THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR TAKING TIME TO RESPOND! Great points to consider...I really appreciate the help!

Need some wisdom.... DD, junior has really worked hard in Alg 2 and Chemistry this year. Both courses have been difficult for her.....I'm sure she has surpassed spending 120 hours on each. My dilemma is, she has not finished either text. She will not be a math or science major in college. Does anyone here go ahead and assign a grade and credit if the book is not finished... If it helps we are doing MUS Alg2 and Apologia Chemistry...she will finish about 3/4 of each book by end of schoolyear. Thanks for the advice!!

Jennifer, I will PM you if I can figure out how:)

Thanks everyone for the great input! It's great how so many take valuable time to support eachother in these types of situations! I actually e-mailed MUS with my concerns and I got a very helpful response with some great suggestions that we will try. I will try some of your suggestions as well! Thanks again!

Someone who has been in my shoes, can you please offer some advice? DD (Jr.) has completed MUS through Geo. and is currently in ALG 2. She does "ok" on the MUS tests, but math is definitely not her favorite subject. The real problem is that any test she has ever taken (ITBS, PSAT, ACT) she just does not do well in the math portion. Do I just let it go? I really don't want to change curriculum this late in the game, but am I doing her a disservice if I don't expose her to something else? She plans to attend college....but will not be a math major. I just feel that with her percentage score in math on the PSAT being only higher than 30% of juniors, this is really holding her back from potential scholarships. She did great in reading a writing. Currently we are progressing through Alg 2 slowly and will end up finishing next December...so basically taking 1 1/2 years to do a year course. Any other MUS users see this same problem with standardized tests?

If any of you have ordered Apples and Pears (which I think is based out of the UK), how long did it take for your materials to arrive? The website states it will be printed in the USA and shipped directly from the printer. It's only been 5 days since I ordered, but I've e-mailed them and not gotten any answer on "about" how long it will take. Help anyone??? Thanks!

Welcome to the fun of legos! My boys got into them about the same age as yours and for years a lego set has been THE christmas gift for each of them. So they open their legos on Christmas morning and we build legos most of the day! What great memories!! We like the city sets best! And just a hint...we kept separate sets in separate tubs (shoebox size and up) for years...then they convinced us to combine legos. For us, that was not a good decision. Overall they played with them less because they would get frustrated not being able to find a certain piece (keep in mind, by this time we owned many, many sets). Just think through how you will store everything and it will be a much more enjoyable experience along the way:)

a little more info....it does take about 4 hours to assemble...but it can of course be done in "small doses"..older kids can help too! I really enjoyed the process of putting it together and being reminded of all the rich verses in God's Word that apply to my children and to ME! Also, I used colored pencils instead of highlighters...it saves on cost and works just fine.

THIS is the coolest thing since sliced bread...you've got to check it out...there is a short video on the website that is helpful to watch so you can learn how to put together a child training bible www.childtrainingbible.com ENJOY! Susan

Need some opinions of older/wiser moms....my 9 year old son is in 3rd grade...he has a September birthday...he is reading at about a 2nd grade level and not writing much on his own (just copywork)...he does average in math. If I hold him back a year he will be 19 during his 12th grade year. Does anyone have any experience with this and could tell me some things to think through before deciding? Just wondering how it would affect him being 19 and his "mom" still teaching him. Thanks for your thoughts, Susan

We've decided to just turn off internet on DD Ipod touch....and that's for a teenager we really trust....it just makes more sense in our family if you are going to be online to be on the main computer in the center of the house. Also, we have a rule that any app she ads, it must be approved...i've not had to say no to one yet, I just like the accountability for now. It's good to think through all these things like you are doing before giving them the device...it's so hard to go back and undo a freedom, but easy to give more freedom when they have proven themselves. :) Susan

Personally, I see writing instruction being the biggest area most HS moms struggle with (including myself), so you are not alone!! Can't really give this a thumbs up or down yet, but we are going to use www.essentialsinwriting.com this year. It is like Math-U-See only for writing...so the main instruction is dvd based. I personally spoke with the author at a homeschool conference and was very impressed. It is $40 per grade level. I spoke with a homeschool mom recently who sent her first child off to college last year and looking back she said the most important things to teach our kids before they go off to college are: reading, writing, math and character...she said if they are strong in these areas, all of the other subjects can be handled just fine. Her daughter did extrememly well her first year! I think that information is like gold and it really showed me what I need to focus on.

My 2 brothers and I will be throwing a 50th anniversary celebration for my parents...I want it to be memorable....we will be having it in their town which is long distance for me...so the planning will be a little tricky. We are thinking of reserving the fellowship hall at their church...need ideas for.... what time of day do others ususally have this type of event? (b/c of finances this will not be a sit down dinner) what type of food? is it a good idea to schedule people to talk in front of everyone about the couple? I've never been to one of these...so PLEASE...if any of you could just take a minute to give me some ideas of what you have done or what you have seen done...it would help us get started with our planning... THANKS SO MUCH!!!!

I would suggest a simple bloodtest to have your thyroid checked.

ours are similar to yours, except... SKYfive (the blue reminds us of the sky) sevenilla (the light colore reminds us of vanilla) ninemints (because the color reminds me of those little soft square mints) HTH!

I don't usually recommend something I have not yet used, HOWEVER...this looks so neat. Teaching writing is the biggest struggle for most of us! I met the author/teacher at a recent convention and was very impressed. I want to pass on his website so you can "see for yourself". It is basically "mathUsee" only for writing instruction. (DVD taught) See website below...and I would encourage you to sign up for e-mail alerts and you will get them maybe once a week to update you on new things added to the site....it looks quite interesting! www.essentialsinwriting.com Hope this might be of help to someone as you are thinking about what to order! Blessings!

:grouphug: Sounds like MY 8 year old little boy!! Around here we are just persevering, reading aloud to him a LOT and praying he will come around soon:) One thing that has helped some...we have tied wii/computer minutes to number of minutes he reads by himself. 20 min of reading by himself earns him 20 min of computer/wii time. He does not take advantage of this daily, nor do I "make" him read on his own outside of school requirements...but suprisingly he does choose it some. All kids are different for sure...my dd was an avid reader at 8...my twin boys did not read well until about 9 and now at 11 they enjoy reading but do not "devour" books like their sister. Hang in there!

Sonlight k-8 MFW highschool MUS Primer-Algebra Growing with Grammar

Stay in the Word diligently and PRAY. Also, I always have to remind myself that "waiting" is usually the rule. Much of the time in our lives we get red lights from God, but when He gives you a green light...go like mad! (from a Chuch Swindoll sermon) My husband and I have used this in our lives MANY times and it works! Praying for you, Susan

For my 2nd grader and two 6th graders we have those 3 drawer plastic storage containers on wheels, that way you can just roll them where they need to go. Each child seems to only need one drawer...so at times we also just "park it" somewhere and they just pull out their indidvidual drawer and go to their work area. For my oldest daughter who is in highschool, she keeps everything on a bookshelf in her room. HTH, Susan

I'm tech challenged and need some help. My daughter and I both have aol accts for e-mail, but I'm getting so frustrated when signing on to check mail that we have to endure "today on AOL"...particularly today's pics of Sports Illustrated swimsuit ad...is there a way to sign on to get our mail without seeing all of that? I went to "settings" and unchecked the box that said "today on aol" thinking that would eliminate it, but it didn't. Thanks in advance, Susan

We are doing Visual Link I here and starting II in the Fall....just a tip...always CALL the company direct to get the best price...do NOT buy online. HTH Susan

I've been thinking about this same issue LOTS lately. If your family is sitting down to eat together every night, you are to be commended!! I feel like that will do more to affect the childrens' character than any activity you could put them in! Personally, I took private flute lessons for about 6 years and spent years involved in concert band and marching band...even in college. While lots of it was fun.....I use none of it today! I just wonder if all of our running around to get our kids to this activity or that activity is sometimes to their detriment (and ours). Like you, Eliazbeth, we put more emphasis on "family activities".....for us that means special trips during the summer and maybe one or two closer to home trips throughout the year. My oldest (14) volunteers weekly at the library and at church. She and 2 of her brothers take private piano lessons, but my husband and I were just talking about the fact that it costs about $1000 a year for that! We may reconsider. Our three boys (11, 11, and 8) really do nothing besides church activities. The two older ones may start scouting next Fall, but will give up one weekly church activity if they do that, plus their Dad will definitely be involved. I guess each family needs to decide for themselves what is right for THEM. Don't compare yourself to what others are doing, it sounds like you have a wonderful family and your children are growing up in a loving home. Just my 2 cents worth!! Blessings, Susan

I am not having much luck finding the right lamp for our piano....main problem is they all seem too tall and the light shines in our eyes when playing. Is the right thing a swing arm lamp with shade, a bankers lamp? What have you all used that works? Thanks for the help! Susan

My husband works on cameras for a living....he ALWAYS suggests Canon or Nikon...Obviously there are many to choose from...he says that their basic models are just as good as the more expensive versions. A lot of what you pick will just be personal preference....however, he suggests one thing to look for would be the size and quality of the LCD screen...everyone gets so concerned about the mega-pixels, but his opinion is that any amount is adequate and the screen is more important. HTH! Susan