I usually start with 2-3 subjects. One of those is always math. The next week I add a couple of more. By the third week we are doing everything. It's great in May when, if we stay on track, subjects start finishing.

My new favorite!! Thanks for enlightening me.

Thanks for doing all this work!

Well, they are not completely stable. There is a noticable "jiggle" to the Vika I just bought. My kids say it is fine. But before this we used an ultra-steady Lakeshore table. If you're looking for something extremely steady, I'd get a desk, not a table.

I just bought two new IKEA tables this week and am separating my two younger kids. I bought VIKA corner table and the $19.99 size Amon. I splurged and bought the adjustable legs for my the latter table so it would work better for my 11yo daughter. She is used to a much lower table. The adjustable legs are $15 each, but it was worth it to me. I already bought swivel chairs at Office Max a couple of weeks ago with a back-to-school special. I may be regretting that one!

Wonderful use of IKEA items! I just returned from there recently. I am rearranging our entire "desk" seating for this year. I bought two new IKEA Vika tables and moved another to another room. I'm excited to get organized. Everyone should own at least one Expedit bookshelf. :) Looks amazing!

My 14yo ds got one for his birthday. He used his own money, plus it was his birthday present from us and his grandma. He is not allowed to take it in his bedroom. My 16yo has built his own computer, but it's not a laptop. It is in a spare room, not his bedroom, but he is largely unsupervised on it. I need to install filters and have a policy for use.

If you are talking to me, it was last summer's project. We had to convert them in real time. I would start one and then go do something while it was recording.

I converted all my husband's LP's to digital format on our hard drive. I borrowed a USB turntable from a friend. I converted all our VHS to digital format on a hard drive. I borrowed another inexpensive device from a friend. I think it was for a MAC, though. We did this AFTER going through and deciding which ones to convert. My dh is a classical musician. We have hundreds and hundreds of CDS. Even if he puts them on Itunes, he still insists on keeping them. I've given up on that battle. I still have a small bag of cassettes to convert. I haven't researched how to do that yet.

like!

Congratulations!!:party:

It depends where you live. Here in California there are nail places in every strip mall, so it is very inexpensive.

We just did this EXACT thing last month except we decided to stay one night. I had three kids with me. We got unlucky on the weather. It was VERY hot the day we were there, so that did make the trip way more tiring. We actually took a train from Birmingham, changing in London on the way to Paris, so we didn't arrive until 3 pm. We left the next day at 6:30 pm. I would only do a day trip if your hotel is very near St. Pancras. You have to check in early, just like an airline flight. That will make your day much longer. The worst part of the trip was the line in Paris to go through customs and board the train back to London. It was HOT, and we waited forever. If you go, make sure to fill out your landing cards WHILE waiting in line. Also, there is an automated line to scan your eurostar ticket. Look for that line. I asked all three of my kids if they would still do the day trip, and they said, yes, definitely. My 11yo daughter did give the caveat, "Just don't get run over by a motorcycle." That's completely off-topic - a fluke on our bike tour. :) I got great rates online before we went. I think I paid $400 total round-trip for all four of us. We did run into trouble on the train on the way back and arrived 80 minutes late. They offered us free return tickets to Paris within 12 months. Wish I could give them to you! We are getting a partial refund instead. If you're interested in what we did, we arrived on a Wednesday, ate a quick dinner, visited the Louvre for an hour (used the free Rick Steves iPod audio tour), and headed to the Eiffel Tower. The Louvre is not open late every night. If you go to the Louvre, enter from the mall below, not the pyramid entrance. If you go to the Eiffel Tower, try to book tickets online before you go. We weren't able to get tickets, so we climbed to the second floor and took the elevator to the top. We arrived back in our hotel at 1 am. The next day we did a four hour bike tour. Then we picked our stuff up at the hotel and caught the train home. We stayed at this cute hotel near Place de la republique: http://www.cosmos-hotel-paris.com/ It was less than $100 for the night for all four of us. Our room was hot, but besides that, we loved it for a budget hotel. If you do the trip, you will be completely wiped out, so the next day or two in London you won't be able to go full tilt. If you have any other questions, either about London or Paris, feel free to PM me. It is all very fresh in my mind!

I can tell you that we are on our third Shark steam mop. Luckily, I bought them all at Costco. That's the only reason I keep buying them. They've each lasted around a year, and we don't mop much. When it dies, I take it back to Costco. They happily refund my money, and I buy another one. So I guess this is more a testimonial to Costco. They have an awesome return policy!

I appreciate the advice. As the OP, I agree that the slightly off-topic post was useful. I plan to issue a "mommy diploma" and have no doubt that my son's achievements will speak for themselves. I also feel that the tone of this thread was helpful and respectful. Thank you to all who have contributed.

Thank you SO much for jumping into the discussion. This is just the information I am looking for right now, and we will definitely be paying your school a visit in the future!

I grew up in a family of 5 with 1.5 bath. NO problem.

You've motivated me to get moving on my redo. I need to set up a couple of work areas. I already own a huge Expedit bookcase, so I'm partway there! Thanks for the pics. I looked at the original blog post you referenced. I would never use those white chairs. We own one in pink. It is extremely uncomfortable. I saw you are using different chairs. Good call!

Thank you SO much!

I emailed the admissions department. You're right. CBU expects to be fully accredited by this fall. Great idea! We'll check the school out.

Cindy gave a great description. My son is in a squadron. He's been a member for two years. It has been a great experience for him. He has had to stretch way outside his comfort zone. My son's favorite part has been the aviation component. We also have a local glider squadron, and he has the opportunity on a weekly basis to learn to fly a glider. Through CAP he has developed an interest in Emergency Preparedness. He did all his CPR/AED training, finished CERT training, and took advantage of numerous other opportunities. He has also gone to Encampment and Non-Commissioned Officer school.

That's pretty much what I thought. Interesting document. That's good to know. Is there a place that lists the schools with co-op programs? It's a good thing, but our situation is complicated by the fact that my husband teaches at a Christian university with a tuition exchange program. Ideally, he could go to a school tuition-free if we get the tuition exchange. We are trying to find good candidates within those parameters, if possible. My husband's school only has a pre-engineering transfer program. Thank you everyone for your help!

For various reasons, I have been investigating California Baptist University for my son who is interested in studying engineering. They have a College of Engineering, but it doesn't look like the school is ABET certified. Is this important? They have only had a College of Engineering since 2007.

Don't use it if you're in California. I purchased this course to use with my son. He did the training over some months. After completing the training, he was told the company could no longer offer certificates in California. My son wasted the entire 30 hours. Now he has to do it over again. This time we are just using AAA. The company did refund my money after I called and complained, but that won't get my son the 30 hours back. That's a lot of time for him. The company says they called and emailed all CA customers that they were going to lose certification, but I did not receive a phone call or an email.

I'd eat a little something before you go and have popcorn at the movie.