I worked at a corporate headquarters for a discount retailer for several years and heard firsthand the horror stories about Walmart. I had to go a lot while I was working there to research the competitor, but haven't stepped in one since I left my job. The people in the individual stores may be very nice people, but the management at corporate are scum, frankly. They bully and beat up their vendors to get you those low prices because they can; they're the biggest and those vendors need Walmart. I would do whatever I had to to not give them a nickel of my business and I truly think by shopping around, you can find just as low prices at other retailers. Granted, they all probably have some ethical issues, but Walmart is the worst as far as I'm concerned.

Thanks for all the information supplied so far! I didn't really think my kids would be into a character breakfast. I nixed the princess meals because of my son. They are both Mary Poppins fans, so maybe we could do the 1900 Park Fare the morning of our last day there; that day will basically be a free for all; whatever the kids liked best. What's the feedback on 1900 Park Fare for breakfast? Is the food good? Do they do a nice job? Is there a lot of character interaction?

We are headed to Disney in March (ok, I'm a planner) and I'm looking for help on restaurant choices and ride information. We are a mom, dad, 8 yo dd (turning 9 while we're there) and 6 yo ds. We are going to Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom and Epcot. Food First: We're looking for restaurants that offer really good food, as well as something "extra", whether it be entertainment, unique atmosphere; basically something we can't experience at home. I have a list of ones that sound promising from guidebooks, but I need to cull it down. If there's somewhere not on my list that just amazed you, please feel free to add it. Let me know why you liked a particular place (food, ambiance, etc.). Artist Point Boma or Jiko (need to figure out which one!) CA Grill (has anyone seen the fireworks show from here? Some guidebooks say it's not to be missed; some say it's much better to be part of the crowd below) Le Cellier Sunshine Seasons Hoop de Doo Revue/Polynesian Show (are either of these worth it?) Whispering Canyon Flying Fish Cape May Cafe Citrico's Fulton's Crab House Les Chefs de France Marrakesh Narcoossee's Teppan Edo Tokyo Dining Whispering Canyon Now Rides: My husband and daughter are good for the big thrills (but my husband can't take spinning). My son and I can't stomach big big drops but the kids and I are okay with spinning. Am looking for your experience on the following rides/attractions: Splash Mtn-how bad is the drop at the end? Stitch's Great Escape-too scary? worth it? Mission:Space-orange or green team? Living w/the Land-any good? Honey I Shrunk the Audience-any good? Expedition Everest-thoughts? Dinosaur-too scary? Thank you so so much for any help!

My son (5) never wanted to sit still and listen to chapter books...he just didn't like the fact that they didn't have pictures. I found The Minpins at the library one day and it's a fairly long book but it does have very nice full page pictures throughout (not on every page I don't think). Anyway it "cured" him...ever since we read that he will listen to any book with or without pictures. I think it takes a little bit to change over from picture books to non because when you can sit and look at all the pictures, you don't have to listen as carefully to get the whole story.

A very funny, very good book that my kids loved (5 & 8) was 26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie dePaola. (Okay, my husband and I loved it as well) It's his autobiography and it's a chapter book, unlike his usual short story picture books. We listened to him narrating the audio book, but I'm sure it would be just as good as a read aloud.

I have owned poodles and Lhasa Apsos and neither of them shed. They are great dogs if you have allergies to dogs. I cannot speak for the mixed breed, but Lhasas are notorious for having nasty dispositions, especially with kids, although mine was even moody around me. Honestly, I've known several and would not recommend them. That said, maybe the mixed breed is not as tempermental. I'd definitely do more research before making the investment!

We loved this King Arthur version: King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table. Retold by Emma Gelders Sterne and Barbara Lindsay. Illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren.

Currently we're hearing ambliance (ambulance), refrigalator (refrigerator) and hangaberger (hamburger). I always miss the wrong pronunciation once they learn the correct way to say it.

We read this one (my children are 5 & 8). They loved it and I thought it was very "clean". It was written at a good level, definitely not easy, but my 5yo was able to get the gist of all of it. The Canterbury tales. Selected and adapted by A. Kent Hieatt and Constance Hieatt. Illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren. With an introd. by Mark Van Doren.

We conducted our first family meeting tonight and I thought it was a great success. However, I thought I'd open the subject up for discussion with the hive. I'd love to hear from other people who do family meetings...what works, what doesn't, tips and tricks, how you run them and for those who have done them for a while, what are the benefits you've seen. TIA for any information you can provide!

These are reproducible for classroom use. I got mine (as well as the passports and stickers) from Rainbow Resource. I think Amazon had all the books, but my order w/Rainbow Resource qualified for free shipping so that's why I did it with them. Amazon didn't have the passports and these particular books aren't part of the Super Save Shipping.

I wanted to do something fun w/my kids over the summer in terms of World Geography, so I purchased all the "A Trip Around the World" books (there are 3). I have a 5yo ds and 8 yo dd. I haven't used it yet obviously, but I think it's going to give me what I was looking for. Each country (and there are 2 continents, Antarctica and Australia) gives some basic information about the country, population, capital, main religion, currency, language, etc. There's a small pic of the flag and a map showing where the country is located. Then it gives about half a page of more information regarding its location and citizens. There's a full page with "fascinating facts" and a full page for language. This can include words to learn such as colors, counting, days of the week, simple expressions, as well as songs. There is almost always a recipe or two and then a page with activities you can do. It's very co-op friendly. Sometimes there are crafts. Then there is a full page to color of the flag and a full page map. There are also word games (crosswords, word finds, coloring (using foreign language colors). Lastly a full page w/other resources, mostly books and a few websites. I purchased some passports and world flag stamps to go along with it and I think it's going to be a fun summer activity for us. LMK if you have any more specific questions. HTH!

Also if it ends in "z" it needs the "-es".

Spelling Workout D First Language Lessons 3 Writing w/Ease & Writing Tales (haven't decided yet) Saxon & Singapore Noeo Chemistry SOTW 3 Getting Started w/Latin Some kind of US geography Music & Art - hope to make time for this next year!!

I don't have RLS, but I have read a lot about how putting a bar of soap in your bed at night will rid the symptoms. No one is really sure why, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try! Many medical doctors have written about this...you might try googling it to find out specifics...I believe there are one or two soaps that won't work. Good luck!

Here's a link to historical fiction set in CT. http://www.cslib.org/childfiction.htm What a neat idea!

We are currently reading a Special Edition for Young Readers that was adapted by A. Kent and Constance Hieatt. We are really enjoying it!

I was having similar problems with my 5yo ds. Every time we came to a word he would have to sound it out...he just wasn't very fluid. I started using Progressive Phonics and it has made a world of difference! First of all, they start out just reading certain words in a short story, based on a specific phonics rule. The parent reads the other words. So it goes faster and is less frustrating for both mom and child. Secondly, they become so much more fluent and quickly. We always do a few pages of PP and then will read an early reader book. He's now reading so much more fluidly. You can download free ebooks on their website, although you will need to purchase the whole program if you want it. But I was able to sample it with my son before purchasing. Best of luck to you!

Saxon Math - 4x/week; approx. 30 min FLL - daily; approx. 10 min SWO - daily; approx. 5-10 min Handwriting - daily; approx. 5-10 min

Count us in as another case of hating Saxon! My dd8 used it for two years and it got to the point where she dragged all day doing it. She was great at math and "got it", just hated the curriculum. I switched her to Singapore and she loved it. I thought it was just too much of a change and changed yet again to Horizons thinking it might be a happy medium. Guess what? She begged to go back to Singapore. She does very well with it...basically teaches herself. I figure if she likes it and does well, that works for me. So I'd try a switch and see what happens.

Most of Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds are great...she will tell you how to modify for small space, but most of it can be done in a small space anyway. It's easy but you seriously sweat...at least I do. I do the 3 and 4 mile walks.

I have a Hannah Grace too!!!

We found one we liked at the library. It's King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table Retold by Emma Gelders Sterne and Barbara Lindsay. It's a Golden Illustrated Classic. Both of my children are enjoying it very much. I don't think it speaks down to them at all, yet it's understandable to them.

Another vote for games here, especially card games. You can find a bunch online. We like War but instead of one card you put down two, add them together and whoever has the highest total wins. Peggy Kaye has a great book called Games for Math which has lots of ideas. My daughter was still using her fingers a lot, but now she's at the point where she rarely does. We've been doing lots of games for about 4-6 months. I also do a lot of oral drilling when we're in the car or having snack, etc.

Have you looked at Horizons? This seems like it would fit what your needs are. I tried Saxon for 2 years with my daughter and it just didn't work. She did great and I liked it, but she hated it; it was too boring and repetitive. Horizons is much like Saxon in what and how it teaches (at least it seems that way to me; we're only into it a couple of weeks) but it's much more colorful, it has a lot more variety...it's just more fun. My daughter and I are both happy with it. Best of luck in your search!