I really haven't decided yet. We know that we want to do Biology, but I just cant' make up my mind on a publisher/course. I am not an Apologia, BJU, or Abeka fan, so those are probably out. I own the Biology 101 DVD's and I may pair them up with the PAC Biology course. Other options I am considering are Science Shepherd or possibly ACE (with DVDs) I originally had not considered ACE, but Carrie at HOD gave it a pretty good review/recommendation, and it's set up similar to PAC with the smaller bite-sized workbooks so it just might be an okay option for us.

My 9th grade daughter is using the PAC Integrated Physics and Chemistry this year in place of a physical science course. (We chose it because she needed time to finish up Pre-algebra, and I didn't want to overwhelm her with a math-heavy science course until she was ready for it.) I am planning on only giving 1 credit for the class, however, as I do not feel that the material it covers it worty of 2 full credits, as the publisher indicates. We did add a custom designed lab class at a local science lab facility. I may give an extra .5 credit for that, depending on how much time she spends working on lab related topics.

I have long suspected that there is more going on with my DD than just her diagnosis of apraxia. At her last ped. neuro visit (over 4 years ago) he had mentioned that Rett Syndrome was a possibility. I no longer believe that to be the case, but I definitley am starting to think that she is on the spectrum. So where do I go for a diagnosis? Back to the ped. neuro? To a neuro psych or a developmental psych? I am floundering, but her issues have definitley gotten worse lately, and I know that I can no longer put off seeking help. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Thanks. She loves M&M's so I'm hoping she'll like it. :-) If I find the time I'm hoping to make a matching striped hat in the same bright colors. I wondered about felt. I hadn't thought to try thread though...that just might work. Thanks, and I'll keep you posted. (I really wish I had made them 2 sided, or able to be stuffed. That would have solved a lot of my problems.)

I am making my teen daughter an M&M scarf for Christmas. So I made a bunch of colored circles, and sewed them together...but I have no idea how to get the M's on. I originally had hoped to just embroider them on with white yarn, but when I tried that the back side of the circles looked messy Any ideas?

My DD is still growing at 15. We chart the kids height and weight every month, and she gained 1/2 inch over the summer.

For dental maintenance there are additives for their water that you can get to prevent plaque build up ( and also sprays that you put directly on the teeth)

I read that the names of Baelfire, his friend Morraine, and 'the Dark One' are all a nod to a series of books (The Wheel of Time) by the author Robert Jordan because one of the writers is a huge Robert Jordan fan.

We decided not to go with an expander for our two children in braces. Basically they break apart the semi-fused bones on the top of the pallate (this fissure then fills in with new bone - much like any other 'broken' bone would.) These are the bones that fuse when a baby's soft spot closes. Side effects can also include a lisp (usually temporary) and a slight change in facial features (widening of the nose.) We got several opinions from different orthodontists, and we went with the one who said he could do it w/o an expander. My daughter got her braces off last year and her smile looks lovely. My son is 1/2 way through his braces, but things are looking good so far.

We are using Winning with Writing (2 levels behind) with some success. I do allow my son to type out his essays on the computer and paste them into his workbook. He also dictates some of his lessons to me.

As others have mentioned, pretty much everything has some risk. Some of the things we enjoy that I consider lower risk are : Bowling Curling Tennis Archery Swimming Fencing

I run an air purifier. I don't like the cold air from a fan (especially during winter in WI) but this makes plenty of white noise and cleans the dust ouit of the air to boot! This isn't the exact one we have - but close http://www.target.com/p/hunter-fan-quietflo-hepa-air-purifier-90/-/A-11254929?ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001&AFID=Google_PLA_df&LNM=|11254929&CPNG=Home+Improvement&kpid=11254929&ci_gpa=pla&ci_sku=11254929&kpid=11254929&ci_gpa=pla&ci_sku=11254929

Not to derail this thread, but did you see the other dog video in the link at the bottom of that one? Oh my goodness, we laughed so hard at this one http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c3#/video/living/2012/09/19/orig-jtb-distraction-dog-boots.cnn

They are playing - but it's not a very good game. :glare: The dog is doing a typical play bow ( rear end in the air - tail wagging) so he isnt' being aggressive here, but by playing that way with him she could be asking for real trouble later with dominance issues. And with a dog that size it is just a bad idea.

As for the emotion thing... I grew up in a non-denom church that taught decision theology. It was supposed to be this life changing emotional experience - and for many it was. (I grew up with it - so it was all I knew from a young child. Was I happy that Jesus died for me? Definitely, but I didn't' have that awe inspiring testimony to go with my conversion story.) I did, however, see many people (family members included) get saved - but to them it was not only a life changing experience but an emotional high. The trouble is that feeling of euphoria eventually faded, and I saw many of them then go through a crisis of faith and fall away. Once the emotional aspect was gone - they felt God had abandoned them. When I became Lutheran, however, I learned that we cannot chose God - instead we receive Him and his Grace. And in contrast we don't automatically receive joy - but we can and should choose to be joyful in all circumstances because of what HE has done for us. God is constant, our emotions are not.

My daughter's broke and amazon replaced it. When we got the new one we logged on and it was exactly like the old one. It was sort-of creepy actually.

Our junipers drive me crazy. We have several in our backyard, and some days I just can't stand to have the windows open.

DS 12 is going as the Red bird from Angry Birds. (I sewed the costume for him last year)

Yes - puppy pads are very manageable with a small dog. ;)

Our Yorkie has been extremely hard to housebreak,and we have tried it all: crate training, tethering, round the clock/timed outside breaks, praise, rewards, took him to the vet to see if there were physical problems ( there weren't)....it just did not work. He is 3 now and still has issues. :glare: But...we have made adjustments that allow us to live somewhat peaceably together. First of all - we live in WI, and we finally figured that he just could not handle going outside in the cold. So we focused on indoor housebreaking instead. We buy 'chucks' pads at Sam's club and use those as potty pads. He is so small that no matter what size crate we got - there was still room for him to 'do his business' in and still lie down. So we turned our 1/2 bath in to his kennel. We have a baby gate on the door, and we put his bed and his potty pad in here. If we go away, or if we can't keep an eye on him - he goes in there. Also - he now wears a male rap/belly band (which we stuff with a 'Depends' pad.) He would not stop dribbling or lifting his leg. (Our vet actually thinks he might have OCD...and his compulsion is to pee :tongue_smilie:) I love our little guy, and he is like a family member...but honestly - it gets old fast....and expensive. And if I could do it all over again I would not pick a toy breed.

We have the ones from Target. Much more budget friendly and my girls (7&9) love them.

I can't believe I've spent this much time staring at a giraffe's backside. :lol:

I know!

Now she keeps reaching her neck around and hitting her back/stomach. Contractions, maybe?

Thank you. I feel like we've set the ball rolling at least, so I'm hopeful that we have at least started down the right path. So here is a question....his general doctor put a diagnosis of dysgraphia on his chart, (which is how he got the OT referral) but that isn't really 'enough'...is it? I am looking for an official diagnosis, because I know that if he ever takes the written portion of the SAT/ACT - or the like, he is definitely going to need to have special accommodations made for him to compensate for his excruciatingly S-L-O-W handwriting .