Hi! I think you could read Farmer Boy first, especially if you think that might get boys hooked into the series. It's about the childhood of the author's husband. The order for the rest of the books (and I would read them in this order) is: Little House in the Big Woods Little House on the Prairie On the Banks of Plum Creek By the Shores of Silver Lake The Long Winter Little Town on the Prairie These Happy Golden Years The First Four Years On the Way Home West From Home

Wow, that would be annoying! The USPS gets to call itself a business but does not have to make any guarantees that it will do its job. If my DH's company didn't do the job they had been paid to do, they'd be in trouble. If teachers don't do the job they're paid to do, there are consequences. But not the USPS; they get to tell you "tough luck" because you didn't pay extra. Ridiculous. Our mail carrier is very nice, but what I don't get is when she brings a package to us, she brings it to the front door. That's all fine, except that 9 times out of 10, she leaves the other mail in the mailbox (which is across the street). I understand trying to shove a package into the box so she doesn't have to get out of the car, but if she's getting out anyway, why not bring me ALL of my mail, especially since the kids or I are usually opening the door to take the package from her? (And I know it's her; I've watched it happen several times.) I do think it's a buyer's market out there right now, not so much the seller's. I haven't tried selling anything, but I've gotten some really good deals in purchases.

I usually say, "thank you -- she chose the outfit herself/he's worked really hard on that skill/he's a good big brother/something like that." I feel that that shows that I appreciate the compliment but am not taking undue credit. Now, if someone comments on how cute one of my little guys is, I often say, "thank you -- I like him, but maybe I'm biased," with a chuckle. :)

Right now, I'm pretty happy with the books/curricula I have, and there are only a few cases where being able to spend more money might be helpful, if those. A bigger budget would mean more classes, lessons, field trips, and enrichment experiences, and I do dream of that.

This year I spent a couple hundred dollars on books and curriculum for my three older children. A lot of that will be reused. Less than another hundred for consumable supplies, including printer paper and ink. I only budget about $20 a month for other stuff -- trips, co-op fees, other consumable supplies, etc. -- because that's what we have available. Gas prices directly correspond to what free/inexpensive opportunities we take. I do have multiple excellent public library systems, and I use them heavily; I also use a lot of free stuff from the internet, or from our co-op's lending library, or from my mom's shelves, or from things I picked up years ago dirt cheap at library sales. I'm realizing that I may not spend a lot of money, but I spend a lot of another currency -- my time and energy. It takes time to put it all together for free, to track stuff down, to look at what the libraries have, etc.

We don't generally remove the cream unless we specifically want it for something (it's not really cost-effective for making butter), and it makes the milk taste yummy. But if we do want the cream, a turkey baster works really well to skim off the cream.

Thanks, everyone. I hadn't looked closely enough at all of the books before I posted. ;) I think I've got a manageable plan now. It should take about 47 days to get through the Singapore 2A book, and I'm assuming about the same for the 2B book (which I don't have yet). So with some Miquon days mixed in there, the 2A book should work for the first half of the year. I honestly don't think he'll need the Practice sets, just the Workbook sets. (I'm not sure that 2A isn't too easy for him, actually, but I'm opting for "easier, better foundation, making sure all bases are covered" over "faster, more challenging.") As for oral vs. written, I think I'll just have to see. It will take more of my time for oral answers, but a) he may want the hand-holding (with this particular child, maybe literally, LOL) and b) I would like to step up his writing vs. oral in other subjects, so I'd rather not overwhelm him.

More :grouphug:, mama -- glad the vent helped! It does sound like a hard time right now, but I'm glad you are able to see the bright spots too!

I am personally looking forward to trying the chicken mummy this coming year! Never mind if the kids like it; Mom wants to try it. (I think they'll like it, though; they loved doing the messy and kinda gross jello-and-candy cell model last year, and it did help them learn the functions of cell parts.) My kids like doing projects to an extent. They often like historic games and such, and they love food that is similar to how people in a particular era would have eaten, but when it comes to "make a such-and-such," DD is picky. She really likes historic arts and crafts, but she wants them to be authentic. Like, when we studied American history, she wasn't interested in paper weaving to imitate colonial weavers; she's seen enough real looms that she wanted the shuttle and everything. (And we'll not even talk about historic costumes, haha -- yikes.)

DD started Getting Started With Latin and French with Nallenart's L'art de Lire in third grade and had no trouble keeping them separate. (In fact, learning them simultaneously actually helped her, because since things like "they are" are similar in both languages, it helped her remember which French words were "they are" and which were "they have.")

So I am sitting here looking at the Singapore Math 2A textbook, workbook, and HIG, and I'm trying to figure out a general plan for my 7yo son. It looks like it might work for me to do a hands-on activity from the HIG with him (or set him up to do it himself, depending on the activity), and then a section from the textbook (the "Learning Tasks"), and then have him do the practice problems from the workbook on his own. Does that sound like too much? Alternately, is there a reason to have him write out the answers to the workbook as opposed to him answering them verbally? How do you organize the Singapore items? We have a four-day school week, and I also want to incorporate Miquon pages in there too.

I would include Basic Infant/Toddler Care under Life Skills; they should know how to change a diaper, how to recognize a choking hazard, etc. I would also add Basic Firearms Safety; even if you don't have guns in the home, all children should know what to do if a friend shows them a gun or something. Under Life Skills, I would also include How To Ask For Help, which may, at times, include asking for help from a stranger. I'd include Internet/Facebook Caution for teens/preteens -- what should and should not be put on the internet. Show them how a bunch of innocent things can add up to a lot of information being put out there by them. Water Safety too. The Army Corps of Engineers has a program that looks good for this, with a DVD; I am still trying to get ahold of it though.

My almost 4yo can't undo the crotch buckle of his MyRide yet; it's a tough one. My response to a toddler undoing the chest buckle (which has only happened once or twice) is to pull over immediately, or asap, to rebuckle him/her, and to state that he/she should never do that again. If it happens again, I pull over and sit. They don't like just sitting and not going anywhere, so they learn quickly not to do that. ETA: I'm pretty sure this is not recommended, but given the choice between this and having a child riding unbuckled, I might take this: look for a different chest clip. I know we had a Century carseat whose chest clip was much harder to undo than others; my toddlers could not undo it, whereas they can undo the MyRide chest clip.

Congratulations!

Ah, I did not know that, but that makes sense. Still, I think before taking someone else's meds, I would at least call my doctor and discuss the situation.

We tried L'art de Lire with DD, and we liked it okay. It was a little slow for her, I think, and very repetitive. I think she also wanted more grammar; she wants to know the rules of how you conjugate verbs and how you make nouns plural and how you make adjectives feminine, etc. IOW, she wanted to see an example and then be able to apply a rule to all (or at least most) of the other words she saw in the same category. (This is more how her Latin book, Getting Started With Latin, worked, and she loved that.) So this year, I have ordered a basic French book for her (this one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071453873/ref=oh_details_o04_s00_i02), and we'll see how that goes.

My kids have really liked the BrainQuest workbooks. We use them for a change of pace, or to hit skills that might appear on standardized tests but that we haven't hit yet, or as reinforcement. (They also make easy things to put in our portfolio, since we don't do a ton of formal science.) DD has learned a lot of grammar and spelling from the BQ books. Unfortunately, they stop at grade 4, so we have ordered the Comprehensive Curriculum grade 5 book.

That's the important thing -- that you flipped him when he was rubbing his eyes. Good paying attention to his cues! I'm a huge babywearing advocate, so I'm excited to see that it was helpful. One of the things I like about wearing a baby is that it makes interaction so effortless. I kiss on my little guy's head, make goofy noises and faces at him, tickle his toes, play with his hands, etc., and I barely realize I do it. I wonder if just wearing him will let you do those sorts of things easily, which will provide gentle stimulation that will help him get used to having people play with his hands and all. Also, if the knit fabric gets to be too stretchy for him, there may be a babywearing group in your local area, or close to you, and they may be able to help you find a different carrier. Feel free to PM me if you do find yourself at that point, and I'll see what I can do.

Any chance you could call your doctor and explain the situation and maybe have him/her call in a script for Percocet or something?

I vote carrying indeed! People always comment on my babies' head control, and I really think that being in a supported upright position (none of mine like being in a carrier lying down) helps them develop the head control. It will also help him to be interested in what's around him, while allowing him to put his head down against you when he's had enough stimulation. Good for you, mama!

I've been cosleeping and breastfeeding for a decade straight; we've never done anything else. My DH wasn't sure about cosleeping at first, but he loves it (and loves that he doesn't have to get up to get a baby at night); when he's away (rarely), he complains that he can't sleep because the space is too empty. Sometimes the preschooler still comes and sleeps at the foot of our bed. But they all outgrow it eventually. :) ETA: It does take me a while to get readjusted to sleeping with a tiny baby, as well as nursing a newborn again (they suck hard compared to toddlers!), but after a bit, it's certainly the easiest way for us to sleep. My third baby, in particular, would sleep in a wrap on me most of the day, and then he'd nurse a ton at night while I slept. It was great! I am so going to miss the years of having snuggly little nurslings!

Love that idea! I introduced negatives to my daughter in the sense of owing money. That did it for her. For my son, the number line helped, but I also have some flat bars, similar to C-rods, only smaller and flatter; I think they are actually designed for overheads. They're clear red and clear yellow, and I designated one negative and one positive. That showed my son how a red and a yellow cancel each other out and make zero. That got it for him.

Oh, that is CUTE! I love it and think it just might work. I will have several non-readers, though; I wonder if it would work for the bigger kids to help them. Hmmmm, will have to think about that. ETA: I just realized that I could do this with pictures so the younger children could participate. I think I might use animals instead of birds, just so the pictures will be very distinct. Thanks for the suggestion!!!

I buy colored pencils, big boxes of crayons, and construction paper at the craft store with 40% off coupons. Paint too, actually, and any other occasionally-used craft items. When the sales come around in the summer, I buy notebook paper, spiral notebooks, 3-prong notebook/folders, printer paper, small boxes of crayons, pencils, glue, and glue sticks. Maybe pens too. (Actually, this year, we didn't go through as much glue, so I won't buy much of that next year, but I'll buy glue sticks for sure.) I generally get as much as Staples will let me get super cheap. ETA: I usually buy a couple of pairs of child's scissors each year as well. As I mentioned in the other thread, they actually have been doing pretty well at keeping track of their own scissors, but I'll buy a couple of pairs anyway in case one does get lost or broken.

Each child has his/her own box for supplies, and I do as well. Everything goes back in those boxes. If I find something, I know where it belongs. If you find stuff wandering a lot, like scissors or tape, you might need to buy multiples of those items; I have three pairs of scissors, for instance, and they are labeled: school desk, upstairs desk, kitchen. (The same goes for the eighty billion USB cords we seem to acquire.) The three kids have different colored scissors, and the 3yo has crayons, while the older kids have colored pencils, each of a different brand, so I can tell whose are whose if I find them lying around. The only things that we routinely lose are pens. I'm super picky about my pens, so anything that's not "my" type, I put in the caddy on the side of the fridge, and that's where I tell the kids to look if they can't find a pen. For my pens, they're a specific type, so I know they need to go back to my desk/in my bag if I find one sitting somewhere. But also, I am a stickler; I don't consider your work to be done if you've not put your supplies back/returned supplies borrowed from me. Amazing how fast the kids find the pen they've borrowed if they need to do so in order to finish their work! LOL at the tampon-scissors -- that's hilarious and clever! I'm the same way about keys and sunglasses. When someone invents a tiny sticker with a finder, I'm buying a ton of them, and then I'll have a bunch of the finders lined up on the wall, so I can push the button of whatever item I'm missing that second, and the item will beep.