We recycle most of the cards. My dd11 uses some of the scenes on scrapbook pages. Photos of friends and family we save. I love to see how everyone grows and changes from year to year.

What a great bond they must have! Thanks for sharing the heart warming moment:001_smile:!

I tried FlyLady a couple of years ago and seemed to get numerous emails throughout the day. I think that I spent more time reading what was sent to me than I actually did cleaning. Although I like the idea of the cleaning zones, I couldn't seem to stick with it.

Next year, I think that I will make our photo cards say "Hope you had a Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!" since I can't seem to send my cards out on time either. Last year, I had the photo cards made and never sent any of them. My intentions are good...my follow-through isn't:001_huh:.

:iagree:Thanks for posting! I will need to borrow some of your ideas.

I have three children who are all very different. I am only homeschooling ds8 at this point. We knew that he was struggling academically in school and it was really affecting his self-esteem. Unfortunately, in ps, he was getting the "band aid" approach in first grade. He received some extra support, but wasn't far enough behind according to all of their tests to get an IEP. We pulled him out of ps last year after one month in second grade. By last June, I realized that he was not just delayed, something was seriously wrong. Private testing revealed that he has dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia. So, we will continue to homeschool him as he is making great progress one-on-one at home with a program that is individualized to his needs/strengths. I have older twins in ps. Dd 11 wants to stay with her friends and she is excelling academically, so we did not remove her. Ds11 has autism and receives a specialized program with a variety of different therapies. I don't feel that I could adequately meet his needs at home, especially with his younger brother requiring so much support. We did not choose to homeschool for religious reasons. We had to do it for our youngest since he was not learning in a large group setting. There is a special school in our area for kids with learning disabilities, but it is for grades 5-12. They use Wilson Reading, as well as other research based programs, with their students. It is really expensive, but we are hoping to send ds8 there when he is old enough. He will not return to ps.

To Ma23Peas: We are in the same age group, so I have seen all of those movies listed. ALL tear jerkers! I cry easily at movies and when I read books. Even the sappy Hallmark commercials make me shed tears. As a child, I saw "Where The Red Fern Grows" and used up a box of tissues. When my dd read it, she commented that it was sad, but didn't shed a tear:confused:! I cannot watch any movie with sick children or injured animals. NO WAY will I be seeing War Horse (at least not in the theater). BTW, the skating movie with the blind skater is" Ice Castles". How can anyone from that era forget Robby Benson!! He also starred in the movie version of the book "Death Be Not Proud." I remember crying in my 6th grade class when our teacher had us read the book.

Instead of focusing on weight loss, I will instead attempt to have all of us eat healthier. I say that every year and it lasts a couple of weeks. Work on my time management. Like the flylady.com site says, we live in CHAOS (Can't Have Any One Over Sydrome). If I didn't spend my free time on the computer:glare:, I might actually have a cleaner and more organized home! I have enjoyed reading the inspiring messages on this thread. I, too, really want to focus more on the positive things in life. I WILL be thankful for what I have and live more in the moment instead of worrying so much about the future. Happy New Year to all!

Three kids and 9 assorted pets (and now my dd is asking for a hedgehog!). I wish we lived on a farm so we could add some sheep and chickens to our menagerie. Unfortunately, we are stuck in the suburbs. My neighbor said she wants to have her cub scout troop visit our "petting zoo" to earn a badge. By the way, my dh doesn't like animals and never had a pet growing up (not even a fish), but he indulges the rest of us (and pays the vet bills).

:iagree:I know that you wrote in your original post that your school won't provide services to your daughter. Is that according to your state regulations?? I am still learning all the regs here in New York state, but I recently found out that the state is legally required to provide services to homeschooled children with IEPs. However, the parent has the right to decline services.

I only am homeschooling my ds8, who has a mixed learning disability. My older son, ds11, has autism and goes to public school. I always think about removing him from ps (and I feel guilty too!), but I know that I could not provide the same program he is currently receiving (speech, occupational therapy, music therapy, counseling, etc.). As much as I feel he would benefit from 1:1 instruction at home, I know that I would not be able to meet his other needs. So, I understand how you feel and it is a difficult decision to make. It does sound like your dd needs an intensive program and it would probably be difficult to provide all of that yourself at home, especially since you are already homeschooling her sibling.

Glad to hear that you went to the vet. Hope all is well with your puppy.:001_smile: One of our dogs went through something similar last month. She is 6 and suddenly started having accidents in the house. After a few days of this, I found blood and chunks (sorry to be gross) in her urine. Our vet checked for stones and did a urine analysis too. She did have a UTI, but the ph level in her urine was also very high. She went on meds for a short time to bring the ph down, but he also suggested changing foods since sometimes the ingredients in cheaper foods can cause this. After the antibiotic and the meds for the ph, the accidents stopped and everything is now fine. Just an FYI for you since I see that your vet is sending out the UA for your puppy.

""and he commented that 'wow, not many people have cherry cabinets in the laundry room.' Thank you, sir!""" Yes, my neighbor nearly had a heart attack when I told her that I painted my natural cherry cabinets in the laundry room black! Oh well, I like it! It sounds like you had a great showing! Good luck to you. I can't imagine trying to keep my house clean and tidy, especially at this time of year. Actually, I don't think it is clean and tidy at any time of year. Merry Christmas and hope you hear positive news.

I love it when someone stops over and asks my son "what did you learn today?" No matter what, his response is always, "Nothing!" A proud parent moment! He is not big on conversation unless it is about lego, Mario Bros., or superheroes.

:grouphug::grouphug: I don't really have any specific tips, but wanted you to know that you are not alone. There are always going to be those people who just don't get it. Dealing with special needs is truly one of those times that people do not understand unless they are walking in your shoes too. It is very hard since our kids don't look different, so most people don't realize that they have a disability and (sometimes) judge without knowing the facts. Honestly, I have been guilty of that in the past, before having children and special needs diagnoses. My ds11 has autism. He had a meltdown in a restaurant last Sunday after church because he wanted a hamburger and they were only serving breakfast. We did get stares from people sitting around us, which really embarassed his twin sister and younger brother. We got through it, but it is hard when we are just never certain when he will lose control. Sometimes it is over quickly, and other times it seems to go on forever. Medication has helped him somewhat and I am not someone who ever wanted to give my son medicine. It just seems to take the edge off so he is not as explosive as he used to be in the past. I once saw a shirt that said "I have autism. What's your excuse?" Not very nice, but it would get the point across.

:iagree: I watched some of the Barton video presentations and read about all of the warning signs. I really felt that my son demonstrated many of the characteristics that Susan Barton described. We had an evaluation completed soon afterwards and he was diagnosed with dyslexia, as well as dyscalculia and dysgraphia. Having a definite diagnosis helped us to plan his academic program and helped me to realize his needs, as well as his strengths.

:iagree:

We wear same colors, but outfits don't match exactly. I don't want to have clashing colors and I want it to look somewhat natural.

If you are looking to add a pop of color, is there some accent color you are already using in the entry/kitchen, i.e. window treatments or any knick knacks? Just thinking that you could use a color that is already in your home as the accent wall color to tie it all together.

I have read a lot of info on this forum re: Nancy Larson Science. I really think that I need the "open and go" style curriculum so that science will get done on a consistent basis. But, of course, the cost of NL....yikes! Does it ever go on sale? Any coupon codes?

OK, if you go to Reading Horizons directly at: http://readinghorizons.com/company/news/press/fcrr.aspx you can then click on the link at the bottom of this page and it should take you directly to the pdf review that FCRR did of the Discover Intensive Phonics program. If that doesn't work for you, let me know:).

Guilty of unwrapping and rewrapping so my parents wouldn't know!! :tongue_smilie: Now, as a parent, I don't want my kids to snoop through the gifts because I want them to be surprised. Of course, they are not teenagers yet so they are pretty easy to shop for and make happy. (I still like to know what I am getting though.)

:lol::lol::lol: I'm very happy for your daughter and congrats to both of you for all of the hard work!

OK, I just tried the links. The second one for the program review did not work. It directed me to a page that read "Oops! Internet Explorer could not find fcrrreports". However, I clicked on the google search below this statement and I was able to access the report that way. Let me know if you still have a problem and I will try to help figure it out.

http://fcrr.org/fcrrreports/creportscs.aspx?rep=supp is the link for the summary table. http://FCRRReports/PDF/DiscoverIntensivePhonics.pdf is the link for the program review. Hope I did those correctly since I have never tried to add a direct link before. I have very limited computer skills! Michelle:001_smile: