To test for dehydration, pinch the skin on the back of the neck and if it stays up he is severly dehydrated and must go to the vet. If he has blood in his stool, he has to go to the vet. For treatment Talk to your vet about this: Sounds crazy, but fiber (metamucil 1/2 tsp dissolved in syringe in side of mouth to bulk up his stool) is important. Bland diet, Anfrol (must get from the vet) and Tylosan powder or Tylan (must get from the vet). $900 is too much. If he will drink, you can do Pediolyte or chicken broth. Many times they die from the dehydration not the disease. My sister has been a breeder/trainer for 17 years. He can go days w/o eating but MUST drink. You should also put him on safeguard /fenbendazole (can get from Tractor Supply) labeled for goats 1 cc per 5 lbs. I hope this helps. Blessings.

Not Killarney...I meant Blarney.... Definitely rent a car. Do not take public transit. You will miss everything and stay in Bed and Breakfasts so you will get to know people...ask lots of questions and go to the pubs (they are not like bars...people go there to eat dinner, hang out, talk, etc.)

If you're a Yeats enthusiast, go to Sligo for Benbulben and the site where he wrote "The Stolen Child." Also Kylemore Abbey is exquisite (another reason to go to Connemara aside from the Connemara ponies, ogham stones, and beehive huts). Don't waste your time on Killarney or the crystal factories, etc.

Well, where to start...On the West Coast, there's Connemara it's a must see for its beautiful scenic countryside and sheep everywhere. You could go further North and see Giant's Causeway if you want to venture out of the Republic. You must go to Doolin for its traditional music and then you can drive over to see the Cliffs of Moher from there. The Cliffs are a breathtaking (literally) experience. Further South, the Ring of Kerry is also beautiful where you can see the where the countryside meets the sea...the puffins, etc. but on the East Coast you must go to Dublin and shop Grafton street. The jewel of Dublin in my opinion is Trinity College (b/c I went there if only for a summer and because of St. Stephen's Green and the Book of Kells). The library (if you love books) will take your breath. There's the ha'penny bridge, the pub crawl, the Guiness museum, the Post Office (not what you think)...just do your research and you'll know where you want to go. You need to read some Joyce and Yeats before you go. I wish I was going back!!! Keep a journal every day b/c you will forget all of the small wonders. Best of luck to you and just so you know...it's bad luck to turn 'round on a journey, but that's hard to do considering most of the roads aren't marked on the West Coast!

I just ordered several MUS series. My 5 year old is already doing single digit addition and has done what most math curricula would do in K. For those of you that have done Primer, do you consider Alpha too advanced for a Kindergartener?

We use Trend Micro for everything. It's $50 but it is so worth it. It has parent controls where you can control the rating on sites and also browsing times (i.e. no browsing after 11 pm etc.). Their virus control is amazing and when you google or do any search there is an icon on the side that lets you know whether the page is safe (i.e. free of viruses, etc.). I have friends in IT and have had tried several...this is the best.

Amen!!

VBS should be one of the home based missions for the church. To charge for it is sad. I wonder what Paul would say. Christ would probably come in and throw over the T-shirt table. It is not like Upward where they are participating in a sport and have uniforms. VBS is all about Christ and learning about Him. If a church can't afford to put it on, raise the funds, or wants to make money doing it, then I think they should forego it all together....that's just my opinion.

My younger ones liked the Walking with Prehistoric Beasts and things like that. I think they were BBC series. You have to explain your theories on evolution/young earth/old earth, etc. but they are great series. You will be surprised by how much is on Netflix and how much the young ones will be interested in. I am not sure if this is on there or not, but all of my children loved the John Adams series by HBO (editing the tar and feather scene of course). There is a wealth of info available. Get the free trial and see how you like it.

Since we were studying Ancients, we watched the 'Egypt Unwrapped' series. We also watch Blue Planet and a lot of BBC stuff. We watched James and the Giant Peach after reading it as well as The Secret Garden just to name a few. The kids like to compare the books to the movies and always remark how much better the books are. We talked about how Spiker could have been cast differently, we didn't like the cartoonish bugs, etc. It is a great tool.

Have you considered something like Paths of Exploration or something like that? You can add math and have a flexible program or if you need to make it rigid b/c of the personality, you can. We have had great success with it. We changed Math over to Math U See, but will continue with Trailguide to Learning each year. He will do two years in Paths of Exploration (which includes Language Arts, Spelling, Copywork, Dictation, etc...everything but Math). We do other things though like World History (Veritas with a little SOTW). Since I am a big proponent of Charlotte Mason and the rigor, but personalized learning she purports, I think short lessons are best (no more than 20 min lessons with 20 min exercises per subject). If you did an all inclusive like Trailguide plus Math, you would have a more relaxed year with all the reading you could possibly want other than free read. Logic is an integral part as well. Just my two cents....good luck.

We love Netflix and using it through the Wii has improved it tremendously. The only caution is that when the Netflix disc is in the Wii, the kids can browse through all titles. I haven't found any way to filter these so we hide the disc and they aren't allowed to watch anything w/o us. The TV has controls anyway, but I look forward to the day when we can put a G maximum rating on the Netflix account. We have found that it is great for Science, History, and there are a few 'classics' (Dickens, Twain, etc.) movies on there as well. The kids watched Shiloh last night and really enjoyed it. It has been a good experience.

This has an abstract for each book: http://www.greatschools.org/cgi-bin/showarticle/678 Some of these we would consider to be on different grade levels, but many I have not seen and they sound very interesting. Thought I would share.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading these posts. I am heartened to see that people of such different faiths can have open discussion about their curiosity and thirst for knowledge about other religions and non-religions. It has always perplexed me as to why many Christians have such a hard time with this and why they don't want their children to know about other religions. I intend to educate my children about as many as I can. We have already studied Buddhism (PBS did a good job on their series for 5th grade and up). We discuss the Tao and Confucius, a little about Shintoism. My children are too young to appreciate Hinduism and its intricacies and I need to learn much more about the Muslim faith to introduce it. As we go through the West, we discuss the pagan religions along with our history. None of this threatens my faith, and ultimately they must choose their own. Thank you for starting, and hopefully continuing posts like these. It keeps us all thinking and conversing.

I trust him as far as I can throw him. If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. If you can't listen, you'll have to feel. Can't never could. there are so many more, and they are backwoods country so when I can remember I will post more.

Take a look at Ambleside Online. I think they have a list for each grade level and it is solid reading...no twaddle.

What do you use for your Latin roots study? At what age did you start that and what age did you start Spanish? Jennifer

When you forgive someone, it is not for them it is for Christ and Christ did it all for you. You are not forgiving her transgressions because she deserves it, but because Jesus commands it. Your emotions will eventually catch up and you may need to forgive her many times. It is a conscious choice because of what Christ did for you. I don't mean that you do it out of fear or blind obligation...just think of His love for you, His sacrifice and His forgiveness. It is so much easier then. I had a family member that did things over and over and finally accepted Christ on his deathbed. Without unconditional love, I don't think this could have happened. He had to experience it. So much of that forgiveness was for me. I would have been hard, bitter, and full of regret otherwise. Just do it....seventy times seven. Don't overthink it. I'll pray for you.

Before God knit her in your womb He knew this would happen and He loved her and chose her! Let yourself off the hook. God gave her a free will. She chose this and will be a great mom. You are a great mom and will now be a wonderful grandmother. Your daughter will take her cues from you and she needs to see you celebrate this baby. Yes, it was a sin but God's mercy is new every day. Who hasn't sinned? Were we all pure when we got married? The difference is, most of us didn't get pregnant! Be radical and celebrate her pregnancy because it will bring a great gift. If we were all perfect we wouldn't need Christ. Your daughter has a visible reminder of her imperfection, but how wonderful it will be to hold that baby in your arms. Things will be so different in a year. My prayers and good wishes are sent your way. Be strong and of good cheer!

I am so happy with this. To have all the kids on two pages, color coded and organized is wonderful. Even though I have programs to organize and plan, I like to use paper and pencil. I am such a computer nerd that there was a time when I was looking for my laptop battery wondering, oh no what am I going to do now. If paper, pencil, and books were invented AFTER computers and websites they would be considered improvements in many ways. Thanks Nakia. It was great to have someone take care of me for a change! I will enjoy these and use them all year.:D Blessings!!

:iagree: Great pic. This is a way to use bold colors without giving you a headache and also give height and style.

I have messed around with things like this and always want it to be useful and look pretty! Your font is great. Please email it to me j e n n i f e r @ h i c k o r y c r e e k . c o m . Sorry for not making it a link...so much spam. I have Homeschool Tracker but hate it. I am a computer geek, but when it comes to planning, I want paper. I don't have a Mac. Is there any way I can edit? I have four of my own and would love to use this. Jennifer

We have a new CC group in our area. I met a great gal in FL on our last vacation who told me all about her group and I was intrigued. Then, I found out at the last minute that there is a new group in my area. I am wondering about whether or not it is worth the time. I already homeschool classically, but I have wanted to get the kids involved in a co-op for the field trips, etc. We have a very popular generic co-op in the area, but I am not willing to give up a day a week for something that may or may not fit into our academic schedule. I am interested to hear about your experiences with CC. I would have to be a tutor to get all of my kids in (they wouldn't be in my class).

Glad to know it's a limb and not a twig. This is an opinionated board...I happen to think with great opinions or I wouldn't be here...I just stray on the necessity for Latin.

I have struggled with this being a classical homeschool parent and a former English teacher and then head of school for a Classical/Charlotte Mason School. I consulted a linguist who specializes in Latin and Greek. I was surpised by his answer. He advised that we teach Latin roots and not the spoken language. He said that we would do our students a great service if we taught them Spanish or Mandarin. I realize that 99% of you will vehemently disagree and I am very familiar with the arguments for studying Latin as a foreign/spoken language. I tend to take a utilitarian approach and while I want my children to know the words and their etymology, I don't think the declensions will help them so much. Just my two cents, knowing that makes me a heretic.