Just a slightly different take here. I know you must be hurt and insulted by the comments, and I think your colleagues here have done a great job with addressing how culture might play into this. I'd like to add one additional option. I think he may feel quite alienated and excluded as the one kid who gets up and heads off everyday. Is it possible you could incorporate him into the homeschool in some way? Perhaps you could ask him for his favorite German books, or lessons he learned at home that aren't covered in our education? I know it may seem pandering, but I would hope it could be a great experience for all. I'm sure that's why you were generous enough to open your home to him in the first place. Of course, I'd still deal with his need to refrain from criticizing you to the children! But, then I'd look for ways to help him feel even more a part of the family. Many hugs!

I bought an extra house in student loans. Though I have a career I love, in retrospect, there were other ways to go. First, most large state schools offer CE. Why a private or out-of-state? Also, he can always go to a state school and transfer, if he is very diligent in making sure the classes he takes will transfer. I think that is too much, from someone who has btdt! Though, my interest rates are much, much higher!

That is still fantastic! It's a wonderful benefit of working in higher education. I hope that once I get tenure, I can move to a Univ. with a much more flexible system like yours!

Wow! Any??? Or any in a certain group? I have friends at several Privates, and there is a consortium of choices for them. And, for me, it's just my state school:confused:. Other state Univ. often have reciprocity, etc within their system. I'm hoping to go to a consortium school at some point, but I love my university and our research facilities, etc. But, WOW, any school would be amazing! Edited: one friend also has a Univ. that will pitch in 1/2 at most accredited Universities. Gosh, I need to look at moving, LOL

My kids will get 50% off tuition at the large state school where I work. I will happily pay the remainder of tuition. Fraternity houses, residential colleges, etc... on them.

Bwahh, why not be less subtle and get something from http://www.nakedaprons dot com. Very XXXX rated aprons. YIKES :lol::lol:

We have the electric ice shaver for sno-cones and buy the syrup and cones from Target. We are addicted here. And, if I really want a flash-back, I make one, pack it very well, add the syrup, repack so it is super tight and then deep freeze. A day later, the are just like the ones the icecream truck sells in the plastic wrap! YUM

My oldest DS 9 wants to be a gross-ologist of any kind or a Major League Baseball pitcher. Needless to say, we encourage the science ;-). DD 6 wants to drive the Barbie car in Parades or work at a daycare center. Anything social and she'll be fabulous.:D DS 5 wants to be a rock star or work at the movie theater so he can eat all the popcorn free and :lurk5: see movies the day they come out. HOwever, he already loves writing short stories, so I'm hoping journalism :lol:

As a UMiami Alum, Coral Gables is my favorite spot on earth! I grew up in South Miami, and would do about anything to go back. I've lived in Boston, Philly, Chicago, Salt Lake, Indy, and now West Alabama. Of all the places I have lived, Miami will always be my favorite. Yes, it is hot, but you will never shovel snow. I love, love, love the cultural diversity. Sure, crime comes with the area, but like any major city, you learn the areas to avoid. Miami is rich with culture, art, food and outdoor activities. Beautiful beaches, The Everglades and the Keys are a short hop away. What better labs for biology, zoology, and botany could you ever ask for? Miami is like living in a different country from the NE or Midwest. But, for me, it is a welcome change. I would love my children to have the exposure to the culture and activities that I had as a child. Housing is coming down quite a bit now, and compared to Boston, it's really fairly reasonable -- even in the nicer areas.

To the person who pointed out the difference b/w political and moral or religious views, thank you! Morally, I am very anti-abortion. Politically, I am pro-choice. My DD, now 6, has a diagnosis of Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome). Many of the very people who argue "pro-life" are quick to terminate a child with a prenatally diagnosed disability. Just read "termination due to prenatal diagnosis" boards. People "give their child back to God," and "spare" the child from a life of teasing. BLECH!!! They are sparing themselves from a little extra parenting, imho. My DD is in Kindy, we afterschool not homeschool. She knows her prayers in Latin, nontheless :-). But, I am prochoice. In California they have been trying to pass "mandatory" prenatal testing for years now. Why? To help determine disabilities for all in utero. Ultimately, I believe if we grant the govt control over who cannot terminate, the will gain power to determine who MUST terminate, as well. And, if you look at the trends in the AMA prenatal testing "recommendations" and in insurance trends, you'll see I'm not just nutty. So, I abhor termination for any reason -- the most for a child who isn't "good enough." My DD is more than I could have ever dreamed ;-). But, I'm also prochoice -- the choice to not test and to not terminate. Peace! http:http://www.missmagic.blogspot.com

Another person chiming in saying that my google doesn't clear with the history. In fact, I've tried repeatedly to clean my google bar, and it won't. UGH! I want to clean it to erase present searches and the like. Even when I clean my cookies, the google searches stay.

I am not a beer drinker, but during my pregnancies, I did have an occasional glass of wine. Never more than 1, but I am believer in moderation. Ironically, when my mother was pregnant with me, her old Irish doctor insisted that a Guinness Extra Stout a day was HEALTHY for me and her. She forced herself to choke them down a few times, but just couldn't do it. To this day, I tease my sisters that it is the beer that made me smarter :lol::lol:

Yes! And, in a pinch, I use double sided clear tape. I used to purchase Hollywood tape and realized it was the same thing, just $8.00 more! :-)

Ohh, check this out! This might be our evening project! We'll see who can make the best bird! http://www.hackingfamily.com/Amanda/School/palm_frond_art.htm ;) Okay, so we'll probably just make the palm crosses as always, but isn't that cool! :lol:

We have the same problem, as well. My youngest sister is amazing, but we do not want any of the remaining family raising our children. After my sister and her husband, we have designated 2 couples who are dear friends of ours and fully understand our children's educational and spiritual needs. Like you, we had to get things in stone because we are certain some family members would fight it (including Dh's brother whose myspace page says "Favorite book: 'Read??? I don't f'ing like to read' " :confused: Yeah, he's not raising my kids!

of great artists, I love James Mayhew. He has been amazing for introducing my kids to art through the Katie series! My now 9 yo son was turned on to loving art through him!

It is over breakfast and the kids will be there -- and I'm hoping they will not behave perfectly :D and be the perfect excuse to leave :lol:. I would have loved to have stayed somewhere else, but this resort has an indoor waterpark -- the main draw for the kids! Between the room discount and waterpark tickets, we'll save over 500.00. For 90 mins. that's a pretty good discount. I'll be using the lines above and trust me, there isn't enough in our actual checking account to cover any down payment they would want. So, we'll be :auto: away with no timeshare.

Thank you! I'll be committing these lines to memory :-).

Did you check at Strasburg? I love their dresses. Even those not deemed HC dresses can be used for them! The store has some in stock that you can't find online, too. http://www.strasburgchildren.com/ficodr.html http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/strasburgchildren_1990_15003507 http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/strasburgchildren_1991_5532989 http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/strasburgchildren_1989_9141732 http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/strasburgchildren_1992_19285280

That's so funny! Now, during the presentation, that's all I will be thinking about:lol:. Thanks for the input all! I've never been on a presentation for a timeshare, but I know that even if we were inclined to buy, I can do much better on a resale than a new one. I'm just excited about getting away for a few days. :D

We really want to go to Gatlinburg next week for hiking and playing -- and the indoor waterpark :-). But, to stay at the Westgate Property, I had to agree to a timeshare talk of 90 mins...over breakfast. I know I have no intention of buying a timeshare, and if I did, it would be on the resale market. How can I just say no without feeling guilty or pressured??? Thanks!

Put them on low just to get most of the water out. Throw in a few towels. Don't let them fully dry or the rubber might melt. We have a shoe rack for our dryer, and I looooove it! No need for towels and no thumping noises :bigear:

As I read this thread I cannot help but think of Marshall McLuhan's famous phrase "The medium is the message." Just like the disagreements over powerpoint lecture notes versus Socratic method teaching in University classes, and computer-based reading versus traditional book learning, so much of the issue centers on the medium -- the transmission of the message -- rather than content itself. However, as McLuhan argues, it's not a bad thing; it just is. Even in Churches, we see that the style and channel of delivery are as important as the message. In fact, as a Catholic, one of the things I both love and loathe is the full traditional mass. Nothing has changed, at our church, in the last 75 years, except for English masses instead of Latin ones, and the fact women no longer need to cover their heads. Peace, Carol

Nope -- but I did just finally take the tree box to attic, LOL. It has been sitting in my family room. UGH!

We took the kids last July for the Independence Day celebrations. It was hot, but certainly not unbearable. I knew my 9 yo would love it, but even my 6 and 5 yo were enthralled! They loved being on the mall, seeing the statues and monuments that they had only seen in books, and couldn't get enough of the treasure hunt type activities. Even my very boy-boy 5 year old has begged to go back, and certainly we will try to oblige. Even with an entire week there, we missed so many things that it warrants at least one more trip! edited to add: there were ample things to do outdoors! The National Zoo itself was a huge hike, LOL. And, you can rent little boats, bikes, etc right off the mall to mix things up.