You mean like this sort of thing? http://www.amazon.com/Carnival-Animals-Book-CD/dp/037586458X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1294584909&sr=8-2 More here, though we've only used the first on the list so far (but liked it): http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=benjamin+britten&x=0&y=0#/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_36?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=young+persons+guide+to+the+orchestra&sprefix=young+persons+guide+to+the+orchestra&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Ayoung+persons+guide+to+the+orchestra This: http://www.amazon.com/Can-You-Hear-William-Lach/dp/0810957213/ref=pd_rhf_shvl_3 These are not book-CD sets but have been well-loved by our children (and us as well): http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=classical+kids+cd&x=0&y=0

This has been such a helpful thread to me; I'm glad others have been blessed by it as well. My mom (former homeschooler) immediately mentioned the Kay Arthur books as well, and she has some of those plus some others on the list. She's going to send them all to me, and I think I'll try them with/show them to DD and see what works best. I'll try to report back!

Not a silly question at all. You certainly can list and buy with the same agent; it's possible that since that agent will be getting both a listing fee and a buying fee on your behalf, he/she may be willing to accept a slightly lower listing fee, which means less you'll pay her out of the sale of your current home. No guarantee, of course, but you can always ask. Some agents only work with buyers, and some only work with sellers, but he/she will tell you that, and if that's the case, you can ask for recommendations from him/her for your other agent.

More great suggestions -- thanks!

I honestly have no idea; it's been a few years for us, but I think it was around $300-400, so it may be higher now, especially if you want someone with old house experience. (In our case, a regular professional inspector did the water testing and general inspections, and my DH looked at the old stuff himself and decided there weren't major structural or other issues.)

Oh, and I forgot this (doesn't apply to us, since we live in the country, and nobody seems to care what we do): if you buy a historic house in a historic district, you may need to adhere to certain rules about what you can and can't do to the house/property (like paint colors and such). I guess modern houses with homeowner's associations have those issues too though, but it's something to consider.

We have had newer houses (less than 20 years old) and currently have an old house (almost 200 years old). Old houses definitely have their charm, especially if maintained well and correctly. You do have to watch for lead paint, and old houses do have their issues. Plus, we've found that as people updated our house, they didn't always do things correctly, so DH (who is an old house professional) has had to correct some things and has often lamented the loss of several original windows (the replacements are probably more efficient but not as historically accurate). Sometimes things like adding indoor plumbing or central heating may be slightly quirky. It can be very expensive and maybe sometimes tricky to find just the right person who knows what to do to repair/restore an old house properly. That's not to discourage you from buying an old house -- ours has its issues but is also a very solidly built house, and with time and money, could be pretty cool. We live with some issues (like, porch converted into laundry room -- but at least it HAS a laundry room) and have corrected others (like, working heat for our upstairs bedrooms). I think that if you are interested in an older home, you would want to find professionals to help you; I (former real estate agent) always recommend a professional home inspection on any potential house purchase, but if you're not an old house professional, find someone who is to look at the house thoroughly.

Definitely Williamsburg, but also Jamestown and Yorktown, which aren't far. It's not the right time for you for the special homeschool discount rates, but if you don't have a ton of time, you can just walk around Colonial Williamsburg and observe the architecture and interpreters' dress and such. You just need to buy tickets if you want to go in the buildings (unless things have changed in the past couple of years). There are two Jamestown sites; one has the site of the original settlement and a collection of artifacts, and the other has two recreated villages (English and Powhatan), ships, and an amazing gallery of artifacts. There is also a Yorktown Visitor Center, with an army camp, colonial farm, and galleries; you can also visit the Yorktown Battlefield, though we have not personally been there. We thought all of the sites were neat, but with limited time, especially in the winter, I'd opt for Williamsburg and/or the Jamestown Settlement (the one with the recreated villages and galleries). More info: http://www.historyisfun.org/Jamestown-Settlement.htm Also, history.org (Williamsburg), historicjamestowne.org, and nps.gov/york. In southern Maryland, Historic St. Mary's City. http://www.stmaryscity.org/ Other southern MD sites here: http://somd.com/culture/historicsites/ In northern Maryland, colonial Annapolis. In Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia is Valley Forge (though it's very near King of Prussia's huge mall, so around Christmas is likely to be very crowded). I've not been here, but this looks cool (and not far from Philly): http://explorepahistory.com/attraction.php?id=1748 More in PA: http://explorepahistory.com/story.php?storyId=20 I know nothing about New York and New Jersey, sorry. :) If you have the time, Plimoth Plantation could be a (long) day trip. And of course, there's Boston, but that is also a longer trip. Oh, and I just found this site too while looking: http://usparks.about.com/od/revwarsitesnatl/Revolutionary_War_Sites_National_Parks.htm (Sorry, that got long. History is kind of one of our family's "things," and we've been privileged to work at and/or live near a lot of historic places up and down the east coast.)

Wow, thank you all for the quick and helpful responses! That is exactly the kind of info I was hoping to find. The Kay Arthur books look good; I'll have to see if DD would like the puzzles and all, or if they're not her thing. I'm also thinking that the Explorer's Bible Study would be perfect; we could do it orally, and/or I could have her do fewer questions a day and take longer to work through it all. And thanks for mentioning the Covenantal Catechism; it sounds intriguing and worth a closer look too, might be just the ticket. I like the looks of the One Year Bible for Kids for her too, especially since the OYB for Children looks like it would be good for her younger brother. All the suggestions are much appreciated!

I definitely keep my kids in the same time period for history (and same topic for science too). I tend to gear the main readings toward my 8yo, but I read aloud so everyone hears, and then I add supplemental books that are often picture books geared more to my 5yo's level. The 5yo usually does pretty well with understanding the main readings, but I do sometimes have to stop and explain things to him. (This year we're using SOTW volume 2, which is maybe a bit below the 8yo but which the 5yo understands fine; last year, we used H. E. Marshall's This Country of Ours, which was fine for DD but which required much more explanation for DS1.) If there's a worksheet or something that is applicable, the 5yo may or may not participate, but they can both participate in activities, games, recipes, etc. They do feed off of each other too and will often dress themselves up and pretend they're in such-and-such a time period together. I can't imagine finding the time and energy to do two sets of history plans either! (Then again, we're a very history-oriented family, so there's a lot of supplemental stuff to do; a family that's not so into history might find it relatively easy to have two basic curricula going.)

Hi! A friend recommended this board to me. I'm looking for some Bible study suggestions for my daughter. She is 8, a very fluent reader, but she strongly detests a lot of writing. She is very familiar with basic Bible stories, and we have a good Scripture memory system in place. I'm looking for something that is a bit more along the Bible study/application lines. Ideally, I'd like something more than a quick devotional sort of thing but not quite as in-depth and grown-up-oriented as Polished Cornerstones (which also had too much writing for her tastes; I think we will look at that again in a few years). Since we have several younger children, I think something that could have her read/look up a few verses and then discuss them with me would be good, rather than something that needs me to sit right there the whole time with her. (We also have A Child's Book of Character Building, but I'm looking for a bit more than that.) We liked Susan and Richie Hunt's books a lot but have been through all of them. Sorry, this is a bit disjointed, I know. I guess I'm looking for something that will help her learn to look up things in the Bible and to synthesize them to see what she gets out of them. Any and all suggestions would be great! Thanks!