:party:

We were supposed to have school today, but with kids started coughing during the night and now have fevers. I'm going to try and get some stuff sorted in our school area. Good luck!

I knew some pastors' kids too and their houses were extremely neat and decluttered. Their kids were in school, though, which helps with the stuff in the house. If I dropped in at a homeschooling house, I would overlook a lot. I get stressed about messes in my own house, but not in other homes. I would be fine with a couple of days' worth of dishes in the sink, breakfast still kind of on the table, a thin layer of dust, a floor that could use a sweeping, Lego everywhere, a science project on the sideboard, art supplies out, a cutting board with potato peels, a naked toddler with peanut butter in their hair, Mt. Washmore in a pile in the corner, kids in PJs at 3 pm, etc. All at once? Sure. But actual maggots? I'd nope right out of there. Of course, just to be clear we're talking about the friend of the friend of Chelli.

Yes, there's a limit to "scientific investigations" for school. Although, maybe she's managed to do the mummified chicken project, accidentally. :ack2:

:driving: I'm on my way.

That is huge. :thumbup1:

SMH. Sounds like they feed off each other. This is a bad situation all around. And maggots...yikes! My friend and I have a good laugh when we remember when she became overwhelmed (big family) and she got fed up and took all the dirty dishes and piled them into the tub, filling it. Everyone had had the stomach flu and she'd been wiping behinds and doing laundry 24/7 for a couple of days. For her family, these were maybe 2.5 days of dishes. She told me she would only bring them back into the kitchen a few at a time for washing and she got them done over a couple of hours. All she wanted was a little room to work! To me, that bathtub filled with dishes is a funny image that we laugh about. Maggots, not so funny.

Wonderful! :hurray:

I'm a minimalist at heart but I live with 3 people who are not. I tell myself it's just for a season, right? Packing went well today. We didn't put in as many hours although they were more efficient until I had computer problems. I thought I would make a computer backup prior to the move just in case and I ran into technical problems and wasted time there. I'm totally over the "helping hands" thing and have hired a homeschooling friend to watch the kids for a few scattered days between now and the move. I'm glad to hear things are going so well for other folks!

You know how when you had kids you ended up saying sentences you never though you'd say? That's how I feel about Ulysses. Last week I thought, "Oh, I have to post that great quote about sardines, written by Joyce when he was mimicking the style of Morte d'Arthur!" :confused1: Anyway, best description of tinned fish ever: As for my other reading, I was 10 pages from the end of Annihilation when I dozed off. Will finish after dinner. Next I'm going to read the introduction to On Politics as the history reading group on goodreads is starting it March 9 and I think they'll start right in with the first chapter. If anyone is interested, the Western Canon goodreads group is going to read The Pilgrim's Progress next. My lack of knowledge about the Bible is about to catch up with me in a big way....

I came across this nice BYU guide of terms used in rhetoric. I was reading elsewhere (reddit?) a discussion about the vocabulary of rhetoric being an impediment. I know it is for me. I especially like reading through the rhetorical figures on the right side of the page. Silva rhetoricae (The forest of rhetoric)

Agreed.

:party: I'm so happy for you guys! So much of your work (both of you!) is paying off in wonderful ways.

How very meta. ;)

I'll admit I'm a little embarrassed because Kathy in Richmond's daughter works there. OTOH, one of the main purposes of this board is to help people find a good fit and people have all sorts of criteria such as faith, price, rigor, etc. I wonder what curriculum publishers think when people ask if their curriculum is as easy as everyone says or too expensive. They just roll with it, I guess.

Lots of good suggestions in this thread so I'll just add SWB's videos on quiet time at her house. I used this quite a bit when the kids were younger. It's since morphed into "reading hour" at our house although I'm thinking about changing it to "project time" when they get older and more independent.

Where I live in the land of bad BBQ, "BBQ" apparently means camping overnight on a city sidewalk. Yep word on the street is camping for at least 2 days.

Just checking in. We're so tired from packing that I've not read much. We're reading Circe in the Ulysses goodreads group. Until now I've really enjoyed Ulysses overall but this chapter makes me feel ill. I have the same sense of unease when I read Alice in Wonderland which is why I don't like that book either. In Circe everyone is drunk so perhaps it's meant to feel this way. It's an easy read but I have no idea what some of this stuff is. It's written like a play and everyone and everything seems to be talking. Yes, even the doorhandle, apparently. 5 hours of this. What?! -- In other news, I am still enjoying Annihilation, which is very creepy. I can't think of another book quite like it. The characters don't even have names, just roles ("the psychologist") that they play in this expedition to "Area X." If anyone remembers the 90s video game Myst, it's sort of like that but even creepier.

I can't either. I'm not sure anyone can read it. There are two identical posts and they both have zero responses despite being posted for a while.

:thumbup1: Are you planning on packing during the week or just weekends? I think I'm going to have to put in some time each day. Maybe 30-60 minutes.

It never crossed my mind but now that I'm thinking about it.... I think it's a play on words. When someone is really good at something, people sometimes call them a "_____ beast" where the blank can be math, swimming, etc. I'll be they were thinking of a comic style and thought of "math beast" and that gave them an idea for the characters. I think you're reading too much into it and I hope you won't decide not to use this fantastic program for that particular reason, if it otherwise fits your needs. ETA: Read the entire thread, others said it better.

We are also moving. Luckily the landlord is moving back in so we don't have to worry about showings. The truck arrives in 20 days. Today we cleaned out the master bedroom closet and all that's left are clothes and an empty suitcase. DH is on a Goodwill run and then will pack the closet stuff we're keeping into boxes. (It's currently all over the bed!) I'm moving on to the kids' closet things and wrapping breakables throughout the house in bubble wrap. We did our change of address form today and ordered some shelving for the garage at the new place.

My kids are young and I'm no expert, but my first thought is to find out where she is in their stats. If she's in the top 20% of scores, for example, I would be more likely to take the chance of re-applying than if she's in the bottom 20%. (Or whatever percentages, but you get the idea.)

I like Tap's stick plan best. You can be very precise and make a small hole.

Can you fit your hand through the hole for candy? I'm wondering if you can use a large needle (upholstery needle?) or something sharp to push through a string (with a knot on one end to keep that end from coming back though.)