Wow, Abbey - I was going to post the exact same thing. I was dealing with a panic attack last night (on my last night of vacation) pondering this exact thing. I think I spent 2 hours in PMS-laden tears, trying not to wake my family, praying to God to give me what I need to give my children what they need.

:iagree: Congrats Isa!!

Oh, gosh. There are so many! Maybe DH, because he is an engineer, meaning a man of few words. My two boys because they are not sharing much of their inner dialog. Maybe I could help my oldest with some of his issues. My middle son so that I could understand how to let him know that I love him. Or, my friend Joanne, who is a very positive person and very good at reading people - I would love to hear that self-talk. If I had to choose one, I would choose ds14 - he is troubled right now and I don't know how to guide him because he can't express himself very well.

I voted "whole enchilada", but I strive for a natural looking appearance - just a little better than nature KWIM? Bare Minerals foundation, blush, eyeshadow, liner pencil, sometimes mascara, lip gloss. This takes me about 8-10 minutes to do. I have unruly curly hair as well. Since I let it air dry and only round brush blow dry the bangs, my hair takes 5 minutes to do, but 1 hour or so to dry before I can put on a finishing creme to hold the frizz. I used to spend a lot more time on my appearance, but since having kids (and most of my homeschooling friends do not wear any makeup) I have pared down a lot :)

Groups that list themselves as "secular" may be open to any faith or non-faith OR they can mean no tolerance for any religiosity. Any discussion of religion or deity is not welcome in some "secular" groups. "Inclusive" or "Non-sectarian" usually means no statement of faith and open to all faiths or belief systems.

Mine is '00. I want to bury it under a tree, but we are fortunate to have so many trees that I won't be planting any soon. I had thought I would plant it in dh's butterfly garden, but he got to it too quickly - plus I was afraid to thaw it and afraid that Wiley, our friendly neighborhood coyote, would dig it up. Maybe I'll tell hubby it's time to do something with it:)!

Quiet and cheerful with number 1 after the epidural. Very Zen with # 2 until pushing contractions, then I was a screaming mess on my "other planet" during pushing contractions and crowning. (The rectal pressure was giving me flashbacks to the excruciating recovery from #1 a 3rd degree perineal laceration - I couldn't sit for weeks and BMs were terrifying.) With #3, I did lots of low moaning and groaning. It was a homebirth and I was very uninhibited. I found it was very comforting. I didn't realize how loud I was until afterwards when I noticed that my throat hurt.

What worked best for me (when nothing else did) was hot weather, lots of outside time and no pants. That is when they finally got it. With my daughter, I did practice a modified form of elimination communications. I just didn't have the energy to do it all the way (since she was the youngest), but I did take her and hold her over the toilet every morning, whisper PSS, PSS, PSS in her ear, and she would tinkle. I would also take her potty when I went. Sometimes she would go and sometimes she wouldn't. But, it really took the no pants method for it to reallly work. One thing that did NOT work was pullups. They just treated it as a diaper. If we hadin't been doing cloth diapers before, I switched to cloth before we tried training. hth

I agree. Several public school teachers bashed homeschooling so badly to my mom that they caused a rift between her and me. This took several years to heal. I met one of them recently. She still bashed homeschooling to me even though my kids are doing very well academically and have better emotional maturity than most kids. She thinks that because two of my kids are on the shy side that I have failed them. Well, I was 10 times more shy (and seriously emotionally messed up due to the bullying I experienced right under their noses) than my children. I do not lump all public school teachers together, just those who are arrogant enough to remain ignorant of homeschooling in this day and age. BTW, several of my homeschooling mom friends are married to excellent public school teachers.

What about the rights of the baby? So the baby who is formula-fed has more rights that the baby who is breastfed? that women who are feeding their children in the biologically normal way are seen as exhibitionists? It is this particular attitude that is partially responsible for the low breastfeeding rates we have in this country. The more obstacles we place on women breastfeeding, the sooner they wean. The message is that it is okay to use boobs to sell beer and chicken wings than for them to be used for their God-given purpose - to feed a baby. I would definitely want my children exposed to the proper purpose of breasts, not the media-created purpose. I do whatever I can to shield my children from the purient type of attitude, I but am thankful for women who stand their ground and refuse to have their rights walked upon. I have a dream - where breast will be seen primarily as for feeding, where public breastfeeding will cause no more stir than scratching one's chin, and where recreational use would be banished to private venues.

I tried to find the link for this, but one of my favorite pictures is of a woman mayor or representative in South America meeting with her constituents. She is breastfeeding her toddler with the full breast showing. The caption discusses the political issue at hand and doesn't even mention breastfeeding. That is what I would love to see - for breastfeeding to be seen as so normal no one bats an eyelash anymore.

Dawn, I am so glad you found a solution and that you have a happier babe!

Jessica, My mother did the same thing to me. She tried to bribe me to send my oldest to preschool. That is the day I grew a backbone. I told her that dh and I were the parents and that we make the decisions, that I was offended that she had so little confidence in my ability to research my options and make intelligent choices, that if she could not be supportive or at least ask questions with the desire to learn about my choice rather than try to trap me, then we would just not discuss it. She hung up and we didnt' speak for 2 months (her choice.) Now, this tirade may not have been the most appropriate way to handle it, but this was brewing for 3 years - my every parenting choice was questioned and I had had it up to here. Basically, nothing I could have said would have changed her mind. She just had to see the results. She is now one of my biggest supporters. It took about 3 years (especially inviting her to events with other homeschooled families to see that they weren't all wierdos) but she came around. So, if I were you, I wouldn't bother sending FIL anything. To him, that will look like you are open to discussion on the issue. You simply need to remind him that you are the parent (and a first-class one at that :)) and that the issue is not open for discussion. Then pass the bean dip with a smile.

I respectfully disagree that her motivations came from a "pure and loving heart." She may have thought her motives were pure. However, it came from a sense of superiority about her own life and a sense of contempt for Jennifer's life. There is nothing pure about that. It is underhanded all the same. {{Jennifer}} I know that you are instilling appropriate values in your children and that goes further than any high fallutin' prep school could do.

Total thread hijack, but this is how many of us from IL think about Obama. We elected him to be our junior senator, but he has done nothing since he got there but run for president. Why should he get paid a senator's salary when he hasn't earned it? I think the Edwards thing is disgusting! Maybe it doesn't matter much on the world stage, but it is precisely why I really don't believe anything that comes out of the mouth of a politician. I can't understand why anyone would consider an affair "gentlemanlly" but to have one while one's spouse is suffering from cancer, a cancer that my make many women doubt their femininity - a low blow!!! And that he had to have known that it would become public at some point - the tremendous disrespect. This is not a subject that I can be dispassionate about. I don't care how many famous politicians have done it - it is still WRONG!!! Okay - rant over.

No, I don't think you are crazy. I am jealous. I would love to take Karate, but my poor knees just can't take it. So, I sit on the sidelines watching my kids have all the fun. My boys will be testing for their brown belts soon.

Our community is not particularly as diverse, overwhelmingly caucasion with some Asian, east Indian, Hispanic and very few Blacks. However, our parish is more diverse than the community in which we live, but not by much.

These are too funny. My kids have been reading over my shoulder to see what is making me cry. Our funnies: When our oldest was a toddler, we would take him up to Communion with us. One Sunday, he had a very out-of-charachter screaming tantrum because he wanted a "cracker" too. From then on, we broke our "no food in church" rule and brought a small round cracker for him to have during Communion time. When our middle son was 3, we went for a walk around the block. As we were passing the elementary school, in front of all the moms waiting for their kids, he stopped in the middle of the street screaming bloody murder that his p*nis was sticking out. He would not move forward until I "fixed" it. This was the beginning of many tantrums of this nature. We later found out that he had sensory issues and he was constantly adjusting his underwear because it was so uncomfortable. I am sure I have shared this "worst" one before. We had company over for dinner. Aunt Flo made an unexpected appearance (I would spot for a day before the flow.) I was in the bathroom when my 3yo daughter barged in, asked what was the matter, and then proceeded to tell the company that "mommy pooped in her pants and had to change her clothes." I wasn't sure what would be worse - letting them think that, or telling them the truth. My nephew had some doosies. He was over at my parents house when my dad was doing some caulking in the shower. When my dad braced himself against the shower wall, it moved indicating a serious water problem. Dad yelled "B*llsh*t." From then on, anytime anyone was out with my nephew, he would proudly annouce "Grandpa says "Bullsh*t."

The Children's Book of Art does not have projects in the book, nor does the Introduction to Art. However, the internet-links have some fun and interesting activities related to what has been presented in the book. They are not "creating art" type of activities, but some give more information, others play games with the paintings. There is a newer book that came out last spring called the First Book of Art. It has project ideas as well. hth

I concur on the Art Treasury. The book has a two-page spread for each painting discussed, which includes a description of the painting and techniques used as well as a short biographical sketch of the artist. I sell this book to Art Appreciation ladies at schools all the time for this very purpose. Here is a list of the paintings/artists covered: The Starry Night by van Gogh The Great Wave by Hokusai A Winter Scene by Avercamp Punchinello by Picasso African masks by unknown artists The Golden Fish by Klee Monkeiys in an orange Grove by Rousseau Eleven Polychrome by Calder The Sorrows of the King by Matisse Nocturne in Black and Gold by Whistler Water Lilies by Monet Squares with Circles by Kandinsky Cat by Shen Quan Dancers in Blue by Degas The Square by Giacometti Spin painting by Hirst Bark painting by Bulunbulun Jimson Weed by O'Keeffe Lavender Mist by Pollock Glittering tiles by unknown artists The "Fighting Temeraire" by Turner Mud Hand Circles by Long The Childrens' Book of Art goes into a little more depth on art. This book is Internet-Linked, which means that it directs you to websites where you can get more information on the topic. There is a small amount of nudity in this book (they are published by a British company where the social norms regarding art may be different.) There is an image of God bringing Adam to life from the Sistine Chapel. Also, Boticelli's The Birth of Venus is also has nudity. Here is a list of the table of contents (with my commentary): About Art (why make art, what is art) Making Pictures (Overview of techniques, the oil revolution, mixing oils) Renaissance starts (Leonardo, Michelangelo)\ The Birth of Venus (about the painting, body distortion, about Botticelli) Hunters in the Snow(Bruegel, use of warm and cool) Everyday scenes (Rembrandt, Vermeer) Fruit and Flowers (van Os, painting luxury items) Perfect Portraits (Goya, flattery, sarcasm) Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog (Friedrich - scenery) Ophelia (John Millais - true to life) Moody landscapes (Whistler, Turner) Ballet dancers (various by Degas) The Water Lily Pond (Monet, impressionism) Sunflowers (van Gogh, Gaugin) The Circus (Seurat, Pointillism, color wheel) Tiger in a Tropical Storm (Roussea, imaginary travels) The Scream (Munch) The Kiss (Klimt, Art Nouveau) The Large Blue Horses (Marc, color) Improvisation No. 26 (Rowing) - Klandinsky, abstract, Improvisation) Three Musicians (Picasso - cubism) The House by the Railroad (Hopper, inspiring Psycho) Abstraction White Rose (O'Keeffe, almost abstract) Splatter paintings (Pollock - action painting) The Snail (Matisse - collage) Surreal Scenes (Magritte) Campbell's Soup Can (Tomato) (Pop art) Pearblossom Highway (Hockney - multiple views photography) Glossary Using the Internet Index I have to run, but here is a brief synopsis of the Introduction to Art - This is a much more detailed look at art (144 pages.) It is also internet-linked. It is broken up into several sections: Introduction Ancient and Medieval art The Renaissance Barorque and Rococo Revolution the modern world Behind the scenes I have included links to my website if you want to see the books. The only book that is shown with the "peek inside" feature is the Introduction to Art. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions. Off to my shower and to physical therapy.

Praise God that they were found!

I had read some pretty scary stuff about it. Perhaps it may be helpful in the short term for adults, but I would be very concerned that they are doing this to a 14yo boy. http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/the-hallelujah-diet http://www.chetday.com/losingyourmind.htm http://www.chetday.com/losingyourmind.htm

Wow. What a great list. I'll pass this on to our group and work on fitting them in.

Hi all, Our science club will be studying physics and I need some ideas. We have 3rd graders through 5th graders in this club and we meet twice a month. Do you have any ideas on what we books and experiment resources we could use?

My heart and prayers go out to you and to her family.