I decided today to use the VfCBS with my 9th graders yet tonight found that there is another book (VfHS). If anyone has used the high school book would you mind commenting on it? Is it worth doing or should I go straight to VfCB? Thanks!

lol, I'm this way, too! One would think I am near the end of my name list yet every time I use a name another one comes along that I absolutely love and hope to use. :D If it is at all possible to have the baby itch BEFORE a baby is born, then I have it! Last night I said to dh, "I'm ready to do this all over again." He just said, "Yep, I knew you would be!" I hope my baby itch goes away when the time is right and not a moment/baby before. ;)

YES! We have had one family whose teens refuse to attend any event where younger siblings are included. Their dc are not missed. ;) One of the best homeschool events I hosted was a Mystery Dinner where the ages ranged from 8-18 (it was intended as a teen night but my dc were present and the amazing teens who attended were not fazed at having younger dc around). The fellowship was great and my younger dc felt so good to be acknowledged and welcomed by older kids. Unfortunately, we have this, too. It is very annoying to assume everyone wants your other dc when one is invited. I even had my baby shower attended by not only the moms I knew but over TWENTY kids as well because the moms would not go anywhere or do anything without their dc. It was a disaster.

I've been excused twice because I indicate on the form that I take care of young children. I'm sorry, I can't remember the exact wording but there was a place to check that option. I never put that I homeschool.

My inlaws are Easter/Xmas church attendees and base their salvation upon their religious upbringing (went to certain schools, participated in certain rituals) rather than a relationship with the Lord. There was a period of almost 3 years when we were not speaking to each other because of major disagreements on religious issues (my mil is one who will not drop a discussion/debate until she is proven "right"). Last night my dh said we would be attending church and would bring back some lunch afterwards when my mil said they were going with us. My dh handled it well, acted like it was no big deal, but I was speechless. I honestly never thought they would actually go yet this morning for the first time in as long as I have known them (20 years) my inlaws went to church and it wasn't a holiday! I could not even sing during worship time because my heart was overflowing with emotion and I prayed the entire time that God would work His way into their hearts. My mil, unfortunately, had her typical mocking attitude during the service (but at least she listened!) but my fil took notes and sang so maybe, just maybe... If you have a heart to do so would you pray for my inlaws? We will be with them for an entire week in Mexico and want to be a witness for the Lord. He is up to something, of that I am sure, and if He sees fit to use our family to reach them then praise God! With God all things truly are possible.

lol, I've only seen a few episodes but my "thing" is Jack...yum. Had to stop watching the series because he was a bit too yummy for me. ;) I really got a lot out of the show, can you tell?! :D

That is why I said that if family members need something for themselves they can do what they want, but leave my dc out of it and don't expect my dh or myself to plan something. As for showing respect...well, my outlaws would probably throw a party (hardly kidding here) and my mom would be a wreck which I do NOT need my dc to be around. My siblings could care less if I'm here or not so it would be an insult to me to even think of them attending/having a funeral for me.

My dh and I will not have funerals for this very reason. If our families need something then they can do a funeral but our dc will not be put through that (especially with our overly emotional family members). I detest funerals and would not put my dc or my dh through that ordeal. It would be nice if my loved ones respected my wishes after I'm gone but knowing my family, they would not. :glare:

We're finishing up studying the Great Depression and honestly I don't remember much of the book or movie from high school. Would it be appropriate for my 3 oldest dc? I read briefly through the first few chapters of the book last night and decided to not let them read it although I will read the descriptive chapters out loud so I'm wondering more about the movie. Thanks!

One of the funnest things we did for science was a study on water. We had a blast jumping on piles of packing bubbles to simulate what is heard when waves "pop" on shore. Yet today when my 12yos shared that he learned about waves and bubbles in science class (an outside co-op) and I told him that we learned that 2 years ago, he said he didn't remember learning it. :glare: This is definitely not the first time this has happened and I find myself discouraged! I make learning fun, we have a good balance of reading and reinforcement activities, so why don't they remember what they learned??? I feel as though I have wasted time and why bother teaching them when they are younger if they will just forget it later on? I realize they have not forgotten everything yet it seems as though so much is lost.

My dh doesn't get a say in naming the baby so that makes it easier for me (he doesn't even know the gender, lol!). I've narrowed down my list but have not decided yet. #3 wasn't named for 2 days so maybe this is how it will be with this baby as well. I'm going to actually post a poll soon askinng for input because I am so undecided.

6:30 Everyone up 6:45 Breakfast 7:05 Breakfast clean-up 7:30 Walk/exercise 7:50 Devotion 8:00 chores (20min); typing (20min); Bible (20min) 9:00 snack 9:15 school 11:00 lunch prep (one of the older 3 dc); one older takes the baby, 11yo does violin, mom with the "littles" for literature 11:30 lunch That's our morning! Lots of routine because it keeps us on task even if I am sick or busy with baby. The routine also helps my dh who often is the one getting breakfast ready to spend time and eat with the kids before leaving for work at 7:30.

I haven't had a person come but I did return a call. Hung up on the first guy after telling him to take English classes so I could understand him and answer his questions. Next lady was great - laughed when I gave "human" as race and every one of my dc was a different origin (dh is adopted so we have no idea what his background is). I would not give birthdays, told her I already gave that information on the form. Told her that of course "Rebecca" is a boy and of course my 1yo is in the military (she knew I was joking). Stupid, stupid, stupid questions. Stupid waste of time and $. Last thing I said to this lovely woman was that I wouldn't want her job for all the world and she deserved a vacation once she was done. She agreed, laughed and that was that.

Lucky you!!! I told my dh last night that I want 2 days by myself before baby arrives to scrapbook. Have a blast, relax and enjoy yourself!

Again, thanks to all who have taken the time to respond. I am taking notes and will run the suggestions by my dh tonight. I appreciate everything that has been posted. I have a lot to think about yet want everyone to know that I feel so encouraged on a day that began quite discouragingly.

Thank you for all the wonderful suggestions! There are a few things we have done/looked into: Family members/gifts: we asked once and it was met with open resistance...sigh Our gifts to the kids: we try to find something everyone can do (zoo membership - $65) once/year as a replacement for Xmas gifts. Our limit has been $75 although that may be down quite a bit this year. YMCA - we do not qualify for any discount/scholarship Theatre scholarship - again, we do not qualify Increase income - dh took on a job managing a rental yet the $100/month he earns went toward our increased health insurance for last year; we just refinanced and will use the $93/month saved for health insurance increases this coming year THIS is the difficult part - we are just barely above the cut-off for financial aid for most things. I don't know if there are so many low-income families in our area that the demand for aid is too high but for those who are inbetween it is nearly impossible to get help. We have already cut our vehicle payment by $50 to cover everyday costs. I just got an email from my dh that says we now need to find another $164/month for health insurance starting in July. I am crying my eyes out. So now our vehicle payment will go way down but not for outside activities. This has been a very bad day to say the least. We used to be able to use some of our income for extra activities. For 12 years we lived below our means but that has changed in the last two years (as it has for so many people) NOT because of choices we made that were financially irresponsible but because of the economy and the effect it has had on my dh's job. We do not know when his hours will be cut or when he will lose his job altogether so every penny we put in the bank will help us survive should something happen. There is no one we know who would be able to help us financially should we need it so we are very much on our own. We go to parks and hike a lot so that is our family fun time. It's more the specialized lessons/activities that we are unable to participate in. I will look into the other suggestions including the public school idea. Our schools here are downright scary so we have hesitated having our dc involved in any way.

^^^Thank you for posting this, although I am sorry to hear that you are going into debt. It's hard to be the "loner" homeschool mom whose kids aren't in things and I keep wondering what I'm doing wrong...

I need to know I am not alone in this. Last night I came home from a homeschool meeting fighting tears. All I heard from the other moms was about baseball/softball practice, piano lessons, trips to the zoo/wildlife park, etc. I cannot do those things for my dc because for us it is either order curriculum and feed our family or participate in outside activities. I wanted to get my dc involved in a summer theatre program that everyone else's dc are in, yet the email I received this morning indicating a "small" fee of $175 per student caused the tears I fought last night to fall. I am so frustrated and discouraged. I feel as though I am cheating my dc out of things because there is no way we can afford to have them in sports and such; even signing up one dc for soccer in the fall has to be saved up for all year long. I'm also frustrated because I just do not see how the other families can afford such things. My dh was trying to help me understand this last night by pointing out that we put a full vehicle payment in the bank each month even though we do not owe on either vehicle since our goal is to pay cash for our next vehicle purchase. I could have my dc in all kinds of things if we used that $ rather than save it. I confess that I am sometimes tempted to not save that $ or other extra $ that comes in (even though I love being debt-free and having a savings account) if I could use the $ for activities for my dc. We do not spend a dime on extra things, we do not eat out, I shop thrift/resale and use coupons...there is nothing I can use except for the vehicle $ or tithe $. How do people afford activities like this? These are not wealthy families by any means! Every one of them is on gov't aid (health care, WIC, etc.) so WHERE are they getting the money to have 4-7 kids in programs like this? What am I doing wrong??? I feel so guilty that I actually suggested to my dh that we put our dc in public school for the last 3 years so they can participate in sports, music, etc. I know it would still cost some $ for them to be in activities in public school yet it wouldn't come close to what it costs for private lessons. I really need some insight/encouragement because I look at my dc and feel nothing but guilt. :(

:iagree: Our 9yo went from a Britax Frontier to the Monarch. I would look at anything with the side wings and wouldn't bother with anything that didn't have those. ;) mom2jjka - so glad to find another who keeps their dc in 5 pt. harness longer! I get some crazy looks when I tell people my 7 and 5yo are still in their Frontiers yet I know they are as safe as I can possibly make them be.

lol, sure! If the girl's family came with her and of course our tribe would also be there. It would be a fun family outing. ;) I would probably just show up with all of us in tow, let the girl know that our ds comes as a package deal. If she handled that situation well then she's probably a girl I would want to get to know better. :D As for meeting solo at the mall (or anywhere else for that matter), nope.

After many years of cheaper double stroller I just got my BOB last week and LOVE it!!! I wish I'd just made the investment way back when instead of wasting time/$ on strollers that were of lesser quality. Yes, it was a huge purchase but worth every penny. I take mine out on rougher trails and it rides like a dream, plus I jog every day with it. I got mine off ebay for $500 plus $20 shipping.

The lady said I did not need to order 3 sets of timeline figures, that I should order one and copy it on to what she called "cracked" sticker paper. Does anyone know what this is and have you used it? Where did you get it and how expensive was it?

I found as much as I could privately or on Amazon. I want everything ordered by the end of April so I gave up waiting for someone to put their stuff up for sale and just ordered the items I can only get from MFW (lesson plans, lit supplement, etc.). I saved well over $100, though, even with having to order 3 of some of the items (that was where the big "yikes" came in!). Yes, I ordered the Ancient. And while it hurt to spend that much $ I also figure that more than one set of dc will use it...hopefully! All told I spent about $700 for the entire set for 3 dc. That included the entire Notgrass set, not just the first book and quiz/test book.

Maybe some can relate to this. Placing that first big high school order is surreal. Seeing the $ amount is frightening (I warned dh that he might need to revive me after I hit the "Place Order" button!). I hope and pray this program works for us and that I can use it for future dc! That's all. Off to calm my shocked nerves with some chocolate. :D

lol, I hope gender roles never go away, personally! Not that I want to be forced into a June Cleaver role but I do believe there is a beauty in the gifts/talents each gender is given and would not want to see a complete disappearance of natural gender roles.