I agree with you--I pay my kids to work because I want them to take their work seriously. Also, I don't give them money for things, so they have to earn money if they want something. With babysitting, I'm not quite there yet, but it would probably depend on what I was expecting her to do. If they're all just hanging out, reading, playing Wii, etc., I probably wouldn't pay much, if at all. If she's overseeing schoolwork or putting kids to bed, maybe $1-2/hr.?

I don't think you're wrong at all. To me that's part of our kids having friends--supporting the friend's parents. If my kids have a friend who isn't allowed to watch Harry Potter, I wouldn't dream of putting Harry Potter on when said friend is visiting. I do think your son should be able to say "Oops, your mom isn't here--I can't stay. Wanna go to the park instead?" But I also know that teens sometimes need backup when dealing with temptation. And yes, you can get into *plenty* of trouble with the door open. Because to a teen, the door is open even if it's only a crack--open doesn't necessarily mean wide open. And I would guess he will thank you someday for protecting him. Even if she does care about whether her DD gets pregnant, she is way out of line to badmouth your rules to your son and her daughter. She could say something like "your mom does things differently than I do, but we need to honor her request and not hang out in the bedroom." Actually, not all teens have ***. Some struggle to maintain their virginity, and depend on the parent to provide boundaries. It is easy to get in over your head without wanting to at that age. As long as our kids are under our roofs, we have the right to make and enforce whatever rules we feel will keep them safe. Yes, kids need to learn how to handle freedom, but in my opinion, freedoms are given when kids demonstrate responsibility. And kids might be completely responsible in every other area and still need help in this one. And yes, if they are determined, they will have ***...that doesn't mean we need to clear a path for them to do so.

If the weather's decent (i.e. not raining hard), I do most days.

We found R&S to be exceedingly dry and boring. We're finishing up FLL4, then we'll do Analytical Grammar. If we need grammar after AG, we'll see what is available from Peace Hill and go from there.

We do 3-4 loads a week. We rewear stuff until it smells or is visibly dirty (or if I've seen the kids try to wear the same outfit 3 days in a row, lol). They don't tend to get ketchup on themselves--if they do we change clothes right away. My kids play outside, but they're mostly on the swingset, so they don't get all that dirty and I don't notice them being sweaty (and we're in western WA, so we're not outside a ton from Oct-Apr). They all do indoor sports. DH works in an office (but is allowed to dress casually), and he has clothes for working in the yard. There's only a small part of the year where we mow weekly, usually it's biweekly. DH will try to get out every Saturday if the weather is good, but that's about the most yardwork we do. I probably could do the linens more often than I do, but that wouldn't add a full load per week. I don't notice anyone smelling, maybe I should ask friends of ours?? Another factor--teen boys do stink. I suppose in a few years DS will be going through quite a bit more laundry than he is now.

I have to say, I am completely shocked by this thread!! We do 4 loads/week in the front loader. Even when we had the stacked W/D, I don't think it was more than 6/week unless someone was sick or we were swimming. DH works in an office (but wears t-shirts & jeans), we rewear until our clothes are visibly dirty or smell (or if I've seen them try to wear the same shirt more than 3 times in a week), we reuse towels a few times as well.

I have a favorite latte mug and a couple favorite drip coffee mugs. It's a combo of the size, the handle and the finish. I think because coffee is a source of comfort, I need the mug to feel a certain way.

Reason #43--The Kingdom Hall is half a mile away, and the JWs apparently practice their technique in my neighborhood. Either that, or for some reason they enjoy seeing me awkwardly try to have a conversation from behind my door to hide the fact that I'm in a thin tank top with no booKshelf while the dog barks apoplectically in the background.

If your older kids are getting along fine and nothing inappropriate is happening, you could leave them together. My DD10 and DS9 share a room, we just have them change clothes in our closet or in the bathroom. My DS is a troublemaker and likes to provoke his sisters, so we have to be careful to not let them change around him or he'll point and laugh. :glare: His older sis is the one who is best at putting him in his place, which is why they share. But as far as boy-girl modesty issues go, I don't think it would be an issue for a couple more years (when we're dealing with puberty issues). My older two share a room and my younger two share a room. Everyone gets along fine. It is hard keeping it all clean and organized though. We are hoping to finish our basement soon, which would give everyone their own room. My son really is challenging for all of us, and having more space will help that, I think.

Haven't read it, but I *love* Ravi Zacharias!

Yes. I nursed my babies because of the health benefits, but I needed my space! They were all well-fed and are well-adjusted, despite the fact that they didn't have 24/7 access to my body. (I hope that doesn't sound harsh, some people enjoy AP and that's terrific. I didn't.)

Ew!! My son peed on the floor of our unfinished basement a couple times when he was 8. :glare: We caught him and made it clear that it wasn't ok, he hasn't done it since. I'm not sure there is any such thing as "normal" for young boys, I wouldn't worry unless he continues doing it after you have told him strongly to *never* do it again. :001_smile:

Sister N, and make sure you have enough life insurance that she could put the kids in school (if necessary) and get a bigger house. Possibly a bigger house could solve the pet problem, too--the animals could sleep in the garage or a laundry room that is closed off from the rest of the house. I would definitely discuss it with her first, though. While it unfathomable to me that a loving aunt would not want her orphaned nieces/nephews, I think it shows consideration if you make it her choice. I would ask the other sister to be a backup guardian.

I had 3 that used a pacifier (DS seemed like he wanted to go the thumb route for a while, I would actually take his thumb out and put the binky in)--of those, 2 quit around when they stopped nursing, 1 went until she was about 2 and then we started cutting the tips off. For all three, giving up the binky was relatively painless. DD6 was a thumbsucker, and that was a hard habit to break. We never pushed hard, but we talked to her about it from time to time. We would tell her why she should stop, how at some point she would need to stop, etc. She was finally ready to quit at 5 1/2. It was a hard habit to break, so we made an incentive chart for her and put band-aids on her thumbs. We prayed about it, too. Once *she* was ready to quit, it took less than a week. My kids all had sucking needs that went beyond their food needs, and I have been bitten *many* times by babies who are trying to nurse when they're not hungry. I always encourage a pacifier over a thumb--I don't know of any side effects to using a clean binky.

I didn't read the entire thread, but I think to dismiss every book (or even every Christian book) that addresses the wife's role and responsibilities is to paint them with an awfully broad brush. There are some that I read for encouragement and some that I won't touch with a 10-foot pole.

Bamboo is more affordable, but not the strongest of woods. We've used it twice now--the first time in the kitchen/dining room of our old house, and more recently in our current home in the living room, hall and bedrooms. Ours warped a little in the kitchen when the fridge leaked--it isn't recommended for kitchens and bathrooms. In our current home, it has been fine, it just gets scratched a little more easily than I would like. But for the cost, it is probably comparable to a hardwood that costs $2 more per sq ft. A higher end hardwood would possibly wear better, but it would cost quite a bit more. We got ours at Costco. They carry flooring certain times of the year, particularly in the winter. They might have it online if it isn't in your local warehouse. It is a DIY product, though you could certainly buy it and pay someone to install it. My husband installed it pretty easily, he just had to borrow a nail gun.

This topic has sort of been talked to death...if you don't get many responses here, you might do a search and look at some past threads on TT. I use it with DD10 and DD7. Ease of use is a biggie, also having the lecture on the computer is helpful for both auditory and visual learners, I think. DD10 is finishing up Pre-Algebra. She would do fine with any math curriculum because she's just that kind of kid, but she liked TT when she saw it and had been frustrated with how dry Saxon is. She has done really well with TT and I figure we can review with another program if we need to when she gets to Pre-Calc or Calc. DD7 is the opposite--nothing was working for her until we got TT. She consistently scores over 80%, usually over 90%. She is easily distracted and seems to get confused when there are too many stimuli, so MUS was a disaster for her (trying to use the blocks, watch the DVD and do the worksheet at the same time drove her crazy). My other two both use MUS. DS is math-challenged and I like a mastery-based program for him. I still haven't made up my mind about DD6 long term, but I'm hoping to make MUS work for her.

It would depend on the situation. Can I find something that would work reasonably well in its place? How much do I disagree with their actions? Can I get the curr. used, so I'm not directly supporting the publisher?

Weird--I've never been asked for my kids' SSNs. I'll give out my own or DH's if necessary. Honestly, there are enough medical facilities in my locale that I would go elsewhere if they pressed me for the info.

There are a few dads who post here...hopefully he'll find them for those times when he needs to hear from another hs'ing dad. :)

DH doesn't do any of the teaching. He does pick DD up from karate when he can to save me a trip out. He also will *very occasionally* do some art with them. I had him sit in with us and help with a couple subjects once when he had the day off. He lost interest pretty quickly. He is gone about 11 hours a day, though, and I am home, so it makes sense for me to do the educating. Also, I am way more opinionated about education than he is. :)

I believe it is the best way to teach my kids to follow Christ and equip them for every good work (Eph 2:10).

Thanks for clearing that up, Joann! That makes sense. I've also heard that a lot of programs are barely solvent and could go out of business (so to speak) if this law passes.

I wonder if my inability to be in two places at the same time (e.g. Colville and my home) would count as "medical necessity"? ;)

But the new bill requires face-to-face time, and "allows the supervising teacher to rely on synchronous digital communication to meet the requirement for face-to-face, in person contact in cases of medical necessity or when the student's temporary travel makes the in-person contact infeasible."