I would alternate the languages; we have it so that on M and W, DD (6th grader) does Latin (with me), and she does Mango language on T and Th. On M and W, my 3rd grader does Mango language, and I do Latin with him on T and Th. (I really can't do Latin with the two of them together; DD is very good at languages and sped quickly through the beginning Latin. It would be holding her back at a great disservice to keep them together for Latin.) I do some things every day, like math, literature, writing, science, and history (occasionally something gets skipped, but largely, those are every day), but other things rotate -- art once a week, composer study or picture study once a week (in blocks -- 4-6 weeks of composer study once a week, followed by 4-6 weeks of picture study once a week), geography once a week, etc. I would do things like vocabulary once a week or something, not every day.

I just skimmed the law again; it does seem to indicate that the superintendent is the one who is supposed to review the portfolios. In our district, it's the assistant superintendent who reviews porfolios and handles the homeschoolers, but they're friendly toward us, so I will let that one slide, as I think a jump from super to assistant super is reasonable, but a high school principal? I'd be appealing that one. How many districts really want to go to the trouble of taking the local homeschoolers to court? I know ours is already strapped for cash and having to justify budget increases. Wish they'd all keep that in mind.

Yep, I have trouble accepting that sort of help without it feeling like the helper is saying, "you really should have gotten to these." Now, if a mess has been made while you're visiting, by all means, I would love help with the dishes, but whatever dishes are by the sink when you arrive, leave 'em alone. Assume that I've done my best but didn't have time to get to them. My MIL is a wonderful woman; I really adore her and am so grateful to have her in my life. I don't keep house like she does, though. I really don't try to, but it would be impossible anyway. I have an old house that has some issues that make it nearly impossible to keep sparkling clean, no matter what I do, and also, I have a lot of small children who generate dishes/toys out/laundry/messes and who need a lot of my personal attention. And 5, soon to be 6, of us are here all day, nearly every day. My MIL had two children, 6 years apart, so she very rarely had both of them home for long periods of time at the same time. I have just accepted that for this season of my life, "good enough" is good enough. Thankfully, my DH isn't too particular, and he prefers happy kids, non-stressed wife, and something to eat more than he prefers a super clean house or all the dishes done. I would so not be bothered if someone else's house had baskets of laundry to fold or dishes in the sink or whatever, even if we were there for a scheduled playdate. Eh, it just is not a big deal to me. There's "very messy" and there's "only have so many hours in the day and didn't get to this yet," and the latter is no big deal to me.

That's what I do as well, especially for things like music or PE which might not have obvious papers. I turn in 3-5 samples of work per subject, preferably from various times in the year, and in some cases, a photograph serves as part of the samples, like for PE or art. I also turn in a list of any paper materials that we've cracked open even once to use, just the titles, no authors or anything, and I turn in a calendar with days checked off on it.

I have a friend who swears it made a huge difference; she didn't encapsulate it, but she froze it in chunks and ate it in smoothies. She said she had no hormone crashes, and her bleeding stopped very quickly. I have read that after delivery, your progesterone levels crash, which is why you get the blues, but that the placenta is full of progesterone, so it eases that crash a bit. It is tempting.

Nope, not required every year, and I'm sorry your SD needs an education. How annoying for you! I would talk to your evaluator too and see what she/he says. (This does make me feel better about pulling a few random worksheets from the internet every year on various health/safety topics and saying, "here, kids, I know this is mindless, but do it for the portfolio and get it done," just to keep my SD off my back.)

Oh, that needed a warning -- that was so sweet that I am crying! Please may the next four weeks go by quickly, and then may the next fifty-two go so slowly so I can enjoy them!

Good for him! I hope that if there was any fallout for him that the local businesses and media got behind him. The sales aren't great here, either. Staples had a few things that were good, and I did get a few boxes of crayons for a quarter at WalMart, but I'm glad I've stocked up in previous years, because I still have lots of pencils, glue sticks, and three-prong folders.

I voted "stay inside." Spring and fall every day, please! I don't like dealing with cold, snow, ice, wind any more than I like dealing with hot hot hot hot, but of the two, the cold is slightly more tolerable. I think. Ask me again in February, and I might change my answer, but right now, I am 36 weeks pregnant, and it is supposed to be about 95 degrees around here for a few days. I am spending as much time as possible directly in front of one of our AC units (while being grateful that we're not paying to cool the entire house), but I'm still pretty uncomfortable. At least spring temps lasted for a long time this year before it got really hot, and most of the summer will be gone before the baby arrives, so I won't be doing too much newborn babywearing in the extreme heat (like I was doing with DS3, who was born mid-July). At least here in the mid-Atlantic, our extreme temps aren't as extreme as some areas --- 95 is pretty high, and somewhere in the teens is pretty low, so it really could be worse. But April and October are welcome gifts every year!

We live far enough from everything that my kids can't go anywhere by themselves (well, they can go around on bikes, but without DH, they have to stay fairly close to the house -- we don't live in a true neighborhood, but more rural), but when we go to do errands, I do let them do things by themselves, at least the older one, sometimes the older two. I send the 11yo to buy crickets for our gecko while I wait in the car, or I send the 11yo or 8yo to pick up library books, etc. Nobody's ever batted an eye at them, but we also have a fair number of homeschoolers around here. Our big local grocery store recently opened a beer shop/cafe in the corner, and it's a very nice space; rather than wander around the store with me, the older kids often sit down in the cafe and do their schoolwork. I check on them every so often, not because I think they'll get into trouble, but in case anyone in charge is wondering about them, but there's never been a problem. Once or twice, someone from the store has come over just to see what they're doing, but I have always told the kids that if they're behaving and acting like they are doing nothing wrong (because they aren't), they should just say, politely, "We're homeschooled, and we're doing our work while our mother shops." One guy was amused that they were working on math, LOL -- I suppose if you're truant, you're probably not going to do your homework. It's not been an issue.

Gettysburg is a great place to visit, and September should be a perfect time -- warm but hopefully not too hot. Apples should start to be in season (but avoid the first two weeks in October -- that's Apple Harvest Festival time, and it will be busy and crowded). I've written posts about visiting Gettysburg before, but the one I wanted isn't coming up, so you might do a search of my name and Gettysburg and see what I've said. There is an audio tour that you can buy; it tells you things like "turn here and go .3 miles; stop," but there is a book you can buy that has much of the same information, as it's designed to be a walking tour. I'll see if I can find it on amazon in a second. ETA: Here you go: http://www.amazon.com/The-Complete-Gettysburg-Guide-Battlefield/dp/1932714634/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373862907&sr=8-1&keywords=walking+gettysburg Even though we live nearby and are in Gettysburg frequently, we found it to be a very helpful book. Go to the Visitor's Center if you go nowhere else, and be prepared to spend a while in its galleries. And see the battlefields at least a bit, particularly the lookouts. My kids enjoyed seeing Evergreen Cemetery and the spot where the Gettysburg Address was given. If budget/time allows, other cool stuff: the Hall of Presidents, the Wax Museum, the Cyclorama, President Eisenhower's home/farm. You can just spend some time wandering up and down the streets where the shops are too. Camping -- Caledonia is a nice state park, and you might also look into Outdoor World's campground at Gettysburg Farm; it says it's in Dover, but it's about 20 minutes from Gettysburg, and it's very nice and comfortable. It's dog-friendly for sure. It sounds like dogs aren't allowed in parts of the National Park itself, but I'm not sure about the battlefields or how dogs would be received in town.

Actually, in some ways, it might be helpful, if a student has listened to a lot of audio books, because he/she may be better able to follow lectures and discussions. I am very much not an audio learner; I find audio books hard to follow without my mind wandering, and listening to a seminar or lecture is really hard for me. I needed notes and outlines for college lectures. Give me print any day! Otoh, my DH could follow a lecture just fine without taking notes. He reads (print) a lot but also listens to a ton of audio books because of his commute (and while doing dishes for me), and there's no question that he is learning the material and is able to discuss books intelligently. I'm not discounting your post; I think you are right that they need exposure to print, but I do think there could be some advantages to being used to a lot of audio books.

See, done properly, I think that could be a good thing. If it were "you and a parent set the goal that is right for you," that would be the ideal, IMO. Maybe one kid is a new reader, and his goal is to complete one book that is over 100 pages (because when your stamina is only about 5 pages at a time, 100 pages takes a while). Maybe other kid is a very fluent reader and needs encouragement to read something harder, so he chooses his goal as "read the LOTR trilogy" -- only three books but not easy ones, and a lot of pages Maybe a younger child is easily overlooked in a large family, and so his goal is "have someone read to me for 20 minutes a day." Or maybe all of the children in the family share one common goal: listen to a series such as Percy Jackson or Little House together as a family. IMO, there is a time and place for calculating things in various ways, but I don't really like the one-size-fits-all approach, so I'm not too wild about library summer reading programs. (As for audio books, I'm a big fan of them and think they fill a very good purpose. I do think kids should have print exposure as well, and I would not allow my children to count audio books as their sole summer reading, regardless of what the library said, although I would allow a few of them to be included on a SRP's list, particularly ones listened to in the car or while doing crafts, or other times when print reading wouldn't be likely to happen. Then again, when we have done the summer library programs, I have been picky about what I allow my children to count. My big kids, currently 8 and 11, can read all the picture books they want, and I think there is value in them, but for something that will garner a reward, I want them to have more of a challenge, so I only allow chapter books of certain levels to count for rewards.)

We have one desktop computer in our schoolroom; it lives on my desk (which is a big old gigantic office desk), with the CPU underneath the desk, and the printer on a table next to the desk. When the kids need a computer, that's the one they use, and it's the one that DH uses as well when he is here. We do have a second desktop upstairs in the office/sewing room, but it's been broken for a while; when we do get it fixed, I would like to have the kids use it only for the Adventus MusIQ program, as right now, we do not have a good setup for that. (I need a storage space for the keyboard where it is both not in the way of the computer all the time nor where toddlers can pull up on its stand, and the schoolroom is my toddler-safe play space.) At this point, my kids are young enough that they don't do a lot on the computer -- typing and music, occasionally word processing for the oldest. (And limited games/internet on weekends.) We do have an iPad as well, and I use that 95% of the time for my computer needs; the kids do Mango language on it, and they use it for some PDF worksheets as well, but they don't, at this point, have their own tablets or computers. Sometimes it's a little tricky to juggle computer needs, but as of yet, it's not usually too difficult (and if DH needs the internet when he's home, he'll grab the iPad or his phone if someone else is using the desktop). I can see it being more difficult later, though, when the kids need heavier computer usage.

My biggest challenge as a homeschooler is time. I'm not great at time management, but even on days when I am, it feels like there just aren't enough hours to meet everyone's needs. Yes, my older kids are able to do a lot of their work independently, but they still need me for some things, and they're both of portfolio age now, so I can't just let it go if they don't finish something. And then there's my 2yo and impending newborn. The four of them get/will get what they need, because I *have* to, either because the law requires it for the older kids' portfolios, or because toddlers and infants will make their needs known. My challenge is making sure my sweet, easygoing, middle child, the 4.5yo, gets what he needs. He's ready to learn to read and wants to learn but isn't ready to do it on his own; he needs me for that. My challenge this year is to spend even just a little focused time with him, to make sure he doesn't fall prey to middle-child syndrome and to make sure that I don't miss his adorable preschoolerness, because he's really cute and funny. Energy is another challenge for me, which goes along with time; the more tired I am, the less energy I have, and the worse I am at time management. Sometimes I just don't have the energy to do something, and it's very easy to fall into the trap of "do just the basics," so that we never get to the extras.

The iPad definitely cut down on the things I needed to print; I could see how going printerless would work, especially if you don't have young children. (A lot of what I printed this year was preschool activity stuff.) I only use the iPad's camera occasionally; it's not really very good on the 2, though the 3 and 4 have better cameras. With a cover on the iPad, it's also a little clumsy to use the camera. But the camera has allowed me to take photos of cute events (like my little guys greeting each other in the morning) that I would otherwise miss, so that's a plus.

As for never needing to hook up to a big computer, I think you could get away with that. My iPad 2 does pretty much everything my desktop does; these are the things for which I still use the desktop: certain games, downloading photos/photo editing (mainly because I only have 16GB storage on the iPad), downloading audio books (same as photos), printing (only because my printer is a dinosaur that does not read the iPad). With a bigger iPad and a newer printer, I could be main-computerless, I think.

Yep. But if the church feels that it is also a community center, I see nothing wrong with it hosting Tupperware parties, gun safety classes, homeschool co-ops, exercise classes, cooking classes, babysitter training, whatever it feels it wants to offer.

Thank you for posting this; I just bought the expansion pack, and we'll see how quickly the download for the original game comes through. (And if it doesn't, I'm still not out too much.) ETA: It did seem to work. Yes, you buy the expansion pack first, and then it gives you a promotional credit toward the original game (which is free after the credit), plus two other games. So, three games and one expansion pack for couple of dollars -- great deal!

I preferred Excel/Word with paper printouts, because I liked how neat and tidy the printed paper looked. But I'm loving portable technology (ie iPad) even more. :)

Get Notability. Very easy to use and organize. Well worth the few dollars to purchase.

When I was in high school, I was part of a program that allowed high school students to take math and English classes for dual credit at a local branch of a big university. I also took history and social studies courses there too. (It was a university similar to the one I ultimately attended, so my credits transferred easily.) It got me through college a year early, which saved me a full year of out-of-state tuition (and more importantly, meant I graduated when DH did, so we could get married). In our case, the math and English classes were often sections of those classes designated for our special program, so there were usually only a few other students besides the ones in our program in the class, and the professors were there to be supportive of us, and it was a great program that let us make the transition between high school and college very smoothly. For the history and social studies classes, nobody knew we were teens unless we said anything, but we were always treated well and did just fine. I wholeheartedly support dual enrollment, although I think it's somewhat sad that the last year or two of high school is so similar to the first year of college. I know our local high school had a lot of AP classes anyway, and for some students, those are a better option; AP tests were too high-pressure, one-time for me, but going to a class every week and plugging away was a much better option for me. Otoh, my DH had access to the same high school and college classes, and AP classes were a much better choice for him (both of us graduated from our university having transferred 6 credits of US history there before starting -- his from the AP exam, mine from the other university's classes), so I think it's great when students have both options. But if the majority of students want one vs. the other, well, sometimes that's a casualty that has to happen, if the less-wanted option is too small to be viable. That's just life.

I'd get an Ergo. I love ring slings, but the one shoulder can become uncomfortable quickly as the baby grows. An Ergo will let you wear him with both shoulders, plus it will be able to go on your back as he gets bigger. At his current size, you will probably not need the infant insert to wear him on your front. As for nursing, I do find a ring sling a bit easier for that, and I don't really like the Ergo for that very much, but for overall wearing, the Ergo wins over the ring sling. However, I'm really short, and so it's tricky to nurse in any carrier; I tend to sit down and nurse the baby, then pop him/her into a carrier. If you're taller, nursing in the Ergo might be easier for you. A woven wrap (I wouldn't get a stretchy, like a Moby, at his size) might also be a good choice; my little boys were worn in those for hours as infants, and they were great because they'd really support the baby well and keep the head tucked in and all, so that my slight movements wouldn't wake the baby. There are also mei tais, like a Kozy, and those are great too, although if I were hoping for sleeping, I'd look for one with a sleeping hood (which the Ergo has).

Rivendell Academy The Shire School (sounds like a snooty private school) Bag End School for the Vertically Challenged and Perpetually Famished (Our school name has the word "Acres" in it, a nod to A. A. Milne, but I can totally see having used something LotR-ish instead!)

Honestly, I suffer. And I take an afternoon nap many days. (It's particularly bad right now because I'm very pregnant and suffering from insomnia; it's 5:25 am, and I don't have to get up for another two hours, but I'm awake now. Sigh.) I would totally sleep until 10 every morning, and so would my daughter, but we have to get up and moving before that because otherwise our schedule doesn't mesh at all well with DH's with regards to meals and all; he gets up before 5 to get ready for work every day. I try to limit the caffeine but am not always successful. I basically have the kids dress and do their morning chores while I make breakfast, and then we have breakfast with morning readings (poetry, hymn study, Bible, science or memory review -- not all of that every day, just a few things), and then I have the kids start something independent (usually reading) while I get small ones ready and clean up the kitchen and switch laundry. So by 10 am, I've done quite a bit and am ready to sit down with the kids to do some work with them. Sometimes. Some days I'm pretty useless, LOL.