We lived in Potsdam or the area there for around 4 years (hey Starr!!) and liked it a lot. It gets cold in winter, but it is a great community and wonderful town. The colleges there are nice. I took several undergrad courses at SUNY Potsdam and my husband was teaching and doing research at Clarkson. I still keep Clarkson in mind for my kids but the oldest were not interested due to the lack of the big-city. Safe, some diversity, great people.

I would invite him and ask your son to tell him that he hopes he can come but they will be doing x, y, and z and this many kids will be there. He can mention that if quirky would like then they could go and do a, b, and c after this party together instead... Since they hang out all the time then this is an option that keeps both happy and takes the potential stress off the party itself. Not inviting the kid seems rude and insensitive to me.

Hey, welcome back! I just stop by to visit once in a while these days but I was on since the very start. I remember those days some 14-15 years back when the boards were quiet during the day because, gasp, all the other mommies were actually homeschooling their kiddos, hahahah!!!!

When will the study guides for the other books come out?

Thanks for the suggestions. For a home teaching program, which lesson books do you recommend for piano? Also, we'll get it tuned but it is not that bad sounding and I am waiting to get someone recommended locally.

Now what?? We got a piano from Craig's List last evening and the kids are hyped this morning. I know the piano needs some tuning, but for now we just want to get started. We can't really afford piano lessons right now for three kids, so I am looking for something they can use to guide themselves. The interested kids are ages 12, 12 and almost 6. The older girls are self-motivated. The 5 year old can't read yet, but loves the piano. Suggestions?

Thinking about you all the time these days! Hope you are all fine. I am totally engrossed with Syria so emotionally very distant these days...

Thanks, friends. I am so appreciative of your well-wishes from you guys who have known me online for so many years. It does make the day more special.

Ouch! What happened to exchange of opinions and brainstorming? I could imagine many others found the questions raised relevant and would be interested in your responses. Based on the conversation here, one is left to wonder exactly what you were asking and if you were mostly showing off that you were getting two horses?? Weird reaction to a totally rational inquiry about your choices.

Negin!!! Thanks a bunch! Love it.

There is nothing poilitical about humanitarian and medical aid. Some organizations have been dealing with companies. I am just trying to brainstorm other options. I bought several from Ebay last night as sellers there seemed cheaper than Amazon.

I am desperately trying to find a way to get free or discounted quikclots (blood stoppers that are military quality) to send to Syria to save lives. A friend with an organization is traveling in a few weeks and mentioned to me that this is the most urgent item they actually need. A a matter of fact, then one of his US colleagues recently died inside Syria delivering humanitarian aid and a quikclot probably could have saved his life. I was thinking we have a lot of military contacts here on WTM and also people with great brainstorming ideas in general. Perhaps someone can help me think through how to get a number (several hundred) quikclots collected or donated within a few weeks and without spending thousands of dollars (that I don't have). Thanks so much.

Does it go under the School form section? I forgot. The last two times my girls did their applications pretty much on their own, but wiht ds we are doing it together so not sure now where to upload the letter of rec I wrote for him.

I am not about to jump into green juicing (at elast not right now), but am looking for an informative book that also has recipes and pcitures. Any recommendations? Also, what do you all recommend for a juicer?

If your dd wants to study med in Germany, then you should consider that the incoming students there most likely will be 19-20 years old like in Denmark. The medicine program there is also very competitive (but not the most competitive, it depends on number of slots). We do go all the way up to Calculus, but to get into something like Medicine in DK then you don't need the msot advanced math program available. I agree that many doctors (which means med students) are no math whizzes at all. Anyways, I would have her take some math over the summer at a cc college. I don't understand why she can't do that? If she wants to go to Iceland, then she could squeeze that in or choose to potentially wager her option at being able to go study in Germany. We have many international residents here in Boston. They have to take a specific exam when they get here in order to do residency which is hard for many, but probably would be doable for an American student, fresh out of her studies in Germany. I would not be worried about that. would worry a bit about the maturity level and stamina of a young 18 year old starting med studies in Germany, but that is your consideration, of course, as you know her.

Algebra 1 : Saxon Algebra 1 Algebra 2: Saxon Algebra 2 Geometry: Saxon Algebra 1 and 2 and Advanced Math Pre-Calculus: Saxon Advanced Math Is this what you suggest we write on the transcript? Thanks so much.

Where do I find the break down? We have done up until Saxon Advanced Math.

Apparently then you can sign up and make an account and upload stuff to CNN's new site called iReport. A friend uploaded this video here which my kids are featured in!! http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-894023

As some of you might know, then I have a fundraiser going on Facebook called One Coat at a Time, collecting money for coats to Syria's displaced and freezing children. I was contacted by Al Jazeerah's The Stream program yesterday and did a very short segment on Skype that was aired today. I can't link on my Iphone, but wanted to let you all know, lol!!!

Yes, good reminder about the green bean dish. Can the sweet mashed potatoes be preparwd in advance?

Sorry to be asking this right after Thanksgiving, but we are having people over this weekend and I am doing a turkey and looking for something that is easy and yummy and can be prepared in advance or in the slowcooker to accompany it.

OK, if the FB button got discontinued. I was outraged myself over that and would not have wanted to consider staying here. I don't know if I care to stay here at this point, though, because this format here is way more business like than what I need from my fellowship here.

Interesting comments. I had no idea actually that you would be stuck legally until even after age 18 if the child refuses to get their act together. It sounds cold, but once you have teenaged kids yourself then your whole perspective changes!!!

Finally got a Subscribe button going in case any of you wizards and fellow mothers might be interested in following my musings and epxeriences as an activist in the making here. http://mysyriatowardsfreedom.blogspot.com

OK, that;s what I was thinking. Emancipated Minor, that sounds severe.