:thumbup: :lol:

Awesome! Congrats to you both!!! I love hearing news like this! :D

We're starting the fall schedule tomorrow. I'm ready and excited for it after lots of planning. :)

My reasons for not doing coops: 1. Takes too much time away from our studies at home. 2. I've been disappointed with the level of educational quality offered and the lack of control over behavior. 3. Hate the volunteering. It always seemed to evolve into a select few doing the work that the others should be doing. 4. Couldn't stand the cliques and drama-both parents and kids. 5. Wasn't a good social environment for us either. It seemed that too many were so pro-homeschool that there was an atmosphere of reverse discrimination and I found it off-putting.

That's a really good idea! :thumbup1: I was going to suggest trying to cover it up with bookshelves but the fabric idea is a lot better. :)

I'm not at all crazy about that gummy binding especially on thick books. I've gone to Staples and had them cut off the binding and then spiral bind. :)

Tres Leches Cake! It is pretty much a basic cake. You could decorate it with festive color frosting too. :)

Our formal dining room is on the right as we enter the front door and it has a large window. We made that room the schoolroom and have all our books, supplies, whiteboard, planner and maps there. It was a good use for that room since we have an informal dining room and only use that for eating.

Well I really haven't read the other replies :lol: but in answer to the question, I think that there is really no requirement to read pages upon pages of replies in any thread. Sometimes there just isn't time and I don't think that should discourage people from participating.

This is great to know! I was hoping someone that had used the dvds could chime in. I've been very interested in these in particular. :)

I just spend last weekend looking at both of these for Chem. It is my understanding that the big difference is that the Rusty cd has all the LABs and the other one with the dog on the front (Steve) does not but has forms and is more of a support material kind of thing. The Rusty cd seems to have a good reputation and it is very tempting. If I was to buy one, I'd buy the Rusty on mainly because of the LABs and because supporting material is easy to find on the net (ie Donna Young or Virtual HS group etc). Check out this forum post to get further clarification from Steve Rosenoff. I found it really helpful: (See post #316) http://forums.crosswalk.com/m_2900991/mpage_13/tm.htm

This is what I was thinking. You can't do anything about that now except try to apologize for not telling the mom first and hope it blows over. Time heals most wounds - not all but many. :grouphug::grouphug:

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: What a horrible way to find her. I'm so sorry for your loss. :(

We're all taking ds to UCF tomorrow morning. I'm happy for him, a little sad for me but very proud too. He is a fantastic young man and I know he will do well.

This is the BEST Butterbeer (Harry Potter) recipe! Tastes just like the Butterbeer served at Hogwarts at Universal Studios Orlando. http://www.chicaandjo.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/ChicaAndJo_ColdButterbeerRecipeCards.pdf This looks like a good book: http://www.amazon.com/Literary-Feasts-Recipes-Classics-Literature/dp/0595329519

1. Take him out every 20 min. 2. No nipping on hands. 3. Make him let you go through doors first and wait for permission to eat. 4. Take to puppy school. 5. Lots of exercise and interaction. All those helped our pup grow into a well-mannered adult. Enjoy your new addition! :)

Whale Wars is filmed in the Southern Ocean. :D

FAST AND EASY SHEPHERD'S PIE (got this from a Depression Era study we did): (Warning: I'm a kinda lazy cook so this has LOTS of shortcuts) 1 cup of diced onion 1 cup of shredded carrot (I just get the package of already shredded in prod section of the market) Couple tablespoons butter Put all in a pot and saute until onion is clear. When onion are transparent or close to it add l pound of hamburger and brown it. When hamburger is browned add: 1 pint of beef broth (I use the boxed liquid with a screw lid-exactly 3 pints) 1 jar of sliced mushrooms Bring all this to a boil then simmer for 15 min. After simmering for 15 min. In a dish, mix about 2 tablespoons of melted butter with a tablespoon of flour and make a 'blonde roux' to thicken the beef broth. You may have to add more if you want it nice and thick. Once the broth/meat mixuture is thick, pour it in a 9 x12 lightly greased pan. Top with a cup of shredded cheese (I use the packages of shredded-less work). Finally, top with mashed potatoes (since I'm the queen of shortcuts, I use a tub of mashed potatoes that are usually found near the deli section - fast and easy). Then sprinkle the potatoes lightly with some paprika and pop it in the oven at 350 for about 30-40 min. until bubbly and a little brown around the edges. It is super YUMMY! We never have leftovers! :D

Oh my! So many great comebacks! I need to make a list and memorize them so I'll be ready. :D

ROTFL! Where were you when I could barely respond because of the shock?! I wish I could have said this. So funny!!! Well if she brings it up again I'm armed! :lol:

Yikes! She doesn't sound like an appropriate liason to me. I have issues with 'liasons' that may have built in conflict of interests.

:lurk5: We're in the same boat. The grouping by subject idea is very helpful!! Thanks!!

Oh that is so tragic! That poor family. I can't even imagine how they can cope with that. :crying: It is an especially good reminder to people living near lakes in Florida. A lot of people think the only thing they need to fear is the alligators. We used to live on the intercostal waterway and many people in our neighborhood would jump from their docks and swim in the water...until one family came down with a bad eye infection from the bacteria that is in the seawater. Fortunately they were able to treat it.

I put I don't really appreciate/enjoy my co op; lots of "cons", a few "pros." I have found that the coops in our area are too expensive for what you get. Most of the classes promise great things but turn out to be mostly hype. I can do a lot better on my own for a lot less time, effort and stress. I noticed that many of the classes have wide age ranges and that has led to older children being in with very young and that has compromised the learning potential for the olders. I also grew very dissatisfied with a general lack of class control and parent accountability for any homework assigned. I'd have mine do the homework and then find out that it was never collected, never discussed and most of the other kids never even did it. I just got fed up and stopped going to any of them. I'll pay for science museum classes because they are taught by people who are skilled with class control and are accountable and hold the students accountable too. I never went to coop for social reasons and with the educational quality questionable as well, it was an easy decision to stop going to any. ;)