Getting Started With Latin is still my old favorite. Five kids, and the poets still never carry writing tablets! I finally have a kid who does well with AOPS! What worked super well for us this year was the world geography tour I put together, loosely using Trail Guide to World Geography. We did the questions together, using a tablet map app, and we looked at pics of animals and monuments online and from the Smithsonian Man-Made Wonders book (gorgeous). We also read pages from What I Eat (this was my kids' favorite), and I spent a lot of hours last summer putting together a Spotify playlist of songs to represent many countries. We took our time meandering around the first part of the world and will finish Africa, Asia, and Oceania (and Antarctica) last year. . . It was so much fun. I personally liked the Killgallon sentence composing books, though the kids are not huge fans, but they tolerate them. I discovered Gizmos virtual demonstrations from Explore Learning, and while I have not used them with the kids yet, wowwww, they are cool! I might actually have liked science in school if we'd had these. I'm so completely psyched to enhance our science studies with these next year.

I don't have an actual job outside the home, but for my volunteer gig, that typically means, I will get to it sometime after 3 pm, when we are done with our school day, and when the littles are either playing happily or the other parent is around to be the go to. If time permits, I might get it between 3 and making dinner, or I might do it after dinner, but very often, it means sometime between 10 pm and 2 am, after the littles are settled. None of what I do is especially urgent, though, and I am not required to do anything. For something my husband or kids need, it will depend on how urgent it is and whether it needs to be done during business hours. I generally prefer to manage things after I am done with the school day, but sometimes things are more urgent.

We have seven. I've never really had any negative comments, but I always announced in a way that conveyed our delight. Even when we were expecting number seven, our rainbow baby after number six died because of his extreme prematurity, I made the announcement by sending a video of number five telling everyone he was going to be a big brother again -- and who can possibly complain about that? (Long time boardies will remember my number five and his never-failing loyalty to the little brother he lost and the love for his new brother that has not faded even after almost five years.) But if anyone did, I would have zero problem telling someone that our doctors were taking good care of us, it will all work out, and if you can't be positive, keep your mouth shut. I like to answer, "You've got your hands full" with "And my heart" or "Better full than empty." Also, congratulations if they're in order!!

Diary of a Pug Mercy Watson

We used and loved our Klean Kanteens for years and years, and they are still going strong, though a bit dinged up. I don't like them because I prefer my water room temp and not as cold as stainless keeps it. I have switched to a couple of Tervis 24 oz. tumblers with lids, and they're my holy grain. They clean up easily in the dishwasher, have a spout that can use a straw or not (I use without), are BPA-free plastic, have a very secure lid, spout slides closed so they only leak a tiny bit if they are tipped over, they fit in a cupholder, they have a lifetime warranty, can do hot or cold, and they're pretty. This is one I have: https://www.tervis.com/japanese-cherry-blossom-wrap-24oz-tumbler-1261041.html

Hugs Mama. I would cite this page: https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2021/07/medically-indicated-late-preterm-and-early-term-deliveries I would show it to her and ask, "Do I meet the qualifications for delivery for cholestasis based on this chart? If so, please explain why I do not meet delivery criteria from ACOG." I would ask for a second opinion from MFM as well. If they will not deliver you before 39+0, I would ask (strongly request) that they put in your chart that you have requested delivery in accordance with ACOG guidelines for cholestasis but they refuse because ___. Sometimes that will get them to deliver even if they are not thrilled about it. (Which does present other issues, in that you may not feel comfortable with them, but at least you and baby can be safe.) Also, I edited to add this: If they will not deliver you before 39, please do be sure to ask how they will be monitoring you (cholestasis is not my area of expertise, so I'd have to look it up, but for some conditions, extra ultrasounds, NSTs, labs, etc. may be indicated) and what you should watch for at home. Best practice is to deliver within ACOG and similar guidelines but barring that, close watch is important. This page (I did not write this particular one but have written many of the others on the site) has some scripts you can use with your team too: https://www.endpreeclampsia.org/forum/basics/advocating-for-your-care Also, I do not have personal experience with them, but you can ask to speak to a patient advocate. They may also go by patient advocate, patient representative, patient liaison, patient relations, consumer advocate, crisis resolution specialists, or ombudsman. I googled "patient advocate My Hospital Name" and found a link with a phone number, so you may be able to find that on your hospital's site as well.

I love teaching Latin, and most of my kids have enjoyed the basics of it. We start around third or fourth grade and use Getting Started With Latin. The reasons we learn Latin are not really for being able to speak Latin, so I don't think DuoLingo would be my preference for it. GSWL is one of my very favorite homeschool resources, though, and I'm going through it now with my fifth kid. I like teaching it for the grammar, the logic, and the discipline of learning a language. Now, as for DuoLingo, I'm a fan of that because it's fun and does teach some language skills. I have one kid who used it a lot for Spanish, such that she can communicate with Spanish-speaking patrons of the restaurant where she works enough to help them (that was not her only Spanish -- we did Homeschool Spanish Academy for two high school level classes, and I'd recommend that too). Another kid loves the Italian and has a five month streak going because it matters to him. Another kid has enjoyed learning Irish just for fun through DuoLingo. If my kids, younger than high school, are doing DuoLingo and getting joy out of learning languages, well, I can't complain. 😉

Get the one you really want. I've had a bunch of lower end dishwashers, and for as many times a day as we run a dishwasher (2-3), the lower end has not been worth it. I finally got a mid-level Bosch 18 months ago. It's worth every penny.

Honestly, I do love reading out loud to him, but time is a very real issue. I have two younger than he is, plus one older, that I am also homeschooling. It is not going to be feasible for me to read all core texts to him for the long term, not at the level he is capable of. I do appreciate the suggestions for various remediation and spelling programs! I had him try the nonsense words. . . some of them he mixes up letters in the middle, and some of them he would guess at and then be able to get if he took a second look. I'm going to request a referral for testing so we know for sure what we're dealing with, and I will also check out the programs everyone has suggested. Thank you so much!

Thank you!! He will probably love Crash Course!

We are a family of eight, with four drivers. We do have a fullsize 12 passenger van that we take when we need to, like on vacation. But, gas is so expensive, and also the van is a beast to park. We have DH's small commuting vehicle (good on gas), and we also have two other small commuter vehicles that are great on gas that our two young adults drive. We very often just take two of the smaller vehicles in lieu of the big van, unless we need to pay for parking. We have found that this gives us plenty of flexibility as well. For instance, we had passes to an amusement park for the family last summer, about a 45 minute drive. Parking was free with the passes, so we usually just took two cars when a lot of us went, so that some of us could go earlier or leave earlier. Would I buy another 12 passenger van at this point? I don't know. We've had it for almost nine years, so well before any kids could drive and when I was regularly hauling all six kids around together. I think if I had to replace it soon, I'd probably step down to an SUV or minivan. We still need capacity for vacation, especially with a large dog, while we could easily take an SUV/minivan plus one of the little cars, two little cars wouldn't give us the luggage capacity. But for day to day, if everyone wanted to go to dinner or on a day trip, yeah, two small cars would be cheaper than the big van.

This is great, thank you! I am going to try to see if I can get him to do the nonsense word test this week. I've also got Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading because I got tired of 100 Easy Lessons (this guy is number four), and I also have Writing Road to Reading, though I have not used it. I want to continue to read out loud to the boys, but realistically, I know I won't be able to read all of everything for forever. In addition to him, I have three other boys I'm also homeschooling, and I know I will not be able to keep up with the volume of upper level work, though I do like the idea of reading some of a section for him.

Thank you! Yes, I think I need to look into some more phonemic awareness for him, as well as the CI. At this point, I do still have him read out loud to me every day; I know it's not his favorite, but that way I can see where he needs some assistance.

Thank you! I appreciate the validation there -- I do feel like I've been able to play to his strengths without letting his difficulties hold him back, but we've got to move to the next phase now. We don't do a ton of written work at this point, but as that picks up, he will definitely need some scaffolding in organization.

Thank you! I'll message our family doctor to write a new referral for testing. She's great about that. He does seem bright (of course, I am biased), but yes, I'm concerned about the upper level sciences like you say. Nonsense words -- you know, now that you ask, I'm not sure. He does seem to have good phonemic awareness, at least as far as shorter words. He's not as great at sounding out longer unfamiliar words or spelling. I keep him reading novels out loud to me so I can guide him in strengthening those skills, but I suspect he has largely compensated by going to audiobooks in his free time. I think looking for dyslexia-specific reading remediation may well help him. Thank you so much! I think I joined this board when I was pregnant with this little guy twelve years ago, and it's always been so helpful.

Oh my goodness! I had no idea some of those resources existed! That is just incredible. He has a tablet and just got a laptop, partly so he can use things like voice text and spell check, so I am off to go look up Speechify and those others! Thank you so, so much!!

These are great suggestions -- thank you!! I will check into Singapore 7 and 8 -- not sure why I didn't know of those before, but that might be great. I do own the k12 books, so maybe they will work for reading aloud. And thank you for the other course suggestions too -- that's super helpful!

Thank you for this! He has had his eyes checked by an optometrist, and they are good (much to his dismay, LOL -- he's my kid who likes wearing a blazer and tie for fun, so he was hoping for glasses!), but I will make a point to ask about that CI and other vision issues that might be related to reading at his next appointment, as I did not know to ask specifically about that. We do have generally good therapy options in our area if needed. Reading your description, maybe I DO want to pursue testing for sure. He also has quite a few ADHD traits (not the only one of my kids with this), so that also means things jump around. I have not tried a specific dyslexic-friendly reading program; he did well with a variety of things like 100 Easy Lessons, Dick and Jane, etc., and we've always just gone nice and steady with reading, and he's gotten there. I think he probably reads a bit below his grade level, but he *can* read well enough to do anything he wants to do. (He's downstairs right now baking something, though I know he struggles to remember which abbreviation is tablespoon and which is teaspoon.) So perhaps some extra help with phonemic awareness will assist him in being able to keep moving forward there. Thank you so much for all of these things!!

Thank you! Yes, he does have a lot of strengths, which is indeed wonderful. He's got a lot of drive and desire, and I've been able to make sure his reading difficulties aren't holding him back so far. . . I just want to keep that going!

I did post to the learning challenges board too, but I could use some specific recommendations. I have a very bright, very curious little guy who will be in seventh grade next year who is likely dyslexic. He loves audiobooks and videos. He also loves learning pretty much anything. Math suggestions, please. He's done Singapore all along and does beautifully with it. His math understanding is very strong, and he picks up concepts quickly. It seems that dyslexia mostly only impacts math by him occasionally writing numbers backwards. Normally, I would move him to AOPS, but that's quite wordy. If it turns out to be too wordy for him, what else works well for strong math students without a lot of reading, as far as prealgebra and algebra? I don't necessarily need video like MUS or TT, as I'm happy to teach him myself, but I'll consider them if warranted. For science and history, we mainly read books, and his auditory understanding is quite excellent. We have always read those aloud to him, since he also has a sibling two years younger, but I'd also like some challenging but reasonable for his age (I think Great Courses are a tad much for him yet) suggestions that come in audio (or I suppose video) form for him too. Maybe I'll just continue reading aloud to them for a couple more years and let him supplement on his own with audio/video, because he does do that for fun voluntarily. Sooooo, what makes good readalouds for history for seventh graders (and also fifth graders with strong vocabulary, because I need to take younger brother and my time into consideration? We are finishing SOTW 4 this year.

I have long suspected one of my little guys is dyslexic. It's super hard to get an evaluation around here because everything is booked up for months on end, so I don't know for sure, but from what I see, it's likely. (I'd discussed that with him, and he listened to some of his favorite kid-appropriate YouTubers talking about it apparently, and came to me and said, "What they're describing -- that's how words look for me.") Anyway, official diagnosis or not, it hasn't really impacted his education to this point because we've been able to accommodate easily; I've required minimal copying, for instance, and not from a board. I do have him continue practicing reading print, but I've also allowed and encouraged audiobooks so that he's been able to understand and enjoy books at a level higher than his reading abilities. I've also combined him with his close in age brother for lots of things, so that I can read aloud to both of them. His listening comprehension, reasoning, and vocabulary are *excellent,* thanks to vast hours of audiobooks, and he's the kind of kid who can't get enough of learning new facts and things. In fact, before I read anything, I have learned to ask if he has any fun facts to add about the subject, or he continually raises his hand so he can share a tidbit he heard somewhere. So, I want to make sure that he keeps that interest and love and that he's able to get the *more* that he seeks. (I may pursue diagnosis in the next few years mainly so that he can ask for test accommodations if he wants them.) Buuuuut. He moves into seventh grade next year. I'm thinking that he probably needs to move into some more independent work for things like science and history where instead of me reading to him, he reads on his own and reports back to me in some way. But I am not sure his reading speed will allow him to keep up with the volume required for upper level work at his comprehension levels. Allowing more time for tests is one thing, but allowing more time for reading history, science, etc. seems trickier, because it seems like it would feel like a punishment to him. Not everything for upper levels comes in audio or video form. Thankfully there are some options, and we can utilize those as much as possible, but I also don't want to assume those will always be options. I feel like I want to start making some transitions over the next couple of years so that we are solid on what is feasible and can be expected before high school. So, I would love to hear from those of you who have been through dyslexia or similar issues with your kids, especially if they were the kind who seemed like the type who would want to go on to college.

Didn't read all the replies. Are there classic books you personally love? If so, maybe try one of those. That has the potential to backfire, but it also has potential to give them warm fuzzy feelings too because it's a part of you, someone they love. (For instance, my ILs have a little cottage where my kids love boating and spending time with their grandparents. There's a print with a quote from Wind in the Willows that I've pointed out to the kids a few times. So I recently started reading WitW to them. Because they associate it with their grandparents, they're sort of pre-set-up to expect they'll like it. And they do.) I also suggest audio books that the kids can enjoy on their own, at their leisure, no analysis, just discovering what they like, completely on their terms. My 9 and 11yo don't have as much access to screens as the older kids do, so they spend a ton of time listening to audio books. Vary the time you read -- try during or after lunch if bedtime isn't good and vice versa -- and read just a few pages if that's all you're up for. Especially with older books, they can be a lot to follow, so maybe a full chapter at once isn't always feasible. Fidgets or drawing or the like might help too. Try the more modern classics. Try ones with a movie. (Normally I am pro "book first then movie," but my 11-year-old had seen the Lord of the Rings movies several times and loved them, as the rest of the family does, so he decided he'd listen to the entire trilogy this summer. He didn't get all of it, but he liked it, and he could follow the basic plot points.) Try a shorter version; again, normally, I prefer just to wait until they're ready for the full book, but sometimes a shorter version can help make something accessible and interesting. I love the idea of interaction! Try food from the book or YouTube videos that talk about some aspects. And you know what? Kids are their own people. Some are not going to like to read for fun. Some don't like fiction. A d that's okay too. It's good to encourage and to have some expectations as far as school goes, but don't sweat about it too much.

Did we go to the same school? Because that sounds exactly like what happened to me over and over. I was tiny, not especially athletic, but also very good at school and a very polite, nice kid. So I often got to be the teacher's helper, or the kid who was asked to help the new kid or pair up with the weird kid that nobody else wanted. Kids only wanted to pick me first or have me on their teams for academic projects. But gym? Heck no. Last or second last every single time. And I get it, because I like to win too, but I have the biggest beef with how they did things. It was fine for them to send me the message that I wasn't good at sports, verbally and non-verbally, throwing everyone in one gym class together -- but had I ever picked on a kid for not being able to spell, I'd have been in deep trouble (not that I would have anyway, because my parents raised me better). And academics were tracked by ability, so that even kids who weren't academically minded were given the opportunity to succeed at their level. Why couldn't gym have been at least sort of like that? I realize they couldn't have four gym levels, but two, maybe? In college, we had so many choices, so athletic kids could take sports classes, and the rest of us could take fitness for life, where we had to find activities that worked for us. So I could get credit for going for a walk, or going hiking in the woods with friends. I feel like gym class could have been so much better if it focused on that sort of thing -- lifelong fitness and finding ways to be active that don't involve competition -- for so many kids. (We don't do team sports as a family. We walk and hike and kayak and swim for fun, and when the kids do anything organized, it's martial arts, where their only competition is themselves.) End rant! I think choosing teams, kids or adults, is terrible, whether you do it by height or by ability. Counting off doesn't work either because kids are sneaky buggers. ABC order and alternating wouldn't really work either because it has the potential to be the same kids on each team every time, and everyone likes to win sometimes. Pulling something out of a bag is a better idea IMO. We also had one co-op teacher who would split kids into teams by asking silly questions like "who had cereal for breakfast?" I think that was more for a specific game where she deliberately wanted a majority and a handful, but the premise could work otherwise too.

I love it. Now, is it always easy, sunshine and roses? No. Are there days when I don't like it? Yes. But loving it is deeper than whether I like it on any given day or not. Loving it means it feels right overall for me/us, that it's something I have a general positive, warm fuzzy feeling about, and that I feel strongly enough to keep persevering when the days are rough and enjoying it when the days are easy. There's so much I love about the homeschooling lifestyle, and there are so many reasons I have chosen and keep choosing to do it, but the main reason I love it is because I love being with my kids and sharing adventures with them, learning new things, watching them get excited as things click, all of it. It's really special to be a part of their learning. I also will admit that I did not give anything up to homeschool, nor to be a SAH mom. Even in college, I never hoped for a career and was thrilled when I had our oldest and stopped working (which was always part time and bonus anyway). I don't have anything I wish I could do or that I miss doing. Of course it is a financial concern to have a single income, but since we've always planned it that way, we don't feel a loss the same way as someone who left a career to homeschool.

Ah, see, you said all of yours were induced for blood pressure concerns. If you had gestational hypertension (or what used to be called pregnancy induced hypertension), that is in the same family as preeclampsia (in fact, a lot of the major researchers think it is just preeclampsia that has not yet progressed to affect other organs and systems like kidneys, liver, lungs, brain, platelets, or red blood cells). So it would carry the same repeat concerns.