Actually, the laws of the country have been creeping in to take away freedom of religion. (Religious employers being required to provide birth control and abortion drugs via health care to employees...) It amazes me that people seem to think it so far fetched that we could go down the "slippery slope" (definition of marriage, First Ammendment rights, etc.) I can remember when the thought of same-sex marriage was considered to be ridiculous by the majority. But then, I remember one of my teachers back in the 60's telling us that some day people would have computers in their houses! That seemed as far fetched as saying we would all live on Mars!

God is not some "invisible man" to the believer. And if a Bible-believing person believes that the Bible teaches that homosexuality is wrong, that person cannot in good conscience fight for the right of same-sex couples to marry. It is not up for a vote. As one bumper sticker reads, "God said it, that settles it,whether you believe it or not." And for the person who will take these words and take offense, I am simply explaining why a stright person might not be able to support gay marriage.

I was referring to your comment that loving hetero marriage doesn't say anything about marriage equality one way or the other. In other words, one can be pro marriage equality and still be pro hetero marriage (so the logo with the man and woman doesn't really say anything about one's views of gay marriage). We don't have to attack the idea of hetero marriage to support gay marriage. Thus my comment about each of us being produced by a man and a woman. I was agreeing with you, not arguing with you. I have no fear of the human race becoming extinct!

Maybe not today...

Are they?? Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor brought up these examples yesterday.

Then what, exactly, is the definition of marriage? Are we ready to accept a definition of marriage that could include polygamy, or marriage of siblings, a parent and child, etc?

I certainly hope not! After all, it took a man and a woman to produce each one of us!

Cool! I just got a postcard yesterday to get the new catalog. I'll have to look for your picture! Congratulations!

She is beautiful! I'm so happy for you. Congratulations!!

Good for him! Instead of being a coward, he acted like a man.

Saxon explains it by illustrating a finger covering the first negative sign. You square the 2, then remove your finger. In the case of the second 2, the negative sign is "protected by parentheses." Therefore, you cube the negative 2.

I have had people come to me to do just that. They had written a song and had no way to write it down for others. Even though some people are very talented and creative, they can be handicapped by their lack of education (in this case, not knowing how to read and write music). They could do so much more and do it so much better, if only they had more knowledge.

Sometimes we start an activity that gets out of control before we stop and say, "enough!" This happened to us with ballet. What started out as a one hour class on Saturday mornings became 6-7 days a week of ballet classes and rehearsals, regional ballet festivals, and summer intensives in far away places. My daughters enjoyed ballet immensely and gained some important skills and a true appreciation of the art, but the schedule wreaked havoc on our family life. When younger DD started having too many injuries from over use, we said to ourselves, "Why are we doing this?" The cost was enormous, and the whole thing was causing her pain, so we stopped. This may be what is happening with your friends.

I don't think anyone is saying that kids must be playing music in a group setting or that you should feel guilty for not having your kids take music lessons. For some families, participating in a music group provides some social interaction as well as education. As independent as homeshoolers can be, it is nice to be able to work with others toward a common goal. Again, we all have our own motives for what we do, and if you choose to do something else, that's your business. For some, music is entertainment or amusement; for others, music is art and culture, or training in discipline and perseverance.

Yes, Ellie, it is possible to sing in a church choir without reading music. But SOMEBODY (probably your director) is reading the music in order to teach the parts. With practice, you can learn to read the notes and match the pitches with your voice. Imagine how awesome your choir (and mine!) could be if everyone read music and more time could be spent on dynamics, diction, and interpretation of the music instead of just learning the parts! Besides, don't we want to give our very best to the Lord? Why strive for mediocrity?

This is exactly why Guido of Arezzo, the Benedictine monk (991-after 1033), invented the "do re mi" system and modern music notation using the staff of five lines. Apparently, people were having difficulty remembering the Gregorian chants, so he came up with a way to write them down. (good subject to research)

Usually, it's a matter of priorities. We lived a couple of years (before children) with only a bed, some lawn chairs, and a baby grand piano! On the other hand, DH has students whose parents won't buy them a clarinet reed, but drive up to the school in their BMW to pick up their child, who is wearing the latest fashionable sneakers and texting on their new iphone. :glare:

DH did this back when he was a music major in college. His extra work as a professional musician has been a nice supplement to our income, especially at Christmas time. As a band director for over 30 years and an adjunct professor at the community college, he has many students who still thank him for what he taught them. DH and I met in our high school band. We still enjoy playing music together, sometimes just for fun, sometimes in church or other venues. Music enriches our lives. Yes, there are studies out there (see the link that a previous poster gave) showing the cognitive benefits of learning music. For some people, it's important. Just as sports, dance, or scouting are important for some. Those things expand our horizons,giving us experiences that we may not otherwise have. For me, music has been a form of expression and a means of bringing pleasure to others. Looking back on my school years, music also gave me a sense of accomplishment and self-esteem. It was something I did well, and I worked at it to become even better. The lessons one learns from setting a goal (learn this piece of music, make first-chair, audition for and make such-and-such a band or orchestra) and achieving it, are valuable lessons for whatever one chooses to do in life. We only have so many hours in a day, however, and it's up to us to decide what's important to us and what's not. Those parents who choose to do music lessons with their kids feel that it's worth the time and energy (and yes, money) they spend to do it. You may choose to spend your resources elsewhere. That's the beauty of homeschooling.

I'm so sorry. May God comfort you and your family during this time.

I used to put my girls' hair in a high ponytail, then braid it, wrap it around and pin with bobby pins. Then I would use a hairnet (they come 3 per package, I believe), wrapped around a couple of times. A little hair gel or hair spray kept the frizzies down. The shorter, straight, fine hair might be more of a challenge.

She is a GIRLS' size 8 - not misses size 8. And it has nothing to do with height.

Children can learn so much by following rabbit trails, and it doesn't have to look like school. It sounds to me like you are pushing the "learning" a little too much, though. He's only 5. There is plenty of time to research his interests. At this point, I would suggest exposing him to lots of interesting things and having more fun. For example, maybe for now, he can put out a bird feeder and a bird bath and see how many birds come to visit. Maybe make a chart and keep track of how many he sees each day. For now, perhaps you could just tell him what kind of birds they are - in the future, he may see something new and want to identify it himself. Eventually, he might keep a "life list" of all the birds he sees - but that's for the future. Is there an aviary or nature center nearby that you could visit? Again, for now, just enjoy the beauty of what you see without turning everything into a lesson. I'll never forget my oldest, when she was in kindergarten, getting up one morning and exclaiming, "There's just so much to see, I don't know what to look at first!" (we had an aquarium with baby fish that had just appeared one day, she had planted some scarlet runner beans in cups, named them, and was seeing who would grow the fastest, etc.) We would go hiking and enjoy nature, maybe collect some leaves, look at birds, and so on. She started a life list when she got older, raised a flock of racing pigeons, hand-raised baby lovebirds, worked at an animal hospital, majored in biology, and went to medical school. But not when she was 5.

We are talking about a girl who wears a GIRLS' size 8. I didn't see how old she is, but I'm guessing pre-teen. At that size, I don't think she needs a bra for support purposes. It sounds like she has friends who are wearing bras, and she wants to look grown up, too. All this talk of fitting professionals at expensive bra shops for a little girl seems over the top to me. Why not just take her on a shopping trip to Target or someplace, buy her a cute outfit and have her try on some girls' size bras with just a little fiberfill.

Spicy grilled shrimp, long grain and wild rice, and steamed brocolli. Valentine cookies and hazelnut coffee for dessert. We're going out to dinner tomorrow night. The kids will all be away at campouts, etc and we will be home alone! ;)

A beautiful tribute to a lovely young lady. :grouphug: