister). She knew all of the above signs that little DD knows and just chose not to talk (now she doesn't shut up! :001_smile: But I know that kids develop at different levels but I don't think that DD is behind. #2. DD doesn't talk to other people. She might wave byebye to someone if they are lucky but she chooses to do her talking at home to the people she knows. She doesn't get exposed much to other people except church. #3. DD is adopted and the birthmom isn't exactly delayed as much as uneducated, from a (I hate to say this) poor background. Not that everyone that is poor is uneducated but in this case it is probably a main concern. #4. Birthmom's almost 3 yo son's speech is not understandable. He was in speech therapy. I attribute that to 2 things, BM puts the child in daycare every single minute it is open, whether she works or not (she told me so) and she has very little interaction with him. We take the kids to the park alot to play together and she hardly talks to him at all unless it is to tell him NO. There isn't any interaction like "H, smell this flower, doesn't it smell pretty?" or "look, there is a doggy, it is wagging it's tail" only "no H, don't push!" It makes me sad but I am not the one to tell her how to parent. She lives with her mom who has the exact same pattern of talking to the little boy, so I can see where BM gets her parenting skills from. So, yes, DD comes from less that "genius" genetics but I am a firm believer in Nature vs. Nurture and DD gets plenty of nurturing, talking, playing etc. I am definately not an expert in child raising but I don't think that DD is behind. Now when 6yo DD was not talking at 2, I did think that she was either delayed or autistic but the doctor told me to wait and see and sure enough she talked when she wanted to. OK, thanks for letting me vent. If anyone else has a child who is 18months (or been there done that) please reassure me that what I think is true. Thanks!

nope, I do not keep grades. The only reason being is that I help DD correct every problem she gets wrong, every spelling mistake etc so eventually she will have it all right. She is only a 1st grader and we will be doing the tests for Math Mammoth when we get there and spelling tests for when we start SWO (on hold to finish more of OPGTR). So then she will get a little bit of grades but I plan on giving her rewards for each test but not focusing on the over all grades per se.

I just wanted to chime in the the blankets that furniture movers use are very heavy. I would actually check with a place like Mayflower or Uhaul and ask if you can buy one. I bet it is a lot cheaper than other places.

I only know of one fill in the blank that I have experience with and it is ACE. DD used it in church school, before I pulled her out and it is definately fill in the blank. You might just need something as easy and all laid out, open and go like that for a while until your life settles (as much as it is going to with a full house!) I personally didn't like it but it is what you are looking for, I think!

How did you get in my head?????? I feel exactly the same way. I think I am mostly a good mom but I am critical and sometimes just plain irritable with DD-6. I love homeschooling and she loves it too but I need to change my attitude before we both hate it and each other! I do wake up everyday and tell myself to relax, be more positive and rewarding in my words and behaviors...sometimes I just don't listen very well! So, I am going to :bigear: for advice too! :grouphug:

I didn't pick either because I like my marriage but it doesn't fit either really. My DH and I love each other but it isn't fireworks, just comfortable KWIM. He is the main breadwinner, I am the breadbaker :001_smile: he takes care of all of the household bills, I take care of the incidentals like internet, cell phone, health insurance (because I work at a hosp and he is self employed) and I buy most of the food at the store, he pays when we go out. He fills my car with gas and takes care of the maintenence and I take care of all the shopping, housework, laundry etc. He is an awesome dad and even changes cloth diapers! I give him a break though, I rinse the poopy ones. I do all of the schooling for DD. I wouldn't have all of the above any other way. He is patient and loving and kind and supportive....he just doesn't do housework, but he is OK with me only working 2 days a week and being a SAHM the other 5! so that is a good trade off!

DD was doing Saxon math. When I pulled her out of school I kept doing that since that is what she was used to but after a while I didn't like all of the jumping and only doing a few questions on a few topics every day. I looked into MM #1 because of the reviews here and I wanted something that didn't jump all over. and #2, the price is great. That said...we are on about page 40 and DD is actually challanged with it, which I like but once I show her the concept she gets it really fast. I LOVE the fact that it doesn't have all the bells and whistles like SM with the meeting book, teacher guide doing extra things. Those are the only 2 programs we have used though so not much to compare to.

I just wanted to shout out a big THANK YOU to Satori (Angela) for making and keeping updated the google docs for the Flat Stanley project. I just now printed my list from the google docs and it is updated with all of the changes/deletions. I was dreading printing it only to go through all of my emails and cross off the many people that have dropped. OK, our Flat Stanley is off to New York tomorrow! (her name is Flat Katie!)

that site is cool! expecially since I don't have ms office (sorry, 1 handed typing) I uploaded mine too. http://www.scribd.com/doc/34669901/School-Planner

I can't speak for everyone but only for myself but I found FLL to be very dry and boring (sorry SWB). It was reading and discussing and we started HSing in April and we are still on nouns....blah. It was easy lessons like proper nouns...(mom) your mom's sister is your aunt...what is your aunt's name?...(child) My aunt's name is Aunt Jacque. (mom) your dad's sister is your aunt...what is your aunt's name?...(child) My aunt's name is Aunt Mary. My DD likes to do workbooky things, which I don't think is quite along the lines of classical education but it is how she learns so that is what we are going to do. We have only done 4 pages in GWG but it is much more hands on and workbooky and seems to move through the lessons a little faster than FLL. Today we worked on complete sentences tell a thought on someone or something. The child got an example of some complete sentences and then got to make up the ending to a sentence like "The hungry cow........" I don't care that she mispelled words as we don't work on spelling yet but she does have to use her best handwriting. The next page matched up the front of a sentence and the ending of it like "The pilot........flew the plane." "The chef......baked a cake." The next page talked about all sentences start with a capital letter and had sentences to rewrite with a capital letter. The only thing I have found that I wish was different so far (on our first day) is that I wish that it had 1st grade lines to rewrite the sentences on. DD isn't quite able to write well without them yet...infact I emailed them to tell them that. So far I like that it starts with sentences and what they are. Learning what nouns are is great but I think knowing that nouns will fit in a sentence is a good idea first. Sorry to hijack the thread and I am sure more people like FLL than not like it. I just gave my experience.

I have changed things around a bit over the last month, here is what I have planned right now for 1st grade. LA We are doing OPGTR and I think I am going to keep going but we do about 2-3 lessons a day. We also have all the phonics cards from Abeka and we review with them too so I may drop OPGTR. I just got Growing with Grammer in the mail today and I love that it is hands on for DD, not just listening to me read what a noun is and discussing it. I think DD does better with hands on vs. reading/discussing and FLL was just way too dry for me. I was doing WWE 1 but I may drop that and just do narration from the books we read and copywork from the GWG. It seems to have a lot of sentence copying in it. I have SWO 1 and will start that when I decide we are ready and far enough along in phonics. DD reads every day and I read to her most days. Math I switched a few weeks back to math mammoth from Saxon math 1 and so far I love it better. I like that it is working on one concept at a time. Science I have elemental science biology and so far love the look of it. We haven't started it yet but will start in the fall. I have all of the supplemental books to go with it but we are doing a light school load in the summer. Bible BJU Bible 1 (haven't switched this one) History SOTW 1 I am really starting to like this. I have been taking it slow and we read alot of extra books and watching documentaries on Netflix. We also do a timeline in a sketch book. Music Usborn piano I haven't started this but we will in the fall. I was doing some social studies stuff with Scott Foresman social studies but we haven't done it for a while. I also have a health book but will incorporate it when we do the human body stuff.

I tried saving my hamster's babies as a teenager, the hamster got out and went down the vent to the furnace...it took my mom 4 days to get Jeepers out of the furnace...stinky! Anyways, I tried with a medicine dropper, they all died. My nephew and his friends dug up a rabbit hole and brought home all the babies. I am not kidding you. Looking at him and his friend take these bunnies out of their coat pocket was like watching clowns pile out of the little car. They just kept coming. 14 baby bunnies in all that we fed kitten replacer, rubbed bellies, gave them crushed up lactose meds etc...nope, they all died. I think you can let your DC try to save them and tell him/her that they probably won't live but it will be a life lesson... or put them in the field somewhere and tell DC the mom came back and got them.

I didn't read all the posts but I agree with the ones I read. Teens think in the moment. They can't always think in the future. That is a proven fact. As a 36yo mom to a 19 yo son (had him at 17) I can and did say to him when he got his GF pregnant at 18 "didn't you use birthcontrol???". Boy that is the pot calling the kettle black! I didn't use BC and started having s3x at age 14:001_huh:. Nobody talked to me about BC. The only thing I heard my mom tell me is "don't get pregnant!" OK....that doesn't count as support or BC! I look back now and think "why didn't I use BC?"....because I didn't have it and neither did my partner(s). We were young, dumb and 50 foot tall and bullet proof. As for the young lady that is HSd and recently pregnant...I am sure she thought the same thing....I am not going to get pregnant on my first time, this time, or ever....what ever the case may be. If she even thought about that. In the heat of the moment kids don't think of that. It isn't until women get older that they can multitask while doing the deed! Now I can DTD and think of what groceries I need to get, what my upcoming schedule is and mentally pay bills in my head! :lol: Someone said it best in about post 2-3...Teenagers are stupid! and crappola happens!

I found a pattern for a flat stanley on line and just roughly drew that on the back of a file folder and DD glued clothes on "her". She even has yarn hair. to the PP...you send your FS in the mail. You get a visiting FS in the mail, take picts of it doing something fun...our visitors are going on the combine! You email the picts and interesting things about your state to that FS owner and ship FS off in the mail to the next person, and wait for the next visiting FS.

My 6yo DD is adopted but from a surrogacy with my sister as the surrogate, who used her own eggs and a friends sperm. My exH also adopted her so when I say she goes to her dad's it is my exH. I was there from the first positive pregnancy test. My 1yo DD is adopted from an open private adoption. We "matched" with the birthmom when she was 12 weeks pregnant so I went to all the doctors appointments/ U/S etc from 12 weeks on. My 19yo is from birth. I was there from conception to birth:lol: I honestly forget that my girls are adopted though:)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the yellow!!! I scrolled down and the trapper keeper made me laugh! When I was in the 3rd grade I begged and begged and begged...and begged some more for a trapper keeper with a unicorn on it. Oh, 3rd grade would be awful with out it! My mom had 5 kids (4 in school) and the just wasn't money for that kind of frivolousness. The first day of school I woke up and the unicorn trapper keeper was at my place at the table.......HEAVEN!!!!!!!!! Thanks for the memory!

Your life isn't over, it is just taking a different path than you planned. I had my son at age 17 (pregnant at 16) with minimal family support so that is one thing your daughter has going for her. Just love her and don't punish her for this...it is done and the punishment will come at 2am!!! I am glad your pastors are supportive. THe backlash and "judgement" will be quick and then people will move on to other things. Make sure your DD keeps her plans for school etc. It is possible to have a baby and continue schooling. I did it and am an RN...starting my midwifery courses. and remember.....Mary was an unwed teenage mom and she bore the light of the world!

I am doing BJU bible 1 with my DD. It is very easy to understand and DD likes the workbook

I haven't used it but I went and looked at it. Too many pieces and I am not that creative, but very colorful!

I just read this in a magazine today. Put 2 fingers on the bone right behind your ear (on both sides) and slide them down just until you hit the soft spot and press for one minute. It is supposed to help.