Wonderful! Thank you!!!

I don't understand the bolded at all. My husband travels a lot and I always get offers like this, so I don't think much about it, but if it's on top of other creepy things, then yeah. We had a friend like this once and it was really just his personality. It made me a little uncomfortable nonetheless, so I would never call him if I needed something, but I knew it was completely harmless. It's probably just his quirky personality, but I still wouldn't take him up on the offer if it makes you uncomfortable.

It's for sure now! All four of us and the dog will load up our Tribeca with the pod on top and drive to Utah, then CA to visit family this June, into July. Then we'll have all of August and September to make it back east. I am SOOOO excited. We'll be staying with family, camping, and maybe using Airbnb (thanks to someone on this board). We'll do a quick trip out and hit the Grand Canyon before all our visiting in Utah and CA (where we've lived before), but our way back will be very new! Here are places we are BOOKED: Grand Canyon Lake Powell Coloma, CA/Sutter's Mill Yosemite Santa Cruz, CA Redwood National Forrest Cape Perpetua, Oregon Fort Stevens, Orgeon Glacier National Park, Fish Lake We still don't know exactly how we'll get to Florida from there. We are thinking Lewis and Clark trail to St. Louis, then through Chattanooga and Atlanta?? We'll end up in Florida at the end of September to visit friends. Do you have any tips for the bolded places? Things not to miss? We'll have our well traveled border collie and twin 10 year olds who are great travelers and history buffs.

This is us, exactly. Great people.

Hmm... We've been talking with our regular CPA but maybe I should find someone who only works with small businesses. Thanks!

My girls took this class. It was awesome. http://www.radkids.org/

We are making a big leap into self employment. Can you give me your best tips on saving money, what we can write off, saving for retirement, organizing finances, etc.? I have to figure out health care this week. Can you recommend any good websites that offer advice? We've always been employees! We have some professional help, but I'm completely obsessive and need to read and research for myself. :)

Oh my gosh! I would never speak to that woman again.

We don't line our bathroom trash can. We just wash it every so often. Do you have recycling? Recycle the bags. You can wash reusable bags. There was also just a thread about this. There are some good ideas on there.

Well, I just offered my girls a dollar if they can find the dead mouse I can smell in basement. ;) Life in the country has its moments, too.

Where do you live? I need to make sure to never move there. :scared:

That looks like a cute stop! I grew up in SB and my whole family is still there, so we are pretty lucky. ;)

I have the teacher guides for FLL, WWS, WWE, SOTW, and Lively Latin on my iPad in iBooks. It has totally changed our homeschool. It's so much easier for me!! I don't have a problem with text. I can easily make things bigger on my iPad. The have been no downsides for me. Less storage, less effort, lasts forever. I have not bought many regular ebooks though. I don't like spending hours reading on a screen. I just can't get there yet. I like to feel the book in my hands. I'm sure ill make the switch sooner or later.

Sigh. Sometimes I wonder why I start these things. ;) my girls have been talking about the da** leprechaun for weeks!!! I figure this might be our last year though (they are 10) so I'd better enjoy it. Ours makes messes and we'll have green toilet water. He brings a few little green goodies, too.

Also, they don't want books that smell like smoke or come from unclean homes, etc. It's just a lot of extra work for someone to have to sort through trashy books and then figure out what to do with all the rejects.

Really??? That is fascinating to me! Where did you grow up? Where do you live? You haven't seen the big pre-made baskets in the grocery stores, wrapped in cellophane? It's always so interesting to me how different traditions vary from region to region.

Wow! Good to know because based on our rental experience (one month) I would have bought one.

We rented a Town and Country in L.A. Last year and loved it!! I couldn't believe how much I liked it. It was super roomy and got great gas mileage.

I just saw you are from So Cal. We live south of DC and will drive to Santa Barbara and back this summer. We should high five along the way! Ha! We are going to the Grand Canyon and Lake Powell first, so we are taking the southern route. Then we want to go to Oregon and make a lot of stops on the way home, but we'll see how much money we have. We are planning on taking three months in between jobs (long story).

If you do the RV thing, check out Families in the Road for a list of blogs.

We are doing a trip like this from east to west and back this summer. Renting an RV is VERY expensive. I checked. Then add on the gas and the fact that you won't have a car when you get to your destination. I still think hotels will be cheaper. Unless someone knows a magic RV fairy.;) Once here, you could camp or rent a furnished vacation rental. Let me know if you find a cheap way to RV. I haven't.

Omg. This thread makes me just want to unschool for middle school.

11 hours. They are 10.

You and me both. I hate listening to people eat. I will get up and leave. My poor husband is so patient. Although sometimes he'll make smacking noises just to make me mad!

People- I'm getting the idea that you don't think we are addressing the sensory issue. We most certainly are and have been for years. We are also out and about every day. There is a difference between normal life and being stuck in a busy classroom with 30 kids all day while trying to learn TO READ. It's the #1 reason we homeschool. And yes, my young child can choose to wear headphones the few times she needs them, just like you can choose not to attend events that are over stimulating. I'm sharing because it was so striking to me yesterday. It made me glad she is able to learn in peace.