Here is the recipe I grew up making. Microwave Fudge Make in a 3 qt bowl. 1 pound powdered sugar ( 4 1/2 cups) 1/4 cup milk 1 Tablespoon vanilla 1 cup microwave marshmallows 1/2 cup cocoa 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup chopped nuts Mix all ingredients together. Microwave 2 minutes. Stir until blended and marshmallows are all melted. Pour into a pan and chill an hour.

Nope. If I don't want to know what someone wrote I don't read it. I think getting differing viewpoints is helpful and useful in discussion.

ITA, most of them have littles and would not have begun teaching higher math. Unless you use algebra often I think yoh are likely to forget it, especially if you have mommy or toddler brain!

Got it, thanks for the clarification! :) I also give Dh cards like that, but I don't display them just in case someone wants to look.

This is true, but why force the issue and cause a child to lose his love of learning and math? When life slaps him in the face he'll learn it and will be able to learn it easily. I learned my multiplication tables while helping dsd learn hers when she was in 4th grade. I was a certified bookkeeper at the time, a homeowner, had always done my own taxes, worked as a cashier and could make change. As each life experience required I learned the skills. That's why it would not be a hill I would die on as a parent; it's just not that important in the grand scheme of life.

Hmmm, calculators are allowed in college classes in NM. I guess it matters where you are.

OP - just curious, why were the cards on display if they were private (and raunchy)? I'd be concerned with my kids reading a card like that. :001_huh:

If they were on display then they are fair game just like any other decoration.

My friend is a high school math teacher. She advocates teaching your kids the basic math functions; make sure they understand the process. She teaches homeschoolers Algebra and up. They all are allowed to use calculators in class, on homework and on tests. There is peer pressure for the students to be able to correctly calculate sums in their head during class time. I don't see a problem using a calculator for basic math functions. No, we weren't allowed to, nor were our parents, and we know our math facts. Really, though, what does it matter if you know your math facts as an adult or not? Knowing them makes life a little easier and more convenient, but in the long run, knowing how to use the calculator is a skill as well. This is not a hill I'd chose to die on. It has been a non-issue for all 3 teens.

No, not at all. You will not find QB challenging though; it is extremely user friendly.

If it's just that the agitator isn't working you could switch it to the spin cycle so it will drain and spin the water out of the clothes. Then take them to the laundromat and wash again. Beware, I was shocked at laundromat prices! $3 for wash and about $1.50 to dry. The last time I was in a laundromat it cost $1.50-2 for wash and dry! Oh well, it's cheaper than a new machine. Maybe you can do just the absolute necessary laundry right now. :grouphug::grouphug:

Dh works in a clean room and smells metalic at the end of the day. It's a clean metalic though. I find it soothing. It REALLY nice compared to how he smells at other times! lol

Tara - I thought were serious at first! LOL It's the end of a very long day, weeks into a sinus infection. I'm not dealing well and having to deal with Ds and this situation isn't helping! Rosie & Deb - I think the military charter school might be good for him but I've been pooling military people I know and people I know who work with the schools and this school doesn't appear to be run very well. Apparently they don't have any homework because they get it all done in school. :001_huh: I like the idea of no homework, but even the k-ers have homework here. Also, I guess there have been some really nasty fights were several guys gang up on 1 or 2 kids. We're going to visit the school anyway, but there is a doubt now. We're going to the open house of a Christian school that I've considered before this weekend. Basically, I realized that we have too many commitments to just drop everything on a whim and say "ok, we're ps-ers now". Besides I think that while it's easy to drop into homeschooling any time of the year it's really best to put kids in B&M schools at the beginning of their school year. So we are going to visit some schools, get on the lottery lists and see what happens. Ds will finish this school year and his commitments.

Oh yes, I think so too. I heard a mom mention that it was $100 for a babysitter for her and her Dh to go on a date night. I didn't know her well and the conversation glossed right over that moved on quickly so I didn't get a chance to ask her what she was paying. She has 3 elementary school aged kids. I'd like to be HER babysitter! We never did date night, we got a sitter once and she ignored the 4 year old to play with the 10 year old (the sitter was 15!). We just gave up! We have date nights now and Ds stays home or goes to a friends.

Thanks for your other post as well. I need to learn to "let go". :001_huh: I need to learn to let him fail naturally by his own decisions. I'm just afraid it will set up a pattern of laziness, especially since he doesn't really care for his schoolwork and doesn't see how important it will be one day.

Thanks! I found these at Amazon. Has anyone heard of them or used them? They appear to be written to the child. I was thinking of getting them for Ds for Christmas. The Teenagers Liberation Handbook:How to Quit School and Get a Real Life Education by Grace Llewellyn College Without Highschool: A Teenagers Guide to Skipping High school and Going to College by Blake Boles

I remember doing an abortion paper in 10th grade. I'm just not sure it's appropriate for my Ds who has his first girlfriend right now.

I think so too. You are not off base. My step-son passed away 3 years ago and I feel like Dh and I are just coming out of the grief. Dh refuses to go see a professional. I've tried a few but can't find a good match. I'd love for us all to go together; I just don't think it will happen. I'm going to have to figure out how to help us.

WOW! I had no idea! I don't see how anyone can afford to go out! No wonder date night is vanishing!

An extra $10 per kid per hour?

How much is babysitting going for these days? I babysit a 7 yo, 6yo and 9 mo for 3 hours one day a week, in the afternoon. Sometimes I have to feed the baby. She usually takes a 2 hour nap. The boys are very active and I usually have to work to keep them quiet during baby's nap. Sometimes I do their homeschool art project with them. It is a trade for tuition for a class. I'm wondering what the babysitting is actually worth. FWIW, I think I'm getting the better end of the deal because I can't afford the $60/month tuition. She thinks she's getting the better end of the deal. I think that makes a perfect trade! I'm just curious what one would pay for this babysitting.

I've done that with the schedule and he didn't get his schoolwork done. He got to the point where he could not have possibly gotten caught up over the weekend to be ready for the next week. He ended up a month behind while I continued to try to let him figure out how to reach his weekly deadline. he knows how to break his work up he just decides to do less than he planned and before he knows it he's a week behind. He has a horse he's supposed to be training. For the most part we still have beautiful weather here he just doesn't feel like working with her. Besides feeding the horses we don't really have alot of physical work and not anything regular. I'll have to think about that harder. He asked our neighbor for work and was told he'd be paid $6.50 an hour for pulling weeds; he hasn't felt like doing that either. His martial arts and punching bag are the only physical activity he's doing right now. I'm glad he's doing those, but I agree with the work aspect of things.

That make sense. I bet Mom will be more important again later. Dh sure values his mom's opinion of him and his choices. That's what we do. Where's the magic pill?! I love this. I used to be very physically affection with Ds but when he was about 8 he wouldn't have any more of it. Now we hug when one of us leaves and goes to bed. It's sad to me. I like the "take him by the ear"! I wouldn't try that now though. I think time and consistency are my answer here. I've done that. Oh well, at least he complies even if he stomps all way out to the feed shed. I'd just love for him to want to comply; to want to feed since it's raining and Mom's sick. Oh well, I guess I should get off the pity pot and be glad he's complying in that respect. I really appreciate all the advice and perspective! I don't feel as bad about myself now. I think this is just our season of life right now and if we are consistent we will get through it. Thank you so much ladies!

THIS is what I'm hoping for. Ds wants to go to ps to be in a classroom setting. I've told him to hang on until he's 16 because then he can take community college classes. He responds so well to other's praise. Why don't I count? :crying: He couldn't possibly handle a job and ps, especially since his commute would be a minimum of 30 minutes. If he waits until he's 16, then we'll let him take the GED, start college part time and work part time. In NM homeschoolers must get the GED to be eligible for the state lottery scholarship. We figure if he can pass the GED at 16 then he's completed his high school education academically speaking.