I grew up in New Jersey (South Jersey, outside of Philly), went to college in Michigan, graduate school in Philly (Drexel), worked/lived in Philly a few years, then law school in VT, then went to Miami to study for the bar exam, then on active duty in the USAF for 4 years -- 2 years in England, then a year in Arkansas, then back to FL to live, then got married and went to Spain with dh, who was still on active duty, then VT again, then FINALLY back to FL where we've been for the past 12 years. Carol

Hi Beth, I practiced doing lots of pushups from the knees for weeks before moving to just my toes -- and I've been lifting weights, too. And its a good thing I only had to do 16 to get the max # of points for that section, because it literally was all I could manage! Carol

I passed my USAF Fitness Test!!! I ran a mile and a half in 18:18, did 16 pushups (from the toes! :glare:) and 30 crunches each within one minute, and my waist was at/below 29.5 inches. :D I got 87 out of 100 points. (Points for each activity calculated for my age group -- 50-54) The bane of my existence is OVER for another year, YAY!!! And only one more week to go, and this tour will be over, too. I haven't always had the energy to post when I get home at night, but most evenings I manage to find time to cruise around reading for awhile ... Looking forward to having more time to read and post ... oh yes and hs with my ds! Carol

I've been using the Elementary Child Level 2. I like it because the lessons are short and cover a wide variety of grammar/copywork/poetry/creative writing topics. My ds is 11 and has fine motor delay/SPD, so the short lessons without too much handwriting required has really been a help! HTH, Carol

1 ds and my mom lives fairly close and stays over to help out when I do my reserve work. But that's only when I'm working; I virtually never ask her to just babysit for the evening. Dh and I usually get the most quiet time in the early am when ds is still in bed. Its been ages since we went out to dinner together by ourselves; we rarely eat out anyway because its so much cheaper to eat at home. But that's ok -- we all like to be home! :001_smile: All of the cousins near ds' age live in MA and we live in FL, so if we see them once a year we're doing well. I wish they did live closer! Carol

It's great in curried chicken and veggies, too -- add it at the last minute just before you take the pot off the stove. Carol

I don't think its crazy at all! :) I took my now 11 yo ds back to relearn multiplication all over again two summers ago when he was just not understanding division in Singapore Math. We backtracked and spent a year in Gamma. Now he's finishing up Delta and really understands what he's doing. Math is such a sequential subject -- it just gets more and more confusing when you don't have the basics down. We love MUS at our house! Best of luck! Carol

We decided to homeschool because the ps wasn't helping our ds with his sensory/auditory processing issues. I took him out a month or so into first grade and have never looked back. :auto: Actually, the ps did us a huge favor. I had always wanted to homeschool but when he had so many problems in the beginning, I didn't think I could do it. He was in an EELP class for preschool, and it really did help him alot. But then the ps mainstreamed him and it was just too much for him. My ds is 2e -- twice exceptional -- bright but with, as I said, SPD. (Although that has improved incredibly in the past few months.) His kindergarten teacher noticed how he struggled although he was one of the best readers in the class. At this point they had stopped his OT and denied him speech therapy; he always managed to just test out by a point or so. When his k teacher tried to speak with the guidance counselor at an intervention meeting with me there, her response was, "He reads well and he's not a behavior problem." So ... I realized that unless I helped /taught him, no one else was going to do it. And it has just been the best thing for him. Carol

I'm so very thankful that: -- My 11 yo ds is outgrowing many of his sensory processing problems and starting to accelerate in every area! It is so amazing to see. A year ago he was finishing up vision therapy and had been struggling to read more than a page or two. Now he's reading entire chapters of Prince Caspian at one sitting and writing good chapter summaries about them as well! -- I was able to enroll him at a therapeutic riding school only 10 minutes from our house! He started in Nov and I feel this is what has really made the difference for him. -- My mom lives close by, and can help me with the hsing when I perform reserve duty. The $$ I can make part time allows me to stay home more or less full time. -- my dh is so incredibly supportive. -- both my ds and I have made new hsing friends this year. -- I have this Forum to come to! Carol :001_smile:

I'm so sorry. ((( )))) I had one a few months before I got pregnant with my only ds. The docs had told us getting pregnant wasn't possible because my dh had a low sperm count/low motility. I had the miscarriage right after we had told everyone, only a few weeks into the pregnancy -- I didn't even need a d&c afterwards. It was really hard because we figured getting pregnant at all had been a total fluke unlikely to ever happen again. I was 39 yo at the time. The first blood tests had shown I wasn't immune to rubella, so after the miscarriage I went ahead and got immunized for it just in case I'd ever (thinking it would probably never happen) get pregnant again. And I'm so glad I did! But it sure wasn't easy at the time. I know what you're going through ..... you are NOT a moron; please be kind and gentle with yourself. :grouphug: Carol

Yes, me too!! I've finished the first week of a five week active duty tour ... and I know I said I'd post but I've just been too exhausted after I get home in the evenings. :glare: I have been reading posts, though. :) My mom and dh are doing a super job on the homefront with ds's homeschool schedule. It is so exciting to arrive home and see everything he's accomplished each day! :lurk5: Meanwhile, I'm planning on how I'm going to spend some of that $$$ I'm making on new curricula. :D I had already just switched a couple of things; it is nice to know I'm not alone in jumping around. I keep looking at the new stuff I've already bought and wonder if I could start some of it when I finish working in mid-May. Even though I'm not posting every day ... your being here is such a boost for me! Thanks all! Carol

Hi Doran, I do miss my classic original Firms, vols 1 -6! Are they the ones you're doing now? I sold mine on ebay a few years ago, after I hadn't done them in awhile and had started the FitPrimes. But they did help me get back in shape after I had my one and only ds at age 39, after spending 7 weeks on bedrest and gaining 50 lbs! Carol

I'd love to see it, too! My ds is finishing up 5th grade this year,and we used BF's History of Science through the Ancient period for this year and filled in with reading The Iliad, Greek myths, etc. Now we're back using SOTW1 for the rest. I was thinking of Noeo Biology II for him for next year and just beefing it up as we go. Thanks so much! :001_smile: Carol

Doran, Another workout I do is at lifelift.com; deep aerobic type breathing. It is very relaxing and nurturing, and will burn fat IF you do it consistently. I use it alot when I'm traveling, plus I try to do as many breaths as I can throughout the day. If you're starting to think I've tried just about everything out there ... you'd be correct! :001_smile: As you said, that yearly test is strong leverage! Plus, I love to bake AND I love to eat! :D ;) Speaking of baking/eating -- ds wanted to make a Turkish Delight recipe he found. (He's been reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.) I was going to try it with him tonight, but then I noticed it has to sit overnight. :glare: So we're going to wait until next weekend. If anyone's interested in the recipe, I'll post it when we do it next Sat. Carol

Hi Doran, I've done the Firm videos too; they are great! But, I found that as I hit my mid 40's they became too draining. The FitPrimes I'm doing now are by the same designer (Anna Benson) and still give a terrific workout without being quite as intense and exhausting. She has a website at fitnessfavorites.com. But I totally agree with the general consensus -- weight lifting/building muscle becomes more important the older you get, for a variety of reasons. Good question about the #s of crunches/sit ups ... at the moment I forget exactly how many I have to do within one minute to get a good score; I'll check on it tomorrow and let you know. Its something like 20 some crunches ( no help from your arms, you have to keep them crossed in front of your chest) and 15 or so pushups ... most of the points comes from the amount of time it takes to run the 1 1/2 mile, and they also measure your waist for a max of 30 points for 29.5 inches for women 50+. Another workout I've done with good results is TTapp. It focuses on body linear alignment and increasing neurokinetic flow from your brain outwards, and pumping your lymph system to work out the toxins/fat, etc. Beth -- where do you live in OH? I go up to Wright Patterson AFB in Dayton a couple of times a year for my regular reserve duty; I work in the HQ legal office in the civil law division. I'll be up there again the last two weeks in June! Carol

Hi Beth! Yes, I'm a lawyer -- I passed the FL Bar after graduating from Vermont Law School in 1987, same as you! :D I then went on active duty for 4 years, then left active duty for the reserves in 1991. I met my dh when we were both stationed at my last active duty assignment, Eaker AFB ( in Arkansas, one of the first bases closed in the early 90's). Dh was a maintenance officer/squadron commander; he's retired from active duty now ... And he just cut his finger rummaging around in the silverware drawer! :eek: I had to go perform first aid and finish dabbing the potato rounds with barbecue sauce in the midst of typing this ... the bleeding has now stopped. :D Tomorrow I'm running with the rest of the legal office at 7 am! :rolleyes::ohmy: Wish me luck, I'll need it! No, a 7 am run is not part of my regular routine. This tour is paying for the new air conditioning system ... crucial to have when one lives in FL, so ... this too shall pass. Carol

I just officially registered a couple of minutes ago, even though I've been lurking for weeks :bigear: ... I'm 51 and as you can see by my registered name, a reservist -- in the USAFR. I walk and lift weights (currently I've been using the Fit Prime dvds, which are a combination of aerobic weight training, cardio, yoga, and pilates) because I have to pass a Physical Fitness Test once a year. The test includes running a timed mile and a half, timed crunches, timed push ups FROM THE TOES, and a waist measurement. You get points in each section, and you need a 75 to pass. My test is coming up again in a couple of months. I don't like running, but I force myself to become proficient enough every year to pass. Oh, yes -- My dh and I also homeschool my ds, age 11. I love this Forum! I've gleaned so much knowledge, information, and support from everyone here. Thank you all so much! :001_smile: I'm beginning a 33 day tour of duty at Patrick AFB, within commuting distance of where we live here in Rockledge, FL. I'm hoping to post every day in the evenings after I get home to help keep myself going by having some homeschool chat and support along the way! My mom and dh will be filling in for me for the next month; I just finished tomorrow's lesson plan. At some point I need to upload a picture, what resources I use, etc etc but for now -- we're using MUS, SOTW2 (with extra reading w/Usborne Encyclopedia of World History and others), Sequential Spelling, copywork and language arts lessons from Queen, and Hajek's Sentence Diagramming. My ds is also reading The Chronicles of Narnia and writing chapter summaries/narrations as he goes, plus books about WWII. Carol