I don't know if OP had the same experience as me, but I noticed that there were offers of help aplenty right when dh left. People were very nice, sympathetic, etc. Then as time went on, they just evaporated and my managing alone was the new normal and I sort of got the impression I was supposed to deal with issues myself. It's been ages since anyone other than my mom has helped in a meaningful way.

You could do both, but it would be an awful lot, and you said you also enjoy other stuff. P 4/5 makes a great Kindergarten year and will prepare your boys for 1st grade. K is very heavy and you should consider whether you want to confront issues like the nazis, homelessness, oppression and self-rule, etc, right now. I like P 4/5 a lot; K not so much. P 4/5 has a lot of hands-on suggestions in the newest guide. A lot of them are pretty lame (like, roll snakes with play-do after reading about a snake! -- I just made that up but it wouldn't surprise me if it's in there; that's about how they seem to me) but it is something. Remember, too, that the Core does not include math, phonics, or "readiness" skills which are honestly what you probably need most for 1st grade readiness. Mostly they are collections of read-alouds.

Oh I would have been horrified. Totally inappropriate.

My dh is finally coming home in about a week after a year-long deployment. I think these last few weeks have absolutely been the hardest. When he first left I knew I had to take care of everything b/c he wouldn't be here to help out but now that it's so close to his return I find myself procrastinating thinking he can do it soon. So that means I have a lot of stuff just not getting done! It just really seems that this last little bit before his return is d r a g g i n g. So I hear you on that. Congratulations on getting that stain out. I had paint on the floor at Ft Rucker and they ended up charging us over $1000 when we moved out saying they had to replace all the carpet in the whole house...then they ended up bulldozing the house before anyone moved in! What a rip off. About the pruning I got this tool from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-NHT518-1-Cordless-Electric/dp/B001K2YBA2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1281400536&sr=8-1 It's kind of expensive but it is so easy to use and I've trimmed all my hedges like crazy this summer. Not usually my job either but I got 'er done! Hope your little kiddo is ok and hang in there!

That's a tongue and brain-twister! Merci, Cleo!

I had a serious swimmer and a competitive gymnast, and recently my swimmer has decided to try to cross over (it's tough, but as a boy it's a little more doable). It kind of breaks my heart that he quit swimming, since he was dedicated and fast and very promising. Also, I totally agree with the comments about fewer injuries and lifelong sport. Sometimes I wish I hadn't encouraged my daughter to do gymnastics. When she was 3, 4, 5 yo she was so adorable in her little leotards doing her little skills...and it was such an honor when they put her on the competitive track. Now, though, I get freaked out when I see the kinds of stuff she is learning--it just looks so dangerous. I can't watch her practice at all. I see team gymnasts with injuries all the time, and I know we are in a gym that takes it slower than others around us in order to avoid injury. But she and my son both argue that gymnastics is more fun than swimming, which honestly is just laps and more laps. They do what they can to make it fun, but you can't argue that there is a lot more variety to the workouts in gymnastics. But these are not really issues that probably concern you, with your 5 yo just having a fun extra-curricular!:001_smile: Honestly, though, I would pick both if you can swing it. Swimming is so important; it's almost like math until they are very competent (way more so than any 5 yo would be). But gymnastics is so much fun, and they are so adorable in their itty bitty leotards! (I never learn!)

Thinking about those stories about how hot the inside of a car can get even on a much cooler day, I'm figuring the car was pretty dang hot for those 90 minutes. Like, oven hot, maybe? I might eat it but I've never gotten food sick so I am less conservative than some.

I like the lapbooks by Amy Pak http://www.homeschoolinthewoods.com. Winterpromise sells kits with all the printouts if you need them. I have also been happy with handsofachild, although the art is not as not as pretty as the ones by Amy Pak.

Oh yeah, gotta love expansions. We have several for Carcassonne. I like to really play a game almost to boredom before buying an expansion, though. It makes it like new again...

Not sure about Settles of Catan...but we play Catan dice and it's a fun, quick game if I really don't have time for a game but ds asks nicely. :-) We love Dominion! It's my favorite of all our games. We also enjoy Carcassonne, Puerto Rico, Agricola, To Court the King, Witch's Brew, and Dungeons and Dragons. I just put Ticket to Ride in my cart and am thrilled to find another game. I love variety!

:001_smile:

I always thought the list was written to try to convince you to buy Sonlight even if you think you might not want to buy at first. I've bought and used Sonlight over and over (7 cores) and it worked well for me when it worked. I still really enjoy the first two for littlies. Here are the reasons I'm moving away from Sonlight as my family is changing: 2. They want a program with lots of hands-on activities built in. Actually I don't need a lot but Sonlight really doesn't have any. I am terrible about adding them in so I really need weekly suggestions. Yes, we've done core 5 and there were some suggestions but that core was a disaster for other reasons. 3. They want classroom-style study, with quizzes, tests and grades. My boys thrive on tests. They really need accountability and grades in order to put forth the effort to learn something. 7. They can't afford to invest lots of time doing school with their children. This reason is irritating. I spend all day doing school with my children, every day. What I don't have is lots of time to fritter on read alouds to children who can read perfectly well on their own. They don't enjoy it, and I sure don't. I also don't have time for twenty zillion comprehension questions that we all hate. If they read it, they understood it. Now, if the questions were more analytical or "going further" questions; that I could use. I have many subjects to teach to many children, and a Sonlight core is just history and literature. I don't need it to take hours of my time each day. 11. They don't want any "sad" books, or "heavy" content. This is my daughter's reason, not mine. She was so sensitive there was no way I could have done Core K with her, and even this year doing Core 1 with her (at age 8) she was sometimes seriously distressed by her Sonlight book. One of the Missionary Stories I just skipped--everyone in it is murdered. Seriously, is that an appropriate story for a typical 6 year old? 23. They want a program that focuses on the “Great Books†that are part of the “Great Conversation. This is one that I'm starting to appreciate more and more and kind of goes along with the common criticism on these boards that Sonlight is not challenging enough at the high school level. I'm realizing I only have so many years left with my boys and there are a lot of classics left to enjoy! I just don't need to spend scheduled school time on easy, fun books. They read those on their own constantly. How about I try my hand at a few additional reasons? They want multimedia/DVD suggestions on a regular basis. They want clear learning objectives for every week. They don't like reading bits and pieces of a whole bunch of books at once. They want questions and teacher's helps that have you go beyond simple comprehension to ones that teach thoughtful response and analysis. They want to see more tangible evidence that a child has actually done work other than a list of books read. So, what am I doing now? WP this year, but I am not sure that's going to be a long-term good fit for us. For high school I'm pretty well sold on TOG, and we'll probably be picking that back up again next year.

Some people are not as good about email. We've totally gotten the run-around on some attempted purchases, with the seller taking forever to get back to us, or only answering half of our question, or just not seeming to get to the point of, hey, when can we come get it. Often we've had the thought that if we could just talk, we could get the entire transaction agreed upon in about 2 minutes with all appropriate details discussed. The email method can be excruciatingly slow, and very irritating if you do a lot of craigslisting. Sort of the difference between buying a bauble at a street market in Cairo vs. picking one up at a flea market. One of them involves forging a relationship and having tea while you discuss the ups and downs of said bauble and its value, and the other involves giving the guy a buck and walking away with it. ETA I mean by the title, it's not at all weird, not that you should avoid calling. If you feel comfortable with it, go ahead and call.

You can PM me, too, if you want. Converted about 5 years ago.:001_smile:

For sure, I'd put it in the kids' room. The mantle is VERY visible and putting it there would claim the attention of every visitor to your house. I agree that in the future you may be happy for it. Or your dd will be happy to have it for her own home someday. Definitely don't just get rid of it. What a thoughtful gift.

ds 11: reading, math, science, psychomotor ds 11: reading, math, science; maybe negotiator dd8: math, psychomotor...I'm still surprised to have a math-talented girl. Whoa those old biases run deep. ds4: reading, math I loved seeing all those categories. It was very affirming of the different ways children can excel. I don't usually think of the psychomotor category but you are right that some kids really shine there. Every athletic activity my ds11 Andy tries he excels at. It amazes me. My daughter is a talented gymnast (lvl 5). My other ds11 Tom is another geeky, dancing scientist! lol. But he is happy enough to take lessons. Because they are twins it's probably inevitable that people will constantly compare my older boys, and people see that they share the same academic talents and just figure Andy won the luck of the draw with the athletic ability, too. It's true he's blessed that way, but I wish that Tom's other gifts weren't so hard to quantify--he's thoughtful, considerate, empathetic, and a peacemaker. A joy to have around. I really appreciate seeing that quality listed here as a form of giftedness; it validates my mommy feelings!

Hardwood gets all scratched up from a constant-use place like the kitchen, plus discolored if it stays wet for any reason (like a leaky dishwasher). Linoleum looks awful as it ages (although can be great at first, and a lot cheaper). Tile you typically don't have to baby or worry about it getting wet, and it cleans up well. BUT I would suggest 2 things: 1) make sure you get it with three distinct colors to hide the dirt --- like a spongy swirl with white, grey, and rust color --- and 2) pay attention to the "hardness" of the tile when you buy it. I tiled a huge portion of my 1st floor with a tile that's not hard enough for the abuse my kids give it ---nothing intentional, but they drop things on it all the time accidentally, or tip over a stool things like that --- and it is majorly depressing how many cracked tiles we have. Maybe 10-15? We've been in tiled places before with no problems, but this tile has been a nightmare. Whoops! Another cracked tile. And I don't think it's the installation because the same person has installed tile for us also in a different bathroom and our rec room in the basement, and nary a cracked tile there. Plus I know her and she is obsessive about doing work like that in a way that exceeds any professional standards if possible.

Crowds, smells, junk food, people hawking stuff, garbage, whining, dirt, sore feet, lines, money, money, money, boring 4H displays (sorry), more whining, port-a-potties...yuck! I put up with them every now and then "for the kids" but can you tell I hate them? They are omg expensive and the money keeps pouring out. An amusement park has a higher entry price tag but at least then they can keep having fun without constantly begging for more.

If your daughter loves to read, I'm assuming she is a good, strong reader well capable of reading at or above a typical 5th grade level. In that case, I would suggest starting at core 5 or 6, but certainly not below 4. Most of the books from Core 3 are really easy. A few of the read-alouds are challenging, but the "advanced" readers are not even up to 5th grade level. Core 4 is similar, although a little less astonishingly easy. Landmark is a great book and would be good for a 5th grader. But it is totally mismatched with the literature of Core 3. Core 5 is about on target for a 5th-grader but we just finished it and really disliked it, so I wouldn't recommend that one!:glare: (We basically had all the issues Merry brings up...disliked the EHE, lack of spine, disjointed lack of "flow," plus by the end of the year I was wondering why I had ever decided to stop teaching history for a whole year.) If you go ask over on the Choosing Forum pretty much everyone will tell you to start her back a level or 2...:confused: I have never understood why everyone there seems to think SL is so darn advanced. So, even though I haven't done Core 6 I know Sonlight very well and, again, assuming she's a strong reader, I would suggest starting there. FYI in the past I have done Cores P3/4, P4/5, K, 1, 3, 4, 5.

I had the same reaction when I visited as a high schooler. When my application came in the mail, I just threw it away. Then, a few years later, I reconsidered Yale when it turned out to have one of the top French departments in the country. I chose to go there, in spite of what I considered the sluminess. However, I also found it to be a much nicer place to live than I was anticipating and they have spent millions gentrifying the city since I visited in high school. If you haven't been there since back in the day, you may be pleasantly surprised with how nice the city is now.

Oh! I never thought of that. I am Eastern Orthodox so our music is decidedly un-contemporary. :D It sounds like you have looked into the churches in your area...but, wow! Your area is sure different from mine. :001_smile:

I don't know how "anti" your "a" is in areligious but if your children are drawn to church/God would you feel comfortable helping them in their own spiritual journey? Most churches are very welcoming to newcomers and would be ok with your coming even if you are not "sold" on the whole God thing. If it would make you feel extremely uncomfortable, maybe they could go with a friend? Going to church seems like a great way to learn hymns to me!

I went to Harvard (undergrad) and Yale (PhD) and my husband went to MIT (undergrad and grad). I have NEVER regretted it or wished I had gone to a non-Ivy. I got an INCREDIBLE education and there is no way I have "learned more homeschooling my kids." I chose to forego a high-powered career but it was definitely there for me had I chosen it. Classmates of mine have done amazing things. My husband similarly had an outstanding education at MIT and I know that it was both the education and the contacts he made at MIT that have allowed him to have the career he wanted. Our classmates from college and grad school have been among the brightest, most inspirational, and most interesting people we have known. The only possible downside I have experienced is what I think of as the "wow factor." IRL, I usually avoid mentioning where I went to school unless it's relevant. It can be a little awkward and annoying to experience the awe many people seem to feel. But both my husband and I feel that our Ivy/MIT education was key to our intellectual formation and essential to his career trajectory. We are doing our best to prepare our kids for the brutally competitive admission process in the hopes that they can have opportunities similar to ours. Admission to Harvard in recent years has been under 10% of all applicants--and I can tell you that most of those applicants are bright, impressive kids. I do alumni interviews for Harvard and it's demoralizing every year to see rejection after rejection for my interviewees, even among the kids who impress me. (I'm hard to impress, too.) I am honestly shocked to hear that someone would turn down, say, Yale for a local school simply because someone might think they were snobby someday. I can't speak for all the Ivies, but I think a Harvard, Yale, or MIT education would be an incredible gift for any young person.

Would you find Shakespeare questionable to use with high schoolers? Moliere is great--funny, smart, biting, and sometimes baudy. Think Shakespeare's comedies and you'll have a good feel for Moliere.

If my child is taking a class from someone else, I don't usually buy the teaching materials. If I need to help with take-home work, I just ask the child what is meant by such and such requirement. If you're going to go through all the work to learn the IEW system and how to teach it, why bother with the class? Save the hassle and just teach it yourself. But if you're going to let someone else teach it, then enjoy that you're out of the picture and just be the mom.