Thanks for the response. I do not speak French either, so I am always curious what others are using if they are making progress despite the ignorance of the parent :001_smile: With my rising third grader, I've been thinking about giving it another go on our own at home.

8FillTheHeart, please forgive the slightly OT question: may I ask what your daughter did for French in the younger years? When did she start learning and what type of program did she use? I'm just curious, because I did classes through the French Alliance for a year with two of my kids, and we really like it, but it is just not in the budget right now.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but there is a blog and book named "The Perfect Health Diet" that has some of the best nutritional info I have seen. The name sounds incredibly cheesy to me, but it is a fantastic resource. It is closely linked to Paleo (you will see references to this site/book from well known Paleo places such as Mark's Daily Apple, etc). There is a revised version of the book coming out, so I would not buy the book now, but the blog is incredibly extensive and would provide a ton of info while waiting for the book. Anyway, my point is that they focus on the role that nutritional deficiencies play in health/weight issues. Just want to throw this out there in case it helps anyone. ETA: I forgot to say that the Whole 30 is great, too! The Perfect Health Diet info is helpful in showing where vitamin/mineral deficiencies may be sabotaging efforts to lose weight/restore health.

I don't think anyone linked to this one yet...I like this one a lot: http://www.amazon.com/Is-Grand-Canyon-Arizona-Alphabet/dp/1585360686/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1332989191&sr=8-3

I noticed that this lesson planning app was just released a few days ago in the app store. Has anyone looked at this or purchased? I've been lurking and searching the planning threads and have been trying to make a decision on what to use. My oldest is entering first grade, so I'm still very new to planners and organizing methods and sometimes find it difficult to evaluate the various choices. The app is $9.99.

I've had this issue with two out of three pregnancies (with the two boys, oddly enough). I've never had problems with stones outside of pregnancy. The first passed on it's own, with the only complication being extreme back pain. With the other pregnancy, I had very mild back pain, but I could visibly see blood in my urine one day, when I was about 20 weeks or so. Within a few hours of seeing blood and wondering if I had UTI I started having contractions. I stayed the night in labor and delivery and was given IV fluids, which stopped the contractions and helped me pass the stone.

Thanks so much for these audio suggestions! This is exactly what I'm looking for.

Do any of you have suggestions for CDs with songs or jingles with things like months of the year, etc? My oldest is entering first grade, and I'd like to have a few audio options when we are driving around. Thanks for the suggestions in this thread.

Thanks so much for your responses. I won't have the new math books until next week, so I appreciate having an idea of what to start gathering so I'm prepared.

Hello, I am delurking because I could use some assistance in choosing manipulatives for Singapore math. I am new to homeschooling this year. My oldest is in kinder and almost six years old. We have completed Singapore Earlybird and I am waiting for the 1a standards edition to arrive. Can anyone shed some light on which math manipulatives would be the best to have on hand, at least to start? I have been searching through the board, but there are so many threads and so many suggestions, I am a bit overwhelmed. In your opinion, what are the tried and true manipulatives/games for the early years, especially in conjunction with Singapore?