I'm 8 years older than my brother and resented (verbally) the way my parents cut him slack. As the oldest, I had always been pushed in a way he wasn't. My mom resented my opinions (and I was quite pert), but I think she would have done well to have at least heard me. And you know what? I'm glad. It took DB many more years to figure out life. I try to listen to my older kids about my younger ones because they have insight I don't, and I can benefit from it. I totally pushed DS17 in ways I haven't DS10 because they are different people, but also because I'm tired and distracted. I'm working on more consistency with DS10 and DD6. The other day DS10 pointed out some behavior I was letting slide with DD6 that I would have disciplined him for, and I had to agree that he was right and I needed to be take the behavior more seriously. So, I'm not really sure whether it is the oldest guinea pigs or the youngest who have it better, but they definitely have it different.

Amen to that! The reason DH was so skeptical is that he's a prof at one of the most bookish universities in the country and he heard a guide say, "The Law library is the only library on campus with books." Nope, DH was on the library committee and his university has over 11 million volumes ON CAMPUS. He also noticed the guides skewed frat-ish, despite the university having few frats. Now, for CWRU: we loved it! First there was a presentation by a masters student who also had done undergrad at Case (Bio Engineering) for about 45 minutes and then an hour+ long tour by an upperclassman. For the presentation there were about 25 students (plus their families). Afterwards, the students were assigned to a guide whose major sort of overlapped with theirs, probably a benefit of the pre-registration requirement. The clear focus of the presentation was "smart students come here to learn and get equipped with what they need to succeed." The emphasis was on working hard, curiosity, and research. We asked a lot of engineering and nursing related questions, and I think the guide couldn't answer one out of 20+. However, she didn't make anything up, she just said she didn't know much about it. I asked if there was a silkscreening machine students could use, and she said she didn't know, but that there was an embroidery machine students could use in the maker lab. She really played up the "we're all nerds here" aspect. For instance, she pointed to the gym and told us about the PE requirement, but did not take us inside the gym and explained ways people could avoid having to go in, for instance, by taking CPR instead of a gym class. Our guide has transferred in after doing her first year at an unnamed liberal arts college, and she talked about what she appreciated about CWRU compared to it. She never demeaned her old school, but emphasized what she enjoyed about a science/engineering focused school. She also had a few stock phrases, and all seven of us were saying "Amazing!" and "Free food!" for the next three days, LOL. We enjoyed seeing the library with its computer vending machine. Finally, DS17 is majorly into music and loved that the college abuts the Symphony hall! There is a beautiful running trail downhill from campus, and it is about 3 miles to great Lake Erie birding. DH really loved it. I could go on and on. Let me know if you have other questions. Emily

I am just recycling or tossing some curriculum. It has been through 5 children and the author has significantly revised and improved the edition we have. Someone handed down to us a curriculum with tape cassettes. I enjoyed looking through the booklets, but I am throwing it away. Years ago I bought a tape player for something and found that it broke easily. It isn't worth it. Emily

I've been on a mystery kick this fall. Rabbi Small - a series of mysteries with a Reform Jewish Rabbi written in the 1960s. Interesting insights into the 1960s and Jewish/Catholic life (the town has a Catholic chief of police that the Rabbi befriends). The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz - contemporary murder mystery series set in England by one of the writers of Foyle's War. It is written in a way that you can't tell where reality ends and fiction begins, which I found pretty neat. This was a fun meta-read, with the author reflecting on the writing process as a character within the book. I also enjoyed the Tony Hillerman books, but only in moderation. Emily

I'm not feeling that frugal this month, but I *do* have about 20 lbs of random lentils from the Indian grocery store that I need to cook through. My goal is to make a dish with weird lentils at least once a week. We're planning to buy DD14 a violin "for Christmas", so that's a big expense. DS17 is continuing college applications, which is also expensive. DS10 is experiencing some health problems which will get expensive if we can't figure them out through the normal doctor. Sigh. When I started working last year, I wasn't getting any benefits, but I decided to max out my IRA. I planned to do so year-round, even though I had the summer off. Due to some HR issues, I didn't get rehired 9/1 as planned but 11/16. Argh. Anyways, I kept up the IRA contributions and am glad to now be getting paychecks to fill that hole! Emily

Anything by Rose Levy Beranbaum is amazing. She's both a scientist and an amazing baker, so any of her books would be great for the scientifically-minded baker. OTOH, she might be a bit too much and it might make sense to save it for later. The Cake Bible is a wonderful classic.

So happy for your new job! Congratulations and best wishes. Emily

Yes, that's all I wrote about our homeschool homeschool. I had been part of a coop and am attaching what I wrote below. I also had been volunteering (albeit only for a few months) as a teacher with a community organization and included that. The Co-op lines: CITY Co-Op, CITY, STATE — Teacher, Coordinator SEPTEMBER 2017- JUNE 2020 Worked with a team to coordinate homeschool classes for multiple families. Designed and taught classes in conceptual physics, classic history, and literature to high schoolers.

Here's what I wrote (with a few redactions). I was applying for a job coordinating college students implementing a multi-site tutoring study within the public school system. (I got the job.) ETA: our city requires kids to test into high schools, so where a kid goes to high school reflects their level of academic preparation. Homeschool, CITY NAME—Lead AUGUST 2010 - Present Researched, designed, and implemented a complete curriculum for four children, two through 8th grade; both graduates are in a top-3 CITY high school and are 2-3 years advanced in math. Presented the roles of teacher and student at a national conference.

Would you do that through a third-party testing company or ask the doctor to order that? Thanks!

Alright, if everyone says it is puberty/post-viral, I'll relax. This boy physically is very different from his older siblings (stocky, extremely tall vs. medium tall, incredibly thin) so maybe the physical change just looks different for him, too. ETA: Not trying to minimize post-viral stuff, just recognizing that it takes time and rest, not intensive doctor's visits and medication. Emily

He gets about 11 hours per day of sleep.

I've thought of that since the beginning of November, but he was tireder than normal before. This kid resembles an ox in size, weight, and energy usually, so it really is odd to have him tired. Sigh.

I will look into B and D. We have not yet. @KatyI hope this is puberty, but I don't remember the other big kids crashing like this. He either goes to bed before the 6-year-old or naps every day. Emily

Hi all, I'm trying to figure out what is going on with DS10. Please don't quote as I will delete later. For the last month (since being sick for 6 days at the beginning of November), he's been sleeping 1+ hour extra per day and wakes up tired. He got sick for another three days (high fever, came down with Tylenol) over Thanksgiving. The first illness may have been COVID but was not tested, the second illness tested negative. Other siblings had short illnesses of 1-3 days. Before getting sick, he was sleeping about 20 min more per day, enough that I was sort of noticing it, but not quite sure. Tests so far have all been normal: thyroid, complete blood count (normal), iron and iron binding, ferritin, c-reactive protein. We have a sleep study scheduled for January. Any ideas of what to look for or push for? He's eating normal, has no complaints of aching or stomach pains, runs around when not tired, works hard around the house. Thanks for any help. UPDATE Feb 2023: he got diagnosed with severe sleep apnea and got tonsils and adenoids removed yesterday. Emily

DS17 applied to college in the UK and has an online interview for Cambridge this Friday morning. He's reading various books on issues in Comp Sci and doing two mock technical Comp Sci interviews to prepare, so he asked for a reprieve on writing new application essays until after the interview. 🙂 Emily

Here's You Know What You Touched

We're staying at a friend's home for Thanksgiving and they have some great soap dispensers. Here are some more. Flamingo Pig What you touched Octopus Spooky House

Thankful my kid isn't doing 20. That is $$$!

Love the idea of fun cereal boxes. My dad still uses the stocking his mother made for him as a child (felt, with felt scenes and bells sewn on). I have a similar one, which I still use. Emily

For the birder/outdoorsperson... Waterproof journal for taking notes in the rain Telescope/Binoculars to cell phone mount maybe others knew this existed, but I find this life-changing! Hummers Snowflake Crane sewing scissors Bird-art Initial Stamp (this whole site is amazing!) T-shirt describes DS17 to a T Wire Bookmark

I always put a container of Pringles in every stocking. Not incredibly healthy, but it is inexpensive and takes up a lot of space. Also, it is the only time of the year my kids have their own container of Pringles. I encourage each person (my husband loves this) to put their name on the lid of the Pringles after Christmas and most of them try to make it last at least a week. Emily

A queen is 60" wide and 80" long. The two twins are 16" wider. ETA: A king is equivalent to two twins.

Wow, you must live in a low cost of living area! It would be more here.

Edit in first post.