Thanks for this post. It was very helpful!!!

I have had issues with chronic bronchitis my whole life until I became an herbalist and started using holistic treaments for it. Whenever I feel a cold coming on I being taking Echinachea & Astragalus plus lots of garlic (added to food) and drinking lots of OJ & grape juice. If I happen to still get bronchitis (which I did this winter thanks to moving & all the stress of losing our home) I also drank thyme tea (1 tsp steeped for 10 minutes in a near boiling cup of water) with raw honey 2-3 times per day plus I took Mullein which works wonders on healing lungs. You can also use the thyme EO mixed with a carrier oil such as Almond or Jojoba oil as a chest rub. I also apply this to the base of my feet but it is very strong so a little goes a long way and should never be used by itself on skin. While doing this I was able to knock out the cough in about a week while before it took months to recover. Blessings, Hope

We have just moved to Milton from Tennessee and are really having trouble locating anyone who homeschools in the area. If you do or know of anyone who does or has a group in Milton please let me know. Blessings, Hope

I make our own laundry soap using plain goats milk soap I also make and our clothes are not greying. To whiten the whites I use lemon juice. I soak the whites overnight in warm water with about a 1/2 of lemon juice added to a medium load. I then line dry. Hope this helps! Blessings, Hope

We have been using mapaids with TOG but I am looking for something more in depth for georgraphy that has very little prep time (very busy already!). Something along the same lines of Teaching Textbooks would be ideal but as I am pretty sure that doesn't exist I am open to ideas. Dialect students will be using whatever I find. Thanks!

My family loves green beans (or yellow, purple etc.) with bacon, shallots (or onions) and garlic. I start by cooking the bacon till crisp, remove and then add the shallots/onions and a pat of butter. I saute this till the onions are soft and then add the prepared beans (ends cut off and snapped). When the beans are soft I add crushed garlic and crumbled bacon. You can also do the same recipe with just about any veg including squash, tomatoes, okra and kale or any other green. I have also added some of our raw goat milk cream, parm cheese and fettucine to make it a complete meal. This is the only recipe I know that gets my husband to eat squash and it is also a fav with the kiddos. Blessings Hope

Used Calvert in a Florida Virtual School and it was very tedious with tons of workbook work. The math program for K and 1st was adequate and my children liked it. However the social studies and science are obviously secular and heavily humanistic. We pulled out of the Virtual School very quickly after we began to notice that. Blessings, Hope

Chick tips: (frugal to boot!) Here is what we do for chicks: For a brooder we use a large rubbermaid container as a brooder with a frame top we made by cutting out the center of the lid and replacing it with chicken wire stapled in with a staple gun. Inside we place pine shavings, a small chick waterer which we elevate to keep it clean by placing it on top of an upturned terra cotta saucer then as they get bigger we switch this to a brick. We also add a tiny bit of organic apple cider vinegar to this as well, it helps keep the water fresh and is just plain good for them! I use about 1/2 tsp. For the brooder we use a lamp from the TSC and have the red heat lamp. We use this at first and then switch it to a regular 100 watt bulb as they get older and don't need to be so warm anymore. For feed we use non medicated chick feed and offer shredded carrots (helps to prevent coccidiosis) as well as grass and whatever bugs the kids catch to feed to them ;). Once they are fully feathered we move them out of the brooders (we use two large rubbermaid containers for 26 chicks) and into the coop. Keep the litter fresh (we usually add shavings every day and clean the entire box out once or twice per week depending on how dirty it has gotten, the older they get the more we clean the box out) and the water fresh as well. Hope this helps! And don't be nervous, chicks are one of the easiest farm animals to care for and also the cutest! Enjoy those chickies! Blessings, Hope

Thanks for the info on Writeshop. I will look into that. We do need more "how to" info around here :). I have seen Writeshop but have never investigated it as I had planned to use something else but then found it was too dry for my children (and me!) and also way too expensive for our budget! I still don't know about the mapaids though,still confused on if that will work for us or not. Anyone else use something besides Mapaids?

We are purchasing YR 2 to begin our TOG journey but I am not sure if I want to use the mapaids or the writing program they offer. We will be doing the UG and D levels and have really never done either mapping or a writing program before. We do writing but have not done a formal program. So, just wanted to see what all of you TOG folks are using! Blessings, Hope

:iagree: Have your read this book? I Kissed Dating Goodbye, A New Attitude Toward Romance and Relationships Joshua Harris Group situations with supervision at all times until marriage is our plan. This means keeping them at home until then, but my children have all stated they want to do that anyway :). Blessings, Hope

We moved to a rural area 4 yrs ago and now have lots of animals which spice things up quite nicley. Having a large garden also adds some fun as well as baking and acting out Shakespeare for kids. My children enjoy it all! Blessings, Hope

We use copywork books from Sandy Queen @ www.queenhomeschool.com Blessings, Hope

Projected plan for DS 6th and DD 7th 6th TOG Year 2 UG & D (history, geography & writing) Lively Latin or Latina Christiana R&S Eng 4 Queen Copywork Apologia General Science TT 6 AVKO sequential Spelling 2 Falacy Detective 7th TOG Year 2 D (history, geography & writing) Lively Latin or Latina Christiana R&S Eng 6 Queen copywork Apologia General Science TT 7 AVKO Sequential Spelling 2 Falacy Detective All of the above will also be used with my DD who is now 8yrs old.

Wow! All I am reading is my herbal handbook (studying to be a Master Hebalist) and An Irish Country Town by Patrick Taylor. Blessings, Hope

My DH is really into tea so when I remember to (not as much as I would like!) I have a pot of tea waiting for him along with something yummy like his favorite chocolate chip cookies waiting for him when he gets home from work. He really loves this! Also, I do lots of things for him that the wives of the men he works with do not. This makes him proud of me and makes him feel important too. For instance I make his lunch, have the coffee ready to go, get his clothes out for work the night before and call him every lunch hour no matter what I am doing that day. These are all simple things but he appreciates them a lot. Oh, and when he gets home from work I also stop whatever I am doing and go give him a hug. This starts the night off right ;). Also, a few cinnamon rolls or any baked goods also go a long way for my hubby. Blessings, Hope

Been there...... Two years ago my Mom was diagnosed with Liver Failure and I was unable to be there with her. We had just moved to TN and she was in Central FL. Our history was very mixed up and in fact we had been living with my parents for 5 years before our move but had been forced to move when my Mom threatened to call DCS because we homeschooled and chose not to participate in activites she thought we should such as dance etc. At the time I was not aware Liver disease can cause paranoia and extreme personality changes. We moved before she became very ill. Two months after we moved she was diagnosed and not doing well at all. Both my parents wanted me to travel back to FL but our financial situation was not good and there was no way for me to do that. I was not even able to be with her when she had a liver transplant nearly a year later. My family thinks I am horrible for not being there but with only one income and no $ leftover at the end of each month it was impossible. They all live on credit cards and have no idea what it is like to live on only what you bring home. To this day my parents are distant from me as a result of all this and would probably not have anything to do with my husband and I if we did not have the children. They can not understand why we would choose to homeschool and not have disposable income. They believe we should put the kids in school and have two jobs so that we can do things like travel for situations like my Mom's. We feel however, that our own children are our first priority. Who knows who is right but I can tell you that I do have guilt but in my heart I know I did what was right for my children. In the end we did visit my Mom once before her transplant and once after but still it was not enough for my family. In your case I would stay home and try to help out when she returns home and you can give her your time once your husband is available to be with your children. Blessings, Hope

Thanks all, as usual your answers are concise and very helpful! Hope

I had a similar issue with my oldest DD around that age. She was diagnosed with Sensory Integration Dysfunction at age 9 which is when we discovered that impulsivitiy is a symptom of SID. She has a mild form of SID and has managed to overcome a lot of her issues with dietary changes and the stealing was one of those. It dissappeared about age 10 and now at 13 she is unable to do anything without coming clean right away ;). Blessings, Hope

Ok, that helps. I guess I was expecting memorization and not looking at the big picture. So we will keep it up! Thanks! Hope

Very cool! We already have a Kitchenaid which my 13 year old DD uses all the time. She is a natural and I can't wait to see what direction she will go. It takes her minutes to learn something that took me years! She is also starting her own chicken business this year, ordering chicks that she will raise to sell as started laying hens. She is earning the money to do this by handling all the laundry around here. Which is a nice bonus for me since I don't have to worry with the laundry anymore! Best wishes to your DD and enjoy those treats! They sound awesome. Blessings, Hope

My DH and I talk a lot about finances right now but that wouldn't help you! At other less trying times we also talk about a book we are reading together. My husband gets the audiobook version he listens to in the car to and from work while I read the actual book. At other times we also discuss our plans for the future such as how to grow our farm business etc. and also current events. I read up on things on the internet that I can discuss with him. We also listen to sermons online together which we then talk about, this helps us a lot since we also are new to our area and have not found a Church home yet. Blessings, Hope

My DD has used Pathway since 3rd grade and loves them. She even asked that when my younger DD is done with them that I not sell them because she wants to keep them for her own children some day. The workbooks in my opinion make them a complete LA program but just in case we also supplement with Grammar key (she doesn't enjoy it though). Blessings, Hope

My children all do copy work but I am not sure if they are retaining much of what they are copying. We use copywork books from Sandy Queen and my children all like to do them but how do I go about finding out if they are actually gaining anything from this time? My DS has quoted a few poems etc. from his particular copy book but my older DD and youngest DD seem to be unable to tell me what they just did. So, is it even worth doing or should be skip it and concentrate on other things? Blessings, Hope

Thank you for the link to this article I will be posting a link to it on my blog as well since I am aware that there are many people in the homesteading/homeschooling community who could benefit from reading it. Blessings, Hope