[Unsupportive Family Member?]

Ok, my dh is completely on board about homeschooling our kids, just thought I'd get that out of the way first, lol!

 

The problem is, his mother.

 

She's adjusted to us homeschooling Diva (dd 10 yrs). She was asking last night about Tazzie going to kindergarten in 2010. (Yes, she starts her nagging in advance. She's in her 80s, she worries if she doesn't start now, she'll miss the chance.) I told her that he wasn't going.

 

Well, you'd think I'd announced that we had decided to stake the child to an ant hill coated in honey. Repeatedly.

 

Gasping, moaning, "You can't do that!" more gasping and moaning. I realize that part of this is she was a teacher, but geez.

 

Then she told me that I HAVE to let Tazzie try school and Princess too. Just because it wasn't a good thing for Diva doesn't mean it won't be good for the Littles. I told her that I didn't need to let the Littles sip bleach to prove its not good for them.

 

*sigh*

 

Sometimes my patience wears a wee bit thin.

 

Any suggestions on how to better handle this next time? Cause there WILL be a next time. And no, simply turning it over to my dh to handle isn't a viable option, because he DOES try to handle it, but then next time she's got me on the phone, it starts all over again.

 

I would just refuse to discuss it with her. If she brings it up, politely change the subject. Be evasive. Let any discussions that need to happen about come from your hubby! :-)

[Tale of Desperaux Movie - does anyone die?]

The movie is quite different from the book. In the beginning the queen dies of fright from seeing a rat in her soup. (You don't know her as a character, so you aren't at all emotionally invovled with her.) The bad rat dies in the end, but you don't see it. The king and the princess are very sad about the queen's death which sets up the premise of the movie-life is sad and dreary withouth sunshine and soup. :-) The movie wasn't very good, as far as I'm concerned. I was glad we had seen it at a free showing! :-)

[Very funny story about a field trip with a twist...]

Still funny-even if it is a hoax! :-)

[LoF Beginning Algebra]

Aleks math (online program) is a great tool for review.

[Hey Ho friends! Anyone remember me???]

Hey Robin!!!! Great to see you!!!!! :-)

 

I have seen Les Mis several times and I literally start crying and the overture and increase throughout the show until I am sobbing by the end. And not just at the sad parts either. I cry at the patriotic parts and the ending is one of the most beautiful scenes ever.

 

I'm glad you came to say Hello!!!

[Hey Ho friends! Anyone remember me???]

I was just thinking of you yesterday, wondering if CYT had swallowed you and your dd up!!

 

My oldest ds is going to be Potiphar and a brother in a CYT production of Joseph next month, and he just had a great solo song in a church production of Godspell ("We Beseech Thee"). He is hoping to start auditioning for Disneyland entertainment after he graduates in June.

 

I'm missing the conference too. We need to figure a WTM weekend get together for those of us west of the Mississsippi...

 

Hey, our CYT is just starting Joseph. My dd is in the children's chorus! :-) It is one of my favorite shows!!

[Netflix me!]

Of those, I have only seen Chocolat. I will look for the others. Thank you!

 

Becoming Jane is on instant play, so you can watch it right away if you want. :-)

[Has anyone else suffered from Twilight withdrawal?]

ROFL YES!

I read the series over spring break for DD, to ensure it was appropriate literature. We finished break with DH suggesting we watch the movie to 'get it out of my system'. The sign of a good book is when you miss the characters and feel a sense of loss when it's finished. I tried reading Host, but it just hasn't drawn me into the plot as quickly as Twilight.

The character development was interesting. Each of the main characters had depth and quirks which made them likable. It felt voyeuristic experiencing (reading) the magnetic bond Edward and Bella had.

Yes, I'm having Twilight withdraws.

 

I actually quit reading The Host but someone encouraged me to keep going and I ended up liking it more than the Twilight series.

[What kind of music do your school-age kids enjoy?]

My kids love (and so do I!!!) musical theater! The Broadway kids are a great introduction and we have the soundtrack to quite a few musicals.

[OK to play pirates??? (Christian viewers)]

: My ds chewed his grilled cheese sandwhich into the shape of a gun. There went that idea!

 

LOL!!! This cracked me up, because my son was big into making shapes out of his grilled cheese...including guns!! The state of Florida on our educational puzzle became a gun. :-)

[I feel like a grown up.]

Way to go, Steff!! I work with homeschooling families too and I have one meeting that I just DREAD!!! She is SOOOOO negative about everything. She isn't negative about me personally, just TO me. So, I have to hear her very opinionated views on everything that is wrong with education, the school, the world, etc. BLECH!! I have to gear myself up for those meetings.

[Need new book on tape series for the car...]

We absolutely loved listening to the Hank the Cowdog series. They are read by the author and he is great! Very funny. There is The Secret Garden and A Little Princess (some of my personal favorties).

[For those of you who are avid readers, how do you chronicle your reading?]

I keep a list on a spread-sheet so that I can also search to see if I have read a book before. (I have a terrible memory!) You might like to try out http://www.goodreads.com/

 

You can write about the books and connect with other readers. I just joined and haven't done much there yet, but it seems like it is a great way to track the books you have read.

[Homeschooler needs help with social skills!]

. I taught the Daydreamer (all my kids, actually) to always aim to ask at least three questions about how a person has been, or mention three things about the other person, before they start talking about themselves.

 

Great advice!

[Consumer math book?]

Thanks all. I'll check these out.

[Consumer math book?]

I need a consumer math book for a friend with a high-school student. Any suggestions?

[How important is it to you that your DC enjoy homeschooling?]

It is not important to me that they like all the daily work, but I'm very thankful that over-all they like being homeschooled. They have no desire to go to a traditional school, and I'm glad. But, I don't work super hard to make sure they like every subject.

[What do you find out about a family that your dc are wanting to]

Honestly, my kids don't go over to many people's houses-especially not to spend the night. I pretty much only allow them go to people's houses when I know the family very well.

[Speaking of curriculum catalogs, Rainbow Resource is changing theirs]

I don't like their catalog because it doesn't give me enough info about things. I would like it if they made their website easier to navigate! Actually, I don't think I have ever ordered from Rainbow anyway, so my vote probably doesn't count.

[Do any of your children think like this?]

My son does colors and gender assignments. It is very disturbing to him when a Latin word is a different gender than he would assign to it. :-)

[These 6am workouts are killing me.]

After about 10 years of early morning workouts, this year I switched to evenings and I can not tell you how much I LOVE it!!! The friend that I was meeting in the AM couldn't do it this year and I realized I could work out at night. I don't love leaving the house at that time, but it is time that dh is usually doing something with the kids anyway. I have been doing evenings now for about months and I still wake up every day happy that I don't have to go exercise early!!! I'm getting much better workouts because I have more energy.

[Runners (and any other interested parties), I did run the half marathon on Sunday.]

Good job, Colleen!!!!

[All our adoption docs are DONE and we send our dossier THIS WEEK!]

My sister-in-law is in the process of adopting deaf twins from the Philippines and so I KNOW how horrible that paper-work is!! Congrats!!!!!!!

[Where should we go on a road trip this summer?]

Our family is big into driving trips! We go on one to a different region of the US each year. We are "collecting" the states and we are heading to your area this spring (The mid-west :-)) Our last year's trip ended at Yellowstone and it is a really fun trip. But, we spent three days there and felt like that was plenty of time. There isn't a TON of things to do between you and Yellowstone if you have already done the Black Hills. Devil's Tower in Eastern Wyoming. I'm sure there are other things, but we haven't driven that strip.

[Trip to Philadelphia/surrounding area]

I loved Independence hall and the Benjamin Franklin center. We also toured the mint, which was very cool!