We just found out we're expecting twins. We have a 5 year old, a 3 year old and a 12 month old. The twins will be due in November. We're in the middle of our 5 year old's K year and my husband said that he think that public school is going to have to be an option just to keep our heads above water with this incredibly chaotic year ahead of us. I agree that it's going to be chaotic and that public school would be nice, but I can't let go of my feeling that I am her best and most invested teacher, and that there will be so much to undo on a daily basis. I am heartbroken at the thought, but really don't know how I'd manage it all. Any advice? I was homeschooled through 12th grade and homeschooling is what I envision for our family. Letting go of that, even for a couple of years, is a devastating thought for me.

I do agree that a nice guy is a nice guy, and a truly respectful guy will act like a gentleman in any situation. I do not, however, agree that the "I'll dress however I want and what you do with it is your problem" approach is fair to men. (OR women, for that matter) Many, many men are truly uncomfortable with the visual onslaught of "sexy" that's out there. Many teenage boys just don't know what to do with it at all. Men are visual creatures and I think that as women we should respect the fact that giving visual cues and then expecting men to act like they don't see it is unfair, to say the least. I can't possibly expect to be respected by the whole of society when I don't present myself as being respectable. Young women deserve so much more than that. I would hope that my three girls grow up knowing that a woman's appearance is the first impression she gives the world, and a modest young woman has so much more room to be taken seriously and gain respect and admiration.

Sounds awesome! We're in!

Can someone enlighten me? I will admit that I have never seen this in person and I'm not sure how I would react to such a thing. Is this something someone would want? Is it evidence of the Holy Spirit? I will admit to knowing very little about this, but I'd like to understand a little more.

DH and I got married at 22/21. What's worked for us? Getting our education out of the way EARLY. DH pushed through his MBA with two tiny kids in the house because we knew it would never get done otherwise. Living FAR away from our parents. You can't be rescued if there's no one there to rescue you! We solve our own problems and we cling to one another. Practice NFP - the divorce rate of NFP couples is about 2-4%. It requires a level of communication and trust that I haven't found anywhere else. Practicing a single faith together. Interfaith marriages can work for many people, but for us, sharing our faith alleviates so much stress. Getting married young. When you don't yet know who you are, it's nice to grow into that person with someone else at your side. We don't have a "deal-breaker" list. There are no "deal-breakers." We're in it together and we're in it for life. Unless he becomes a serial killer. At that point I may consider some alternative. We try to make every word we speak thoughtful, kind and forgiving. It's not hard to live with someone once you realize you couldn't liive without them. At 28, I'm still young and probably naive, but I was raised with the tools to manage and manage well. Teaching children to manage money and a household long before you think they'll need the skills will prepare them far ahead of the curve.

I am considering not doing well-baby visits at this point. C is my third and is fat, healthy and doing fine. She had a WBV two weeks ago and is still fighting the cold she came home with. My only concern is that she does need shots - I feel like every time we turn around she needs shots. At her 4m visit she had FIVE, and that was after I turned down Hep B altogether. I generally wait until they're 4m to start doing shots just because I feel like I can't in good conscience put that much into a child I don't know yet. I am still feeling like her last visit was just too much. At this point she has her 6m WBV at the end of Nov and they'll be doing boosters of all the ones she just had. As I'm pretty conservative on doctors, vaccines and the like, I'm not sure what to do for her 6m, as I know they'll pull the "Well if we don't do all of them, she'll be totally off her schedule and we might have to do them over again later" and blah blah blah. Now I've rambled. My question is, what to do you do when they're so tiny and they're scheduled for this and that their whole first year?

Gosh, I've never even thought of having a list somewhere or keeping our really sentimental stuff in one place. We live on a golf course with big, dry trees surrounding our house. The thought of losing our house in a fire makes me sick. I think I'll start creating a list and at least put our sentimental items in one place. We've only had two summers here, but the threat of fires is bad every year, it feels. Thanks for this post! Something to think about!

Get to the earliest Mass you can find. We usually do 7:30 Mass and the kids are ten times better - I have no idea why! I would also hit a Catholic bookstore and see about getting some of the St Joseph picture books and coloring books. They're super cheap and incredibly informative and entertaining. They're also nice and light, so you can put a big stack of them into the Church bag. I also agree with those who said going to daily Mass can help. It's usually about 30-40 minutes and helps them practice. We also bribe with donuts. Every. Single. Week.

I really, really loved The Help. It was just such a great book. Water for Elephants was GREAT, but full of crap that I really felt just didn't need to be in there to have a wonderful story. WfE was definitely a touching, romantic, perfect-for-summer read. The Help was great, but a quicker, more emotional read. Loved them both! Can't WAIT for The Help to open this weekend!

This post makes me feel better. I think I'm about ready to have a nervous breakdown from all this heat. I spend more time staring at my thermostat and wondering if my AC is okay than doing anything else!

Eagle Mountain Lake!

I was looking at the "homeschooling before compulsory school age" post and noticed that many people said that they aren't really for preschooling - what are the reasons for that? We're not sending our almost 4yo just because I really don't see much value added, but I was wondering what some other reasons were for not supporting the idea of preschool. Just interesting to me with the ages of my kids! Also, my 4yo is my oldest and we haven't really begun our homeschooling "journey" yet. We also have a 2 year old and one due in about 2 weeks. I'd like to create an atmosphere of learning around here, just to set the tone and start moving myself into a move motivated mood. Can anyone recommend some ways to get our family moving in that general direction so that we can set aside a few learning days each week when fall gets here? I'm a homeschool graduate and know I'm committed to what we're about to do, but I'm really not sure how to make that first step toward actual education. Even the slightest "can I show you..." is met with resistance from DD1 and I'm so confused about how to get her interested in learning from ME. Is this normal at this age? :001_smile:

It's a fun show music-wise, but I don't consider it appropriate for anyone, especially anyone under the age of 18!

I would say that a "unified Church" to me would mean that all denominations would come back together into the faith family given to Peter by Christ that has been unbroken since that time.

I'll never live anywhere but Texas, God willing!