Being on their high-horse about what they eat, wear, play with, do, live in, drive, grow, etc. It's the little snide comments and one-up-man-ship that drives me batty with homeschoolers. Ex. Girl Scout troop at a karaoke party. Homeschooled kids (minus mine who knows who Taylor Swift is) sitting in the corner b/c they don't know the pop songs to sing them with the other girls. The hsed moms just sat there bragging on how 'counter-culture' their kids were b/c they 'aren't allowed to listen to inappropriate music' and only know 'church hymns.' And you'd think they wouldn't come, right? Oh no, can't give up an opportunity to sit there and be "better" than the ps-ed moms!!! It's the judging that makes me inwardly groan. Kids wearing no shirt and no shoes to park day b/c 10 yr old Snowflake Susie can't be bothered with footwear and a t-shirt in the winter. 11 yr olds who can't read b/c mom insists on not "directly teaching" the kids. Snubbing those who aren't unschoolers and accusing them of abusing their kids by teaching them. Kids not brushing their hair, just looking like a hot mess walking around. Saying ignorant things, letting their kids be rude or disrespectful to others b/c they're so "independent-minded". No, your kid is being a jerk, be a parent!! Expecting special treatment b/c you're a homeschooler. Thinking your kids don't have to follow the rules of a traditional classroom setting (church, co-op) b/c you're a radical unschooler. Great, then don't come here and participate if you don't want me to say "no" to your kid!! Being non-normal so you can brag on it. Suffice to say, I have no homeschool friends ;)

Thinking about my two girls, who have flown a ton between trips to see grands, prior military, coming here, and going on business trips with Dh: No. The youngest I'd feel comfy traveling alone for my pair (2 yrs apart) would be 9 and 11. (in your case, 9 and 12) I think those ages most kids are able to be level-headed if their ride is late, if prepped first. Seeing as how the grands will likely be fairly late and the weather potentially dicey, I'd say no to it this time. Another idea is the train though. FWIW, I've taken the train many times from CT to VA and back again and while looonngg (8 hrs?) it was a very simple and pleasant trip. Is a train ride possible (with you accompanying them)?

I'm so glad you said it b/c I've been feeling particularly thrilled with the fact that I don't have to deal with the bell ringers this year! They aren't on base and definitely not off-base where Christmastime charity-giving isn't too big of a thing. This time of year is stressful enough without a bouncy bell ringer getting all in my face!!

My wish list would include a wrap of some kind, probably a Mei Tai, nursing pillow, Bumbo with tray for feeding and bath time, some kind of bouncer or rocker to put baby in for sleeping, prefolds and such for cloth diapers and a Snappi so the older kiddos and husband could diaper. I'd keep it very simple as a baby doesn't need much.

Another book to look at is Eat to Live. It's written by a doctor and backed up by research and scientific studies. I wouldn't go whole-hog on it though if your Dd is underweight as you can easily lose a lot without trying. But it's good to keep in mind the nutrient value of different fruits/veggies so you can purchase the ones with the best nutritional punch for the money, so to speak.

Done! And I could read some of it...now writing it down in Japanese is another story.

We've really enjoyed Write From History over here but no, it doesn't have any comp questions like WWE. I feel like it's a good stepping stone for my Dd though as I wanted her to start reading the selections and finding that important information on her own, without hints as to what's important by rewording what she said in response to my questions. ;) The selections are very challenging but similar to what she'll later see in a textbook. It's important to me that she can pick up any textbook and be able to learn from it, so this is helping a ton with that skill. I find having my Dd narrate orally to me any passage that is particularly dense, then have her write her narration after that, has helped quite a bit. I also have her chunk the paragraphs into groups, like these talk about Alfred the Great's childhood, these talk about his fighting against the Danes, these talk about his working with shepherds, etc so that she can pick out the details for narrating. It's kind of visually outlining without doing so. WTH has definitely helped her learn history, and enabled me to become a better writing coach. It's not as open and go as WWE was but I'm starting to feel like she's at a level in her writing that she would need me to be there to help stretch her whatever we use.

We listened to an audiobook version on Overdrive of The Terrible Two that was quite humorous.

We're using Killgallon with the Write from History series (Medieval) this year. Dd does copywork, dictation and written summaries of selections from Famous Men of the Middle Ages, poetry selections, first-hand accounts, etc. I'm working on integrating her grammar knowledge and using that to create better sentences. We edit and revise her written summaries quite a bit. We also do the writing lessons from Rod and Staff when they come up.

DD9: Marine biologist studying dolphins DD7: Stuffed animal collector. When told that doesn't generate an income and she may not live in my basement: Doggie Daycare Worker

First, if she's eating a bunch of vegetables and fruit, nutrition won't be an issue. A 100 calorie amount of broccoli has more protein in it than a 100 calorie amount of steak. Read Eat to Live's website to get a glimpse into the nutrient density of plant foods if you're concerned. Also, make sure she gets a B-12 supplement if going vegan. Vegan food is *way* cheaper than buying lots of meat. I buy dried beans and legumes which are dirt cheap. Also, one bag of dried black beans makes at least 6 cups of beans for me when cooked. I soak the beans overnight in cold water, rinse, cook in the slow cooker on high for a couple hours, then freeze on small cookie sheets in the freezer and pack them into ziplocs for quick-and-easy addition to recipes. I also do the same with chickpeas. I make veggie stock/broth at home with veggie scrapes (which accumulate fast when vegan!) For satiety, the volume of veggies helps fill you up. Coconut milk in Indian food or nut butters on noodles help with satiety. Gluten-free food is mostly packaged stuff which is why it's expensive. I'd try to go for beans, legumes, fresh breads you can make cheap at home, fruits, soups, and veggies. Basically limiting packaging. We spend about $100 less at least on food now that we eat vegan compared to omnivore eating. It's like anything, Even omnivore's can get their bill up if they eat lots of steak and expensive hard cheeses. I'd look at budgetbytes' blog under the vegetarian/vegan tab for cheap recipes.

FLL 2 for little dd, R & S 5 for big dd. I think I'll continue with FLL until we're done with 4 and then switch to R & S. I'm a secular hser but I haven't found anything comparable yet.

I would love a writing or literature course, please!

If you're looking for a CM approach to science, have you looked at Simply Charlotte Mason's science curriculum? We've used Jack Insects with Narration and Nature Study Book as a supplement and it was really well-done. They also have a curriculum aligned with Thornton Burgess' bird book as a spine. They also offer some creationist materials if that's up your alley.

I wouldn't worry. That's a stage both of my kids went through as early readers building fluency. I just let them choose the clearly-too-easy books to read. Eventually, they got tired of finishing all the library books they had for the week in a half hour and started looking at some more difficult books on their level. But I never, ever pushed. Kids can sense when you want them to do something and will push back harder if you do. I'd suggest a book, they'd say No and I'd say OK as though I didn't care if they read One Fish, Two Fish and only that for the rest of their lives. ;) Does he have anything he's interested in? Trains? Cars? Dinosaurs? Animals? My youngest started reading longer and more difficult books when she found some My Little Pony books.

Yes, we're doing that here as well. I think it has helped quite a bit. I think having lots of Daddy dates has helped her a ton as well. I also buy her elaborate coloring books and she can diligently work on those. I'm trying hard to model appropriate ways to try to feel better, while also admitting that sometimes we have rough times and that's OK too. It's a difficult balance. I'm finding a lot of similarities with parenting toddlerhood...just trying to make it through one day at a time.

Outside of the house, traditional date night-style: I'd say 4-5x a year. That counts for anniversary too but we don't always go out for that either. It's a little cheaper to go out here than it was in NoVA so we may get up to 6 this year. ;)

I've only given buzzcuts but handling the clippers is very easy. They need to be charged and oiled occasionally but are otherwise easy to maintain. They can 'click down' to adjust how much hair to cut off and a set usually comes with different guards for longer styles. My Dh is former military and has the thickest hair I've ever seen on a dude. It just grows up. It needs to be buzzed every week and a half to keep it from getting so long that it can't be buzzed. We've saved an insane amount of money cutting it ourselves.

I'd say about $15 max/month in shampoo/conditioner/hair products like mousse, hair ties and bows/headbands/scrunchies. The youngest hates having her hair done and always wears it down so that saves a lot in hair products. Oldest usually braids or ponytails it. I cut their hair at home b/c I'm cheap and youngest's sensory issues makes it a bad day for everyone (stylist included). I'm considering buying a few things to help make the hair cutting process a bit easier though. I also cut mine and dh's (buzzcut).

I think the balancing was difficult with very young children b/c their needs were more immediate and pervasive. Although, my 9 yr old seems like she's needing me more than ever before lately! I think my girls specifically need a lot more from me than other kids may need their parents. I think not providing them with the boatload of time and energy they need as very high-needs kids (who are likely to birth equally high-needs kids one day) would be doing them a disservice. Is it hard? Yes. Is it worth it? Yes. Yes. Yes. I was the daughter of the parents who probably inspired this thread. I've strived to not be that kind of mom to my kids. So I have less "me" time than most but it's important to me. I don't martyr myself in this though. It's my *choice* to do so. And I like my kids, which helps. ;) Anyway! I'll usually read, watch a TV show with Dh once the kids are in bed, sometimes we'll go on a walk with the pug just me and dh. We don't need a whole lot of time alone together b/c we're both really invested in the kids. We're more in sync with each other as time goes on. We've been with each other for 11 yrs so we know how to say what we need. He's very much a family Dad and I think the balancing is easier for me b/c of that. I don't feel stretched from the kids *and* him. I guess for me, I'd feel burn out more without Dh's support and time. My mom didn't have that support at all, and the OP of the other thread doesn't either. IMO, that's the missing link. No one person can be all things to all people of the family. I don't do much social stuff, but I'm not very social. Most people don't get me because I'm a more mainstream-friendly non-Christian homeschooler than most. I do worry that I'm not modeling appropriate social norms for a typical Mom to my kids, but I can't make a friendship that just isn't there.

I've recently gone vegan (it was Dh's idea) and one way we've increased our greens is to eat a green smoothie at least once a day. We buy the chopped frozen spinach which is dirt cheap here ( 98 cents for a massive bag), flax seeds, and frozen fruit like strawberries or even mixed fruit. Add in some water and you've got a cup of greens right there. :) We get huge amounts of mixed greens at Costco and eat them for lunches and dinner. I add zucchini into pasta sauce for dinner, or make a sandwich for lunch with grilled eggplant, peppers and spinach. It's really just rethinking what you used to do and plopping a veggie on top instead of meat. Keeping it simple like this has made it easier. I've also heard juicing can be helpful for getting extra greens in but we don't have one. We also took a cue from our British friend and make a salad and tons of veggie sides with a small main dish for dinner. This way it kind of forces everyone to have to eat at least a couple servings of veggies. My kids have been eating salad more often too :) I'd check out pinterest for vegan or vegetarian recipes for ideas on how to tweak recipes you already make habitually. That helps it become more of a habit because you aren't completely reinventing everything.

coffee every single morning, a salad or lettuce for a meal. A green smoothie for a meal, usually breakfast but sometimes lunch if I'm feeling lazy. I'm trying to lose weight right now (lost 20, working on 30 more).

Our week has definitely been off! Oldest sprained her ankle "somehow" (I suspect it was while doing something outside that I'd not approve of) and we had the fun of the clinic. Waited only an hour this time! The clinic didn't have crutches in her size so I had to profusely beg them off the Japanese school nurse who insisted on a 20 minute briefing on how to use them properly before handing them over. She also took down *all* my information and I swear by the end of it I was shocked I didn't have to swear a blood oath over a fire with a dagger. Weather has been getting nice and chilly. I love fall but the kids are whining about not being able to wear their shorts anymore. I suggested the weird Japanese fashion of tights with shorts but that didn't go over well. For lunch, pasta for the kids and a salad for me. I wasn't feeling cooking much today. I even asked Dh to help with making dinner. School went OK. Oldest tried to play the ankle pain card but I gave her some Advil and told her we're doing school, kiddo! Little is killing it in Math lately. Still thrilled with the combined science and history. I'm keeping that up until high school, I swear. In-laws coming to visit in a week and a half so I'm trying to get a bunch done before then.

Thanks for the reminder!

Meh. I'm a former military spouse. I don't think you're depriving your kids by not participating which seems to be your concern. My kids have no real sadness about not seeing their Dad in his uniform often. The couple pictures are honestly kind of depressing as they highlight times when Dh was leaving them for deployments or coming back after not seeing them for 17 months. It seems strange to keep those displayed and show them off to the kids. "Look, older dd, that's the time Daddy was sobbing holding your 4 week old self before deploying for 17 months!!" :confused: It's not something he or I regret, or try to hide from our kids. That'd be bad. But it's not something I'm forcing on them either. I think doing anything involving our family in a disingenuous way....my kids would see right through that and it'd have the opposite effect. I guess our wedding photos are technically uniform pics as Dh is in his dress blues and those are plastered everywhere in the house b/c I'm a cheeseball. I don't think my kids are missing out b/c they're exposed to the military through family friends and relatives. I don't think it's a big deal. I'm not a big military whoo-hoo Army Strong lady either. ;)