My dd14 is similar. Her brother has a little gang of friends on the street he plays with in the afternoons when school is out. Dd tends to gravitate to the computer- My Space, MSN, emails, art.... I dont know if we can know, yet, we just have to trust our intuition and do our best. Future generations may have the benefit of hindsight, but we don't, yet. I suspect that as long as there are other aspects to life- physical activity, real life contact with friends, activities that are not computer related (my 2 are involved in Scouts, gymnastics, and have homeschool freinds and activities, and dd is very artistic so spends a lot of time on art). In the afternoons after schoolwork is done, she tends to want to connect with her peers, online. I have noticed that the time she spends on there has increased. I sometimes pull her off and send her for a walk, or a chore, or to tidy something, or just tell her to plain get off. It would be easy for her to spend 2-3 hours on there in the afternoons, and I do often get the feeling- that is a bit too much. I need to watch it. I stopped her taking her computer into her bedroom, and her phone won't text from there, so at least I know she is not on there at nighttime. She is a popular girl though, with both boys and girls. She is certainly not using the computer to escape or withdraw- more to connect, which sounds like your dd too. I know it has a down side, but I can see the very positive side too. I guess its all about balance. Dd reads, paints, draws, and loves to socialise....so I think its not doing too much harm.

My dh loves me to do it with him, or just watch him. He is a good handyman but he loves an audience. :) He actually loves me to follow him around the house or yard while he does little chores. I never understood it, but thats him. Also, perhaps it looks overwhelming. Perhaps you could ask him to do one specific chore- together. Ask him to come out and lift something or move something, and give him heaps of thanks for it. It's a Flylady trick. You just put the timer on for 15 minutes, or you pick one task- and before you know it you are on a roll. If you only get that little bit done- great, its an achievement. If it leads you onto other things, all the better.

I have bought from Amazon 2nd hand maybe 20 times at least, and was only burned once- the book had so much highlighting in it I just coulnd't read it, it hurt my eyes. The rest of the time, I have been very happy with them. And it is a bigger deal for me because I have to pay $13 or $14 postage every time, even if the book is only 50 cents. I do read the advertisers blurb pretty carefully though.

Thankyou Melmac, I hadn't seen that particular article but it succinctly summarises a lot of the info I have seen. I have listened to hours of interviews with the people who have designed and used this "Web Bot" technology- it is not "psychic prediction", although there are accurate psychics out there too- it is picking up on the language that people use in their day to day use of the internet- picking up on patterns of word useage- and they found that it predicted coming events (including 9/11). So, the mass unconscious of society was predicting events, so to speak. Interpreting the info is not always easy or specific but they seem to be able to tell when some big events are going to happen, but not necessarily what the events are, specifically. it predicted the last few weeks of economic unstability, and today, October 7, is supposed to be a big event (maybe collapse of economies?). Anyway....we will see, won't we? Lets hope everyone can pull out of the tail spin.

nope, haven't heard that one...

At the risk of completely ruining my already "a bit out there" reputation....lately I have been receiving a lot of information regarding this month and next. Yes, its conspiracy theory stuff. Yes, it involves not normal forms of receiving information. But also, the sources have been accurate about predicting things in the past. The reason I put this out here is because through this message board I feel quite a concern for people in the U.S. and I feel if what I have helps one person in the coming months, because they were a little more prepared...it's worth it. If it's not true, well, that's good and you can just call me one of those wierd conspiracy theorists. Not that I have been until late. If anyone is interested in this rather "far out" information, please just email me at peela at iinet dot net dot au and I will email you some stuff that you can consider and make of what you will. I don't 'believe' it either....but I intend to keep an open mind, and it does cause me concern for you in the U.S, although we will all be affected. I am not interested in any debate over whether this info is correct or not. Only time will tell. But so far, it is coming true.

Are you hard on yourself at all? Beyond a healthy self discipline, a willingness to see and own your own faults...do you criticise yourself, give yourself a hard time even when you know you have done your best? How loving and kind are you to you? I think no matter our good intentions, we can only be as kind to our kids and everyone, as we are to ourselves, and most of us are pretty hard on ourselves.

I have a tv in my bedroom and we go and all hop in my bed and watch a movie, a couple of times a week. Since they are so big, I love it! During school I make them little snacks or hot chocolates while they work. I have noticed that one of the most important things my kids appreciate about me is that I listen to them- I give them my 100% attention when they want to talk. I remember trying to talk to my mum excitedly about my day and her being only half present with me, and how that hurt. I also want to keep those communication channels open in their teens so they keep telling me things, so I listen.

Yes, I drink it and love it and so does my dd. The men of the family dont like the cream that floats on top! I never had much problem with drinking milk anyway, but I love buying my milk direct from a farmer, since i live in a city. And I love to support the raw milk movement.

My oldest was independent at some things from age 9 when she first came out of school. Lucky she was, because the younger wasnt very independent until this year- he is 12! Now he can handle a lot more on his own, but he still prefers lots of interaction. I remember when he was 9 thinking, OMG, am I going to have to sit with him for everything? It drove me craxy. But I think it was worth it, he relaly needed that one on one (learning diffculties). Every child is different, but even at six, can you not assign 5 minutes of work and walk away? I never homeschooled a 6yo so I dont really know.

I would eliminate either dairy or wheat first to see if there is a connection. If you do both at once, you wont know which they are sensitive too. Same with sugar. I have a dd who is actually sensitive to sugar..always has been. It actually causes eczema for her, and headaches. So we have an agreement that if she wants junk food (she is 14....she wants junk food) it needs to be savoury. She had some testing done at a naturopathic clinic and it told her exactly what to give up...she gave up for several weeks, boosted her system, then she could go back to all the foods. We just know its best she stays away from sugar. She used to get a lot of headaches...she doesnt anymore. I stopped sugar about 10 days ago. I got sick! First cold all winter (its spring here!). Maybe its a shock for my sugar addicted body! Anyway, apart from getting sick I feel fine, except that I am relaly hungry a lot of the time. I can eat a meal and an hour later I am starving. I didnt realise how much I was relying on sugar as an energy source.

I would consider doing what floated my boat...perhaps more history of the time period the student felt most passionate about. Perhaps geography, civics, philosophy. Wow, I think it's an exciting prospect to have the freedom to do what appeals...or fulfill requirements...or both. We are passionate about history and literature here...my son will have done two cycles by grade 10 too, and I am looking forward to the prospect of following deeper into his areas of interest.

Perhaps the mistake you have made is starting the older children on their grade level of R&S. Most people on these boards who ask what level to start their older children on in R&S are given the advice to start at levels 5 or 6, even if the students are 15. And many people do R&S a grade or two lower than grade level. So diving older students straight into 7 and 8, which are notorious for being very difficult even for grammar buffs, may be a recipe for failure. You students may not be as bad as you think :) My son did R&S3 a few years back. We dropped it, and now, since I had it on the shelf, he has started R&S6- he is almost 13. He has done a lot of grammar in between, but even though he is full of confidence, he still gets plenty wrong. I have to help him every day, and he is only up to lesson 12 so its all review so far. I expect to take 2 years to get through R&S6 with him, and the truth is if he doesn't do any more grammar that that, it is more than most kids get nowadays, and it's a very thorough foundation. I would back up and have your older students all start on R&S6. R&S repeats stuff each year, but by R&S7 or 8, if you are only learning the basics for the first time, you are going to be lost with the harder stuff. It's not the kids' fault.

I am thinking there might be riots over the economy breaking down...so many people are angry, and rightfully so, and that scenario isnt over yet. I hope you guys don't get riots over the election though, that would be bad. I hope Obama wins too, although I think the politicians don't have much power...it's the corporations who rule the world, not the politicians.

Not me, but dh has frequently been told he looks like Harrison Ford and/ or Bruce Willis.

Wow, what a mess, that would make me mad, too. I think Scouts is a great organisation for many kids (not me, I would have hated it as a child, but my kids love it), but my experience is that the leaders make all the difference- good leaders, good group, bad, nitpicky, disinterested leaders, bad group. My kids have been in a fantastic group and I am totally enthusiastic for them- the leaders are just bizzarely ridiculously (to me) enthusiastic, though...its their whole life, but they are not pedantic about the rules, either. Some homeschooling friends' two daughters were in a different group, and one leader would not issue badges without an incredible amount of unecessary work, and even then would just refuse to sign them off...it was actually traumatising. And the group is so competitive- winning is everything to them, wheras in our group, we go for it but its very much for the spirit of the adventure. And our group is not badge obsessed...the kids are encouraged to go for what that want above and beyond the basics, but not pushed. Our friends came over to our group and love it. I stay minimally involved- my daughter has always made up for my minimal involvement with her passionate, above and beyond duty enthusiasm for Scouts. I am talking about Scouts, not Cubs though (and I realise there are national differences in the organisation). All that to say....if it was too hard, I would probably let it go. You are not dealing with "Scouts" you are dealing with humans, and I suspect some rather beurocratic humans get attracted to Scouts. And some militant types. And goodness knows how the Japanese culture may influence things. I would be upset too.

Stuff that represents you and your uniqueness, rather than a magazine idealisation....fabrics and colours that are "you", art that represents your tastes, items that mean something to you. My dh and I have always been 2nd hand buffs and our house is filled with interesting paraphernalia that represents our own tastes- from the Quan Yin life sized statue in the entrance, the huge Ganesha painting I picked up for $15, and various buddha statues, paintings done by me and some by my daughter, two kitchy type posters in the kitchen including one of a pig that my husband just likes, a huge handcarved statue of various African animals some African immigrants gave us when they went back to Africa, a shelf full of shells and another full of pretty blue bottles...a mismatch few comfy chairs in the living/schoolroom that each have special meaning for us...odds and ends of furniture that we like...a few photos....I guess it's pretty bohemian but we live in wealthy suburbia. We rent...we would be more radical if we owned a place. For starters I would make it a mini suburban farm (which we already virtually have with 2 dogs, 2 chickens, 3 rabbits, and I have jsut put in a vegie garden.) Smells are another thing....smells make a home homey...whether it's vanilla or whatever essences or incense you like...or just the smell of something on the stove or in the oven.

Refrigerator- weekly or fortnightly throw out of off food....maybe every second month or so I will do a more thorough clean and wipeout. Dust knicknacks thoroughly- you do that? :) maybe twice a year. Polish wooden furniture- I have never done it. Ever. Scrub bathtub/shower- when its rent inspection time. Actually, it doesn't get mouldy, and I wipe it over regularly with a scrubber and use a toothbrush for the grout while I am in the shower. Its a Flylady habit I picked up. Then every month or two I might use some bleach or heavy duty cleaner. It is a marble bathroom and it looks good. Mop floors- I am lucky if I get to the kitchen floor once a month. It is vacuumed twice a week...not mopped often. The other floors, all marble, dont show dirt and are mopped maybe every few months. But it is mostly a no shoe house, so the floors dont get so dirty. So my standards are not very high, but the house looks ok.

The things that have helped me keep my marriage warm ( I am not so interested in "hot" as an ongoing warm, friendly aliveness and companionship : Flylady. I am not kidding. My husband was a neat freak, I was a slob, and n'er the twain did meet! After I found Flylady, I learned to keep house for me, for my self worth, because it was a joy for me...and then I could love everyone else in th family with it as well, because I was lovin' myself. She helped me change my attitude toward housework, big time. In fact, that was the next main point I was going to make....I feel it is very important that I love myself deeply and act in my own best interests, and live my life fully, and follow my heart, independently....otherwise I am going to be looking for fulfillment from my husband and marriage that it simply cannot give me. So I think self love...not selfish love, just a wholesome self love, is essential for a healthy marriage. The other thing I would add is that reading the secular book The Surrendered Wife that someone else mentioned was a turning point in my marriage, too. It really saved it at one point. I probably dont live it fully, and I dont care because at the time it helped me see my own self centredness, and that it is not "weak" or submissive to allow my man to take a manly role in the things that made him feel manly, so to speak. Also, Dr Laura's books- I think I read 2- helped me in the same way not to be selfishness and demand my rights in a marriage when I wasnt even considering his. These were "growing up" books for me.

We each do our own washing and I would say the kids do about 2 loads a fortnight when they run out of clothes :) and dh and I each do between 1 and 2 loads a week. Often one would do but since we do whites separately, it is 2. Then there are towels and sheets...I am erratic with them, maybe one load a week average.

Even though dh and I never have and aren't into it (although there are a few spontaneous ones floating around) my father, an excellent photographer, took many of my mother when she was a young bride, and I have seen some and they are quite beautiful. They are divorced now, but its actually a lovely memory. My father and his wife were visiting me recently- we only see each other every few years- and he was going through his beautiful nature photos with me- on his computer- and somehow a photo of his wife, naked and "posed" had got mixed in there- poor things, they were so embarrassed, but I thought it was highly amusing and just reassured them it was nothing I hadnt seen before, no big deal.

I swear sometimes but nothing like that list, either.

I just keep school hours short enough that they have plenty of free time to follow their own interests. I dont make them part of school...that would turn them off. They do not naturally gravitate to non fiction videos or books, but they have plenty of time for fiction and anything hands on....and computer based interests. And no, I generally dont get involved unless asked.

I think it really depends on what level they are doing it, and how interested they are. My kids both learned how to knit about age 7 or 8 but neither knits now. About age 11 or 12 my mother taught my dd to weave on her large loom, but my mother lives on the other side of Australia, we don't see her often. I spin on and off- I would say some kids can do that younger, some later- it takes some amount of fine motor control. I want to learn felting myself, and when I do, I will teach my kids. I am not sure you could put ages on those things- all could be done in some capacity from age 6 or 7 upwards- very simple knitting, sewing on buttons, felting and dyeing with much supervision. As kids get older, they can tackle more complex projects or have less supervision. My teen girl picks up things very easily and I hope she will learn all those skills, but we just havent had the opportunity and I havent wanted to pay big bucks for workshops- I would rather wait until some inexpensive opportunity came along. I also find that my own enthusiasm for fibre arts doenst necessarily translate across to my kids- sometimes they are interested, sometimes not, and as they get older I feel less like making them do something they have no interest in. My son is not so interested, though he could benefit most from the fine motor control they encourage...that is hard and frustrating for him so he tends to avoid it.

Oh, I love her. I was telling my husband that I wanted a cow for milking, maybe a goat too, more chickens, an alpace and a sheep for wool, a huge vegetable and herb garden, and ...he said he would like a pig. We were at the Royal Agricultural Show two days ago, having this conversation. He and I went alone, because the kids were on camp. We just headed straight for the baby animal paviliion, and petted them all. We are just suckers for baby animals.