Another "other" here. DH works from a home office. He gets up with the kiddo, and wakes me in time to drink coffee together before he goes to work, downstairs. At 9:00 am, the dog gets up and waits for DH to go to the office. They work together. :tongue_smilie: Since he's at home, we have coffee breaks together and DH makes lunch. I love it!

Thanks for the link, Satori. We are always into evolution here! Love, love, love finding new resources.

ChandlerMom, thanks for all these suggestions! I am so excited to check them out!

Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story by Lisa Westburg Peters. Great picture book - always a hit here.

We're doing RSO Life also, and love it. I bought the kit from homesciencetools.com but I think you could gather most of the materials on your own. We supplement with books, videos and games - more for fun than anything else. We love science!

My kiddo is in first grade, and we are doing Right Start B. It's fine, it's working, we like it. So I am hesitant to switch. But we suddenly find that we are being visited by the stork in a few weeks (Yay!)... and I am trying to plan next year with an eye to minimizing our teacher-intensive subjects. Would MM be a good switch? Thanks for any thoughts!

We are also preparing for a baby... and I like your ideas! So far, we have been cooking extra on weekends to freeze some extra meals here and there... a full freezer would be a huge bonus when baby arrives. Our kiddo just turned 7, but still ends up in our bed frequently - we started out as co-sleepers and there is still an open bed policy any time he feels the need at night. So I am working on transitioning him to staying in his own bed all night - we'll see how that goes. Independent play bags and file folder games would be perfect for a 4.5 year old. We are looking into less teacher-intensive curriculum for next year as well. I am squeezing in lots of field trips and extra time with the kiddo now, and generally just including him in the excitement. He loves it. :) If you come up with more ideas to prep for baby... I would love to hear them. We have less time than you... our stork arrives at the end of April, we hope and pray... We are adopting and it has all happened much more quickly than we'd thought it would! Happy baby thoughts to you!

So sorry about your little guy! I understand you're feelings on this... It is terrible to hear that our kiddos have high lead, and to try to track down the source. My DS has borderline high lead, and we are not sure of the source, but doc suspects exposure prior to birth (we had no control over that, DS is adopted, and birthmother was exposed to environmental toxins, unfortunately). We are chelating, but it takes time. And in the meantime, I find myself second-guessing everything, even though I'd thought our house was fairly safe and free of environmental toxins. Are you addressing the lead issue now (medically)? What if you address it as your doc advises, put in place some general safety measures around the house (you listed several already), and when you retest in several months, if the levels are still high... then consider more alternatives. I am suggesting that only because the source of your DS's lead could be from something other than the woodwork, unless you're positive that's the source? What about moving out and renting your home until you can sell it? Or would that force you to take the $8000 hit as well?

Hello to all the Mommies who juggle it all... I feel a bit odd asking for help with this, because I know so many of you juggle multiple kids. I am HSing one child - first grade, just turned 7. He's our only child at home. For the most part, everything we do is very intensive one on one... We have a lot of fun, we do a ton of projects. We also have a very flexible schedule, and I suspect that's about to change. We don't have a set school-time during the day, but just do what feels right through the day - we take breaks for play and reading aloud often. I have a weekly file set up, and we do the next thing till we finish what I'd planned each day. For the most part, we are on target for our year. DH and I have had a sudden gift - the stork will be visiting us in 9 weeks! [We are sooooo excited!] We have been planning another adoption, but didn't think it would happen quite so quickly. Now I am pondering how to handle the next 2 months - and beyond. Do I try to speed up with DS, and cram in as much as possible? Or just plod along at our normal pace while getting ready for the baby, and plan to fall behind a bit once baby arrives? And once baby is here... Can someone tell me about HSing with a newborn in the house? How is it? Are there tips or tricks? Is this a time to think about re-thinking curriculum choices for next year? It seems like most of what we do is fairly teacher intensive - Right Start Math, AAS, SOTW, our science, and more... but at 7, isn't everything teacher intensive anyway? It has been so long since we've had a newborn! I'm going to have to re-learn quite a bit about that, too. Any tips on that will be welcome, too. :)

Now I'm inspired to pull it off the shelf - thanks! Alley, I'll let you know when we've used it - about the time your new CD arrives and you won't need a review. :) We're in Northern-ish VA. Picture No VA, pass a few cow pastures, and there we are! Are you in VA?

We've been using R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey Life, and have been enjoying it. That is for my peace of mind, so that I don't feel I'm missing something critical. My science-minded kiddo (1st grade) would just die if we limited it to only Life this year though, so we follow a lot of rabbit trails. Lots of library visits and online searches to find interesting info and experiments. We check out every discovery type museum we find when traveling, too, which has been a lot of fun. We also supplement with Lentil Science - which was quite an experience to set up, but now that we have it all together it's a great activity. And, of course, we have the "science bin" full of safe science exploration tools - accessible all day.

:bigear: So glad you posted this... I had forgotten all about the CD - which is sitting unopened on a shelf!

I love our Continuous Ink System! I attended a talk by Sue Patrick (the workbox lady) and she suggested this as an option for less expensive printing. A laser printer would be great, but in the meantime, our CIS has liberated my printing. I even allow the kiddo to use our copier to make copies of his own artwork, books etc... You can google it, but basically it hooks to your printer cartridges and refills from a well on the outside. There are a few options to try, but you can google your printer model and see if there is one that will work. I think ours was in the $75 range, and I have been copiously printing since August. Eventually, I will order refills for the exterior wells, but for now - no need. It has been fabulous.

I've no experience with goats. But have given myself penicillin injections into the muscle. Do you have a specific needle for this injection? If so - it is probably the correct length. I would put it all the way in. If you're going into muscle, and you've found a muscular area - shouldn't have to go too far. Good luck.

Small whiteboards - love them. Giant dice - love those, too. We found a counting ball at Five Below - it counts bounces. We used it a lot in kindy for counting practice, and it was great for eye/hand coordination too. Target had some $1 games that I picked up recently - those have a been a nice change during the day. Giant chalk - we do a lot outside when the weather permits.

This is only my second year homeschooling, and we're only into first grade - so I'm not always the best resource for what's worked consistently because I'm still figuring this out. I lived with CFS, fibromyalgia, Myofascial Pain Syndrome and then an MS diagnosis for 5 years - till a very astute doc figured out that I had undiagnosed infections. It's taken me 5 years to go from bedridden house-hunting for a one-level house to living again. I'm not 100% now, by any means, but we manage. I still have Addison's, Hashimoto's, PCOS, chronic migraines, and a few other issues as a result of having had undiagnosed infections for so long. Just grateful every day that I can walk up stairs again! And I'm hopeful that these remaining issues will become more manageable with time. Like the above, I take very, very good care of myself. Homeschooling for us isn't negotiable - we are committed. And it has to happen. So we have a different system. I see the threads about daily schedules, and ooooh, do I wish we could do it that way. But it's not possible, and we do what we can. We do a lot on the couch, on the floor, on the bed... anyplace comfy. And we do it in spurts throughout the day. Because my adrenals don't function, it takes me a long time to get moving in the morning. So my kiddo has morning play time while I commune with a few cups of espresso. Then we do a few lessons, take a break, do a few lessons, take a break. We do the essentials first - math, reading, etc. When we break - we read aloud, we play games, the kiddo builds or creates... We listen to a lot of audiobooks. So it is generally educational, but not necessarily part of a curriculum. Like the above, I follow "do this next" type curriculum to be sure I don't miss anything. And I supplement a ton with fun stuff, my favorite being anything that I can get the kiddo started on then let him have at it while I get some rest. There are days when not much happens, and then days when we just fly through everything and get a ton of extra stuff done. So it evens out. DH does Science Saturdays. And he works from home, so if I have a "nap emergency" I can count on him. DH also does piano lessons, and in a pinch can cover most anything I do. Oh! And if you can implement Quiet Time - it's wonderful. But honestly - I have found that the best thing I can do is figure out my personal best time of day and capitalize on it. Right now - my best time is 2 pm till 6 pm. So we do the majority of our work then. I know it's unconventional, but it works. If that "best time" changes - I'm sure we'll adjust. Oh... And we've made a lot of changes over the last 10 years just to keep living easier with chronic illness. We love our crockpot. We freeze extra portions of meals, we keep a stack of paper plates in the cabinet for the really bad days. We eliminated house plants. We automated all of our bill paying. We pay for a housekeeper (thank goodness we can afford it!). There are a lot of little tricks that add up to make life easier. You might also talk to your doc about supplements. There are some helpful supplements. And when I was really in the thick of it, Provigil - taken sparingly - was helpful, and got me through the day when nothing else could do it. Good luck. You can do this!

Wait... Did I write that?? Substitute dogs barking for the bird, and that's our house. We are not up and at 'em early people here, so our day starts later, after many infusions of caffeine.

Field trips! I am a glutton for field trips! At the moment, I am pondering an overnight trip to Philly for the opening weekend of the Silk Road exhibit. We don't have to go, but it sure is a good excuse for a family outing. Ink - we switched to a continuous ink system and the savings has been spectacular. Paper, card stock, art supplies - we go through more than ever before. Time - I admit that I enjoy planning, but there are times I'd like just a tiny bit of that time just to do something, anything, else. Have to figure that one out.

I haven't heard the same comments, but I can see them in old friends' eyes. 20 years ago... I was a field archaeologist. I trekked long distances and camped every weekend. Now my big outing is to the park for a playdate. Seriously, I never thought I'd be a stay at home mom. Never. Neither did anyone else! But I love it, and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Maybe when someone comments, you could throw out a, "Yes, I have - thank goodness!" comment and embrace the change so they can see that you are happy? Just a thought. I have friends who will never understand the choices I've made. They are still living off the grid, filming documentaries and world traveling. They see kids as balls and chains. We get together once every five years as traveling allows, and I see their eyes glaze over if we talk about the munchkin too much. We've gone different directions. As for camping every weekend, my DH has made the same comments. I have issues like yours, and our solution has been to explore non-camping options while I try to get back on my outdoors feet after an extended illness. We've stayed in cabins so we can go on day hikes, car camped semi-locally (not my favorite, I am not a car camping kind of girl), and I've sent DH out camping with the boys. We've also moved and our current area doesn't leave me with a pounding desire to be outside in the same way that our last area did. He needs to have his outdoorsy needs filled, even if mine are now less.

You will do what's right for your family. Trust that whatever decision you make will be right for you and for the baby. Ooooh, but my heart is pounding just reading your post! DH and I are in the midst of our second home study, and then we'll again be waiting for a call. In the interest of this thread - I'll out our ages - I'm 39 and DH is 40. And we are actively hoping to adopt again!

Like the above poster, I'd be cautious on consuming it. My son with multiple food allergies was not allergic to coconut oil, then began developing hives on his hands/wrists when using soap that contained a coconut derivative. Then the tell-tale (and scary) throat symptoms started when he consumed coconut oil. He now has a confirmed coconut allergy - bummer. For us, it was one more in a long list of severe allergies - so it didn't change our lifestyle considerably, we always have epipens, etc on hand because he's anaphylactic to many foods. Have you checked to see if it's definitely the coconut oil and not another ingredient? Put a small dab on her inner arm, maybe, and check it in half an hour?

Thanks for all the replies, and for the honesty. :) After reading everything - and the links provided as well (thank you for those!) - I have a plan. We are going to try the bookshelf method for the square games, in the hope that this will keep them semi-organized while in plain sight. I am relieved to have found an option other than the Ziploc bag method - that was not appealing, but I was considering it for space reasons. I'll do some rearranging, and maybe this will solve part of the problem.

So sorry your daughter has Lyme. I hope they caught it early, and checked her well for co-infections. Even if her co-infection tests were negative, you might want to familiarize yourself with pediatric symptoms of them and keep an eye out, as there can be false negatives. Some co-infections require different types of meds. I've had 4.5 years - yes, years - of abx treatment because of Lyme and co-infections. I know - there's controversy there. But I have a great, great doc, and have been off abx now for 2 years. The strides I made were amazing - so it was needed and worth it. (I can walk again!) Anyway - as for probiotics... VSL #3 is wonderful. Theralac is great, too. And in a pinch, I use Culturelle. Please consider adding in Saccharomyces Boulardii - a beneficial yeast. It can help to prevent developing C. Diff while on abx. C. Diff is a serious and hard to treat GI infection. S. Boulardii can help to prevent it. Very worthwhile. It's available in several forms, or you can even pick it up at CVS. Florastor is a common brand, and has been well tested. Oh, and do take them 2 - 3 hours away from the abx.

We are swimming in games. We love games. Games are adding a lot to our school day, and we are amassing quite a collection. But we are very short on storage. We currently have them stored in a chest-style coffee table. It's not a bad system - we have them on their sides, rather than stacking them. But it's difficult to get to some of the games due to the shape of the chest (they tend to stay out of sight out of mind), and if there are any drinks spilled on the chest... We have to pull everything out and dry them off (if the drinks spill down the cracks where the chest opens)... I have done this one too many times! A game closet would be ideal - but we don't have that option. Any other ideas? I have a few cabinets that we use to store bins of playmobil, and could move the games to the cabinet... but then we are left with figuring out where to put the playmobil! Aaaaahhhh, it never ends.

I have not attended the ones this January - but thanks to your post, just registered for "Flashcards: There Is Another Answer." Perfect timing, as we have been feeling the need to play more games here lately. I did attend a RightStart webinar last fall - different topic - and found it gave me renewed enthusiasm for the program. Hoping that this one will do the same, as we've been in a slump here. Thanks for the heads up!