My son is in 7th and finishing up Algebra 1. I talked to a friend about doing Geometry next, but she suggested Algebra II while it's fresh on his mind. Just another option.

My ds, 12 1/2 years old, has been a natural speller since 5 years old. Last year, I tried out Spelling Wisdom and found it was less busy work (lists) and more of a focus on what he didn't know. The routine we followed was read a passage of literature from the workbook, circle words he didn't know, study them, and take a test for dictation & spelling. This worked on his auditory skills (whcih needed work) and continued to build up his vocabulary. I will continue with Spelling Wisdom, but I would add looking up these words for roots/stems/definitions. Feedback from Spelling Wisdom folks indicated this would be more of an exposure to great writing/literature versus spelling, but it certainly allows him to see new words and new passages.

Hi, Mosaic Mind ~ Did you receive the pacing guides I sent to you?

History/Geography/Reading -- Mystery of History 1 & 2 with Sonlight readers/read alouds & VP cards (curriculum found at MOH forum -- yay!) Science -- AiG God's Design for the Physical World Math -- Teaching Textbooks Algebra (7th grader) & Sonlight 3A/3B and Teaching Textbooks 5 Grammar/Vocabulary -- MCTLA Voyage (7th grader) & Town (3rd grader) Writing -- TBD? Spelling -- Spelling Wisdom (7th grader) & copywork/spelling from AWANA books/resources on hand (3rd grader) Bible -- AWANA Foreign Language --Rosetta Stone Spanish Greek/Latin -- English from the Roots Up Art -- I Can Do All Things

We are going to do World History this fall (from the Beginning to the Middle Ages), so we'll use SL Core 6 readers with Mystery of History as the spine (supplemented with Story of the World from the Core 6 and other history reference books). I also happened to have the Veritas Press history cards, so I will be incorporating those as well. Turns out, there are resources that combine many of these into a great schedule -- will just need to add in the other resources.

3Blessings ~ What are the ages of your children? Have you considered teaching them off one curriculum? When I started just a year and a half ago, I went to my homeschooling friends who had at least three to five kids. All of them, at least for the elementary & middle school ages, recommended for sanity & cost's sake to homeschool from the same curriculum, with younger kids using grade-/reading level appropriate materials for math. I homeschool both of mine from the same history & science curriculum.

I agree. Definitely get into the rfwp forum. I downloaded an Excel spreadsheet for both the Island and Town levels, as both my kids are doing MCTLA. It's a very straightforward schedule. If you can't find it, I can e-mail the files to you. PM me!

My 7 year old daughter is finishing up 2B and still has difficulty doing subtraction in her head, but when she does double digit/2-column subtraction on paper -- no problem! you mentioned your daughter gets hung up. Does you daughter get hung up on doing subtraction as she's looking at the textbook when going over a lesson, when doing subtraction in the workbook, or both?

My 7 year old daughter is reading above grade level but is having difficulty spelling -- so she can decode (read), but encoding (spelling) is more difficult. I checked out a book from the library recently called Reading Reflex. The exceptions to all the spelling rules can be frustrating. Reading Reflex approached things from a sound picture point of view. For example, the sound "ee" (long e-sound) can be represented by the sound picture "ee" as in street or "ea" as in treat. Might be worth a look. I have started to run her through the exercises in the later chapters of the book. We'll see if it helps.

Oooh! Forgot! Mom and Dad's birthdays were also in there!

I'd like to pass along an idea that a homeschooling mom/friend is doing. With her 6 and 10 year olds, she has a binder that holds baseball card sheet protectors. For each significant historical event, each child draws a picture of, say, Abraham Lincoln, and on the back each child jots down significant info (dates, details, etc.). Each era of history had an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet protector with that timeframe on it followed by the baseball card sheet protectors. For the modern history section, each of the children had a card with their baby picture on it with significant info on the back. As the children progress in age, the artwork changes. This book acts not only as a timeline, but also as a visual diary of the children's growth -- artistically and chronologically -- via learning. I thought it was very unique!

I am finishing up Core 3+4 with my 7 year old first grader & 11 year old 5th grader. 3+4 was the perfect way for us to cover US history in year, as we were not sure at the time if homeschooling was going to be for us this next year. We covered Landmark History & the four books of Story of the USA together. My 5th grader went on to do the chapter questions & reviews at the end of each Story of the USA book. For my 5th grader, the T/F or M/C questions were easy enough, but there were actually some pretty thought-provoking questions (essay-type questions) that were a bit challenging for him. In fact, if your older child needs more of a challenge, you could easily adapt the essay-type questions at the end of the Story of of the USA chapters into a mini-research paper. For my 1st grader, 3+4 was a hit. Although she did not do the readers (she did grade-level readers), she has very much enjoyed the read-alouds, and the time we spent together reading aloud gave us a shared experience that didn't detract from either child. In fact, I found they both talked a lot about the read alouds and the history content. As far as the historical fiction goes, my 5th grader enjoyed the "break" from Landmark & Story of the USA to get in some other type of reading. Open & go is one of the reasons we chose Sonlight.

I started mowing my parent's lawn when I was 11, before the days of bagging mowers. So, whatever you ran over (rocks, sticks, etc.) cam spewing out the side. Then, I had to rake up the whole yard & bag it all! My 11 yr old has been introduced to mowing, with the appropriate safety items being taught to him by my husband. The other day, he asked if he could mow. I would have taken him up on it, except it was going to rain. A self-propelled mower with an auto cut-off switch/latch would be a safe way to go. As for everyone else in the neighborhood, I think that they'll be asking you how you got your kids to do the lawn/yardwork while theirs are gaming or watching TV.

I pay my neighbors' teens $8 for my two. $10 for three sounds about right to me. Also, what level of interaction do you have with them? If you are heavily involved with them, perhaps more than $10 (say $12) might be appropriate. But $10, not excessive.

I like the Pampered Chef tomato corer (doubles as a great tool for taking the top greenery & little core from strawberries). I also like the egg slicer for slicing strawberries, kiwi, mushrooms and hard-boiled eggs (not necessarily to eat in the same dish)! Also like the orange peeler. Usually for give-aways by consultants. Kept me from grabbing a knife & board and is great for removing things from tight spaces, like muffins from a pan.

Just a suggestion -- schedule a monthly (or more frequent) date night. Get it on the calendar & stick to it! Yes, it requires a sitter, but you and your husband need time alone! Doesn't have to cost money like dinner and a movie -- it could be a walk in the park or sitting down at Starbucks talking about your relationship.

I'm currently using Paula's Choice hydroquinone product. This is month three (she recommends 8 to 12 weeks). I have the dark area above my upper lip -- melasma after having my second child, and it seems to be fading. Over the years, it got darker. I did spend a lot of time outdoors in sunny weather which made the problem worse. Definitely, wear a daily sunscreen moisturizer. I also have been taking grape seed oil supplements. I read about it on a Q & A site, although the person recommending it takes a pretty high dosage & said it worked. I'd check that level of dosage with a doctor first.

You might consider getting rid of the king bed in the guest room and (like ElegantLion suggested) put in bookshelves. I recommend a nice wooden-framed futon with a firm cotton core to sit on while enjoying your library. It can quickly change into grandma/grandpa's room when they visit.

Right before a low came through, I woke up with intense vertigo. I sat up, and the lamp on which I was trying to focus was moving around in an elliptical fashion. A few minutes later, I tried to make it to the bathroom, but the vertigo increased in intensity. I sat back down on the bed and immediately felt cold and sweaty and felt as if I was going to vomit. It took about 6 hours before I could function. Usually, my teeth hurt a little or I experience sinus pressure, but this vertigo thing literally took me for a loop.

Just did a 13 hour one-way trip to Kennedy Space Center for a shuttle launch (then stayed and did DisneyWorld for a week) at the beginning of April; my husband was traveling on business elsewhere. Two kids (11 yr old son & 7 yr old daughter). I think you should do it. Despite car sickness (keep those plastic grocery bags handy) and the frequent potty breaks, it was worth it. Kids did some reading, but I had also recently bought some VP history CDs that had memorization songs for US history & presidents. They loved them & we avoided the car sickness worries. It was car-schooling! Books on tape/CD (can you say Cracker Barrel?) were great. Just check out somewhere near your home & return them along the way & check out more. Also, journaling the trip (notebook, crayons, markers). For sleeping/hotel issues, I recommend not staying on the first floor -- can be very noisy (had a really bad experience recently). Also consider just turning in when she does. You'll be exhausted from the driving; it does take a lot out of you mentally. If the problem is ambient noise in a strange hotel room, try those soft/squishy ear plugs. When inserted correctly, they really do drown out a lot of noise. How about bringing along a nightlight instead of having to leave the bathroom light/fan on or maybe a CD player with some soft music to lull her to sleep? Mount Rushmore sounds like an awesome trip. What else will you pass along the way?

I can really hear your feelings come through on this loud and clear. At the beginning of June, it will be 20 years of active service for my husband -- extremely high ops tempo, regular 14 hour days + at work, temporary duties, quick/no meals with family, etc.. On the other hand, I am a new homeschooler wrapping up our first year very soon. You mentioned being burned out. I think the one thing that really was a surprise help from week to week was we took Thursdays off from official homeschooling and participated in a unique opportunity that allowed us to meet international spouses. How would taking one day off a week help you? Read a book/magazine that has been collecting dust on your nightstand -- I have a stack of those? Or, how would you spend that day with your kids -- field trip to a museum or other local sightseeing spot? Could you do it mid-week or end-of-the-week or beginning? Take some time for you (and your kids), even it's sleeping in to get over the exhaustion. I have come to realize that sleep is just as important to homeschooling as getting the work done -- and note what time I'm writing this! You mentioned you are feeling bitter. Is the source of bitterness a "who" or a "what"? I don't mean to sound preachy or pushy, but if you are bitter towards your husband and haven't spoken to him about it, that bitterness could end up coming through when you are teaching your kids and could wreak havoc on your relationship with him. Even if the source is a "what", I encourage you to spend time talking with you husband so he can be your helper in this, too, not the perceived/related source of bitterness. Military spouses bear a lot of responsibility on their shoulders, and you are bearing more than a lot us have. Hang in there! Keep communicating & I, for one, am thankful that you recognized the need to reach out. You are not living in isolation. None of us are meant to live that way. That's why we are here -- to be there for each other.

I just finished reading Reflex Reading by Geoffrey and Carmen McGuinness. Although you mentioned you don't want to start all over again, check out the book from your local library and give it a read. The front half of the book tackles the issue of sound pictures (the sound represented by a letters or letters -- referred to as sound pictures--of the alphabet) versus phonics (letters making sounds, and perhaps misleading ones at that). For spelling (whether short words or multi-syllable words), Reflex Reading suggests that phonics may be the reason why misspellings occur, like "sate" for "sat". In phonics, it is "sa-" and "-te" (the sound "-te" versus the sound associated with the sound picture <t>, which is a very short "t", not "-te". She is basically spelling it the way phonics has taught her. My 1st grader is running into issues with multi-syllable words that she is spelling just the way she was taught phonics in kindergarten, or spelling using the sometimes confusing "long vowel, silent e at the end" rule (i.e., "plese" versus "please" where Reflex Reading teaches the sound picture <ea> as "ee". Sometimes, some vowel combinations (or one sound picture) can have two sounds: the sound that the sound picture <ie> makes can be "ee" as in "chief" or "ie" as in "tie". It's very interesting, but it is a ground level start point. The last half of the book is comprised of the different lessons/activities. A 4th grader will probably be able to move through several of them in one sitting, but Reading Reflex does highly suggest (or foot stomp) starting from the beginning with 3-letter, one-syllable words to get the correct sounds for the sound pictures. Interestingly, the McGuinness' also have a follow-on book called Increasing Your Child's Verbal Intelligence. I have just started this & plan on my 5th grader (who is having reading comprehension & oral/written expression issues) to go through Reading Reflex rather quickly & start Verbal Intelligence -- the jump from reading & spelling (decoding & encoding) to critical thinking & verbal expression (written & oral). Esme'

A correction on my post about 2A/2B intensive practice -- Singapore does have it all the way through 6A/6B. The Intensive Practice is application of concepts learned in word problems. There is also a Challenge section after the word problems -- really stretches the brain to problem solve and think!

My 1st grader really loves the Singapore Math workbooks. She did 1A/1B & finished it in February. She has started 2A/2B. You can purchase the connecting cubes, but we didn't use them at all. Singapore encourages mental math. You can also opt to include Intensive Practice for more challenge & application of the concepts learned. The textbook is in color, so it is inviting to look at. The workbook and Intensive Practice are b/w.