Does anyone have suggestions for chapter books that correspond to SOTW1? I would like to include some longer read-alouds that are enjoyable/appropriate for a 6 yr old. Thank you!

Yes!!!! And what a difference it made! I drank it during my 2nd and 3rd trimesters. I would make two half gallon mason jars at a time (probably around 3/4 c of RRL steeping in each one), and let them sit overnight. I would go through both of those in ab 3 days. I bought mine online from Mountain Rose Herbs (in bulk). Both my 2nd and 3rd labors were pretty much the exact same (water broke on its own, pitocin used b/c ctx were dead in the water, no painkillers, doula). There was definite difference during labor, esp after transition. At that point, even w/a doula, it was all that I could do to keep a grip on what was going on and not get lost in the pain w/#2. W/#3 however, I had breathers in between ctx - I couldn't move, but the pain significantly lessened and I could have a relatively normal conversation w/whoever was in the room. My ctx weren't wave after wave of pain w/o any rest. It was great! It still hurt like $%#, but it was so much more bearable than it was w/#2. I was still talking and having breathers, and feeling fine right up until I had to start pushing.

I remember stumbling across something that said to start FLL when you hit lesson 140 in OPTGR. It took us until June to get to that point. We started with lesson 27 last Fall.

We loved that book here too! It was especially fun b/c my sister is named Sophia, and she was working at an archeological dig this summer!! One of her (my sister's) favorite books as a child was Motel of the Mysteries. It was part of what inspired her to be an Anthropology major in college. :) On a side...if anyone is in the Albany, NY area...SUNY does a dig every summer close by. They have a day where the public is invited to visit and see a dig in progress.

We did all three books last year when DD was a K'er. She loved them. For the most part they were easy for her. The only sections that caused her any grief were the analogies. For some reason, she had a hard time making the connections. I agree that it would be fine for a 4.5 yr old.

Bumping to see if there are anymore video suggestions out there. :)

I really like this idea! I might have to appropriate it... Part of me feels a little tinge over the FB back to school posts, but then I tell myself that I would have to wake up at an ungodly hour of the morning in order to hound DD into getting up, dressed, and breakfasted in a timely fashion while dealing with two screechy littles.

Omaha. We lived in Lincoln for sev yrs, and I miss NE. It's a nice, friendly state. The Omaha zoo is fun, as is the children's museum and the botanical gardens. I only drove through Bellevue on my way to base for the commissary, but it looked nice. I know there are several HS groups in that area. You couldn't pay me enough to live in Tampa. I was there once to visit a friend, and the traffic was horrible (ppl would honk at you if you didn't run the red right as it turned). And I don't like humidity. I know my friend was glad to psc as she didn't care for it either. They lived 45 min away from base since that's where they could afford a house. I remember her complaining about how far it was to the closest ped for her DD (this was a while ago, things could have changed by now). And they spent most of their time trapped indoors b/c it was too humid to go out and do anything. One of the things she liked was being so close to WDW. They bought season passes and went there frequently.

Thank you for the list! That will be immensely helpful. :) I also completely forgot that we have the MSB DVDs we can watch as well.

I know there are a ton of videos out there to go along w/SOTW, but are there any for ES Biology? Netflix, YouTube, etc... Thank you!

La Clasa Divertida. Rosetta would be torture for kids that age. We're doing LCD and DD loves it. It seems to move slowly, but she's retaining what's taught so I keep my mouth shut. Even my 2 yr old (attempts to) sing the vowel song. She'll walk around the house garbling it.

I used the XS/NB size of Classic Proraps with my 3. They have an umbilical dip on the front.

We got the subscription the last time HSBC ran it. I would not buy it again. The more kits we get, the less we like it. Most of them are just meh. The only one we've really liked is the mold/slime kit.

I was induced w/all 3 (2 of them my water broke, but there were no ctx). Ask how they're going to do the pit - how frequently they're going to increase it, and by how much. If they say they're going to double the dose every time they up it, FIGHT IT! Seriously, that's a pathway to a c-section. They should only be minimally upping it each time. Since she'll be tethered to the IV, she can't go too far. I've found the best position (for me) for dealing w/the ctx was to sit on a ball/stool and lean forward onto the bed. Unless she has a severe medical reason why she should lay in bed, FIGHT IT. The worst thing for her in terms of coping w/the pain is to be laying down in bed (the first hospital I delivered at made me stay in bed and it was absolutely horrible, nurses/doctors for my last two were appalled at how the first hospital did things regarding the pit). It's too late now, but red raspberry leaf tea does wonders for helping w/pit-induced ctx pain. Good luck to your daughter!

Hello! My name is Punchie and I live in WNY. This was our first year homeschooling our oldest. I would love it if our kids never set foot in a public school. We have 3 kids – 2 girls, ages 6 and 2; 1 boy, age 10 months. DH is in the Air Force. We’ve been married a little over 7 years. Prior to our current move, I worked for the fed gov’t. I was also in the military many years ago. I went to military school for high school (NMMI), and I have a BA in Religious Studies. It is my dream to get a PhD in Early Christian History. Um…hobbies include reading, gardening, traveling, and martial arts (Krav Maga and Muay Thai). I really, really want to do a Tough Mudder. One is coming locally next year, so I’ll finally get my chance. I am also a Girl Scout leader. We’re homeschooling mainly for academic reasons, but also because I don’t want to see my childrens’ spirits crushed. And I want them to get their morals/values from us. Plus, I really enjoy being around my children (even when they’re being whiney hellions who make me want to rip my hair out). I am an introverted, wallflower who will rarely initiate a conversation. I’m more comfortable lurking in the fringe. However, once I’m comfortable with you, I will never shut up.

Congratulations!! How wonderful!! I know DH has studies his tookis off when testing/promotion-time comes around. It's a stressful time waiting to find out if he scored high enough to make the cut.

This (to the bolded), but I would also throw in the Oxnard airport as well b/c you never know...you might get a decent price.

Thank you for the suggestions!

Any suggestions? They can be factual or myths or stories...anything, really! I need some good ideas for picture books that involve animals. It would be for the K/1st grade age-range. Thanks!

peanut butter. I have my parents ship it to me from the other side of the country (and I in turn will mail some to my friend in Germany). It is the only pb I will buy.

I'm assuming he's at NMMI? Um...Carlsbad for the caverns, or White Sands/Alamogordo are the first that come to mind. You could also try Cloudcroft. We stayed there one weekend as a get away in a really neat old hotel that was haunted. We would also go to Ruidoso - it's a nice change of climate/scenery from Roswell. Though Roswell is bigger than when I was there...which probably isn't saying too much. :)

If you can't find anyone, you might try what I'm doing w/my Daisies. For all intents and purposes, there is no Brownie troop in our area, so I am fudging the details a bit. In order to earn the bridging award, the girls had to: earn their first Try-It learn the Brownie Smile song write down what they liked best about being a Daisy (I will put these on a poster board to show the incoming Daisies/families at our first meeting this Fall) Good luck!

Would anyone be willing to show pictures of their binders? I like the idea of them for DD, but I have no clue how they should look. (I need to review WTM this summer when I have a bit of time)

With all 3 in my first trimester, pretty much the only thing I could keep down was fast food. I hate fast food! I can't stand the taste of it. With #2 and #3, I craved root beer for most of the pregnancies. Other cravings were peaches/nectarines (skins had to be removed) and both the breakfast sandwiches and egg salad sandwiches from Wawa's. I almost started crying one time when I found out they had run out of the breakfast sandwiches. The girl behind the counter took pity and made one for me.

This is on my personal summer to do list as well. That and learn how to play the piano (or at least start learning).