Thank you for the suggestions. Anyone else?

I'd cover bases and send it to both as well.

No! We just finished dogsitting my fil's dog. He's old and sleepy and really no trouble, but I couldn't wait to see him go home. It's just one more thing on the mom list to take care of.

I'm looking for (preferably) a workbook for world geography for my 7th/8th grader. We would still be doing history. It needs to be independent. Any recommendations?

You all have given me a lot to chew on... Getting Started with Latin certainly has a lot of good reviews on Amazon. I like the idea of listening to Lingua Angelica- I'll have to look into that maybe, just for the exposure. I had tried Spanish the first year we homeschooled, since I know enough to get by. He never really "got" that either, especially the vocabulary. Strange, since his English vocabulary is excellent. It's difficult- he's a smart kid, but then gets frustrated when things don't come easily and refuses to try at all. It's the same with spelling. He's a phenomenal reader now fortunately, but even spell check isn't always useful at correcting his papers. We've had to go very slowly with Apples and Pears, often repeating units. (However, that works far and away better than AAS did.)

Thanks for all of the advice. As for the teacher's guide and student book... does that include tests, map work, and assignments? I'd rather not have to come up with my own...

Hits: IEW Human Odyssey, vol 3 Apples and Pears Spelling (boring, but is getting the job done unlike AAS) Seton Religion Misses: History Odyssey, level 2, Modern (burned out of this in about 8 weeks of unsuccessful tweaking) Any Latin (not sure what to do about that next year- not so much the programs, but ds) Meh: K12 Biology Advanced Seton English

Yup. I've only ordered from RR twice. Back-ordered twice. I avoid them. It really set my homeschool back a few weeks last year.

We spent two years doing Latin roots, so this last year I tackled the real thing with DS. He has some dyslexic issues- couldn't read until 2nd grade and is still a terrible speller. At the end of this year he was still having trouble with memorizing the basic vocabulary that we had from the beginning of the year. Also, I had to reteach things over and over- it doesn't seem to stick. I even switched curriculums mid-year and started from the beginning. He gets frustrated so easily, but seems to want to learn. Maybe I should just teach some Church prayers in Latin and call it a day. Maybe we should work on it more than 2-3 times a week. I do need him to be as independent as possible. I already feel sort of overwhelmed. Suggestions?

We finished vol 3, modern times, this last year for 6th grade. DS pretty much just outlined chapters. The reading level was perfect for him. I'm wondering if vol 1 would be too easy and lack depth after doing vol 3? I'd really like to use the parent and student guides as well to make it a little more traditional- ds does really well with a workbook type approach. So... would this be too easy? or just right?

:grouphug: :grouphug: :crying: :grouphug: :grouphug:

Beginning of June here!

We had a couple friend that threw parties like this. We usually went to every-other-one, dreading when it was time for the next one.

BCP made me clinically depressed. I will never use them again. However, it sounds like this would be the least invasive route to start and stop- the lesser of the two evils as it were.

Today I threatened to get into the shower with ds12 with both of us in swimsuits so he could actually get scrubbed clean. He declined and went into the shower immediately.

Ditto.

Sorry about the trainer's advice. We are currently looking at scar revision when our springer mix bit our then 2 year old on the face a couple years ago. The dog was rehomed and has since snapped at two other people. She loves him and won't give him up. Prior to that we rehomed a bassett for snapping at my daughter who was a toddler at the time. No dogs for us. I'm not willing to micromanage a dog on top of everything else. We have a nice cuddly kitty, instead. I'm not weighing in on your situation, just be aware that bites can and do happen.

Congrats! My number 5 is due in June! This time around, I was showing within days of becoming pregnant. I dropped my gym membership because I had trouble going with homeschooling and working part-time. I think that was a mistake as I have gained more this pregnancy and feel just sort of weak and tired. I'm trying to walk more frequently now.

So, are there any good cookbooks?

Same here. :)

I'd be mad, too. A dog is a major commitment. We are a no dog home after our last "sweet dog" bit our then two year old on the face several years ago. I'm looking into scar revision surgery for him currently. Sorry, not too much support here.

"Oh please!!!!!! My kids LOVED being spoiled by the grandparents and they have suffered no long term effects!!! Now, if you do not have trusted caregivers then that is a whole other issue. But my children are just fine!!!! I can see why 10 days might be a bit much for op, but leaving kids for a week will not scar them for life. This is TOTALLY different than deployment where a caregiver is gone for 6 months and is in harm's way!!!" Agreed. I left kids with grandparents for 10 days while we went to New Zealand. They were about the same age at the time. I'm a little surprised at the extreme responses. DH and I love to travel, and it's been a rarity for the last 12 years. It was a great trip and great for our marriage.

I work part-time for insurance. DH's work doesn't offer insurance. Our rate will go up from $800-something to $1100-something a month. I'm trying to be grateful that they still cover part-time employees, but I pretty much won't be bringing home a paycheck starting in January.

Sorry, I meant bridesmaid. I think everyone's intentions are good- trying to keep family unity and all. I already agreed- what else would I have said, even though I really felt mortified at the time she handed me that pre-printed glittery note. I would rather wait to decline due to pregnancy, since I have miscarried twice in the past and it's so early on. I don't think there IS an extra groomsman. Nobody actually told me I would be in her wedding, I guess I just sort of assumed it. Yeah, I know, assumptions and all. And, once again, I'm beyond over it and was actually relieved. Her standards are very high (read: expensive). Also, a six month baby bump is way different than an 8 months of bloating after 4 pregnancies. Last time around I had giant cankles. Call me vain, but I don't know if I really want that immortalized in excess. Thanks for the advice. :)

O.K. So my dear SIL is getting married in April. Two months ago, she let it be known via my MIL that my husband's brother's wife would be her only maid of honor. She wants an intimate, but very elegant wedding. My feelings were hurt at the time, as I felt 14 years ago that I was basically told that she would be one of my three maids of honor by my future mil and future dh- she would be my sister, etc. Although I wasn't crazy about the idea at the time, I felt like I gracefully accepted the idea. My in-laws were helping to pay, and she was a very sweet girl. Anyway, I sulked for less than 24 hours and was over it... really. After all, she has been in like 8 weddings and is very close to my sil. Well, my dh knew I was hurt and told his mother. About a month ago, SIL handed me a sweet printed card asking me to be in her wedding. This was far worse than not being asked initially. "Oh, that was the plan all along!" she said. DH says that at least they care enough about my feelings to ask me after the fact. They actually had a friend drive from San Diego to LA to pick up a matching dress at H&M in a size 2- the only one left. "Oh, it's billowy!" they say. Um, even with vanity sizing, I think it would be a super snug fit. Anyway, update to now. I am about 6 weeks pregnant with my fifth. We haven't made an announcement as I have miscarried twice in the past; however, I'm already showing a lot. Come April I will be enormous! Imagine her beautiful photos with elegant bride and svelte bridesmaid and giant me! Can I gracefully bow out once the pregnancy is further along and we announce it? I feel like I'll ruin her photos, and it will just be embarrassing for me. After all, it was sort of a consolatory gesture on her part anyway. Is there a good way out of this? ETA: If I were to give her the option, I doubt she would let me step down. She's a nice person generally.