I ordered WP's I'm Ready To Learn in November at it arrived timely and all the things I ordered were included. I've been really happy with the curriculum so far, tweaking it a little to work with my 3 year old at his particular level. I did see a few typos and grammatical errors in one of the PDF samples on their website (Cultures and Countries or something like that) and I was really surprised and I will admit it did make me less likely to order a higher level program from them. Having an outside editor (or even a friend!) do a basic proofread would really help correct all those mistakes.

Wow, that sounds lovely Faithr! Your house and plans sound so special. I just want to add that a lot of self-sufficiency can happen in the suburbs or even in the city. It obviously can't be achieved exactly the way the OP described her plan and experiences but there are options for those of us who cannot or do not want to move from a more urban area. :)

I'm trying this, thanks!

Me too!

My sister lives in Williamsburg. I'll pass this along to her!

Do you read Sharon Astyk's blog, Causabon's Book? http://scienceblogs.com/casaubonsbook/ Your post made me think of her, she's a neat lady and a provocative writer. Radical Homemakers was great at helping me understand what to do in my home to make longterm, beneficial changes that are both economical and also socially responsible. I'm not sure what you are doing, but I and a lot of people I know are in a similar frame of mind. I think we all need to be putting serious pressure on ridiculous HOA restrictions (no clotheslines!) and county ordinances (no chickens!) that limit how self-sufficient people can actually be. I do think there is going to be a major sea-tide change in America about many things over the next decade and people are going to get a lot more realistic about what they need to do for themselves to have a happy, productive life fulfilled with exactly what they need instead of exactly what they want. Would love to exchange ideas over PM if you don't want to publicly post!

2x per week. I wash sheets Thursday and Sunday.

OK, that makes sense. But not all doctrine is dogma but all dogma is doctrine. I wrestled with this for a long time while studying to enter the Church and I read something to this effect over at CA on the Apologists forum. It is confusing, since there is no one list of all the specific dogmas that the Church teaches in one spot (at least not that I've found, point in the right direction if I am off track here), it is all just sort of rolled up in with the overarching category of Doctrine. I know there are books published about Catholic dogma but they haven't been produced by the RC itself. Obviously we have the Creeds but those are not completely encompassing of all the dogma that the Church teaches is infallible, unchangable truth. I think this is why people get so confused about what, how and why the RC changes things over the course of history.

For the lady(ies) moving into the area, there is actually a Charlotte Mason private school in Herndon. http://www.ambleside.org/ I have heard great things about Renaissance Montessori in Manassas and have a tour planned next week. It is Catholic though. http://www.renaissancemontessorischool.org/

I'm sure someone will be able to correct me if I am wrong, but I think of there being three "D" areas: Disciplines, like priestly celibacy can and do change. Doctrine, can change unless it is dogmatic doctrine. For instance, the liturgy of the Mass has changed over the course of 2000 years but the Eucharist Feast is still the pinnacle and point of it all. Dogma is irrefutable doctrine that cannot ever be changed. Dogmatic theology like those concerning the sanctity of human life are unalterable. So, all dogma is doctrine of the Church but not all doctrine is dogma. Am I being clear as mud here?! ;)

You're right! We live in one of those places. :tongue_smilie: You really know your way around NoVA. My husband only needs access to Dulles to fly in and out, works from home otherwise so we were able to go farther afield. We used to live in Sterling in a townhouse right beyond the Costco off of Cascades Parkway. We moved out of state for two years and then when we returned chose to move to an area with much better schools (we hadn't thought of hs at that point!). 10 years ago when we bought our townhouse in Sterling it was still being built up, it is hard to believe how much development west of there has happened in one decade. The entire widening/removing of lights on 28 was a nightmare to live through for years! We have family who live in Potomac Falls/Lowe's Island so I'm still up that way pretty regularly.

I live about 15 minutes from Aldie/Stone Ridge. We actually looked to buy there but couldn't agree on a house. It is a great area, I have a wonderful doctor that we've used for years who practices at South Riding Family Medicine.

Your grandmother is not obligated to attend Mass if she legitimately cannot get there. In fact, there are laity groups of Eucharistic Ministers who will travel to the homes of those who cannot attend Mass to take them communion. No, watching Mass on TV isn't the same as going but it can still be a wonderful thing for those who cannot attend. :)

SSPX Catholics are not in full communion with the Church so I have no idea why their opinion of the rest of us would hold much weight. ;) My parish does offer a Latin Mass every Sunday at noon, I've not yet gone. We have 7 Sunday Masses offered (two are Sat. night anticipated Mass times) and there is something for everyone. If you like quick and no music, 7:30 a.m. is your time, if you like traditional, aim for 9:00 or 10:30, TLM is noon and the guitar Mass is at 5:00. :tongue_smilie: Saturday night also offers a more contemporary Mass and one in Spanish. You'll see everything from jeans and Crocs to full length chapel veil wearing women in my parish. That's about as good as it gets, IMO!

I have thought about this post since last night. First, I don't think simply because one has attended Catholic schools they necessarily hold any more knowledge about the Church, it's teachings or how it functions. Sure, it is a great opportunity but not required. Second, when a person commits to a path of conversion - especially if they are not converting due to marrying a Catholic spouse or some external situation - then they feel an overwhelming interest in the theology of the Church and want to make sure they not only understand what the Church teaches but accept it prior to making the commitment of conversion. Perhaps this is why it seems that most converts are more rigid than cradle Catholics? At least in my case, my conversion was not easy within my family (my husband did not convert, my mother is very socially liberal and my sister was married to a lapsed Catholic who never attended Mass) and created a lot of discussion and concern from them. I really dug into some of the more complicated theology of the Church and studied for years before I converted. I'm not rigid, I am adherent to the teachings of the catechism which is required of all Catholics.

Just want to add that the closer to the beltway that you are, the much higher rent/house price you are going to find. Ashburn is at least a half hour longer commuting with traffic and more $ with tolls but the housing prices are slightly better. Unless you have a very high budget it is doubtful you will find something affordable in McLean or Great Falls. Reston can also get pricey but it is a great community. 11 years ago when I got married we priced 2 bedroom apartments in Reston and the going rate was around $1600 per month. Commuting is also tricky. A place on a map may not be that geographically far in miles from where you are trying to get to but if you have to take 66 E or 7E plan on it taking a long, long time. You can use the toll road but that even gets backed up during rush hour and the tolls get pricey! Just be prepared for sticker shock unless you are moving from another high cost of living area! It is a great place to live, we've moved away once to the midwest and came back. So much to see and do, and great historic places are close by - Harper's Ferry, Williamsburg, Richmond, Annapolis, etc.

I think this all leads back to being poorly catechized. And that is a heartbreaking thing for a person to not understand why they are being denied communion. I don't quite understand this situation you've listed above. A person who is civilly divorced is still considered married in the Church unless an annulment has been granted. An annulment can only be granted if it is found that there was some impediment to the marriage being sacramental at the time the marriage was performed. If your father in law's brother was divorced from his wife, he would not be barred from communion. It would only be if he chose to remarry civilly (he would not be able to have another marriage in the Church) and in the eyes of the Church he would be participating in adultery. Then he would be considered to be living in a state of perpetual sin and would be barred from Communion. Sacraments (there are 7 including marriage) are soul altering. It doesn't matter if the person is rejecting that Sacrament at a later date (like rejecting Catholicism after being baptized as an infant) their soul has been indelibly marked by the performance of that Sacrament. Marriage is not breakable if it was sacramental when it took place. This is why the Church requires lengthy marriage counseling and prep classes and lots of discussion with a priest prior to performing the marriage. It is to make sure the couple understands exactly what they are committing to when they ask the priest to perform that Sacrament through God for them.

Yes, yes, yes! I am so often surprised by how poorly catechized so many cradle Catholics are and how they don't realize that their priest is not more authoritative than the Magisterium of the Church and the official Catechism. My sister is in the process of converting (!!!) and the parish she is receiving RCIA at is really allowing her to believe that the Church's position is much more flexible in some areas than it is. It is maddening to me because she gets very defensive when I point out the inaccuracies because she has determined that her priest knows better than me when really he is simply expressing his own beliefs on the matter and isn't teaching Church theology as presented in the CCC. It is all there is black and white if anyone wants to read it and... surprisingly enough the theological roots of all those issues (like artificial birth control) are deep and rich and make sense if you choose to actually learn about it. It isn't like the Church decided to make up a bunch of silly rules just to drive its members crazy, they all have a spiritual benefit for us!

Yes. Like other Catholics posting in this thread, I'm also a convert and entered the Church in 2009. I can see what people mean by "Catholic guilt" in that I do feel the pain of separation when I have chosen to act in ways or do things that pull me away from God and what His will is for me and I am in need of Reconciliation. I don't view it as a bad thing, I view it as part of my natural instinctive response mechanisms. It is sort of like how awful I feel when my husband and I argue or if I know I've upset a friend because of being thoughtless or willful. I feel bad and what to correct it.

I'm not sure if you are religious but many of the Catholic parishes in the area have good homeschool groups going, my parish in Gainesville, VA (about 20 minutes west of Fair Oaks) has one of the best homeschool co-ops I've found with 150 active families. If you are interested in learning more please PM me. Be prepared to spend a good amount of money on rent! A 4 bedroom house could easily run you 3k + per month, even as far-flung outside the city as I am currently located. It is just really expensive here. We have used both Swim Kids in Gainesville and Potomac Swim School in Ashburn and both have been great. Herndon's Classical Ballet Academy is also excellent. Good luck!

I have big landscaping plans for both hardscape and plants and trees that total over 20k to do it all. Not going to happen this year. We are such outside people that I really do feel like our yard is part of our living space.

I'm southern so take that into account! I would say: Eh-lie-za for Eliza Ee-lease for Elise

We did the same thing as the previous poster suggested when our oldest turned 2 and absolutely would not nap any longer. I instituted a rest time that she had to take in her room. We eased into an hour long rest time, starting with 15 minutes and tacking on five to ten minutes every few days. I also would only let her choose 3 toys to play with for her rest time because she would get so overwhelmed with all the choices that she wouldn't play well and her room would become trashed. Usually it was something along the lines of doll house, puzzle and book bin or legos, books and magna-doodle. Three very different activities that could sustain her for long periods. Stick with it! At age 5 she still takes a rest time for at least an hour while my younger two are napping. I need that break to get lunch cleaned up and general household chores completed so we can start the afternoon with a clean slate. When we start homeschooling next year I will continue on with the rest time and it will eventually turn into a "drop everything and read" time in which our entire family will go some place quiet and read. We're years away from that but I can dream. :tongue_smilie:

Yes, I've got all curriculum chosen and purchased with the exception of math as I'm still trying to decide between Horizons/MM/Singapore to use in conjunction with Miquon Orange. I'm starting to actually lesson plan our first unit of ToG, which we will use at half pace for first grade. I figure it is easier if I get most of it mapped out and planned now, do some self-educating so I am personally prepared to teach the material and find used books that I choose to use with the curriculum for good prices while I've got plenty of time.

I generally try and steer clear of Monsanto ties when I purchase seeds and gardening supplies so I only order from a few select companies. http://www.rareseeds.com Baker Creek! Also, Black Cherry Tomatoes are prolific producers and possibly the best cherry tomato ever - I like them even more than Sungolds!