This was my first thought too, since he is conveniently out of the country. However! it could have been that the kids specifically planned the events to take place while dad was out of the country, so that dad couldn't stop them if he discovered their intentions. I hate speculation, but it's hard not to speculate when horrific things occur and we seek to know why. Thankfully, he was caught rather than killed so we may eventually get some answers. Maybe.

Thank you!!! I knew Ray had the Latin Prep books but I didn't know he carried all the GP books! I guess I should have looked at the little spreadsheet order form he sends, huh? :D ETA: Horrible Books appears to just have the foreign language books, so I'll have to go through the other store. That's okay, I think I've ordered from there before. Thank you!

Wow, that stinks! I'm sorry about your dad's phone number. We've been with Verizon for 12 years and have never had any issues with them. They cost an arm and a leg, but it's always been worth it for us. We both have pretty basic phones.

Where is the best place to order Galore Park books? I'm in the U.S. Thank you!

Oh, man. Hang in there, mama. We were exactly there a year ago. Hope something greater comes your way. :grouphug:

I had cramping for a few days (the first day was horrible!) and spotting for the first 3 months. After that, I had no periods for years. The OB assured me I just needed to check the strings once a month, so I never took any pregnancy tests.

My city's stats, from city-data.com: Estimated median household income in 2009: $44,893 (it was $36,397 in 2000) Estimated median house or condo value in 2009: $123,300 (it was $84,000 in 2000)

Susan. Really. Have you met us? We like to donate. All we need is a button with a link to a PayPal-friendly donation page. :)

When I first moved up to the area for college, I moved to a gross, cheap efficiency apartment in a gross, scary building. My next door neighbor was a crazy guy who would bang on my wall whenever I made any sound. He could also tell when I had left my apartment, and he would wait until the exact moment I walked by his door (he would look out the peephole, I guess. I had no way out other than walking by his door.) and BANG against his door as hard as he could. Then he would laugh and laugh as I would jump. He occasionally called me names through the door or wall. It was so incredibly creepy. I never did see him, but he had a trashy lady friend who would come visit him and they would have a screamin' good time iykwim :ack2: . He eventually started stealing my mail after a couple of months (we had unlocked boxes) and I just had to move out. Fortunately, my landlord had another apartment available elsewhere so he allowed me to break my lease on that one. I was such a naive kid! The whole thing was such a weird experience and I really should have called the police on him, but I was afraid to. I was an 18 year old 100 lb thing who knew almost no one in the city and had grown up (without cable! :-P) in a Mayberry-esque farm town. I had no idea.

Cat bites? Whatever. It's probably fine. Cat hairs? BLECH! Garbage! :ack2: I think since your only concern was the former, you should be fine. Go for it, and enjoy your roast! Mmmm. I'm don't really like meat, but occasionally I make an exception for crock-pot roasts.

Awesome update! I'm so glad you don't even have to deal with sending it back or trying to find another inexpensive copy! :hurray:

Leftover Lipton noodles and homemade pumpkin bread. I should have probably branched out of the "grains" food group, now that I think about it. :D The kids wanted (and had) chicken noodle soup... and it came from a can. It's just a lazy day, and I'm spring cleaning upstairs so I'm trying not to be down in the kitchen too much.

Blech! Definitely request a refund.

Is there any reason you chose to include WTM on your poll options instead of WEM? I'm just curious.

I totally agree with this. I agree. A wedding is a wedding; I'm pretty sure the same etiquette rules apply.

That's a great idea!

Looks great!

We have a vintage Renaissance Chessmen set by E.S. Lowe. The pieces are a great weight and easily identifiable. If you buy a vintage set, just make sure you verify that the weights aren't loose.

Hacky sack or Kikkerland wind-ups?

I've been looking for an OM3 syllabus and the ones on ebay have been selling (actually selling, not just listed) for the same price as the new ones will be during the OM spring sale in 4 weeks. I've about given up and decided just to buy straight through the vendor. I must use "hot" items, because I have had a really hard time finding any great used deals lately.

Check out the Metra map. IME, the Metra was slow and unreliable, but that was years ago. I've heard it's better now.

How you describe your experience with WTM in the sentence I bolded is exactly how I felt about Charlotte Mason's work when I first read it. However, now I am able to pick and choose a few key points from CM's methods and apply them to our homeschool. I still disagree with a lot of CM but she has some great ideas that have helped improve our school. My point is, take what you want from WTM or whatever homeschool philosophy, and leave what you don't. There isn't a lot of "philosophy" behind WWE by itself. It's a method. If you think the copywork, narration, dictation method will help your child, try it out. No Kool-Aid drinking required. ;)

:D

We attempted to go kite-flying but it was just too windy. Hopefully the "wind-blown hair" look is still in because I'm totally sporting it right now.

I think my rising third grader is going to try Oak Meadow next year, so my list is pretty short: OM3 (full package + crafts, though we probably won't use the math) Singapore Primary Math Std. Ed. (continue through levels) & start on BA when she's ready WWE (continue through levels)