Congrats!!!!

The older they get, the greater their desire for privacy and a space of their own. Since they are both young, I'd most likely leave it the way it is for now, but I would begin thinking about creative use of space and consider moving the school stuff to another part of the house within the next couple of years. But that's just me; you need to work out a plan that works for your family.

No, you're not being a big baby. It's important to set boundaries that make you feel safe. Not going would be that sort of boundary-setting.

Audrey, you made me laugh so hard, I'm crying! Too funny!!!! Mariann, I adore forsythia and privacy and would be beyond angry if someone did that to us. I hope you get this worked out to your benefit. Keep us posted, please!

Way to go!!!! Definitely something to celebrate! :001_smile:

Peela, just had to say I love what you wrote about not waiting on your dreams. Well said and good for you!

and this is why we are no longer comcast customers. We had similar problems with them. Switched to Direct. Time will tell if they are any better.

I wasn't intimidated by the thought of teaching reading, but I quickly learned it wasn't at all easy to teach - at least not for my dd. After much frustration, I realized I had to figure out HOW she would best learn to read. What worked for other kids didn't work for her. We seem to have gotten that figured out, and she's doing much better now, but I tried all sorts of methods before finding one that worked. Every child is different. Just don't push them too hard. I really do think there's merit to the later is better school of thought.

What a day you had! So glad things turned out okay. Did the fire chief speak with your son? My cousin set a field on fire one time when he was a kid, and, boy, did the firemen let him have it. He had to pay a fine because of what he did. And knowing my uncle, the money really did come from my cousin or else he earned enough through hard work to repay it after the fact.

Yes, Memphis and surrounding areas have been hit badly. Lots of flooding, trees down, power out, etc. Ready for this system to leave the area for good. Have spent too much time in the closet today. I've lost count of the number of times the tornado sirens have gone off.

Oh, I forgot, we have lots of strawberries, too. They spread like crazy, and we love that! And we planted carrots and garlic for the first time this year. Hope they both do well. We had kale and spinach, but it's really too warm for that here now, so the remaining harvest is in the freezer. Yum! And yes, like someone else posted, less grass, more farm! : )

We're SUBurban farmers! ; ) Hope you love it as much as we do. We have lots of squashes, melons, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, apples, three varieties of potatoes, tons of herbs, and even our own loofah (sponges). We also garden for wildlife - seed and berry bearing shrubs and trees for birds and furry critters, flowering plants specific to certain butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees. I'm very proud of our three milkweed varieties this year and hope, hope, hope the monarchs make their way to us. We've created cover and water areas for the wildlife, too. We went through the NWF certification process for our major science project last year, and the difference in the amount of visitors to our yard is unbelievable. I love, love, love our backyard!! Sorry for the rambling. Gardening brings so much satisfaction to us. Hope it does for you, too. Enjoy your harvests!

A huge thank you to each and every one of you. Your shared experiences, advice, links to resources, and uplifting words have been a tremendous mood-booster. I feel I can at least rest easy knowing that we will maintain control over our educational choices. In the midst of feeling so OUT of control in other areas, this one thing means a lot to me. I feel like I can breathe again, so thank you, thank you, thank you!

My husband's business is tied into the housing market. I don't know about the rest of the country, but here, the market is what they call "underwater". Building has stopped (except for the rare custom or commercial project), houses are being walked away from all over the place, business spaces are vacant, etc. Anyone tied into this industry is feeling the crunch. MANY of the builders in the area have filed bankruptcy. My husband is in landscape design (owns his own business), and he's brilliant at designing gorgeous gardens and hardscape elements, but his main clients are those bankrupt builders. He made the switch to custom residential a couple of years ago, and that has allowed us to hang on as long as it has but, even so, people are not spending money like they used to - and I don't blame them! But, anyway, our income has dropped by 80%. Business and personal finances are in shambles. We've stopped paying certain bills in order to just hang on to our just average (believe me, we don't have a McMansion that's so typical of this area - we have a smaller, older house that needs lots of work) home so we can provide some sense of security for our dd. Even that is getting harder and harder. My husband is thinking about talking to a bankruptcy attorney. My fear is that if we file, the court will mandate us putting dd in public school so that I'm free to pursue work as well. Has this ever happened to anyone else? Is it a valid fear, or am I just being paranoid? She does so well at home, and I strongly believe that with her SPD and other quirks, she would be labeled a trouble-maker. We were already told by the county school system not to pursue an IEP for her because she would be denied. Her cognitive skills far outweigh her SPD needs according to them. So they would rather allow her to be a mediocre student rather than learn to the best of her ability. We decided to home educate because that wasn't okay with us. And, on another tangent, has anyone ever filed for bankruptcy and been able to rebuild a secure life after that? We're in our mid-30s and generally fairly responsible financially. Now we see we should have been living WELL below our means in case something like this were to hit. But then, if you look at how long our savings did last, we were on the right track. Things just haven't turned around in time, and industry contacts are predicting another 10 years of downturn for the housing market. We can't survive that at this rate. Any words of wisdom, BTDT, particularly in regards to possibly being forced to public school our daughter? Thanks for listening!

Absolutely! In fact, my FB post the other day stated that I wished all of the walls (minus the necessary kitchen cabinet walls) in our house were actually recessed bookshelves with a few art niches for the pieces we've collected over the years.

:grouphug: I just wanted to say I'm sorry, and I feel your frustration. Hoping this economy turns around soon for everybody.

LOVE the way you educate. I think I'll print out your OP and paste it in a few places for inspiration.

Jim Trelease's Read Aloud Handbook

SOTW Teach Your Child to Read . . . 100 Easy Steps (hated this myself, but so many others swear by it) Various Peterson's Field Guides Some of the Jim Weiss audio cds classic lit choices

HOD didn't work for us. Too easy, and therefore too boring -even bought one level higher than age recommendation because I could tell from the description she was already ahead of the recommended pkg. Probably should have gone up 2 levels, but I ended up spending more money to ditch HOD (after the guarantee expired, of course) and buy SL instead. I'm sure it varies from family to family, though. If one curriculum met the needs of everybody all the time, there wouldn't be so many fabulous options out there. If you can get your hands on the two choices you're trying to decide between and compare them, I would suggest doing so!

Our dd was also diagnosed with SPD right before she turned 2. It's not something your friend's dh should take lightly and forcing this child to attempt to function despite her disorder and without proper intervention will only make things worse. IMO that would be tantamount to child abuse, particularly since they now have a confirmed diagnosis. SPD is like being dropped in the middle of a foreign country - one you know nothing about - with no knowledge of history, language, or customs and being expected to jump in and function like everybody else. It's not fun for the child or the parent, and it's not something the child can help or change on his/her own. It's NOT the child's fault and he/she should never be made to feel that it is. The child should not be forced into a situation that he/she cannot tolerate - straight from our OT's mouth. Like others have suggested, the family should seek OT intervention for their child. We did OT combined with EASe listening therapy (only OTs specializing in that sort of therapy should implement it as it could cause severe regression if used incorrectly). We used the Wilbarger Protocol and followed a sensory diet at home. She went into the clinic for OT 2x/week. EASe seemed to make the most immediate difference, and it's the part of therapy I initially thought was ridiculous and "wacked out". S is an avoider on most of the sensory scale but seeks large amounts of proprioceptive input. Today she is much improved and can tolerate a great deal more than she could in the past, but there are still times where we revert back to EASe and Wilbarger. Your friend should be aware that not all OTs are trained to treat or fully understand SPD. She needs to find a very good one specializing in this disorder. Our state covers treatment for children up to age 3, but not for SPD specifically. Our daughter qualified for covered therapy because hers was so severe that it affected her fine and gross motor skills as well as her respiratory system. It took a few months to gain approval, though, so if your friend has private insurance that covers OT, that would be the way to start out - but still check with the state to see what resources are available. In addition to the services I already mentioned, we also had one day a week of in-home treatment with an aid (not the OT herself, but an assistant who knew our case and followed the OTs recommendations). Others have already mentioned The Out of Sync Child, but I found Sensational Kids to be even more informative and encouraging. The best thing you can do for your friend is to refrain from comments like "Oh, I know so many kids who behave the same way, and they're just normal kids." I still hear this within my circle of friends, and I know the intention is to make me feel better, but it backfires and makes me feel more isolated. SPD is very lonely for the entire family. Thank goodness they know what they are dealing with. We sought help because we assumed based on her behaviors that we were headed for mega attachment issues, possibly RAD (reactive attachment disorder). Turns out it was all related to SPD. The earlier you find out, the better, so your friend is lucky in this respect. We were told SPD is not normally caught until around age 6. By then, your friend's child might appear completely "normal" to those who have no idea regarding this child's history. Just listen and don't discount your friend's feelings or experiences. Believe her, and that will go a long way towards supporting her.

hmmm . . . a tad harsh and presumptuous of you to question my confidence in my decision making abilities. I never stated that I lack confidence in my decision to educate my own child. Rather, I put forth that I'm uncomfortable discussing the subject with licensed educators. There's a difference. No, I do not seek their approval. My awkwardness stems from my ability to empathize with others and consider how I myself MIGHT feel if I were such a teacher. Ever consider that it's quite possible that what we've chosen to do might be construed as complete opposition to and, consequently, lack of appreciation for the way they've chosen to earn a living? I don't think that's such a far-fetched possibility.

Thanks!

Thanks for all the encouragement and words of wisdom! I feel better already! :)

when mentioning to credentialed educators that we home school. Anyone else ever feel this way? I feel irrationally guilty and don't want to hurt their feelings, devalue their education, skills, etc. Please tell me I'll "grow out of this". :001_unsure: