^^^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.

She will turn 12 in November so she would be 11/12yo freshman, 12/13 sophomore, 13/14 junior, 14/15 senior. However, since she doesn't turn 15 until November she could not take a class in the fall; she would only be able to take advantage of the CC program for one semester. I really appreciate the input, ladies. I have some thinking to do and decisions to make!

My 11yod caught up to her 2 older siblings in 2nd grade. She is self-driven, high achiever, etc. She has kept up wonderfully with all the schoolwork and in fact passes her 12yo brother often. This year she will finish LL8, PreAlgebra, 8th grade history, writing and grammar. I had every intention of moving her into 9th grade until yesterday after our hs meeting. A woman shares each April what she did for high school, college requirements, etc. with our group. Our CC allows juniors and seniors to take one free class each semester and it was my plan to use that for lab sciences and/or foreign language. The only thing is that the student must be 15yo, no exceptions. At the rate my 11yod is going, she would be a junior at the age of 14, graduate at 15. I don't know what to do. We had planned for her to participate in the 8th grade graduation in May along with her brother and sister, yet now I'm wondering if I really want her to move up. What are my options?? She wants to stay in 8th grade so she can compete in the County Spelling Bee again (I told her that was not a good reason to repeat a grade, lol). Any input would be greatly appreciated. I'm at a standstill as far as ordering curriculum until I decide what to do, although I've already ordered books for her for MFW AHL. I'm also leaning toward doing with my 12yos whatever I do with my 11yo as they are really on the same level. I'd like to keep all 3 in the same history (MFW) and know they can all handle it; my big concern is science. Thanks, ladies. I hope this all made sense. :)

Well...we're wading through our third week of this text and struggling. Pro: includes review (first Set of problems), challenge problem (Set IV) and dd likes the cartoon Con: explanation of concepts is incredibly light (IMO almost ridiculously so). I loved math and did very well in it yet when I read her text I can't believe so little explanation is provided. I have to sit with my dd at the beginning of each lesson and go over it with her, add more explanation, basically "flesh out" the concepts. She has always been good at math so that's not an issue. Once I am able to help her she does fine with the problem sets, thank goodness. I would switch but I'm tired of looking at math books and figure as long as she's getting it (even if it involves a lot of my time) we'll stick with it. I do like that it will challenge her to think through concepts more on her own, yet I personally feel it provides too little in the way of explanation. We do have the solutions manual but have not needed it yet. We also have the Dr. Callahan DVDs which are a joke - serious waste of $.

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I am wondering what monitoring (if any) the OP had during labor? Meaning was the baby's heartrate being monitored and did it indicate fetal distress? The two friends I've had who lost their babies were those who refused all monitoring so the baby's distress was not discovered in time; neither of them were VBAC. Personally, I feel VBACs are a wonderful option to automatic, repeat c-sections however they should be taken very seriously and extra monitoring should be involved. But then I believe in lots of monitoring VBAC or not. ;)

Awesome post! I totally agree!

According to the MFW site there are some books that I should purchase one for each student. For those who have gone through this program, would you recommend having more than one book if you were taking more than one student through besides the recommended ones? I'm specifically thinking of the lesson plans ($90 is a lot of $ but depending on how many pages there are, what would it cost to copy it?) and the Notgrass history book. The 3 dc I have going through this program do the same subjects at the same time so I need to know what can really be shared and what should be provided for each dc. Thanks!

I'm ordering most of my books from Amazon. Today I received the Rand McNally Historical Atlas of the World and while the picture on Amazon matched the picture on the MFW site, the actual atlas I received has a different cover. Copyright is 1997. Would someone be willing to tell me what the copyright is on the atlas with the suit of armor picture if you have that one? I don't mind using a different atlas as long as the inside is the same. :)

A while ago I posted a question regarding my oldest dd who asked a very general question about Mary/virginity/etc. That sparked a rather lengthy and sometimes intense discussion regarding the appropriate age for discussing such issues, exposure kids need to have to such information, etc. I do NOT want this to become another such discussion and hope what I want/need to share is in no way topic for debate. I just finished the second amazing weekend with my daughters (separate weekends, of course) using the Passport 2 Purity program. We had fun, we had open discussion, we all learned a lot, and I survived the event I have been praying about and preparing for since my first dd was just 7yo. What amazed me most was that neither of my dds had the slightest clue what sex was. Not.a.clue. My younger dd asked on our drive to the hotel why she would be learning about sex because she already knows she is a girl. :) My just-turned 14yo said the same thing and my heart sang for JOY!!! Here I'm driving 75mph on the freeway wiping tears from my eyes as I realized that the effort I made, the stand I took to shelter and protect my dc until it was the right time for them to know about these things and to find out from ME, worked! In a world where kids are bombarded with sexual content from the earliest of ages, where something as precious and private as sex is distorted to be crude and casual, my dc have been protected by not only myself but my friends who introduced the topic to their dc earlier than I did with mine. There may be those reading this post who have not yet gotten to this point with their dc and are wondering if such protection can really be done. I was told by many people a most emphatic, "NO!" I was told that I was delusional and that my dc knew more than I thought they did, that I shouldn't be so ignorant as to really think I could have preteens who had not heard things from friends. They were wrong...praise God, they were wrong!!! And now my dds know about sex from a Biblical point of view - so unlike the way I learned. I want to thank every woman who posted reviews/input on the P2P program. I want to thank those women who have gone before moms such as myself and done with your dc what I was able to do with my dds. I want to thank those moms who admonish their dc to use discretion and keep confidences so that moms who are coming up behind you don't lose that precious opportunity to share this beautiful information with their own dc and in their own way. The highlight of the drive home today with my 14yo was when I told her how I had prayed all these years for the right time to share this information with her and that I had felt pressure to do this long before now. She turned to me and said, "Mom, there is no way I would have been ready for this before now. God knows me, He knows what I can handle, and I know He told you the exact time to do this with me." :hurray: To those who feel differently than I do regarding an appropriate age to expose our dc to such things, I mean no offense and understand that everyone is different, including our dc. This post isn't meant as a slam or criticism toward anyone. Funny thing is that I was originally supposed to take my 14yod on the weekend and had no thought of doing this with my 11yo. Yet as my 14yo was getting in the car she mouthed off to me (again) and I told her to unpack her bags, told my 11yo to pack her bags, and off we went. It was the perfect time for my 11yo to go through the program! God's hand was so clearly directing all of this for all three of us, it is just amazing. He knew I needed to go through this with my future midwife/doctor 11yo who was not embarrassed and views everything technically before taking on my very emotional and easily embarrassed 14yo. He even knew my 14yo's guinea pig would be attacked in our yard last night and that she needed to not be here to find it in the morning (my future doctor found it and dealt with it in her efficient way). Coincidence? No way. God is good and knows exactly what our dc need at just the right time. :)

Personally, I would never give up a name I love for any reason. Names can't be "taken", IMO (or "stolen", either). I love the name Ashleigh and love the way it is spelled (different than the traditional Ashley). So that gets my vote. :)

:( I'm so sorry. I woke up last night and for the first time had a name for this little one...and I cried. sniff sniff :) I really appreciate the responses because choosing a name is such a privilege and I am always afraid of not choosing the right one.

Tide, hands down. I just tried homemade detergent this week and will never do that again as I had to rewash every load! Like I have time for that?! Tide is worth every penny since I don't have to look for spots and spray them and never have to rewash anything.

lol, my dc would love it if I used that name as they adore the Boxcar Children set. :D

Thanks for the replies, ladies! I don't know even one Henry of any age so reading that it may be making a comeback is surprising. I was going to use "James" as a mn but our last name is that of 007 so I thought that would be a bit hokey. My dad's name is James so I thought Jameson/Jamison could honor him without bringing to mind a secret agent. ;)

Is this name too "old"? Yesterday the name popped into my head and I cannot get it out! Don't know where it came from but am considering it now for baby (middle name Jameson/Jamison). Is it completely nerdy? The other contender is "Seth". Thoughts? I know this isn't a baby/pregnancy forum but the forum I'm on seems to be filled with moms who can't get past anything "aiden" based or from Twilight. No offense to moms here who have used such names but I want something different. ;)

It's not dinner but the best thing anyone did for us was give us a breakfast basket. It had homemade banana bread, fruit, juice, packets of tea or hot chocolate, etc. Since the hardest time for me as a new mom is the morning it was truly a blessing.