Um, sorry Pretty in Pink, but in South Carolina, 1 cup sugar to a gallon IS stingy!!;) We use 2 c. sugar to a gallon of tea, brewed on the stove like Granny did. My kids all moan when we cross the Mason-Dixon or the Mississippi. "Great. We can't even get sweet tea on vacation."

I won't even pretend to have words for this awful loss. I will pray. So, so sorry. :grouphug:

She will want to do the experiments, but I don't really care about her doing every workbook page/narration, etc. I will probably have her do this with her little brother in the wings, so, killing 2 birds with 1 stone! Speaking of experiments, how are they? Do they seem to work? Did you buy a kit online somewhere, or was it mostly stuff you already had? Thanks, t.

The Apologia elementary series. Has anyone done this? Is it totally unrealistic? I am thinking of this for my 7th grader.

I would really love some suggestions. Everything I keep looking at seems really young or too formal for this kid. I need something that isn't babyish, but isn't hard science. She loves hands-on stuff, but I hate it. If there is a hands-on component, it would be great if it was something she could do mostly on her own. Any thoughts? BTW, she says she likes animals... Thanks, tonya

But I, quite frankly, don't care. The funeral is not for the deceased, it's for the living. There may be no formal funeral, but there will be something. My brothers and I will need to gather, because that's what we do. She will be gone, and we will be left. It will be for us. When my brother died, there was no funeral. He was cremated and had his ashes spread in the AIDS memorial grove in San Fran by the few friends and two brothers that were able to go there. My oldest brother brought back some of E's ashes to FL. Our mother, grandmother, aunt, and a few others gathered at the grave of E's father to spread the remaining ashes there. We talked, shared stories, and cried. It was for us. t.

He is taller than I. OR He is taller than I am. You wouldn't say He is taller than me am. Or Me am tall. Actually, both are technically defensible. However, I teach my students that "...than I" is most correct.

Mine died when I was 2. I never knew him. I was raised by my grandmother. My mother, who had visitation, had a whole string of husbands, but I only ever liked one of them. He wasn't really a father to me, though. I was adopted when I was 15, and there was a dad in the house. He was a commercial fisherman, though, so not around often. He was a quiet man, and told me once flat-out that he and his wife had agreed when they got married that the kids were hers to raise. I liked him, but he was kind of a non-entity. I married a man who is family-focused, but not very involved in the day-to-day stuff, which is fine with me. He does plan the most amazing family vacations, though!! :D

We are totally going to do this over the summer and next year!! My dd3 wrote to the Tootsie Roll company, telling them it took her 173 licks to get to the toosie roll center of a tootsie pop. They sent back a letter and a certificate. At 14, she still has them hanging on her wall.

I am too scared to name my child anything TOO odd, but I love the names. :001_smile: I have a friend who just loves hunting and camping. He named his first son Coleman Hunter. He goes by Cole. As for the going by the middle name thing - my dd2 goes by her middle name, and here's why. Dd1 is Cecelia, after my grandmother. Dd2 is only 16 month younger. I knew they would be together all the time growing up, and I wanted something that sounded nice when paired with "Cecelia and". I chose Celeste. However, my husband really wanted a nod to his side of the family. His mother's name is Lidia (Cuban, hence the spelling), who is a favorite Biblical character of mine. Lidia Celeste sounds just beautiful to me, whereas Celeste Lidia sounds discordant, at least to my ears. So, she goes by Celeste, and answers to Lidia when we are at the dr.'s office or anywhere official. I love old names that people have heard, usually know how to spell, yet are uncommon. In my Sunday School class that I teach, I have Magnolia, Charlotte, Olivia, and Furman.

who worked in the Vital Stats. dept. of our state: Formica Dinette. No lie. Another favorite: Leukemia. I swear.

Each year, I download an attendance sheet from somewhere online. Then I mark 180 little xes on it. Then I make copies, and put 1 copy in each child's box where we store their "portfolios" (read as whatever is in their desk/on their shelf at the end of the year). That's it. Homeschool attendance? Really? Sheesh.

Trafficking is the cause my eldest has latched onto. Lots of info and resources out there now. I would encourage you to point people to faceless international and Love 146. Both great organizations. Also, Rapha house. Thanks for working on this cause. It's great what you accomplished at your event!

I would say, however, that God came up with abstinence as a birth control method. So I stand behind my original statement! ;) tonya

At least you would think so. They have had entire HOA mtgs. about us apparently. After the last one, our only friendly neighbor came with a list: keep your animals on your property, keep your trash cans off the street after trash day, don't burn stuff, don't let your dog out off a leash, don't park your work trailer in front of the house, don't let guests park on the street or on the empty lots on either side of you, etc. Now, some perspective. 1. One neighbor was found lying in his front driveway totally nude. Not sick, drunk, or at night. Able bodied, sober, at 4 in the afternoon. 2. Another neighbor, her son, and her husband had a redneck throwdown in their front yard in front of my daughter. Cussing, throwing crowbars, and threats of bodily harm. Nice. 3. Another neighbor was out in her driveway until 2 in the morning calling for their lost dog. "Bo! Bo! Here boy!!!" Trash cans and trailers indeed.

God can overcome any birth control we can come up with. His will is always accomplished. We can't thwart Him. :001_smile: :grouphug:

Go with what your husband says in this area. If he thinks you have enough on your plate right now, trust him. God gave you your husband as both provider AND protector. Let him protect you. That's not to say you can't pray for your husband's mind to change... Btw, I would say to go with your husband if he was saying he wanted another child, too. Blessings, tonya

I believe the end times started when Jesus ascended. I believe Revelation had fulfillment in the 1st century, and will have future fulfillment as well. I do NOT believe in LaHaye/Late Great/Left Behind theology.

May 21 will be our last day. Major caveat: Dds 3 & 4 will spend their entire summer doing math. It just got so overwhelming during the year that we all just decided to quit and focus on it over the summer.

I liked Earth better. Oceans had too much dolphin footage, NOTHING from the deep ocean, and the narration was odd. Very pretty to watch, though. I think I got sleepy, not from boredom, but from the constant ocean sounds. My kids got hungry because there were a lot of animals feeding up on that big screen! :001_smile: HTH, tonya

for the home school formal, and both are strapless. The only rule the girls were given was, "Nothing plunging." I think that is reasonable.

The first one I ever read by him. Night Shift. It's a collection of short stories that are just horrifying. :001_smile: The Stand, Eyes of the Dragon, The Talisman. Ok, all of them. I am a huge fan. :D

Land line, DSL, cell phones. They are pretty decent to work with, imho. We bundled everything to get a discount. The only thing is, keep track of what you sign up for, and check your bill. Weird stuff has shown up sometimes, but we get them to remove the service we didn't want, or whatever our kid did on their cell. :glare: tonya

Just show up enough to meet your obligations to the group, and make sure your contributions of time are noted by the leadership. If anyone says anything, tell them to go talk to the club president, that all of your obligations have been met. Gymnastics is a tough sport, and not just because of the tricks.

All of my children are brought in for the song service, starting at age 2.5. They stay for the whole thing (1.5 hours) by 3. We teach them to obey, no matter where we are. If I tell them to sit still and be quiet, and they don't, we discipline. Of course, "still" and "quiet" mean one thing at 3, something else entirely at 10. I have both girls and a son. Some I allowed a pencil and paper, others nothing, others crayons and a notebook. Another plug for Parenting in the Pew. :001_smile: Blessings, tonya