I made these today, and they were a huge hit, even for my 1 year old. Thanks for sharing!

Congratulations on #2! My kids are only 6 years apart. My son is 7 and daughter is a year old. When I was pregnant, my son was absolutely thrilled. Your description of your son sounds similar to mine. However, after she was born, he fought for attention. He was very upset with me every day. He was used to having all of the attention. His attitude totally shocked my husband and me. He was so excited! We thought we did well in helping him make the transition. He went to every appointment with me while I was pregnant. We read books about having a new baby sibling. But, when she arrived, he was very jealous. He enjoys cuddling, and when I wore her in a sling, he would want to be held, too. I tried to carve out as much time as I could when my husband was home for just my son and me. Sometimes, he just preferred to be with daddy because he was so upset with me. A year later, things have gotten better. He is very aware of his feelings and knows how to communicate them well. Even though he loves his sister dearly, he still fights for attention. He is still adjusting to the new normal. I wish we would have gotten him into some type of therapy. Perhaps that would have helped some. We still may. I don't expect them to not get along as they grow older. I have a sister 7 years younger than me and we've been closer than the sister just a year and a half younger than me. I don't want to sound discouraging at all, but I wish someone would have shared with us this possibility. I would have had a therapist/counselor on speed dial just in case. I wish your family well as you make this transition! It's going to be an adjustment for everyone. Take one day at a time!

If he likes Thornton Burgess, be sure to check out Arthur Bailey Scott's free books on the kindle. They have very similar writing styles and they are all about adventures of animals.

My animal-loving 6 year old enjoys books by Thornton Burgess and Arthur Bailey Scott (can get kindle versions for free). He also loves Dick King Smith books (as previously mentioned) and books by Bill Peet.

I just had my second last summer and going from one to two was ridiculously challenging. I agree with those that mentioned age range also plays a big factor. My kids are almost exactly 6 years apart. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to coordinate the schedules of two kids that are 6 years apart. Also, the fact that my little one will NOT nap unless she is at home in quiet place doesn't help much either. And then her naps are VERY short. Sigh... I have a friend with 6 children (13, 8, 6, 5, 3, and 6 months). She said that it gets easier and easier after 3 kids. She's just waiting for the baby to be old enough to play with the 3 year old. Then, she'll be flying high! :)

Double post

I appreciate the responses. I think the spiraling is the main issue. The scriptedness is probably my second issue. I LOVE math, and graduated with a mechanical engineering degree. I just have to figure how not to be a slave to the teacher's manual. I once read that someone changed the order of Rightstart B. I wonder if I should consider that. It drives me nuts to work on place value one day and parallel lines the next. Perhaps, I should consider a mastery based approach to math. Hmmm... Decisions, decisions

Maybe I should try something else... I know that many like the foundation that Rightstart gives, and I am sure it does. I can't put my finger on it, but I just don't like to use it to teach. Maybe it is because it is so scripted. Maybe it seems to move slow. I'm not sure. My 6 year old is my oldest, so I'm not a seasoned homeschooler. I haven't really switched from curriculum to curriculum. I'm trying to figure out if not liking to teach using a certain curriculum is enough to jump ship. We are on lesson 62 in Level B, and while he is learning, I loathe pulling out the manual to do a lesson. Anyone else feel this way about Rightstart? I'd love some advice. I wonder if I would like teaching math better with another curriculum. Maybe Singapore?

Overland Equipment has very well made bags. This is one of my favorites. If you google "Overland Equipment Sierra", you'll find a few YouTube videos that may help you determine if this is big enough. Also if you go directly to their website, you can check out their other styles. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00503AD5Y/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

Do you think "Trail Guide to World Geography" would work with a 2nd grader?

Thank you! I'm PM'ing you now!

I have Draw Write Now 7 which is the animal drawings. We also have tons of zoobook magazines. I plan to purchase the Geography songs. Thanks for the reminder!

I have a few of those One Small square books which would be a great addition. I like the passport and notebooking ideas, too! Thanks for sharing. I purchased Expedition Earth last year in a homeschooling ebook bundle and my laptop crashed and I lost it all. :( I may consider purchasing it again.

I just checked my shelf because that sounded familiar. I was given Considering God's creation a couple of years back. So excited! Thank you!

Thanks for the link to that thread. I like it!

Zoo trips are definitely in the plans and this Zoo Guide looks great! Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for your recommendation!

Nice blog! I've bookmarked it. You did a wonderful job with Sri Lanka. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for the free resources!

Thanks a bunch for linking that thread. Good info! And I like what I've seen in Sassafras Science.

You ladies are wonderful!!!! Thank you so much for responding! I'm getting more excited about planning this. I will be looking more closely at the resources suggested and PMing a few of you for more info. Again, thanks for your time. And if there are any others that have more suggestions, please share! I'm sure this thread will be helpful to more than just me.

I've looked for the perfect curriculum for my rising 2nd grader, but I don't think it is out there. So, I'm asking the Hive to help with the resources I need to to make this a successful year. I want a literature based world geography curriculum that also incorporates the culture, animals and habitats. I've looked at MFW ECC, and it just seems a bit too much. I've also looked at Winter Promise's Animals and their worlds. It seems expensive for a science program, and the reviews haven't been encouraging. I am open to reconsider the above mentioned curricula (esp. MFW ECC) if you have any thoughts to share about using it with a 2nd grader who loves to read and reads very well I have "Galloping the Globe" and "A Trip Around the World" that I could use as resources to put something together. Has anyone ever put together a program like this? It seems like an overwhelming task. However, I know my son would LOVE it! So, I'm looking for any advice you can give me. If you know of any resources that would be helpful in planning this, please let me know. If you have planned something like this and you wouldn't mind sharing, I'd be interested as well. If you know of a curriculum that meets my criteria, please share! Basically, I'm all ears to any helpful advice!!!

I intended on doing world geography and cultures with my first grader this year. I was just going to put it together as we went along using Galloping the Globe and A Trip Around the World. I had our second child in July and we just haven't gotten into a good groove this year. Up to date, we barely finished Asia. The only thing we did do is read, read, read. Fortunately, my son is a great reader and loves to read. Regrettably, we haven't done much math since November or so. We're involved in a small co-op with art/art history and nature study. I've been toying around with the idea of getting MFW ECC for next year just so everything is laid out for me. I like the idea of putting my own stuff together, but with a 9 month old that barely takes naps and still wakes up multiple times throughout the night, time is very scarce for me. I thought about starting the 4 year cycle with SOTW, but I always thought that an overview of the world first would be best. I'm very sad about the way this year went, and am really hoping that I can turn this around. I could really use some encouragement and advice.

Our co-op is having a geography fair, and I could really use some ideas. I'm hoping to do something simple enough that my 6 year old can do and enjoy. He's deciding between Kenya and Puerto Rico if that makes a difference. Anyone have any tips that they can share?

I have a 6 yr old boy and a 4 month old daughter, too! I live in North Charlotte, so it would probably 1.5 hrs between us. I would love to meet others in the N. Charlotte area and am willing to coordinate a park day if there is any interest.