It's not my business how busy other families are and I really don't think about it or care. <shrugs> Some seasons of life have been busier for us than others. Right now I have three boys in soccer (so practice and/or games 5-6 days per week). My eldest is also in Boy Scouts (meets once per week). My youngest is in Jr. First Lego League (meets once per week). We try to go to park day on Fridays and hit up the library once per week. The sports are do-able for us. Because we homeschool it's easy for me to have supper on the table a bit earlier each night and the soccer fields are within walking distance of our home. It makes for a pleasant evening walk and our littles get in lots of play time at the adjacent playground with all of the other younger sibs. It's a great situation for us so we take full advantage! If you asked my mom she would tell you that we are too busy. Haha. :)

My kids have been watching this on a loop for almost an hour now. :p Oedipus Rex short (animated) ETA: Maybe watch it by yourself first before letting your kids watch it.

Hahaha! Yes -- that was totally his attitude. He was like, "...but Mom. They were DELICIOUS!" :P I'm really glad he was able to join us for cake and ice cream. As the saying goes, "It's more friendly with two (or, in our case, seven)."

LOL! I am going to write this down and tuck it into a book somewhere so that he can stumble across it and laugh. Thank you. :)

Statistically speaking though, teen pregnancy is on the decline. That indicates that more teens are either using reliable contraception or abstaining from vaginal intercourse. I think teens are more likely to use contraception, and use it correctly, when adults maintain an open dialogue that includes instruction on how to employ said contraceptives and when teens have access to them. The fallout of a teen pregnancy depends, in large part, on how involved adults respond.

So, he ended up having cake and ice cream with the family. He said he took the croissants because they are delicious and he wanted to eat them. He knew I would tell him no and he just wanted them anyway so he took them. I've asked him before why he eats the food off of our dinner plates and he said that the food is just so good that he wants to eat it all. I think he just likes good food. The croissants are certainly a treat, as in a few times per year treat. They are very yummy. He wanted to eat them. I get that. It's really not unlike me sneaking chocolate in my bedroom closet because I don't want my kids clamoring for a bite. I'll have him ride to the supermarket on his bike and purchase more.

He is not, no. He's very thin. My ds is bossy about food -- if he hears one of his brothers ask me for food he will bark at them for it before I even have a chance to reply. Then again, he takes that tone with them often regardless of what they are talking about. He's always glancing at me when he takes extra helpings like I'm going to tell him no but I never have unless he's reaching for thirds before his siblings have had their seconds. This child has ALWAYS had pretty much free access to healthy foods. I've never forced him to clean his plate and I don't generally use food for punishments/rewards. It's never been an issue -- my kids eat willingly.

It's my husband's birthday cake and ds has been a royal PITA today, irrespective of the croissants. This was just the straw that broke the camel's back. :/

He's actually quite thin and eats lots of healthy foods here at home. I *do* buy him special foods that are just for him and he's allowed to use his own money for junk food. That's a great idea. I think I will do that with him this week. Thank you!

I don't really know. I'm annoyed that he broke the rule. I hadn't really considered that he was an emotional eater. I have noticed for a long time that he picks at our dinner plates and sneaks food from time to time and I thought it odd. Does it sound like emotional eating? I'm familiar with the term but have not experienced it myself.

Did he need to go potty when your dh put the underwear on him? One of my sons would freak out like that when he had to poop if he was wearing underwear. If he had on a pull up he would just go, but when I took those away and he had to choose nudity or underwear he would get upset when he had to poop. It seemed like it took forever for him to get over it. FWIW none of my boys used the potty willingly before age 3.

I bought two packages of croissants at the bakery yesterday. I used one package at lunch today and had planned to use one at supper tomorrow night. This afternoon I noticed that three of the croissants were missing from the second package. I asked who had eaten them and everyone said they hadn't. I insisted that the guilty party fess up and finally my ds14 mumbled that he had eaten them. He said that he knew I would tell him no if he'd asked for them so he just snuck them instead: two of them he ate in his bedroom and the other he ate in the garage of all places. I don't, as a matter of routine, buy croissants. He knew they were for another meal. He had already eaten one at lunch, just like everyone else. He's allowed to snack at his leisure. There are snacks in the house, including yogurt, a variety of fresh fruits and nuts, cheeses, bread, etc. He could have taken any of those items without even asking. So, what would you do? Would it matter to you to know that he does this somewhat frequently when there is food in the house that he particularly likes? He sneaks it into his bedroom and eats it so that he doesn't have to share. It's don't believe that it's a matter of hunger -- he's never gone without good food to eat. Sometimes when the boys are tidying up after supper I'll catch him eating the crumbs from our dinner plates. This is after he's eaten a full plate of food with at least a second, sometimes third, helping. I'm just curious how others would handle it. My husband has already doled out the consequence on this one. Ds is not allowed to have birthday cake and ice cream with the rest of us tonight after supper.

I'd never seen that graphic before ^^^, but I explained it to my children much this way. Our minds tell us who we are, our hearts tell us who we love, our sex organs are either male or female. Most of the time the mind and sex organs match up, but sometimes they don't.

I can't stand the cuteness!!! <3

Hmm. I oftentimes feel a "fullness" or "achiness" down there the day before thru the first full day of my cycle. I don't think I ever had that before kids but it's hard to recall. Is that related to pelvic floor strength? I never thought much of it TBH.

I'm not saying that it is supposed to take place at all. I accept that teens are autonomous human beings with strong sexual urges and that they do not always choose to delay intercourse until their 18th birthdays or marriage or whatever. That doesn't mean that I'm allowing 14 year olds to have co-ed sleepovers. That does mean that I will provide my teens with contraception if they ask me for it. It means that my teenager does not spend his every waking hour under my direct supervision. He is allowed to go swimming, to the movies, to sleepovers with friends, etc. He is allowed to take the shuttle around base to go to the library or exchange when he wants to. If he decided to enter into a sexual relationship he would find a way, I'm sure. I know that I did. I would not be angry if I found out that he had. I would be reasonably concerned. His physical and emotional health is important to me. I just would not be surprised or angry that it had happened.

Will he do the work if you do it with him? Or is that not an option?

What a complete bummer. Ugh. :grouphug:

Really? That's interesting. I'm not familiar with K12's books. Is their middle school history series 3 or 4 books long?

We have The Church in History. I bought it when we were doing TOG a few years back. I'm honestly not sure about the perspective, and I feel ignorant typing that, which I am on this subject. I can't even remember exactly what reformed means. <blushes> One of the reviews on Amazon specifically criticizes this book for it's reformed theology, so it may not be what you are looking for. I mostly remember that my ds hated reading this book.

I don't use Apologia so can't speak as to whether it's strictly required, but I do feel that it's beneficial for students to experience microscopy in high school. I just picked up a good used scope for $25 plus shipping on Ebay. I'll spend another $35 to upgrade to a mechanical stage. Retail for that scope with a mechanical stage upgrade is over $200. You are in luck that you have time to shop around. You'll be able to get a great deal, I'm sure.

Congratulations and best wishes to your family, sweetie! Have a wonderful weekend!

I use the GyneFFlex. I don't have any sort of prolapse or anything. I just want to make sure things stay...ahem...snug, down there, IYKWIM. ;)

Okay, speaking of margaritas and beer, do you want to know what's pretty gross? Bud Light Lime Margarita-in-a-can. Blech!

Speaking for myself, of course: How do we handle masturbation? Do it in private. Wash your own sheets. It's healthy, normal, natural. ...sleeping with various people? Well, my eldest is still a virgin. We keep the lines of communication open, discuss sexual situations we see on television shows or in movies -- not lecture him, but if he makes a comment about something he's seen then I take that cue to open a dialogue with him on the topic. I do not and would not encourage him to sleep around. It's dangerous from an emotional and physical standpoint. ...getting sexual at home? He would not be punished for it. ...in front of sibs? Hand holding or a quick kiss on the cheek would be fine. Anything else needs to be done in private, not in front of family members. I don't mean that I'd send him off to his room to make out. If I saw him kissing a girl passionately then I'd have a discussion with him about it, of course. That discussion would include a reminder that some things are meant to be done in private, not in front of one's siblings. ...boy/girl in bedroom? Door open, yes. I think it's safe to say that *most* teens know how to masturbate or they figure it out at some point. Why did you feel shame about sex as a teen? What did your parents tell you about sex? I remember trying not to get caught as a teen because my parents shamed me heavily for it, and perhaps because my earliest exposures were before age 5 through pornography and inappropriate touches from a handsy "uncle." I did not grow up in a home with an open dialogue. I grew up in a home where women were called sluts, where I was verbally and physically abused.