Your wish list looks great. We read a few of the things on your list. The only one I would say wasn't too enjoyable was The Canterbury Tales. That could just be us, though. :-) We also enjoyed The Story of King Arthur and His Knights (Classic Starts), Eric the Red and Leif the Lucky, Saint George and the Dragon (Hodges), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare Can Be Fun), and The Apple and the Arrow.

There is no way I would report the mom just based on the info posted. In my mind, a call to CPS means a distinct possibility that the children could be taken away from their parents. Are you absolutely positive that they are in such a dangerous situation that they might need to be removed from their home? If so, make the call. If not, find another avenue to pursue. Surely, there are other options beyond calling CPS or ignoring the situation altogether. What about discussing the issue with someone higher up in the church she goes to? What about F recommending some Parenting books?

Spend Sunday having fun. Celebrate brother's birthday on Monday. Tell her Monday after you have celebrated. That will give you time to be with her and let her process this shock while you are there to support her. By the time sister's birthday comes, she will have had a few days to think things over. I would not leave her right away to process this information by herself if she's prone to anxiety and depression. I would also try to get a local friend involved, so that she has someone to turn to for support once you leave. So sorry for your family.

I have used Elemental Science for 3 years (2nd - 4th). As my oldest is in 4th, it's pretty much all I know. :-) So, I'm not gonna be a great one to ask for a comparison point of view. But, I think it's great. The black and white you are referring to is just the teacher lessons (for you to read) and the notebook styles pages (for you to color and complete). The actual way you retrieve information would be from a spine (as you mentioned), from the Internet (via additional links and videos), or from additional books. I have mostly bought our books used. I think it is straight-forward and easy to accomplish. This year I splurged and bought the experiment kit, which has been nice. We are doing Physics, and it has all of the little odds and ends you might need for performing experiments. We have done many fun projects and experiments in the last few years. I think the Earth Science was my favorite year.

For the baby... What about teething toys? For the 5 yo... Bucket and shovel, bubbles, sidewalk chalk, watergun.

We have used Singapore all along. My dd is in 4th now. I am very happy with it. She scored in the 88th percentile on her 3rd grade standardized test. I wouldn't say she is mathy. But, dh and I both have MBAs in Finance, so I sure am hoping the genetics kick in eventually. :-)

I could not understand why people had their kids sleep in the bed with them. I would NEVER do that... Can you guess where I'm going with this?? Yea, 9 years later, we still have 2 in the bed with us.

Comparison is the death of contentment... Or something to that effect. My dh and I were just discussing this last night. It is a lot harder to ignore the comparisons when they are right in your face. But, sometimes you just gotta keep your eyes on your own plate. Maybe you have a hamburger and the guy to the right has a steak, but probably the guy to the left has a cold turkey sandwich. KWIM? Don't worry about getting help from your parents right now. If it's bothering you, make it a goal to be more self-sufficient by this time next year. Otherwise, be glad that they are available. How much more would it suck to be in your same financial position without mom and dad to help? Wouldn't you be happy to help your own kids some day? It sounds like you guys are responsible, good people who have hit a rough patch a time or two. I'm sure your parents want to help you succeed. Just follow the above advice about tackling something and rewarding yourself, and realize that it is a bit of a process to dig out of that hole. Set some goals. You have to have something fun to look forward to.

I would say it is the end of reading instruction. Instead of learning to read, he will move on to reading to learn. :-)

It sounds great. We used ETC 8 in 2nd grade along with FLL 2. We also used Spelling Workout Level D and WWE 1. What about Literature? Do you do Read Alouds? Is he ready to do some reading aloud from a longer chapter book? Or do you assign any reading?

Well, that is about what I spend for 6 of us, but I don't have a growing teenager. :-) The cheaper sources of protein we eat would be chicken, tuna, eggs, and Greek yogurt. Whole chickens, legs, and thighs are what I usually buy. I make tuna patties or salmon patties at least once a week. I make a frittata from eggs sometimes. We either eat Greek yogurt straight up or make smoothies. Regarding your friend Mr. Picky Pants... (Is that his full name as listed on his birth certificate? Ha ha!) You might not like my answer, but I think some people just don't like meat. You can try dressing it up with cheese, sauces, etc. Or you can try hiding it by mixing it in with other things. But, really, the kid just might not care for the taste or texture.

I have all of the books. My kids like drawing the pictures. But, I would make sure my kids is pretty proficient with forming letters before using it as a handwriting program. There is no handwriting instruction.

"We are family!"

Cabin in the Blue Ridge mountains?

We did ES chemistry last year in 3rd. I think it would be fine for a 5th grader. I would just expect more from a 5th grader in terms of the writing.

Yes! That is it. Do you have the curriculum for sale, by chance?? Ha ha! I'm flexible on Science topic. I'd prefer not to do Physics, since we are doing it this year.

Thank you very much for all of the above suggestions. I'd guess I should have included some more info. I have already done 4 years of SOTW. So, I was thinking of skipping year 1 for this second cycle and moving 5th grader on to year 2 along with 2nd grader. So, they would both do Medieval history. I do currently use Elemental Science. I wasn't sure about putting them both in Logic Stage. The 5th grader already used grammar stage of Earth and Space. We do use Harmony Fine Arts already, as well. :-) I was hoping for a big box to open and just start the year. That seems a little lofty. :-)

I will have a 5th, 2nd, and Pre-k next year (which starts in June for us). I'd like to combine the 5th and 2nd for science and history. I'd like minimal prep (and am willing to spend the money for it). I'd like literature focused. Is it Sonlight or Tapestry of Grace? Is there anything secular?

I don't have teenagers, so this is coming from my personal view as a teenager many years ago... It sounds possible to me that your dd has some anxiety issues and might be internalizing anger at you for not helping her deal with them. "I don't like to talk on the phone." can be code for "I have a serious anxiety regarding phone conversations or unfamiliar situations." Then, of course, she's mad at you for not making the call and handling the job situation. Perhaps this Internet person is making her feel understood in a way that she isn't being understood at home. All of that still has no bearing on you or your parenting. It sounds like you are doing everything humanly possible to address the situation. Counseling will probably just take a little time. All you can do is provide that safe environment until she can work through some things. I absolutely agree with everyone above. I would surely be contacting the police. You never know who is on the other end of those messages.

My last baby was born at a "baby friendly" hospital. (Seriously? What's a baby unfriendly hospital look like?) I was given the option between the formula-feeder gift, which was a diaper bag with formula samples and the breastfeeder gift, which was a small collapsible bin to use for diaper changing supplies. Previous baby was in the NICU for a few days. I was given formula in ready to feed bottles but no diaper bag. Also, I was given several adorable knit hats and blankets that were donated to the hospital by kind people. :-) Previous baby I was given a diaper bag with the formula removed by the nurse once she knew that I was breast feeding. First baby was a diaper bag with canned powdered formula.

It sounds like you might want to call Disney directly or use a Disney specialist travel agent to coordinate the land and sea portions. The actual port isn't anywhere near Disney World, so it would be nice to have all transfers coordinated for you. But, I would first check a crowd calendar site like Touring Plans to narrow down your dates. Also, it looks like the "season" changes in late April, so the prices and crowd levels change. Coronado is nice. It's a convention hotel, so a lot less kiddie than some of the others. Park Hoppers sound like they might be worth it in your situation. We haven't used them since going with kids, but I used them before going with kids. It would make it a lot easier to get meal reservations, if you don't have to coordinate being in the same park all day. We love, love, love the meal plan. But my dh would be completely irritated if he had to whip out his wallet at every meal. :-) Everything is just so expensive. It is nice to have everything pre-paid. You can only add the meal plan with a room and ticket package. Just FYI. It's about $60 for adults and $20 per kid for each night of your stay. We use the sit down meal credits for character meals. If you wouldn't want to have a sit down meal every day, you could consider the quick service meal plan, which is like $40 a day for adults and only includes 2 counter service meals - no sit down meals. We have stayed at Polynesian, Contemporary, Old Key West, Coronado Springs, Caribbean Beach, Port Orleans Riverside, All Star Sports, and All Star Music. My personal favorite was Polynesian. Hubby's favorite is Contemporary. All of the moderates were great. The All Stars are a bit overrun with youth group but are great for a short trip. Hope I answered some of your questions! I love Disney.

I have dark blonde hair and brown eyes. My oldest has bright red hair and blue eyes. No one I am related to has red hair (including dh). So, in my mind, anything is possible. :-) I had two kids born with pretty dark hair that fell out and later grew back a different shade.

I liked The Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears. It answered many questions you have listed above about the prevalence of the disease, likelihood of complications, death etc. Some things are more likely to be contacted by babies, so they might be irrelevant. Or at the very least, some things require a shorter series of shots depending on when the 1st vaccine is given.

Oh dear, say it isn't so..... Taryn is my daughter's name and I love it. Perhaps it doesn't fit you as well as it fits her. In that case I am sorry your tagged with it for life. My daughter is a strawberry haired Irish girl so it fits her well. Wouldn't it be better if we just gave our kids a number or a rank until they reached an age where we could make a joint decision. I suspect we would have happier kids - with names of this generations famous icons. I think the name isn't totally uncommon now. My dh actually worked with a lady who had children with the same names as dh and I. :-) When I was growing up in the 80's, it was much less common. So, no one could pronounce it or spell it. My mom did a double whammy by giving me the middle name "Maree", which is pronounced like the traditional "Marie", but clearly spelled incorrectly. ;-) On another note, before I read this thread, I did not realize that I was supposed to give my kids middle names that they could substitute for first names later in life. They are totally screwed.

I hate mine and always have! Thanks for bringing up this painful topic. Ha ha ha!