Of course! We've enjoyed lots of Disney World educational days! Lots to learn and see and experience. :)

Add me to the list needing black ink AGAIN. Just bought more colored ink last month. :) Might need to reconsider homeschooling my kiddo...

My own DD hasn't been a bedwetter but out of my seven siblings, 5 wet the bed for years and years, two of my brothers past the age of 12. My DH was 12 when he stopped. My nephews still wet the bed at 8 and 6. It's just so common in my experience.

Thanks for your wonderful lists! I'm enjoying them. :)

We just finished Bridge to Terabithia as a read aloud and it got me wondering. :) I'm not interested in published booklists and professional opinions for this list. I'm interested in your all-time favorite books for kids this age. Which books had a huge impact on you when you were that age? Which ones have had a huge impact on your children? I'd love to see your top 10 from your childhood and your top 10 from reading with your own children. Feel free to include why if you'd like.

We really enjoy them. Hope you will, too!

I use Roots Magic.

We usually have three "read alouds" going at once; one that DH reads at night, one that I read at night when he isn't home and one for literature during school hours. DH had to finish Crispin: At the End of Time (from our summer reading). Now he is reading Bridge to Terabithia. I am reading Miracles on Maple Hill and we have listened to The Phantom Tollbooth and Into the Land of Unicorns for school. Today we start Sounder. Happy reading everyone!!

Loved those. Thanks for the link!

Awesome. Thanks!

I start in Aug because I like to get 18-19 weeks in before Christmas break (dividing our year in half with Christmas break). I'm just anal retentive/OCD like that. :)

Mountains Desert Carlsbad Caverns My grandparents (they were married there) Roswell Artsy people Native Americans Cliff dwellings Never been there. :)

I raised one teenager (a family member) who had meltdowns like you are describing. He was also in and out of psychiatric hospitals because of severe rapid-cycling bipolar disorder (among other issues) and frequent talk of suicide (including one attempt). Eventually, he had to leave our home. Very, very, VERY tough situation. My DD also has meltdowns of epic proportions but she isn't a teen and has a brain injury. Things are getting better as she gets older but it's been rough. I would definitely advise seeking help at this point. You and the rest of the family can only take so much. Dealing with these kinds of behaviors is incredibly exhausting, emotionally, physically and mentally. Big hugs from me.

I am so sorry about your neighbor, on many levels. What a tragedy. Huge hugs!

Nope. And never heard of the show you ladies keep referencing. I'm 39, by the way. Must be living under a rock. :)

I use four, usually. Heavy duty foot cream for my hands at night, Oil of Olay with sunscreen on my face and neck/chest, hand lotion that I keep in my purse and a body lotion my hubby kindly rubs me down as often as I can get him to. Plus vaseline for my lips all the time. What tinted sunscreen are you ladies using? I need one but have sensitive skin. Anyone have one they can recommend?

She sounds SO MUCH like my DD. I'd recommend a developmental ped and/or a child psychiatrist (we did both). We've also done a complete neuropsychological eval twice. Very helpful for us, My DD is delightful most of the time now. Meds and counseling and tons of learning for our family have helped tremendously. Maturity has also helped some. I wasn't sure we were going to survive ages 5-8. After getting lots of help 9 and 10 have been pretty great. Hang in there!

My DD does not have FASD but she does have static encephalopathy due to a serious congenital brain malformation, hydrocephalus and the horrible domino-effect they have had in her brain. She is beautiful, bright, sweet and funny. I have so much hope for her future, on the good days. But the good days are surrounded by the hard ones. I'm trying VERY hard to not fear for her or for myself. I'm trying to happily get through each day. It is so hard because I am afraid of what the future will hold. *deep breaths* The grief comes and goes but it's always there. Just today I had to help her work through some fear (she had a shunt failure in April and has had a tough recovery from surgery). I hate knowing these thing will never get better. I send cyber hugs because while I, like you, chose this child, it doesn't make the reality of the difficulty of raising her easier. I would never not want to be her mama, I just sometimes wish it was a bit easier, especially for her. I'm really learning to trust God, I'm just a slow learner apparently. :blush: I hope just knowing other parents get it helps a bit.

It wasn't very accurate for my situation. We make way more than we "need" but I felt the housing was VERY low compared to actual cost (and we live in a small, humble home). The health care was more than twice the housing cost (for a family of three with two parents and one child) which is close to what we pay. Interesting.

Stick shift or standard. Mostly stick shift. :)

Wow and double wow!

In January we rented from http://vacationcentralflorida.com/ and had a fabulous condo. We will definitely use them again. :)

Thanks for the suggestion. I took a look but I'm really needing to do chemistry or physical science for this year (and next).

I haven't but I'll certainly check it out. Thanks! I looked at AHA Science last night and it looked fun. I think we'll do that but I'm still looking for other options and ideas.

My DH is going to take over the majority of science teaching this year (YAY!!!) so I'd like to get a curriculum in place for him. I'd love some suggestions. Our situation: DD will be in fifth grade. She is bright and curious with some limitations caused by brain damage/ADHD/other significant medical conditions (including current recovery from a recent brain surgery). 3rd grade was a mish-mash of astronomy and earth science. I felt it was just adequate. 4th grade she read a series of science books from our library and wrote reports most days. It was my slacker subject (thus asking my DH to take over this year). She's a bit behind grade level in reading. She loves experiments. She has a less-than-stellar attention span, even on great days. We already have lots of science supplies and experiment books on hand. Elemental Science was not a fit. We supplement with lots of documentaries, nature study and field trips. I don't want to spend much money. My needs: A plan to follow. Something that takes just 1 or 2 days per week. Exposure, not mastery, is the goal. Enjoyment is a goal, too. :) I'm thinking chemistry would be great and I have downloaded some things that look interesting. What have you LOVED to use to teach chemistry (or physical science)? Do you think it might work for our situation? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!