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magic

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Everything posted by magic

  1. We were in this position and put the three boys in the largest room, our daughter had a small room, and we had the other small room. Our daughter's room was also used as the guest room. It worked great for us and we had this arrangement for 4 years. The house was a rental and, when we bought this house, we made sure each kid could have their own bedroom if they wanted.
  2. I am glad you decided to join. I am sure you will all enjoy it.
  3. We require our kids to buy their vehicle before they can get their license. Our oldest ended up getting his uncle's 2005 Toyota Corolla after he died 3 years ago. He had been planning on getting a Toyota or Honda and the car works great for him. He used the money he had saved to get new tires, have mechanic issues taken care of, and saved the rest for college. Our second son bought a 2004 Chevy Silverado and it is a very nice truck. He wanted a nicer four wheel drive vehicle and was willing to wait to get his license until he could purchase what he really wanted. He bought it in February shortly before his 18th birthday. Our 3rd son is currently saving money for a vehicle (he is thinking a smaller SUV) and will be turning 16 next month. It will be another year at least before he gets his license.
  4. My oldest attended public high school. The district transitioned from 7 to 8 credits a year between his freshman and sophomore years. 28 credits were required to graduate- he graduated with 31 plus an additional 6 college credits. My 2nd son was homeschooled for high school and graduated with 34 credits. We aim for 7-9 credits depending on the intensity of the course load and other commitments.
  5. Bitsbox.com is a subscription box that teaches kids to code. Our good friend started the company and it has been doing very well.
  6. We have a general club and have project groups as part of our club. This past year my daughter did 7 projects: photography, quilting, baking (cookies), creative sewing, decorate your duds, home environment, and scrapbooking. This year she is planning on photography, quilting, recycled clothing, home environment, scrapbooking, global citizenship, non fiber heritage arts (Pysanky), visual arts, and either buymanship or foreign cookery (she hasn't decided definitely on the final two. I am the project leader for photography, scrapbooking, and home environment and she helps teach these projects as well. She works all year on her 4-H projects because they take so much time (especially being in so many projects. This year she won two state grand champions and worked very hard on all of her projects.
  7. We have painted pet rocks, used alcohol ink on tiles, sprayed tye dyed shirts, worked on a club scrapbook, made cards, used washi tape and paint to decorate bottles, decorated cupcakes and cookies, made bird seed bells, leather stamped bookmarks, and more. Project leaders usually have some ideas that also count as practice projects for the kids.
  8. My son is a college student and a college tutor. He is currently going through tutor certification classes and this was brought up. Basically, the tutor is not supposed to initial any conversation outside of the tutoring subject during the tutoring session. If the one being tutored initials a conversation (unrelated to the tutoring) the tutor is supposed to steer them back to the subject at hand. If a friendship or more forms and they want to get together outside of the tutoring session, the tutor needs to request for a new tutor to be assigned. My son tutors several students that had to be switched from another tutor because of friendships. This is for the protection of all involved and to make sure that the subject that tutoring is needed for is properly covered. Outside of the tutoring center, one can hire a tutor that they have a friendship or more with but the tutoring is not under the college and the college is not liable for those tutoring sessions. I hope this was clear enough. My son has said that there are so many rules and if/then scenarios that they have to go over.
  9. I was at home taking care of my 3 young sons while my husband was getting ready for work. I was in a panic because the news reports were that the planes were Newark/west coast flights and my parents were flying into Newark from Seattle. There plane ended up leaving late and then being grounded in Idaho and they had to rent a car. At the time, we didn't have any contact with them and reports weren't clear if the flights were flying into or out of Newark. We were relieved when we finally heard from my parents but the hours before we heard from them were difficult. My parents were also 2 blocks from the London subway bombings and that was a terrifying time as well.
  10. Would he respond to the phone ringing or vibrating? Maybe you could call him to wake him up.
  11. My son will be 20 next month and is a huge 80s rock fan. He has been systematically turning his younger siblings towards his taste in music. Last year, his music appreciation professor was shocked that he could identify so many songs. He also looks for the obscure little bands of the 70s and 80s.
  12. Margaret, I will probably stalk you as well. I am so proud of all the 4-H'ers and how well they do. Tell your daughter congratulations! It is a 4 hour drive each way to Pueblo for us but my daughter really wants to go and I only have 1 day that will work. We probably have several connections that cross- my son has multiple friends and former classmates at University of Wyoming and Colorado School of Mines.
  13. Margaret in CO, my daughter was the teen clerk for the STEAM 3 sewing/ specialty clothing and she said that there were many great projects this year. We are doing to Pueblo tomorrow to see everything. Congratulations to your daughter on her projects. My daughter was thrilled this year to receive Grand Champion in Home Environment and Scrapbooking, 3rd in Quilting and Photography, and 5th in cookies. It was a good year for her and she has also had to switch to teaching some classes instead of taking them because she already knows what is being taught.
  14. I wanted to add that my daughter was the first in our family to be part of 4-H and I wish that we had encouraged our boys to be part of it when they were younger. Neither my husband nor I were in 4-H but my mother-in-law was for a while when she was younger. I remember going to the fair when I was younger and wanting so much to be part of 4-H but never was. When we started our 4-H journey with our daughter, we had no idea what was going on but I would talk to our club leader and the local extension office to find information. We also took advantage of all the workshops we could so we would have some idea what was going on and what to expect. After 1 year, I became a project leader and am now the assistant club leader as well as the leader for multiple projects. I put on workshops throughout the year and am constantly working with the extension office to find ways to get information out there and find new ways to teach youth. Even though our boys have never been in 4-H, they still come to most of the 4-H activities with our family and cheer on the 4-H'ers at competitions.
  15. We just finished up our daughter's 5th year in 4-H and my 4th year as a leader. For the first year, I would recommend only one project- either livestock or a consumer/general project. The first year is a real learning experience and it can take some time to get the feel for what is expected. She can still try other projects and submit them in open class at the county or state fair but only have 1 project that is a 4-H project requiring a record book. Every 4-H member is expected to give a demonstration but it isn't as bad as it sounds. The younger kids usually do this later in the year once they have watched older members give demonstrations. For a demonstration, one talks about something relating to one's project and it is a good idea to bring in at least one visual aid. Animal demonstrations that I have seen are: how to make rabbit treats, how to tattoo an animal, what markings mean, how to clip animal's nails, diseases that an animal may be susceptible to, and more. The options are endless and only need to be 2-3 minutes for a 1st year. My daughter has given project demonstrations on how to make animal cupcakes, how to apply rhinestones, uses for washi tape, talked about a Dremel and it's uses, different ways to apply dye to clothing, how to use a die cut machine, uses for alcohol ink and more. These demonstrations give the youth a chance to speak before a small group and share knowledge in a subject that they enjoy. No matter what she decides to do, keep track of all her practice projects, community service, demonstrations, workshops, and more (also take pictures of these)- it will be so much easier when it comes time to do the record book. You can access an e-record for projects early so you can see what all is required. 4-H has been such a wonderful and rewarding experience for my daughter. Her first year she did 2 projects and this past year (her 5th year) she did 7. We will be driving down to the Colorado State Fair on Saturday to see 6 of her projects on display- 2 of which won Grand Champion at state. My daughter had the opportunity to teen clerk at the state fair for a week in August while they did judging- all of her expenses were paid. Every November she participates in a 3 day leadership camp in the mountains and it only costs us $10 a day. My daughter is one of the most active members in the county and state but most are not nearly as active as she is. It is up to you just how involved you want to be in 4-H. I definitely recommend that you give it a try and see how you like it.
  16. DS #1(current college sophomore) full time preschool and 3rd-6th (he returned to public school in 7th grade but I still taught him part time at home to supplement) DS #2 (recent homeschool graduate) full time preschool and 2nd-12th grades DS #3 (current high school sophomore) full time from preschool to present DD #1 (current 8th grader) full time from preschool to present
  17. I gave every member of my family a haircut- saves over $100. I used rebate apps and coupons to save over $60. Used McDonalds app to take my 15 year old out to lunch for $3 (buy 1 get 1 free nuggets).
  18. Our family started watching it on the day it was released and couldn't stop. We ended up watching it straight through and finished up early in the morning. We all really enjoyed it and want to watch it again.
  19. I have had a gift closet for 20 years. I stock it for baby and wedding showers, weddings, graduations, house warming, kids, teen, and adult birthdays and Christmas. as well as small odd and end gifts to give as appreciation gifts and other miscellaneous times when a small gift is needed. My teens raid the closet often to get gifts for friends and work events. I also keep the closet stocked with items to give in case of a tragedy or loss. My best friend lost her house in a fire last year and I we were glad that we had many new items to give to their family while they were waiting for their house to be rebuilt.
  20. I gave birth at ages 21, 22, 25, and 27. I became a full time parent at 16 when my parents decided that they wanted to be full time entertainers and moved us to a new state so they could be on the road full time. I had guardianship of my three younger siblings but our parents did live with us a couple days out of each month. It was a complicated situation but I had to raise myself, my 15 year old sister, along with our 13 and 11 year old brothers starting 3 months after my 16th birthday. I look at my four kids and can't imagine leaving them the way my parents did.
  21. I was completely blind for 9 months when I was 20. I had hemorrhaging in my eyes and the doctors had no idea what caused it. They had no idea how to treat it and did not know if I would ever regain my site. It will be 21 years next month since I went blind. I have regained a good portion of my sight but am still legally blind and have scar tissue in my eyes that prevent me from seeing the way others do. I started listening to books on tape because there was no other way for me to keep entertained while in the waiting rooms. I am now an avid audio book reader. I also started painting blocks of wood, shelves, frames, paper mache boxes and frames, as well as flower pots I painted each item with only one color since I couldn't see where I was painting but I found that I could get a good feel for what I was paining. Painting allowed me to feel like I was doing something and I could do it without seeing. I donated some of the items and gave others as gifts. I still have the blocks that I painted- my kids all played with them and they are put up for when I have grandchildren. I know that it can be frustrating to not be able to see but I do recommend finding something that she can do without seeing and that allows her to feel productive.
  22. That is roughly what we spend and we have four teenagers- 3 are boys. However, I do feed many of our teen's friends as they seem to be over at meal time. I also am part of a freezer ministry where I make meals to be use for families during times of need. We also live in an area where the closest grocery store is 40 miles away- the only thing closer is a Walmart and small family market so sometimes I have to purchase at a higher cost because I have no other options.
  23. My husband and four teenagers (including our 13 year old daughter) have played Pathfinder, D&D, and several other RPG's for years. They really enjoy them and their friends enjoy coming over to play as well. We are going to have an RPG area set up at my son's graduation party this weekend.
  24. There are always free mini classes. If you add them to your class list, they stay in your classes portfolio. I recommend watching some to get a feel for the format of some of the classes.
  25. My 13 year old daughter and I have each taken Craftsy classes in cake decorating, knife skills, scrapbooking, paper crafting, photography, sewing, and more. We take advantage of the free classes and have paid for classes as well. We like being able to pause and rewind parts and that we own the class and can come back and watch them later. I am a 4H leader and my daughter is very active in 4H so Craftsy provides a great way for us to learn and expand our skills.. We have been with Craftsy for around 2 years.
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