Roasted vegetables - asparagus, peppers, sweet potatoes, squash, onions - whatever is in season, but I find that three veggies, one being onions, works best. Cut into relatively uniform pieces, drizzle with olive oil and kosher salt (the kosher salt really does make a difference somehow), roasted at 350-400 'til done (about 30 min). You can have it prepared and on a baking sheet ready to go, or make it the day before and reheat. Serve with rice, maybe something else? Look at "The Sultan's Table" - a Turkish cookbook that has lots of veggie recipes. It's a great non-vegetarian cookbook that could give you good ideas for vegetarian dishes. I recommend this because a LOT of Turkish dishes are designed to be made ahead and rest/blend in the fridge and then are served cold or room temperature. It's a cuisine that lends itself well to your purposes. :) Edited to add - I'm the wife of a former-vegetarian Turk who's still not crazy about a lot of meat. I learned to cook "his" cuisine and found it to be delicious!

My 2yo loves SOTW. I doubt she's really following it, but she won't let me stop once I start. We'll see how long it lasts. I'm just reading it for fun this time 'round - not expecting her to get anything out of it except the understanding that the world is old, things were different, and people are people no matter where or when they lived. Why am I even doing it? Just cuz I felt like it. DH is from Turkey and so stories about ancient times can actually be related to real places we've been and seen. I want her to know the breadth of her heritage. I still am amazed that Homer and my husband share the same hometown! :)

I use a serrated knife and make lots of light sawing cuts until it gets going good. It also helps if your loaves aren't light and airy but a little heavier or denser. I'm not saying hockey puck dense, just not more air than bread. If you can make your crusts crunchy it helps the knife find something to bite into and get going. HTH!

Not an expert in homeschooling, but I do have experience in squeezing 15 gallons of stuff into a 5 gallon house. ;) Regarding the bookshelves - you say you're using every inch. Are you using every vertical inch? Could you add those expandable shelves that they sell for kitchens to add a shelf in kitchen cabinets? You might be able to set books on their side and add a level above them for more books (or supplies). If that makes sense, you might want to look at having a shelf added, making a five shelf bookcase a six shelf bookcase, with two shelves being half-height. Can you put less used books behind the current books but oriented perpendicular - their backs against the back of the case? If there's space, you could fit those magazine boxes (the cardboard ones you put together from office supply stores) behind the books and store smaller things in them. The only other thing I can think of is adding (again, from the kitchen aisle) the bins that hang from the bottom of a bookshelf to use the extra two or three inches left at the top of the shelf below. Do you have any room for another bookcase? Could books already used or scheduled for later in the year be stored under your bed until needed? I like the bookbag method PP uses for current books, etc. Can you add pictures to give us a better idea of what you're dealing with? Hope

Me four! I really really should be sleeping - tomorrow's already here and DD went to bed early last night so I'm sure she'll be early to rise. Thank heaven for coffee! This site is so wonderfully addictive - y'all are a great bunch of ladies to learn from. I second the request that y'all not be offended if I shot my mouth off tonight....

I haven't read the book - it's on my list. But I have lived in a Muslim country and have Muslim relatives (so I get to see "behind the scenes" in family life). I didn't see anything that would indicate pervasive abuse going on. In fact, I'd wager in a couple of the families I know, it'd be more likely the husband ducking and running, not the wife! And as far as "Not Without My Daughter" goes, please remember that she was trying to get from one Muslim country (Iran) to another Muslim country (Turkey). Turkey's women are independent, educated, strong-willed, and proud. It ain't easy to keep them down!

I find the best prices are about 90 days out. There appears to be another "sweet spot" about 2 weeks before flying, but that's always a risk. I check Expedia, Travelocity, the airlines individual websites, and sometimes I'll call the airlines as well. No, not all the airlines, but the ones that are the biggest flyers on the route I'm flying. Sometimes the fare on the phone is less than the fare online, but generally I do better on the individual airline websites. Good luck!!

:iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree: Sounds like you were ganged up on at the conference and your son is getting ganged up on at school. If you want to keep him in that school until the end of the year, I would do it carefully. I don't like the vibe I'm getting from this place. I would definitely do something else next year.

My old church had a strict policy on sick kids in nursery - if they are (or have been in the last 24 hours) feverish, vomiting, or hacking up mucus one of the nursery attendants will go get them from the sanctuary to take the child home. If they present them in such a condition they are not accepted into the nursery. Anyone who uses the nursery regularly is informed of this policy and I think has to sign it. All the workers are educated on it and have enforced it. It's a big church and there are a gajillion children in the nursery every week so they had to do something. It's was getting ridiculous with viruses flying through the church so they had to put their collective feet down on the problem.

Thank God I'm not alone! Back when I was single and professional I could organize the pants off anything. My mother used to recruit me to organize her kitchen, etc. Now that I'm married with a little one, I can't manage to make dinner! ARRGH! I second a PP that recommends Sidetracked Home Executives. It's helping. As are notebooks like the ones y'all are mentioning. Thanks!!

The Smithsonian is HUGE - multiple buildings spread up and down the National Mall. I grew up outside of DC and spent almost every Saturday there while my brother took children's classes through the Resident Associates program and I still feel like I haven't seen it all. Your 8yo will probably LOVE the Air & Space Museum which is (as you stand on the Mall and face the Capitol) up and to the right. Spaceships, airplanes, Wright Brothers. It's a walk from the rest of the main Smithsonian museums, but so worth it, IMHO. Standing in the same spot on the Mall, to your left are American History and Natural History. We were there last summer with a passel of girls and they loved Natural History with its whales, elephants, etc. They also liked American History but we had less time there - it was hot and crowded and summer in Washington. Never did get to see the First Ladies' dresses. I've never been worried about eating hot dogs from the street vendors in DC, but if you would like something a little less adventurous, there's a good cafeteria in American History (c/b Natural but I am pretty sure it's American). Very expensive but opens onto a garden, is clean and bright. Be prepared for airport like security going into each museum - xray machine for your bags, magic arches (I forget their real name) for people. You get to keep your shoes on. I honestly and truly don't have time to look at the links you provided (I'm supposed to be getting breakfast for my family and packing for a move cross country - this is my guilty 10 min), but if you're going in summer be prepared for crowds, crowds, and crowds. No matter when you go, DC is a lot of walking. Wear comfortable shoes. Take cash for drinks and snacks. I don't think they allow outside food into the museums and don't allow the cafeteria food out of the cafeteria (I hid DD's sippy in our bag, they let it through but I was always careful to keep it out of sight). The potties in Smithsonian are plentiful. The three museums mentioned above are the "main" ones. You can see the Castle, the other museums, and they're interesting, but most of the stuff that your LOs will want to see are in those. You'll love it there!! Gotta go, DH is glaring at me.... (Sigh....)

That's the convention I'm registered for - Virginia! That's why I'm thinking about coming back. My SIL is going and we were going to watch kids for each other so that we could attend workshops in peace. (Both of us have infants/toddlers that are too young for the children's program.)

My SIL had two 13 months apart. She told my brother to stop looking at her! :) I met a family where the older girl was significantly smaller than the younger girl. The mom explained to me that she didn't know she was pregnant with younger child while nursing older child. This was a long time ago and it took months for anyone to realize she was pregnant. By then, the older child was irreversibly undernourished. Those two were barely 10 months apart. If I hadn't seen it, I wouldn't have believed it....

Thank you everyone for the advice! I feel better about all this already. So much to process.... We are looking at something short term to start - we need to get our bearings before we make any long term/permanent decisions. back to the boxes!! Thanks again! I might holler out in a few days if I have more questions...

Ugh - I think (and I'm not sure) that it's central-ish Dallas to southeast-ish Ft. Worth. The commute for the interview (during rush hour) was about 45 min. Hoping that's the worst, not the best time. I really want to be near my MIL. Having family nearby will help so much. Right now we're on our own and haven't had a night out without DD since last summer when we last visited MIL!

Apryl - how far apart are Dallas and Ft. Worth? My DH's new job is in Ft. Worth, my MIL is in Dallas. We're starting in Dallas because half the point (ok, 75%) of moving to Texas was to be near her. (I'm one of those strange beings who actually loves her MIL and wants to live as close as possible to her - same neighborhood even.) Wondering suddenly if the distance is going to be too much for DH to commute....

OOPS! Sorry about that - I'll be in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Dallas to start with, but I don't know if we'll ultimately settle in Dallas or Ft. Worth. Everything's happening so quickly - I'm not even supposed to be online right now - I need to be packing!!!

Hey, I'm new to all of this (TWTM, homeschooling, etc.). I was registered to attend my state's homeschooling convention as a free mother of a preschooler, was devouring TWTM, started phonics. Then DH came home Tuesday and announced we're moving to Texas. Ok, so I knew it was in the realm of possibility and I'm totally ok with it, but I wasn't ready for the announcement that we have to get there before the 19th of this month. Soooo.... anyone here from Texas? Anyone here know anything about homeschooling groups, organizations? Is there a convention? Is there anything anyone can tell me? I was so looking forward to learning about curricula, time management, laws, etc. at "my" convention and now I may have to miss it (there's a chance I might be able to come back for a visit). Thanks! Hope

:iagree:Another brat here - yeah - the girl is freaked because what she does affects her dad and his work. Let them handle it, check in on her, don't worry too much about it. Luckily, I never got caught.... ;)

Kleine Hexe - I let her watch DVDs, but she hates them. She's always trying to turn the TV off, not on. She DEFINITELY keeps me on my toes! Ubermomto5 - thank you so much for the comforting words. I think she may actually "just learn" to read, but I do want to get phonics across to her because of the multiple languages situation. They have served me well all my life!

My brother used notched cards to read when he was in school. He is severely learning disabled and if he didn't have the card he would report that the words were "jumping" around the page and were also jumbled horribly. To this day he has a hard time tracking. I'm not saying your child is LD. My brother is just the only one I've known to use a notched card and it saved him in school. My mom went back to school to get a degree in education and she was the one who realized his disabilities and got him evaluated by the schools. His teachers just thought he was not smart. He's very smart, just has a hard time in standard schools (Mom wishes she had homeschooled us, but she didn't know about it at the time). HTH....

You all have been so helpful, thank you! I've felt like I'm equal parts pushing her and holding her back and scared of both. It's nice to get feedback from other moms who've been there! I found starfall.com the other day and DD is in love - she say's "I want to do a!", "I want to do d!". It's fun and it's reinforcing the concepts. The books will stay out of sight for now. I may look for the I See Sam material online and use some of that. I don't want to push it, but I want to have enough materials to keep her engaged. And if that wasn't enough, yesterday she started babbling French. It's NOT the other language we're raising her with (that would be Turkish). She loves hearing me say things in French and has seized on them. For now, in her world, "A is for Agneau" (lamb, and more of an "ah" than a true short 'a'. Sigh.... I can't wait for the HS Convention this summer and the Used Curriculum Sale - I would love to get my hands on a Sonlight PreK set! My SIL uses Sonlight, but not for preschool, and I love their materials. Hope

I should say - I thought I was until I found TWTM!!!

Thanks! Sometime I may want to ask you about combining TWTM & Sonlight. I'm obviously not there yet, but I'm doing lots of research and I like both curricula. PS - I sometimes think I'm the last person to have learned phonics in the US. I'm not extreme, but adamant she learn to read through them. It's critical for her, IMO, because she's being raised bilingual and the other language is completely phonic (each letter has one, and only one, sound).

Oh my goodness you misunderstand! We have books EVERYWHERE here (my current problem is keeping track of library vs. owned), but what I'm worried about is her having these specific books in her hands. I don't know that it's a good idea for play with these specific early reading primers (Mat. Mat Sat. Sam. Sam Sat.) and learn what they say without learning how to actual READ the words. How will I know she's really reading if she's already memorized the words through play? I'm teaching her these letters (M, S, A, T). We're just not all the way there yet so I don't want to give away the punchline, as it were. I want her to get it herself. Am I thinking right or wrong?