Same here. My dh finally has a job that pays almost double what he's ever made before, he gets a free lunch every day, and the school where he teaches paid our moving expenses. We're barely holding it together. I'm still in shock. So, he's taking on some after school duties that pay extra and I am starting a part time job at the beginning of Nov; the hours are a blessing and the pay will allow dh and I to have health insurance for the first time in over 5 years (although I have no idea how we are going to pay for all the medical exams the underwriters want us to have before they will approve our coverage, but I don't want to think about that right now :) ), but the money of those combined incomes will buy no where near what we thought it would.

Done.

This is what we did this past Christmas (thanks to advice from here). We were able to get a 2011 Advent Calendar for $5 the day after Christmas that we are giving our boys this year.

We use CalenGoo for family scheduling. It syncs with Google Calendar, and I can have color-coded calendars for each family member plus add the calendars for our church and scout troop. Love it!

It depends on the context. When discussing a person, I assume "mature" means older and still active. (Although, now that I am exactly 40, I assume it means "older than me." :D) When discussing media of any kind, I assume "mature" means "not for children."

Done. :grouphug:

He is so handsome! We all love your third pic! Too cute!

:iagree: Also, your fil was introduced to these works as a youth alongside the activities and knowledge base for the occupation, hobbies, and interests he chose to pursue. We all must make choices as to what we will focus on in our lives; we can't possibly do/ read/ experience/ learn everything (although many of us give it the old college try :D). Some things will fall by the wayside. By exposing your children to these texts in addition to other studies and activities, you not only give them the tools to be active participants in the diverse society in which they live but you open up a broad range of choices for them from which they can become more themselves and in which they will find their callings and joy... as your fil has.

:iagree: Edith Schaeffer obliquely addresses it in The Hidden Art Of Homemaking when she talks about the use of art (drawing, specifically) to help parents engage children in the sermon by illustrating it as they listen.

We loved breakfast at Movenpick (we went every morning the week of our honeymoon). And Castle Loma is beautiful!

I've seen a lot of improvement in my son's math facts since he started playing "Math Bingo" on my iPod. I don't require him to play a certain amount every day or anything; he just likes to play it and plays it frequently.

I FEEL HUMAN! This is the first day in a week that I haven't been sick or exhausted (insomnia decided to visit after the stomach flu... fun, fun). I'm so excited! Now I can clean the apartment for the company we're having tonight and tomorrow. Not easy since the apartment is still in "mom's been sick" condition. :D So, this weekend we're having friends over (one group for dinner tonight and one group for lunch tomorrow) then church on Sunday. We need to get some laundry done at some point too, but my dh still doesn't have a car and has been using mine, so I can't get to the laundromat during the weekdays. I see a laundry date in our future. :001_smile:

:iagree: This is the first idea that popped into my head, too... but I don't know if I could do it either. (At least not in the calm, confident fashion that would show my kids I'm serious and that I could stick to.)

:grouphug:

Done. :grouphug:

I am definitely praying for you! We just went through this ourselves. Dh has been in grad school the last 5 years and just got (what we thought was) a great paying job in a relatively low COL city. Then we tried to find an apartment. Ugh. Apparently, we went from a below the poverty line income in the highest COL city in the state with amazingly low rent to a low COL city with sky-high rent (and very few places that would take our 15lb dog) that takes 1/3 of my dh's new, "high" salary. :001_huh: On the plus side, he had to live here a month before we moved here and children of friends (who we did not know well) offered dh their guest room for the month. We have a place to live that is safe. I was looking for a volunteer opportunity locally so I could get to know some people here, and God provided a part-time *paying* job at the local library (it doesn't even cover our rent, but it eases the burden a bit). Miracles can happen! I'll be praying for you!

We've seen all the episodes of Revolution so far. I really wanted to like it, but it seems very Hunger Games/ Lost with a cast pulled straight out of "How To Populate Your Independent, Low Budget, Textbook Post-Apocalyptic, Horror Movie." I just can't watch it any more. I'm disappointed because I really, really wanted to like it. I love horror and post-apocalyptic films, books, etc. I just... can't. (ETA: full disclosure - I didn't watch past the first half-season of "Lost," either. I just couldn't get into it.)

Our local homeschool group has an online message board with a sale and swap section. Also, she could contact a local museum, library, or nature group and offer to do a class based on one of her studies where she can provide info on ordering more.

:grouphug:

We just counted NINE elephants (2 were babies) and 5 zebras!

Two elephants! Cool! This is the first time we've seen anything other than a bird!

We need sidewalks. There is a TON of stuff to do within a mile of our apartment... parks, playground, the library, stores, restaurants, etc. But unless you have a car or a death wish, you can't walk to any of it. I also wish our neighbors were chatty. We've lived here a month and I have only talked to *one* neighbor beyond the word "Hi." We're planning on making treats to bring to neighbors and introduce ourselves.

Hugo Dark Knight Rises (if you've seen the first two of the trilogy; if not, watch those first) Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows The Avengers Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2 Moneyball Moonrise Kingdom Beasts of the Southern Wild

We just applied for private health insurance and were pleasantly surprised that we could get a high deductible, catastrophic plan for under $300/ month for dh and I. (We can't afford to add the kids... that would cost about $1200/ month, so they are going on CHiP... not so happy about that, but at least I won't have to worry whenever they get sick). We have a medical deductible of $7500 and a prescription deductible of $1000 then everything is covered 100%. All well visits are covered 100% from the get go. This is all assuming we're approved, of course.

Congratulations! You all look so happy! And my dd15 is so excited to see another homeschooled teen girl is a Beatles fan! :)