PM'd you.

I really appreciate that story. What also strikes me is that she was helpful and they were grateful-- she was not intrusive. Sometimes I worry too much about whether I would be a bother during a stressful time.

These estimates are so drastically different that I'd be confused and get a third opinion!

Well, look on the bright side at least it's not scorpions! Anyway we had fleas a few yrs ago, brought in by a cat. I wanted to go natural, but eventually we used that stuff that you sprinkle on the carpet & vacuum up and it worked. Also, when trying to treat the cats, I found out that there is some fraudulent off-market pet flea-killer out there. It made our cats start shaking and drooling, and I washed it off in a hurry, so the cats were fine, but the fleas stayed. Then I went to a better quality veterinarian and asked them to apply their stuff to the cats in the office, and the cats were fine and the fleas were gone.

Swimming? This was suggested to us for my DD, who is a bit chubby.:001_smile: We haven't done it yet though.

I too felt sad about books-- I had to return all the books that I had bought with ALE money, and I had chosen them all with love, thinking that we'd use them for years! :grouphug:

We homeschooled in an ALE last year and did not have to do anything like that detailed. We had English, Math, History, P.E., Scouts, Science, and Electives/Fine Arts. Some of these had "EALRs" but our SLPC (teacher) just cut and pasted them into our SLP and I never looked at them. Honestly, the SLPC agreed that we had a full, rich, challenging program (WTM) and did not need to tick through them point by point. They did have classes twice a week but we did not avail ourselves of them. I had to fill out a detailed monthly progress report (took about 1 hour), and we had to be in contact with her once a week by phone or email, and I had him take the standardized test at the end of the year (the one the public school kids take). That's all that was required. I was able to buy curriculum and pay for classes with the money. It was a great program and very easy. OP, is your SLPC really requiring you to do all that administrative work?

:grouphug:

:grouphug: ditto everything the others said. I also like to volunteer in the class-- I'm about to go there right now: I help the kids individually with reading stuff. It's fun to be involved and see what it's like for DD.

I've done this too, because I was out of detergent, but I really don't get it-- why does dish soap make bubbles that come out, but when you use regular dishwasher detergent, the machine is water-tight?:confused:

Aw that is so cute!

Thanks for mentioning this Mila-- I tried this today and hair looks nice-- the only thing is I smell like a beauty parlor because of the conditioner-- I usually rinse it all out so I had no idea what a "fragrance" it has!!

:grouphug:

Well. I saw the movie Sybil when I was about 14 and it disturbed and traumatized me. My mother was a schizophrenic (as Sybil's mother was, supposedly) and I was terrorized by the implication that I would grow up to be as disturbed as Sybil even though I was not abused. I spent my teenage years watching my own every move and thought, fearing that anything I might say or do, or especially if I got angry or felt sad, was a sign that I was going seriously crazy. I don't think this fear really lifted until I passed my mother's age at her first hospitalization (32) and had my first child, without ever having signs of schizophrenia or other serious mental illness, Thank God. If I had only known then that there was even a possibility that Sybil's story was not true, I would not have suffered so much. May God forgive the people who wrote this book and made this movie, because they did not know or care how they might be traumatizing the innocent, while they themselves tried to become rich & famous.

Ladies, I am so sad to see these results so far! More than half so far think badly of themselves! Look, anyone on these boards who is homeschooling and interested in WTM, plus all the housekeeping etc you do, and so thoughtful about everything, has to be pretty darn smart and a beautiful person. Even if we might have our difficult moments or be a few pounds over. I think you all are TERRIFIC, I have learned so much here, and I love you!!!

I could not possibly read this whole thread! But one glass of wine with dinner would be absolutely fine, to me.

The Bishop will suspend him temporarily. Then there will be an investigation by the Church, culminating in spiritual court, when they will decide if he should be suspended for a certain period of time, or not, or defrocked. The court will take into account the investigation by the civil authorities, and the priest's repentance or lack thereof. They will also consider where to place him and whether he may need therapy or treatment. The court has representatives of bishops and clergy. I am not sure if there are any lay people on the court, such as psychologists, I just do not know about that, sorry. There is a whole set process for how these things are to be handled.

Joanne, I am really rusty at mushroon-identifying, but I believe the two right-hand photos ones called by Russians "Paganka" and they are poisonous. I would not touch them. I might be wrong, but anyway I advise caution.

Sounds nice! Only, lots of times people with littles have a hard time arriving on time... might be good to have some sort of free play time for the 1st 15 minutes. Also, don't tire yourself out or get too ambitious unless you are sure you can do it. You know the Fathers say "do nothing beyond your strength"! And, you probably know with church things sometimes it's best to start small, rather than have to scale back and feel like it's a disappointment. We are Orthodox too (GOA, but I was previously OCA, DH is cradle GOA). Have you looked at the social groups here, Exploring Orthodoxy and Orthodox Homeschooling?

Some women find their DH to be absolutely useless and aggravating during the labor! this happens even when they have a good relationship otherwise. In this case, do not feel pressured to have him there! Do what is best for your own family.

Me, all flustered because a dog was jumping up on DD5: "Don't worry honey, he is with his owner, and his owner won't let anybody hurt him."

I think you look nice! I would love to see you at a family reunion. If your bangs bother you, can you get just the bangs trimmed? That's pretty inexpensive. And, at some point you just have to say "This is me! take it or leave it!" and stop worrying.:001_smile:

What are the comparative prices of the two? If you sold the first, would be able to pay all the proceeds into the new house and have a smaller monthly payment or a shorter term mortgage? You wouldn't be starting from scratch on the new one, in any case.

A friend with uterine cancer went to Cuba for treatment with a medicine made from the blue scorpion. I was very skeptical about this, but a doctor friend advised me to mind my own business, saying "do not take away her hope." She went and stayed there for a couple of months, and when she came back she was cured, but I lost track of her a few years later so I don't know if it was a permanent cure or not.

Hi! I do have some experience with this to share. 1. start with something very easy. Like a weekly playdate. Moms bring snack for their own kids and take turns bringing a Mom-snack/coffee. 2. have it at church, that way no Mom has to clean up her house.:001_smile: 3. have it always at the same day of the week, same time, so that everyone can rely on it and you don't have to do any planning. 4. once you meet a few times & settle in, only after that, start talking about what educational types of things you'd like to do. 5. if you like, ask the pastor/priest at your church to do a little devotional or prayer each week. have fun!