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SailorMom

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Everything posted by SailorMom

  1. If you have very hard water, you probably do want to filter it first. Also - some cats are just horrible about drinking enough for some reason. We had to get our kitty a drinking fountain. Really helped :) Here is the one we got: http://www.amazon.com/Drinkwell-Platinum-Pet-Fountain-168oz/dp/B000L3XYZ4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1444152534&sr=8-1&keywords=cat+drinking+fountain
  2. If you can, go get it checked. There are autoimmune causes for that as well as nerve issues. Hope it is something simple :)
  3. In my limited experience, the schools my sons looked at only required one or the other. The benefit of taking both is really that some kids are better at SAT or better at the ACT and only by taking the practice exams can you really know which they will do better at. The tests really are rather different.
  4. Also - keep in mind it is the lab processes, the scientific processes behind the labs, that are more important than the labs themselves. Well - to a point of course :) I would keep a lab component (of come kind - with or without dissections) in any high school science class if possible - not just for college admissions, but for the 'real' science behind them.
  5. LOL- reading the title of the thread, "time" popped into my head :) Reading books aloud - a lot of them, above their reading levels. Reading good literature. Giving them a solid foundation in math, history, and science.
  6. Starship Troopers was a horrible movie, but it's an excellent book :)
  7. Is your K'er 4? I am not advocating against anything anyone is saying here... but my recommendation is to take a break for a while. Some kids are simply not ready until they are closer to 6 or 7 - look into how Waldorf schools handle it. I'd just do a lot of reading aloud and playing - make it fun - with letters. Just - exposure without any pressure or goals. The big thing is to keep it fun. If she gets frustrated now it will only make it harder later. My dyslexic son could barely read until 3rd grade and now he is an avid reader and reads multiple books a week. He loves it. I know a lot of people whose kids were behind in reading until 2nd or 3rd grade and then shot up all of the sudden because their brains were finally ready.
  8. My son liked Math-U-See up until pre-algebra - then we floundered around for a while. We did LoF for a while, supplemented with extra practice on the concept he would be working on. We then went on to Foerster Algebra 1 without an issue.
  9. OK - this is going to sound ridiculous, but seriously.... I wear jeans a lot that absolutely will not fit if I add any weight. So - the minute I start going up at all I notice and adjust. Great way to kinda pay attention without needing a scale :)
  10. I LOVE the wood tile. I would want it over the laminate. Good idea on avoiding the dated look. We went with more of a classic approach when we re-did our house as well, and everyone raved over it, so obviously it works. We're renting it out now that we're not there, but we get offers to buy all the time.
  11. I love seeing my husband in his Mess Dress :) We probably do a formal between 1 and 4 times a year depending on the year. The last 2 years our Dining Outs have been of the combat variety - so costumes, water guns, mud... not formal :) But we've been on many cruises with formal nights and always dress up. We are skipping the Air Force Ball next weekend, though, because it isn't something we care about. We stick to squadron functions...
  12. I voted "depends", but I think I may have been being more squishy on the actual issue than I should have been... I am okay with fudging grade level by a tiny bit to be able to go on a field trip or participate in a summer camp type thing with no competition involved - but only if the child's maturity level won't interfere with the activity. Bumping a kid UP not down in a competition may be ok, but I'm not ok with it if there is deception involved.
  13. Oh boy... First, (((hugs))). So - in 1st grade we had my son tested by the school and were told low IQ, he was performing at appropriate levels, etc. Needed to be in Special Ed, why was I homeschooling etc. He had severe speech problems that we eventually realized had been misdiagnosed for years, which I'm sure negatively affected his scores. YEARS later, at an independent neuropsychological exam, that was all debunked. The doctor also told me homeschooling was the best thing I had done for my son. My son is now in full time college classes a year early. I've been told by so many people the only way he made it like this is because of the intense one-on-one personalized instruction I gave him. We care about our kids way more than anyone in the school system. We know our kids better and can provide something no school can. It is a LOT of work, you will second guess your decisions constantly and worry incessantly. You won't know until they are about 16 or 17 if what you are doing is really working. Teachers, friends and family members will make you doubt everything you're doing. But.... I firmly believe that a dedicated parent homeschooling is the BEST thing possible for a kid who is a 'square peg' and has LD's. Hang in there and believe in yourself and your kids.
  14. We dealt with it once. Just one of my sons and I since we had been sharing a hair brush on a trip. We used a microscope on a nit since I had never actually seen a nit before - really obvious what it was. I didn't have any problems getting rid of them immediately, but we were ridiculously vigilant for about 2 weeks :)
  15. Obviously this is just my experience, but I thought I'd share it as an FYI... Our DS was tested by the PS at the same age. Very similar problems. The PS testing was so far off it wasn't even funny. They said he didn't have any LD's, just a low IQ and was working at his ability level, so he wasn't eligible for any special services, just a full time Special Ed class. We knew they were way off since he was already beating us at board games, totally comprehended books way over grade level, etc. He was/is dyscalculiac, dyslexic, and has dysgraphia - none of which they caught. All of which I figured out for myself and then had confirmed when he finally had a neuropsychological exam many years later. Look into those Dys's I listed. But.... don't be surprised if they do not agree with you and chose not to do much about it.
  16. So - I homeschooled my youngest from 1st grade through high school completion, and I thought I'd let ya'll know how it went since I was on here a lot :) Thank you all for the help I got here! Your advice and recommendations were priceless. DS17 has dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, had oral motor apraxia, has heterotopias in his frontal lobes, btw. We were told by the PS he'd be placed in a separate Special Ed class, that he didn't really have anything wrong, he just had a low IQ, and that he was simply working at his level so they wouldn't help him. How wrong they were. I don't want this to come off as a brag thread, but it is a little :) Mostly, though, it's encouragement. It works, it's worth it, you are capable, and in the end you won't regret it. Oh the sleepless nights... All the second guessing and worry, all the hours of meticulously comparing curriculum, all the days of speech, occupational, or other therapy... it all pays off :) Anyway - he graduated high school a year early!!! He started taking CC classes a year ago part time, but we realized... he was just ready to move on. He's at a CC this semester full time and will be going to WNMU full time in the Spring. He still can't really spell, lol, but spell check is a life saver. Oh, and his handwriting is still rather atrocious. I was so worried. You know - when you finally find out if homeschooling was actually the right choice, lol.... When you find out if all the "weird" things you decided to do actually worked. It was scary. He easily placed into college classes. He had to take their Accuplacer (sometimes call the Compass), and did fantastic! He managed a B in College Algebra and in Spanish (if you had told me that 3 years ago I would have never believed it possible)!!! A's in other classes. So - hang in there. You are capable. It is worth it. :grouphug:
  17. Everyone screws up. I'm sure we've all done something like this at some point. You're human. Be forgiving to yourself - because I'm sure you'd be forgiving of someone else who had done this. Right now it isn't about what you did, but about what you will do - about it and in the future. Your sincere apology, an explanation of how you won't let it happen again in the future, a confession of a weak moment - that's all you can really do. You can't control how your friend reacts or if she will accept the apology.
  18. Most of my kids' friends and "socialization" came from clubs and sports, not the homeschool group. Get him in soccer, or gymnastics, or whatever :) He's still too little for Cub Scouts, but next year he can be a Tiger scout. Neighborhood parks are a good bet, as is the library. Give it a little more time - it will work out. It's early days yet, and most families are swamped with getting into a new routine for the school year. After things "chill" a bit, it will get easier. Also - does the homeschool group you meet at the park have a website or an email distribution? It is possible they'd be very open to someone setting up extra park days or field trips - they may just not have anyone willing to do it. It isn't a hard thing to do at all :) Be proactive and don't wait for the groups to schedule - reach out to them.
  19. Oh yes - the cravings!!! It's a big adjustment, totally normal. I do not do the low-carb version at all 'cause I'm not doing it for weight loss, but with or without low-carb, you will have the cravings for about 2 weeks. You'll probably also get the "paleo flu" soon. Trudge through it. You'll feel crappy for a little while, but it will pass and you'll feel so much better!!!!
  20. This was certainly my experience all the way through.... Anyway - we always said we were taking it year by year, and that starting in 8th grade the kids could decide if they wanted to go back. I got constant 'shocked' looks about my younger DS staying homeschooled all the way through high school... Now, though, they can't say much, lol. The DS homeschooled through high school is starting college a year early and is actually a semester ahead of his brother already in college credits, lol....
  21. In NM, all one has to do is email a letter of intent to the district superintendent. They email you back a Homeschool ID number. You do this once a year. It would be very easy here to just not do that, and I'm not sure anyone would get more than a "you should have registered" if they were caught. That aside, once the high school years start, that ID number is asked for some situations. For example, we decided to graduate my younger son before he was 18, and had him take the GED for scholarship reasons. We had to file a request for exemption from the state's age requirements (in NM you have to be 18 to take the GED) and had to provide that number on the form. Also - in order to dual enroll, or just take classes without proof of high school graduation, you have to get a NM public school ID number. We needed that for the GED as well. If a person was never going to need to utilize services, then I could see NM being an easy place to go underground.
  22. We ended up graduating my younger DS a year early. The CC here just wasn't going to cut it. This year should be his senior year of high school, but he'll be done with his Freshman year of college in December. He's taking CC classes this fall as we made that work, but will be leaving for school in January. He'll also be 18 in December, so that helps. It is a bummer, though, as scholarship deadlines at the college are all based on Fall enrollment, so we'll miss out on a semester of those. There were a number of other factors we had to look at, and every situation is so different - you can only just try to go with your gut and cross your fingers :)
  23. Trisms is not overtly Christian, but it certainly has a lot of Christian influenced literature....
  24. Love love love Dr Who. I did, however, have to grieve for a while after David Tenant was no longer the doctor. So far he's my favorite....
  25. Yeah! We should go have coffee... with lots of sugar... and cream... ;)
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