If I needed to and could afford it, I would order everything from Pottery Barn. Or else Crate and Barrel. It's nice to go check out the actual furniture in the store and see the upholstery options up close.

This is how we are too.

I don't remember it as particularly depressing, more inspiring as to what the characters had to endure. With her writing, you get a complete feel for the physical landscape and it is never boring as you might think describing rolling hills, prairie, etc might be. It is a fascinating slice of American history. Her characters are real and vivid. I love it. :001_rolleyes:

Oh, no! I hope you can find the place(s) you need without too much trouble. It is crazy how much the degree of AP testing-friendliness-to-homeschoolers varies. And reading this thread makes me determined to register my daughter for her test sooner, rather than later. She'll be taking AP English language, which I think is a popular test. I never even thought about the possibility that they might run out of seats.

Another Poirot fan here. I read an interview with David Suchet where he said he could not film Curtain last...he didn't want Poirot's death to be his last work of him. This was a very well done series...so glad they are on Netflix so we can watch more!

Definitely see if you can obtain their death certificates, and if you know the place of their deaths, see if you can find their obituaries. You never know what that will turn up...sometimes a sibling is named that can help you narrow down a search. Most old newspapers from what I can tell are not on ancestry, some are free, but many are in a subscription service. Your library might have a subscription service for old newspapers. Of course if they were local to you your own library or historical society should have archives. Also do you have your father's birth certificate? That might have good information about his parents' origin and preferred name spelling. I agree with the above, be very careful not to assume that because some info is "close" that it is the same person--sometimes it is, but more often, it isn't. Also you might look into the second marriage info--if you can find a license it might have more info on your grandfather. I love genealogy! Also if they may have come through Ellis Island try the ellisislandfoundation.org. I found an ancestor this way...super cool when you find stuff!

I also feel lucky that our local high school has already told me they frequently get homeschoolers taking AP tests there...we just have to come in, pay the test fee, and register. Sounded like no big deal at all for them.

I have to say, as many jerky qualities as my cat has, waking us up in the middle of the night or early morning for whatever reason is not one of them. Which is why she is allowed to stay. Good kitty, wait for your breakfast. I think an interior kitty door would be a great idea...I would love to put the litter box in the basement without having to leave the door open all the time.

Another one with a grandfather who drank buttermilk and loved it over cornbread. Not sure if it was a Depression thing, a southern farmer thing, or both. Guessing both. He especially liked it ice cold in a mug that had been in the freezer. I just cook with it.

I was going to suggest Willa Cather, too! Anything by her, really. My Antonia is my favorite, followed closely by Death Comes for the Archbishop.

We did separate cycles...and if I could do one thing over in homeschooling, it would be to have them do the same cycle. The only advantages to being separate were that I knew what was coming, knew which books to supplement with, and the kids enjoyed seeing what the other was doing. These are not, however, big enough advantages to compensate for the extra time and work. Plus together they can do the same projects, read the same supplemental books, etc. Definitely together. I would just have the younger child do whichever year the older child needs to do.

You could try one of those single-cup cones that sits on your coffee cup that you pour hot water over. These make good coffee, and can be put in the dishwasher. You can compost or trash the filter and grounds. http://www.amazon.com/Melitta-Ready-Single-Coffee-Brewer/dp/B0014CVEH6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1419562341&sr=8-1&keywords=melitta+single+cup Filters can usually be found at many large grocery stores.

Sweet! Thanks!

Your ideas sound lovely. I agree with a soft warm hat if she is going to do chemo. You are very thoughtful. I am sorry about your relative.

No, I wouldn't. I'd rather have more stuff/books/music/clothes/housewares/etc that I had to wait a week for than prime. They never seem to have anything streaming that I want to watch. The only way I can see getting it is if you are planning on some big item/heavy purchases--like recently we bought a new garbage disposal that was free to ship because of prime. Otherwise, no.

That's because in some recipes the outcome depends on the chemistry of the sugar reacting to the other ingredients. Less sugar would equal less structure. (yes I do watch too much America's Test Kitchen!)

For chicklit, anything by Joshilyn Jackson.

I'd sell it in a heartbeat. Life is too short to keep stuff you don't really like, even if it is Fiestaware.

We also like tamales on Christmas Eve, along with green chile stew. For Christmas day, it's always a beef rib-eye roast (aka prime rib), au gratin potatoes, roasted green beans, and Bailey's creme brulee for dessert.

My dd gave her brother a Starbucks card one year that was in an empty new Starbucks cup. They were out of holders. He had no idea. Also, for a video game I might find an empty DVD container and put it inside, or else tape the card to a giant candy bar and wrap that.

This morning I printed postage for one package from my account at usps.com and it gave me the option of printing a SCAN form which it said I needed if I was going to drop the package off at the post office. What? Does anyone do this? In the past I have just dropped off packages at the special drop-off counter. I don't understand why they need another form when I printed their label from their website. What do I do with the form? Do I have to wait for someone to actually scan it, which defeats the purpose of printing postage at home? I think I am just going to drop it off and plead ignorance. Thoughts?

I thought of some more weird things my cat does! She has started occasionally pulling used Q-tips out of the kids' bathroom trash and playing with them all over the house...she can entertain herself for a good long while this way. Also sometimes when I feed her in the morning I will find a rubber band in her dish. What the heck? The only way she could find one is if she was cruising the counters in the wee hours. I don't know why they always end up in her dish. Maybe she's taunting me. More likely she's just weird. As a kitten she had to chase every single piece of kibble across the kitchen floor before she would eat it. Now she only does it once in a while when she's bored.

We once had a cat who ate Doritos and Cheetos! Not the spicy ones though...all the same, it wasn't pretty. They didn't agree with her. But it was funny (as a teen) to show off to friends my Dorito-eating cat. Pets really are weird! These are some funny stories!

Ours used to do this, but not so much anymore. She does like to watch the bathroom being cleaned...one time as a kitten she jumped onto the toilet seat after it was cleaned, lost her balance and fell in...the dork.

I always overthink these things too...but I do know that when my daughter brought homemade sweets to her high school teachers, they were always gone by the end of the day. She didn't take a huge amount but they did seem appreciated. If I could afford it, I'd buy them all Starbucks cards.