I am finding some of the ideal in a homeschool co-op that employs those who are passionate about the subject their teaching. A former engineer is teaching junior high boys robotics. A woman whose native language is Spanish is teaching Spanish. A high ranking Air Force pilot who loves loves loves history has move his schedule around so that he can teach history. I guess in the upper grades, mentors as teachers is ideal. Also, I wish there were more people who were willing and more laws that made it possible for teens to be apprenticed. I had a friend who owned a remodeling company. He was excellent at his job. He was willing to take on apprentices but there were some laws that made it hard unless it was your own child. I have a son that loves computers and building them. We have a friend who has taught him some things and I have never seen my child so happy. But-our friend just doesn’t have the time. So, a network of people willing to apprentice teens in a variety of skills is my ideal. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

They’ve done most of the above also...special lunches for teachers every quarter, bring cookies for the cookie walk for teachers (I’ve done this type of stuff), fundraisers whee kids sell things (the duck thing), fall festival, Christmas Santa run, and now the latest fun run. I’ve never had a problem with all the fundraisers. The only reason I have one now is because it’s taking up daily class time for two weeks. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I do understand the funding of charter schools is less and they need fundraisers to make up the difference. They did one last year for playground equipment. I’m also not liking how they are trying to get kids to sign up. They are giving out prizes for different things and making it a big award ceremony of sorts in their daily assemblies for the fundraiser. So, if you didn’t raise as much as the kid next to you, you won’t get the cool prizes and big ceremony with acknowledgement of what you accomplished. The last fundraiser had a big production of handing out special rubber ducks. Some kids who didn’t get as many as another kid went home crying. So, I get the “whyâ€. I’m just not in love with the “whatâ€. This is a school that has smart boards in every class and feels the need for one in the area where kids are supposed to meet to get extra help or have some quiet time. They also have several iPad/chrome book carts for classroom use and a fully loaded classroom sized computer lab that’s takes up half the school library. I don’t believe all this technology contributes to a good education and I am seeing that the school believes otherwise. Also, the students policing other students is a school wide policy. They drill the mantras into the students as to why they’re supposed to do this. My daughter can rattle off the reasons in under 30 seconds. So, we will be moving on. The path has become pretty clear their goals are not my goals. We have enrolled dd in a new charter school that is looking to be very classical in nature. Its the type of education that I feel personally I could support. It’s a lottery so we’ll see. If she doesn’t get that, homeschooling with a classical co-op is the other path. I just can’t continue with this school. My blood pressure can’t handle it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Brand ambassadors once again prove that CC is a ministry where you work for free in the lower levels and a multi million dollar business where you desire large profits in the upper levels. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am finding more and more committed Christians ditching church. I have thought about it a lot but Biblical admonitions and going so my children get in a habit is the only reason why I go. Everyone can find sermons online and worship music is abundant. Why get out of our house and go to the stress of getting everyone else out the door so that we can get a time that's the same as what we could get without having to leave the house? Here's what we have going on. We just left a church because despite our efforts to have people over to dinner, run a small group, and get involved in the youth group for over two years, we were still our own little island. We had a lot of junk that we were dealing with 4 months ago and our last thought was to call people in our church to pray. So, we are looking for a church where people actually get to know each other and get involved with each other. Where the Bible is preached and not just shoved into a topic the pastor wanted to talk about and found verses that related. We believe the church is meant to get "messy" with people as we all walk our faith out. It is not meant to be some worship music, a sermon, and announcements -- go home. We are meant to share each other's burdens - their joys and their sorrows. We are determined to find this. Granted, in 23 years of marriage, we have only really experienced something close to this at a church before we moved 1000 miles. People have trouble finding a church like this here. A lot of people church hop. A lot of people just stay home. And I can't find a good enough reason to encourage them to go to church.

Is there anything that explains theology for kids? Any curriculum that is better at getting into the Bible and Christian worldview better? My dd loves the Bible (this is all on her just in case you're wondering - my other two boys are less enthusiastic). She knows even obscure facts that most people don't know and has a pretty good understanding of how the Bible applies to life. She's reading through "What the Bible is All About for Young Explorers" in her free time. How can I encourage this more? I'd like her to start getting a little deeper in her understanding of the world and how it relates to God. She'll be 5th grade so I feel like she can start thinking about the harder questions. Any suggestions?

We chose this charter because it is a neighborhood school and it’s two blocks from our house. My dd can walk there every day and actually have classmates in the neighborhood. The school we’re zoned for is worse academically, way overcrowded, and far away. The bus leaves at 7:45 am and gets back at 4:30. It’s a small country school that has been taken over by massive suburban growth. I just keep banging my head against the wall in frustration with our current school. Every time I get resigned about something I find that I dislike, they pop another one at me. This time, it looks like two weeks of assemblies (it takes about an hour each time) for a fund raiser that’s masking itself as character development. I’m finding it harder and harder to keep my opinions to myself and not have my dd know my frustration. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We can choose any school as long as they let us in or we win the lottery system a lot of charter school have. I feel burnt. Everyone in my neighborhood raves raves raves about this school. Well, they also rave about the fact that now they’ve had two school assemblies back to back to promote the “fun run†fundraiser going on. Also, I am wondering if a school “social contract†is normal. They encourage kids to “check†each other. Basically, if a student is acting up, other students are supposed to check the other student with a hand motion to help them remember to stop. My dd takes this very seriously. I’ve told her to cut down on the policing and she’s down to 8-10 times per day. She is so intent upon helping the teacher control the class that she’s not listening as well as she needs to. She wants to do her best and helping police the class to her best ability is what she wants to do. I hate this policy for her. She takes things to the extreme and to have her “only†check kids 8-10 times is horrible. I am actively looking elsewhere and going to other schools info meetings. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I just don’t know if I can continue the public school route...I did get some answers. Basically, they can’t bring textbooks home 6th grade and up. And no, they don’t provide technology to access them at home either -that is up to the parents to provide. I’m not a fan of reading online for learning. There are too many studies out that show this type of learning to be inferior. I am a bad public school mom. The latest is my refusal to be pumped about a fundraiser that is taking away class time for two weeks so they can raise money for iPads and smart boards. I just can’t...maybe this is an indicator of the end of this. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I thought I would try to find out the progression of subjects and learning through this school district. No one seems willing or able to tell me how they plan to educate children through the grades. I’m not looking for specifics, but general things like, “When do they teach writing?†“Do they get textbooks to learn from in 6th-12th� How much learning is done via computers? No one returns my calls and I can’t get answers. Asking these type of questions on the school PTO Facebook page is considered complaining. Am I expecting too much? Shouldn’t I as a parent know how the school is planning to educate my child? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The rape with the guy in the clown mask freaked me out as a child. I didn’t understand what had happened at all. I had to watch it as an adult so that I could resolve my childhood memories. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We are in process of replacing our whole house humidifier. It was almost as expensive to fix the one the builders put in that was cheap and installed incorrectly. It’s needed here though. The outside humidity is 6% right now and everything wood in my house is drying up. I’m tired of getting shocked everything I turn on a light. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We have a similar situation. Before, we were trying to spend as little as possible. Now, we have a healthy budget and spend it each month usually. But, we were also skimping on things that make life a little easier-like take out food when I’m exhausted or needing a break—classes for ds that he always wanted to take but we couldn’t afford—actually buying new shoes when they wear out, not when the child actually grows out of them. So, yes we spend more and usually spend what’s in the budget, but it’s probably what we should have been spending before but just couldn’t. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We moved from a small town to a suburban sprawl situation (no public transport though). I love how everything is more convenient, but I do miss space. We were on a half acre and now are barely on 1/4. I feel the need to have a bit more privacy and not have people so close to me all the time. I like the metro amenities, but still want space to be away from people people people. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My DH got a 20%pay cut years ago from his previous company. I think they were trying to make the nest uncomfortable so he would quit. He was a good worker and they knew it but what they really wanted was to find someone who would work for half of his original salary. He eventually lost his job and signed a severance pay package that basically said he would get six months severance plus health insurance if he didn’t sue them for wrongful termination. He was wanting to leave anyway so he left, we moved, and he’s now working for a company doing much better. The company he left is now paying poorly for the job DH did and finding it hard to fill the position and hard to keep an employee long term. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Pies. Just four different pies. Dessert for dinner. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Basically, I feel like this year is a wash. She's developed stress verbal tics and still has them. The doctor is suggesting that she may have ADD which is contributing to the verbal tics despite the fact that if a professional visited her classroom to diagnose ADD, he/she would not find it. I've had the teacher and the school counselor develop an off paper 504 plan to help her better in the classroom. They did a research paper where they said they would do it all at school. It was a two week process. What wound up happening is dd was totally confused and we did the whole paper - from research to writing in 3 days. Math is going OK. I've decided to go through Saxon with her after school. She is doing fine on math tests. The teachers admit they change and revise the math program to have it make more sense and don't do all the pages because it's overkill. And, if they don't totally learn everything in 4th grade, much of it is repeated in 5th grade with a little more difficulty. So, it seems like they're trying to make the best of a horrible program. My new plan is to see what happens at the junior high level around here which means I have to figure out who to talk to at the junior high/senior high school. I've heard it gets worse in some ways and unless I can feel confident they're going in a decent direction, I have figured out how to homeschool her so that it works for both of us better using a few co-ops to help. I guess overall, socially, she's doing great; our relationship is better; grades, she's doing great; getting a decent education - not so much.

My ds 13 has a potential for addiction if he doesn’t already. We have been using limited time as a sort of medication for mild depression. Our plan is to help him start finding other things that bring him joy which will hopefully just reduce it naturally. He is tech savvy also. He found his brothers old broken screen phone and used an open guest network from a neighbor to watch YouTube videos all night until we found him out. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would also go with #2. Pulling that many baby teeth would be traumatizing. If plan #2 doesn’t work and teeth still need to be pulled later-fine. But give the jaw a chance to grow and expand first and then problem solve from that point. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My dd is missing those teeth due to cleft lip/palate. The orthodontist is moving the canines forward to fill the gap mostly because she doesn’t have room for those teeth anyway. I’m happy with it as we don’t have to wait years and years plus expense to have implants. So far, they don’t look funny even without reshaping them. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My son and I are introverts. Ds is more extreme. The four other people in the family are extroverts-one an extreme extrovert. It’s exhausting. You house sounds peaceful. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I’ve seen tics of some variety for a while now. Burping was one for a while. Does skin picking count? She’s our adopted child and I don’t know her family history. The thing is, I sent her to school to try to improve our relationship which has been rocky at best. Now she has these high pitched tics that actually hurt my ears. This stinks. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My dad has had verbal and sometimes facial tics on and off for years. Usually they happen after surgery (she's had 3 for cleft lip/palate) but now they have come after stress. She's doing a very very high pitch and very loud "woo". They happen from about every minute to every 30 seconds. Rarely do we get five minutes without at least 2-3. That's at her calm time. We don't bring attention to them, but they are driving the family crazy. They're to the point that she's having trouble falling asleep. I've tried vitamin therapy and cutting out sugar to calm down her neurological stress reaction and they have worked in the past but nothing is helping. She is going to public school and kids are getting annoyed also there. Basically, is there anything to help these? The doctor suggested Zoloft when she was dealing with post surgery tics that eventually went away. I'm not a fan of drugs, but it's getting out of hand.

I wondered this too. With that many kids in sports and clubs, that’s a lot of car pooling. My sister has two kids both in just basketball. She’s running around at least 4 nights a week and is having trouble just making dinner much less eating together. My family had six in different sports. We rarely ate together every night of the week. My mom was constantly car pooling kids around. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Here’s another wrench into the two day shipping thing. USPS has a contract with Amazon. In order to not void the contract and still get the full payment for shipping, if they are busy, USPS will mark packages delivered but not actually deliver them until a few days later. So, postal workers have been known to scan a whole truck full of packages delivered but not actually deliver them until later in the week. That way, they look good to amazon and still keep their contract. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk