Thanks, I'll have to check it out :)

Do you have any specifics on this? The only PP issue that I had heard about was disputed by GSA.

I've heard people say this here before but I don't know that anyone has actually said what their objections are. I do know at the local level there are good troops and bad troops and it just depends on your leader. As a GS leader, our troop has gone camping ( a lot, and moms have always been welcome), worked on outdoor cooking, done service projects, did crafts, and have gone on field trips. Another local troop got together and watched High School Musical:confused: so it really does depend on the leaders.

Opinions vary on that. First, St. Louis style is pretty different than regular pizza - super thin crust, sweet sauce and provel cheese. I think you either love it or hate it, lol. Imo's is everywhere and is not the best IMO but some people love it. My favorites are all in neighborhoods other people would probably tell you not to drive in :lol:. I like Ponticallos, Faraci's Saulo's, and Cusamano's, (actually several of these have moved or have more than one location now). Really, you'd do well with any mom and pop type placxe with an Itallian last name :)

The zoo is great and free, and if you go the first hour it's open, all the paid exhibits are free (train, children's zoo, stingray/shark exhibit, etc). Grant's Farm is free http://www.grantsfarm.com/default.htm, you just have to pay for parking. You can pay to feed the baby goats. Right down the road (like just a few hundred feet) is the Grant national historic site. Also free. http://www.nps.gov/ulsg/index.htm The science center is free, and if you park on the Forest Park side, parking is free. There are a lot of exhibits that are in transition right now so it's not may favorite place. The art museum and history museum are both free (except for special exhibits) and are in Forest Park along with the zoo and science center. The arch is cool but I'm not in love with the museum underneath, just ok, IMO. The City Museum is awesome. While you are here, try to get to Ted Drew's for frozen custard, have some St. Louis style pizza, maybe lunch or dinner on the Hill or at the Loop.

Ds wears his to swim in and dd2 (my almost 4yo) just picked out this suit at Target http://www.target.com/Circo-Toddler-2-Piece-Rashguard-Swimsuit/dp/B004FNT9PA/ref=br_1_7?ie=UTF8&id=Circo%20Toddler%202-Piece%20Rashguard%20Swimsuit&node=2242998011&searchSize=30&searchView=list&searchPage=1&sr=1-7&qsome cid=1308283324&rh=&searchBinNameList=target_com_category-bin%2Cstyle_name%2Cprice%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Ctarget_com_brand-bin%2Ctarget_com_character-bin&searchRank=salesrank&frombrowse=1 . I love not having to put as much sunblock on them.

I voted other. We have a time limit for eating leftovers. They belong to the person who ordered them for a day or two and then they are fair game without asking. In the past, Dh would forget to take his leftovers to work and I politely left them alone to the point that they went bad and went to waste. Now he better take them right away or lose out :)

According to this http://www.rutherford.org/pdf/2011/04-28-2011_Letter_Fitchburg-School-Survey.pdf , the daughters of the woman who has filed the complaint protested taking the test and were told to sit down and take it. One daughter pointed out that it was voluntary and tried to be excused and the teacher wouldn't allow it.[/url]

Watching Craigslist is a must! People often rip out perfectly good cabinets and give them away or sell them cheap when they are upgrading their kitchen.

:lol: My 3 year old has named our baby in utero "Baby Dinosaur." We've been teasing the big kids that we could name her Triceratops when she's born.

Nim's Island, Charlotte's Web (the live action version), Because of Winn Dixie, any American Girl movie.

I love ST. Louis style pizza but Imo's is not the best IMO. Try Ponticellos, Cusamanos, Faraci's, or Saullos. Yummy :)

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon with encouraging a big barking dog as a deterrent. We have a golden retriever mix that hides in the closet during thunderstorms, yet she will bark like crazy if someone comes to the door or if there's any sound outside. I feel safe at home alone because she's my "alarm system".

A relative goes to a Nazarene church and they don't dance, drink or gamble (maybe not even play card games?). That might just be their particular church though.

True story - after sharing that we were going to homeschool the kids with his co-workers (who are all public school teachers, dh teaches HS english), one of them actually said "what makes you think you are qualified to do that?!?!" He responded that the state of Missouri says that he's qualified to teach other people's children so he figured that he's qualified to teach his own. I told him that he should have said that as a certified teacher he wasn't qualified and that was why I was doing the homeschooling. :lol:

I think an early reader is likely to stay ahead of grade level, but I don't think starting reading reading later will make a child permanently behind the early ones. Dd1, though through no lack of trying on my part, was a very reluctant reader. I think she maybe met the "reader" qualifications at 7. She's 3rd grade now and reading maybe a year above grade level. It seems like her reading ability makes jumps rather than being at a steady pace. Ds met the reader qualifications at late 5 or maybe early 6. I was MUCH more relaxed about teaching him to read and he picked it up much easier and quicker than dd. He's still only 6 so I'm not sure what his long term reading skills will look like. Now for myself, my mom says that my school didn't really teach us to read until 2nd grade. I turned 8 in April of that year and remember getting Ramona Quimby, Age 8 for my birthday. I quickly read through the rest of the series which all seem to be 3.5- 5th grade reading level. By 4th grade my teachers were commenting on the levels of the books I was choosing for book reports. At least anecdotally, a child who learns to read "late" can certainly catch up with early readers.

There are actually quite a few homeschooling families on our swim team :) On top of that, most of the kids don't know each other going in (unless they were on the team before). Kids on our team come from several local public grade schools as well as the Catholic schools and private Christian school.

The recipe I use (which is the kid's and dh's favorite): 2 c chickpeas 3 cloves of garlic, minced juice of 1 lemon ( I usually cheat with the bottled stuff) 1/3 c tahini 1 tsp. cumin 1/4 c olive oil 1 tsp salt water to get consistency

Wouldn't bother me.

The website has Jewish people in the US on their list though - I doubt they have never heard of the Christian bible. Also, I may be interpreting their red, yellow, green system, but there are several groups on there they they list as Christian that they are listing as works in progress - are they just not the right types of Christians?

And teh St. Louis area has a ton of active homeschool groups and pretty much all of the museums and the zoo is free.

That's the thing I never have understood when people get worked up about the spells being real and it being a gateway to, what, wizardry? These people are giving a simple book a whole lot of power by believing all of that.

Do you have AAA? I think there's a discount if you do.

I don't suppose doing a spell or two to show that they don't work would get you an invite back, huh? :lol:

I would hope most people wouldn't find it offensive coming from a child. Ds is 6 and refers to people as "tan" and "clear" I don't quite understand where he came up with the "clear" but tan is totally a description for anyone with non-pale skin.