Reading the comments on the article was very enlightening. It's always interesting to see how others view Americans- right or wrong. Perhaps the controversy will initiate better care for the children in Russia?

Right, so you would have to be the keeper of it initially and give it him before he starts playing a game or waiting. Is he in OT or anything? My dd's speech teacher gave her some of that chewy rope and I hand it to her before I turn anything on the TV because that is when she does things like lick her lips a million times. It has helped tremendously. But it had to come from me for weeks, then she started asking for it.

When you stop him, give him something else to do. It feels good, so help him replace it with something else that feels good that is socially appropriate. Something to chew on? Some sort of squishy toy?

We'll be there in two weeks and will do the behind the scenes tour. Any advice? We are just going to spend one day there, then drive to Pompano Beach for a week. This has been planned for so long. I'm glad to we are finally going! My girls are obsessed with Winter and watch the webcams. I like that it's not a traditional aquarium and that their focus is on rescue and rehabilitation. I hear it's gotten pretty insane since the movie, but that's ok. I feel like I know what to expect with regards to it being small, etc. Just being there will be enough for my girls. They were so excited Christmas morning, they cried. ETA I know how to spell aquarium! I didn't even notice the red line. I told my husband he made this White Russian too strong!!

ING!!! Love them. The nurse came to our house. It was super easy and reasonable.

I'm so sorry!!! (If it were me, I know where it would be...in my purse! Sigh.)

Ask, you *might* want to check if having enrolled him in school already does technically make him a homeschooler, even if he is young. Not sure about that...

Legal issues aside, I'd just call the school when they open and let them know you've decided to homeschool. Ask them what they would like you to do. I'm sure your son's teacher will have things for him and she'll want to say good bye, if appropriate. I always find people are kinder when I ask them what they would like me to do, rather than being super assertive and aggressive. Just thank everyone and be happy. :)

Www.homeschoolfortwo.com I'm getting ready for a big blog overhaul in Jan. Should be good!

Good for you though! Maybe just tackle one cabinet or area, then reward yourself. :)

Oh, I just noticed he is 12. From your description I thought he was 6 or 7. Perhaps rather than focusing on how to be more positive, you could just have a conversation about respect. He's old enough to know that his raisin comment is disrespectful (assuming I'm reading into it correctly). Perhaps just focusing on the behavior a bit would help. Maybe taking away the negative talk would help him change his internal dialogue. I don't mean from a consequence focused angle, but at 12 it might be easier to talk about specific behaviors you can change rather than an overall personality trait, you know? Then you can start to focus on feeding him a more positive dialogue, giving him other choices, helping him see the silver linings, etc. I hope my words are coming out correctly- I don't mean to be negative toward your son, just trying to offer up something I see as a quicker fix that could help with the larger attitude.

Wow. I hope they are contributing to those boys' therapy funds.

I make a big effort to make the immediate area as toddler proof as possible so that everyone can have a good time. In the end though, it's still mama"s responsibility. You can't expect your host to know exactly what your kid can and can't get into. If I didn't make an effort to make my guest comfortable, I wouldn't expect them to stay long.

Lanny, we have definitely heard about the ants! Food was one thing I was concerned about because we eat very healthy. My dad assured me that there is a daily farmers market and all the food is grown locally. It sounds like we'll have more choices than here! I was thinking about it today and I think the only things my girls would miss is the occasional Mac and cheese and maybe peanut butter. As long as we have fresh fruits and veggies and good meat, we'll be just fine. My husband and I spent a summer in Switzerland and I remember sandwich bread was hard to come by, but it was quickly replaced with baguettes and Nutella! We are adventurous eaters, so I think it will be ok. My dad says the water in the city is fine and they never worry about ice when they are out and about. They eat from street vendors every day and he's only been sick once, just for one day. It's all very exciting to think about!

I was just thinking about the stockings today! I was thinking maybe I'd pack a few favorite Christmas ornaments and the stockings- mostly for the girls. Selling all our stuff, especially cars, makes me nervous only because we acquired it all when we were a dual income no kid couple! It will take a long time to earn it all back if we decide to settle down again. So, we are trying to be realistic about it all.

Thanks everyone! I'm back from Target and ready to go! Unfortunately the dumb grocery store was out of certain things, so I'm going back into town tomorrow morning. Sigh.

Thank you so much! That sounds perfect. I will look into that. We still need to meet if you are settled. (I changed my name, but we live in the same town.)

No, no, it is in their name but they said between their property manager and their attorney, everything is taken care of without a cedula. Not sure about specifics. They also own property where they will build a house some day. They started trying to build several years ago but quickly realized they need to physically be there for things to happen, so that's when they bought the apartment. They go several times a year. My dad is really into paragliding, which is how they found Bucaramanga initially. Then they just fell in love with Colombia. Of course, any Americans who have never been to Colombia act like we are crazy for even considering it a place to vacation, let alone live. My parents have had to do a lot in the way of educating others. When they first started going, maybe ten years ago, they hardly ever met other Americans, just Europeans, but now they said they've run into other Americans even in their own building. Still, it's hard to find info online in English about Bucaramanga. If we were moving to Bogota or Medellin it would be easier.

Lanny, thank you! I did read your post before it was deleted. I spent two hours on the phone with my dad yesterday. Apparently they don't have cedulas because they can do everything with a passport number. Their property manager takes care of bills and property taxes. My dad was able to open a bank account without a cedula, but he only found one bank that would do it and he said it might not even be possible anymore. I might be going at the end of March with them to check things out. They have many contacts and I might be able to get hired to teach english part time, which might get us in on a work visa? Haven't figured that out. DC is two hours away, so that is our nearest consulate. We have iPhones and I'm being told that they won't work there because they can't insert the card??? My parents have cell phones they keep there. I JUST upgraded and resigned a Verizon contract and now I'm kicking myself! We'll have to buy our way out of that plan. The apartment is huge, fully furnished, in the best area of town, with two pools, a gym, and a full time doorman. It will be nicer than here! ;) they will let us live basically for free. I'm not sure i see ourselves in Bucaramanga for more than a year or so. I think we'd like to live in a smaller town, but I don't know how feasible that it. Perhaps we'd venture down to Ecuador after six months. Who knows? I've emailed a few Colombian homeschooling families to see if they have any contacts in Bucaramanga. My spanish is coming back faster than I thought it would! Your advice has been invaluable. Thank you!

We'd actually probably move whatever we keep back to Utah so our family is nearby. It's better weather for stuff, too. It would mostly be boxes and possibly a few furniture items.

Nope. We'd have to pay for it.

We are still exploring moving to Colombia for a few years. We would have a furnished apartment, at least for the first six months (or longer depending on how we like it). So, we wouldn't technically need anything but clothes. So then, what do we sell? What do we keep? Where do we store it? What do we take? How does it get there? I'd like to just take what we can on the plane and be done. We have sentimental stuff we need to store somewhere. But what about everything in between? If we come back in a year, I don't want to buy all new stuff, but I also don't want to pay to store stuff for too long. What would you take/sell/store??? The hardest thing for us will be books... Oh, and as far as homeschooling, my girls are 10 and we would continue to homeschool.

Ah, thank you! This is exactly what I needed to jump start my brain. My girls are 10.

I need to go get a few things for stocking stuffers, but we are trying not to buy a bunch of junk this year. Our house is too small! Our big gift is that we are taking the girls to Florida to see Winter, so we aren't doing a ton of gifts. What are some things I can put in their stockings?? So far I have toothpaste (which we always do) and one nail polish (requested). What else are you putting in stockings that isn't a toy??

We don't have a microwave. We have a toaster oven. You can do everything in the oven, it just takes a little longer. I've now done two Thanksgivings without one. Just tell your guests to be patient!