[Does anyone have 2 children?]

Just 2 for us!

[Anyone been to Clearwater Aquarium/Dolphin Tale?]

We were in Orlando November 2011 and after seeing the movie several weeks before, our kids begged to go see Winter. We took a day and drove over to Clearwater (only about 1.5 hrs from Orlando). I found it to be kind of pricey (don't remember but you can look up the ticket prices on their website) and small. BUT having said that, we had a blast! When we got their they were having an informational bit about stingrays. We then got to see a show with Winter and Panama. It was very informative and we were really close to the tanks/dolphins. There were two other shows with different dolphins that were great as well. At the time the aquarium only had tanks/room for 4 dolphins so they were maxed out. They were in the process of building and adding on so I'm not sure where they are with that. Back to the animals, they had otters, turtles and tanks of various sea life. The aquarium has a few paid employees and tons of volunteers. We found the volunteers to be very informative and welcomed our questions. So having said all that, it was well worth it. It was probably the highlight of the trip for the kids. Happy vacation!

[Reading woes finally turning around....I hope.....]

That is awesome! I had a reluctant reader until he read an excerpt from The Happy Hollisters (in WWE). He started reading the book and in less than a week he finished it. His sister gave him The Phantom Tollbooth yesterday to read and I found him reading this morning during his free time instead of his usual place in front of the computer/tv/wii!!! It is exciting, isn't it?

[Where is TOG's Resource List?]

I e-mailed TOG a few weeks ago inquiring about the Resource Page. Someone replied (can't remember who at the moment) and said they hoped to have it up the first part of March. Hopefully it will be up soon...

[LOL-I'm so "mean"]

Now that's funny!

[Daily Lesson Plans for Apologia Astronomy?]

I personally don't think it's necessary. You're right, there is an outline in the notebooking journal, and there are also several resources on the Elementary Apologia Science Yahoo! Group here:

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Elem_Apologia_Science/files/Astronomy/

 

If you're not in the group already you'll have to join, but that's no biggie. I've used a couple helpful items from that group like review worksheets (more for my sanity vs. testing my son).

 

Thanks for the info on the Yahoo group! We are planning on using Apologia science next year, too. :001_smile:

[Writing for a lefty]

Handwriting Without Tears is designed for lefties. That's what I use for my DD who is a leftie - it works well.

 

:iagree:

[Talk to me about FLL]

I started FLL1 with my dd and we are now over half-way through FLL4 and WE love it! I love that it is repetitious and very thorough. The lessons are short, guided and fun. Just wish Advanced Language Lessons was ready for the fall. :(

[What part of Disney World would you count as school?]

I would definitely count it. Epcot has lots that they can learn about countries and culture. There is also educational elements in a lot of the rides. Like a previous poster mentioned, kids in public schools get days of parties and movies and it counts for them. ;) Enjoy your trip!

["First Language Lessons" ending, now what?]

:lurk5:

 

Thank you for posting this. I was just looking at my plans this morning and had the same question. Any other suggestions?

[When you get a laptop, do you get rid of your desk PC?]

We've had a laptop for several years but have kept our old desktop in the schoolroom (it wasn't worth selling so why not just keep it). I still use it for our finances and other things for school. It is nice to have another computer when I am working on the laptop and my dh or kids want to do something on the computer.

[My daughter has this coat that is black, white and turquoise.]

I have Oxyclean stain treater and it is amazing the things it gets out, even out of clothes that have been dried! I spray the spot and let it set at least a day. Good luck!

[Life after AAS?]

Thanks for all your input! I am thinking (at least at this point) at going with Megawords but I am at liberty change my mind. :)

[Life after AAS?]

My dd will be finishing up level 6 of AAS this year and I'm looking ahead to next year. She is not a great speller but she has improved a lot! I would like to continue with spelling but really am not sure what to use. I would like something that reinforces the rules taught in AAS but more putting the rules into practice with harder vocab. Any suggestions?

[Pizza Sauce, you make your own?]

I make my own sauce and the only thing I add you didn't list is salt and pepper. You may need to increase the other spices listed.

[s/o hunting...women that shoot/own guns]

I would recommend a .380 or .32 caliber...they are both similar in size and are easy to tote and shoot. I am a petite woman and have no problem carrying or shooting either.

[Getting a book unbound...]

I had several workbooks unbound and rebound (spiral) last year at a local print shop. Well worth the money!

[Mailman keeps leaving our box open...]

I'd put a note out there (or if you are home, go out and tell him), "Please close our mailbox when you are done delivering our mail. Thank you."

 

Then if it continues, call the station that your mail comes out of and talk to someone there.

 

:iagree:

[Arm and Hammer laundry soap]

It works fine for my family.

[hive mind: what would you do about this odd behavior?]

Chewing gum is a MAJOR pet peeve for me. I'm glad I read this post b/c now I feel like I'm not alone! I think I'll try the humming thing, too.

 

Good luck with your ds!

[Fear]

I was anxious, too, but unlike you, I hadn't planned on homeschooling from the beginning. This decision was made while my oldest was in a private school for kindergarten. Thankfully, I had a close friend who had exposed me to the thought and was one of my biggest supporters. I also had another friend who had taken on hs'ing when her only child was in high school. Now that is scary! She told me one day that I could do it, especially considering I would be holding the teacher/answer book! :) I worried my oldest, who is very social and loved her school friends, would really miss being with other kids but that is not how it worked out. She loved being able to sleep in, not be at school all day and having the freedom we have. There are so many activities that you can put your kids in that will give them social interaction with other kids. Don't sweat it! You can do it!!!

[Decorators please help]

These "reds" are more on the orange spectrum, to me. I would perhaps go with a khaki tan (not too dark) color for walls, but you could also go with something like a buttery yellow or a nice sage green, etc.

 

You don't have to match your floors to your furniture and I think that might be too dark, anyway.... I would tend to go with a medium oak tone for the floors....

 

:iagree:

 

The colors mentioned above work as a neutral and would match your color scheme.

[Looking for comfy ballet flats]

I bought croc slippers, malindi, last year and I love them. They are feminine looking and not your typical croc-looking shoe.

[QUICK ~ cake "icing" question for dh's birthday tomorrow...leaving for store...]

You cannot substitute butter for shortening "one-for-one". Butter is much 'softer' (different melting point) so less would be used.

 

You CAN make an icing (or 'frosting' whichever word you prefer) with butter --but you'd need a different recipe.

 

Decorator's icing contains shortening--and is more 'stable' so you have more control over the final 'shape' of the decorations.

 

:iagree:

["Your kids are weird" - WWYD]

I would tend to want to comment back and say, "We like to think of it as healthy or different, not weird, but to each his own!" and smile. But to the kids, I would explain to them that to a lot of people their tastes are weird and that isn't a bad thing. Weird means different to lots of folks and different isn't always bad!