DD1 - We added a lot of dual-enrollment credits (through Calc 3 in math), we did Latin through Florida Virtual (colleges prefer certified foreign language), and she did community service ( well rounded not just church based). She had a very high SAT score which along with Virtual school and the community college grades verified the high GPA I gave her. :) She attended Florida's honor college - New College of Florida in Sarasota and received a Fulbright Fellowship to study in Germany. Talk to college counselors EARLY in the game, they like some outside grades in a variety of areas such as math, science and foreign language. Some want SAT II scores some don't. All of them wanted letters of recommendation from non-family, non-church sources. You can start collecting this in high school, particularly if they have a great experience, get the letter of rec. while the memories are still fresh. DD2 - Some dual-enrollment some virtual school. All good grades to support my transcript. She had a good SAT but backed that up with over 1000 hrs community service (again not just church based) and a college level sport. She would not have had the time for everything she did if she had gone to public school. :driving: For both girls, we started applying to college in early fall and were able to receive some merit-based, first come first served scholarships. Both of them had the free time to pursue their interests which between them included: NanoWriMo, 4H Leadership, Teen Court/Mock Trial, recitals and piano concerts, horse shows, Odyssey of the Mind and Comic Cons. :laugh: ETA: I'm not putting down church based activities but colleges really do look at them differently. Outside organizations are seen as more objective than getting a letter of recommendation from your minister and saying you worked at the church camp. My girls did both church and non-church activities and I also would judge the church ones as less rigorous than Teen Court or 4H etc.

Considering the age/grade level of your children, I would just give them some time off. Read great books, build things, visit museums, make crafts, etc. I don't know if the concept of deschooling is still around, but a total break between 'out' school and homeschool can be vital. I agree with previous posters that this is a good time for you to explore whats out there, conventions can be helpful, books about homeschooling can be helpful. I would not rush into setting something up for this school year though.

You guys have listed some great ones: Fox and the Hound - when the old lady leaves the fox in the woods Truly, Madly, Deeply - when Alan Rickman (Ghost) finally drives his wife away so that she will date a living guy Rent - when Angel dies

As some of the previous posters mentioned it is hard to plan where kids interests and talents will take them. In general, I would not start a high $$$ or high time schedule activity unless the child was really interested and committed. In the situation you described I would let the son continue and let the daughter wait until she expressed a strong interest. (just my opinion) Both of my girls tried several different interests before settling on their main one. I allowed them to try things, drop them if they lost interest and try something else. We ended up with two high $$$, high time, competitive programs, :001_rolleyes: running in opposite directions. dd1 (now 22) - opera, piano camps (sorry no photo of baby grand in my living room, ha) dd2 (now 20) - Hunter/Jumper equestrian (see above photo) They were supportive of each other but it did not take long before piano girl refused to attend any more horse shows and horse girl said 'no more recitals'. :lol:

So sorry, please see my edited post above. I believe in old earth and in long span evolution. I do appreciate that some people separate age of earth and length of time of people.

I don't really think force is involved, nor is the entire language. While the issue of gendered pronouns is not a problem for me it is a problem for others. I appreciate respect and kindness concerning my differences (even if I represent a miniscule percentage of people) therefore I try to offer them when dealing with other people's differences and preferences. It really isn't that big a burden.

If that is the standard by which someone decides which authors are worth reading then will probably end up only reading a small self-selected group. Sounds limiting to me. I guess I have never found it to be that big a deal. Of course, that is just my opinion.

No. No, the mocking 'heshe' with the rolling eyes has been used as an insult too often. Usually following by a smirking "it". I am sure a word will develop to meet the need, I don't mind "xie". I remember the 70's and the mocking of gender neutral designations for employment, such as "stewardess" vs. "flight attendant". It all looks silly now. English adapts, it adapts quickly, that is one of the things it is known for. :001_smile:

I have not read it but a quick look at the reviews made me want to put it on my 'to be read' shelf. Sorry that's not much help. :001_smile: It sounds good and interesting to me. I have always felt that accurate teaching of evolution does *NOT interfere with faith. oops, edited to add the 'not'. :sad: That really ruined the meaning. For clarification: I believe in old earth, I believe in both micro and macro evolution over long spans of time. I am a Christian that believes God created the earth and the Bible tells the who and why but science tells the how. Therefore I do not see evolution being inconsistent with faith. Sorry for any confusion

Hatchet and its sequels My side of the mountain

Cool...I learn something new every day. :tongue_smilie:

If it is decorative and goes on top it could be a bedspread. I wonder if that is a regional word? My mother is from Kansas and we have called them spreads, but when I tried to shop for one in Florida no one knew what I meant. I don't use the word 'coverlet'.

My dd did a sewing project with sticky red sequins...years ago...I just pulled on off my sock last week. I am sure I will still be finding them when I teach her daughter to sew. ha

I agree totally with the bolded! That is exactly what I was thinking. He may feel like you will judge him for not homeschooling so he has to 'defend' the virtues of public school. And congratulations to your son, I hope he has fun with his college search. :)

I agree with the bold. Salvation is a matter of God's Grace not our good works. However, faith should cause us to wish to act morally, please God, do good works. How do we choose which actions are moral? That is where my question comes in. I see more 'I believe in God (am saved) therefore I follow the rules of the Bible' rather than "I love God, therefore I act with a heart of love'. It may only make a small difference in the outward action but the motivation shows through. I would not be attracted to Christianity in the area I live if I had not already been a Christian before moving here. and again, thanks for the response. and this has definitely followed a bunny trail :) , sorry OP.

I don't agree but perhaps the issue is "where is center?" I think the so called liberal media is much closer to 'center left' than it is to 'left left', while Fox is 'right,right'. Also it looks as if those considered 'moderates' are usually slightly right of center. I have many conservative core beliefs but cannot bear to watch Fox. I looked forward to Megyn Kelly's new show, thinking she seemed to have sparks of independence but found it was disappointing. Either way, I prefer to use multiple sources since all organizations tend to have some degree of bias. I also prefer print/online because TV news can't provide nuance in the short amount of time they spend on each story. I also try to avoid sites that use slanted/code language, I admit that can be hard to find. :)

Thank you, I really appreciate the response. As I stated I am a Christian but I am not Calvinist and only have an outsiders knowledge of TULIP. You provided a clearer understanding of Total Depravity. Of course, now I am not sure that is what Seekinghim was talking about. :) She seemed (to me) to mean rampant lawlessness and pure evil, which now seems beyond Total Depravity. I don't read the Romans passage quite the same as you do but it did provide a nice jumping place. Thanks again. May I ask one more question? I know tons of Calvinists but am reluctant to ask them. Is there a difference (my position has been 'yes') between morality imposed from the inside 'love of God and neighbor' and morality imposed from the outside 'God/Bible tells me to". The second seems to be a list of rules to follow (not attitude of love to internalize) in order to reach Heaven/avoid Hell this seems to me to be a lower form of morality. Yet when I ask my friends about morality all I get is the second option. Is this a Calvinist thing, a personal thing from them, or a lack of communication?

My exact thought. That and Godwins, upthread. I learned these things here. :laugh:

I live and work among a similar mindset. I know they are loving, devout Christians. I believe you are as well. Your statement about the 'no true Christian' implies that Christians are somehow perfect. That they do not continue to have human failings. I know that I am not perfect and that I rely on grace, I know that other Christians are not perfect and sometimes in their imperfection can do terrible terrible things. Especially if they believe that their actions are 'justified' by God.

This describes my concerns with the Calvinist doctrine of Total Depravity. There is an underlying view of the rest of humanity (slippery slope of evil on the path to Nazism) that could cause active harm to others. I do not know seekinghim45, I assume her to be of good will. But I have spoken to a few too many Christians who are of the mind set that God=Christian=Good, and not!God or not!Christian = evil and therefor undeserving of respect and rights. This of course is totally off topic for OP, sorry

I am assuming you are not being sarcastic here. If I am wrong, sorry. You appear to be referring to the doctrine of "Total Depravity", this is an aspect of Calvinism. Any Calvinists out there feel free to correct me if I get this wrong. I am a devote Christian but am not a Calvinist. I have been curious about "Total Depravity". How far does this doctrine go? Are you saying that the only reason you do not murder some random stranger is because God is stopping you? Do you only obey the rules of society because you fear hell? Do you only stop at red lights when a police officer is present? This seems (from the outside) to be the lowest scale of morality, and least appealing. It is possible I don't understand, if I am wrong please let me know. To the OP: It seems like your dh has tried to live with a moral code imposed from the outside and enforced by the promise of rewards and threat of punishment. Now he needs to discover what he believes and develop a moral code from the inside, i.e. a heart and conscience of love. He is not alone, many Christian youth face this when they start seeing 'holes' in the system. He may stumble around a bit doing this. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the liberty of a teenager, he has a wife and children for whom he is responsible. Maybe you could find a kind way of telling him to grow through this stage quickly. Christianity includes a mode of morality but it is not the only morality out there.

No No No to Fox News :glare: , sadly some of my older relatives watch it and it has not been a good thing. I try to cover a broad range of news. I skim through aggregater sites like google, yahoo or huffington (ignore the 'society stuff'), if something is interesting I try to find at least two different sources. If the story is about what so-and-so said or did, I try to locate a prime document source (i.e., text or video of speech). If it is a story in a specific town, such as 'protester arrested in Jackson, MS" I go to that local news. For general daily news listening I prefer NPR. I subscribe to "American Conservative". I do not generally watch TV but I like Daily Show and Colbert Report when I catch them. I was conservative but have been moving steadily leftward with the last three presidential cycles. I still have a lot of conservative ideals but I don't have a party 'home' right now. The 24 hour news cycle and the usurpation of the news shows by the entertainment divisions has not been a good thing in general.

Ha ha ... been there done that, :) look at the handsome boy in my avatar picture. ($600/month half lease, plus $160/month shoes) I would say though that at his age I would look for a lower pressure more 'fun ride' type stable. 4H is a great idea. We started with a quarter horse and lots of club rides, she did not move to serious shows until she was 15/16, I know lots of people start younger but I waited until she was ready for the commitment to be worth it. Riding can be a wonderful sport and really help kids learn responsibility. Caring for horses is hard work and they can be surprisingly fragile. She is away at college and no longer involved in horses but has lots of great memories and a lot of confidence from competing. I wish you the best of luck.

Had another quick idea. Look into the 4H project books for Electricity/Magnetism; Robotics; and Small Engines. The books are very cheap. The quality of the experiments, projects, curriculum in the 4H books vary greatly depending on the author and series. Some are great some are twaddle, try a few they are usually on $4 or less. I used the electricity projects in a co-op with several younger boys, they made circuits, lit up light bulbs, made switches and electric magnets. It was fun but not deep.

I was a team coach for Odyssey of the Mind for several years. Along with the long term problem the kids would work on we also did spontaneous problems (here is a pile of stuff make an 'x') Google Odyssey of the Mind, Spontaneous, hands on problems. There is a ton of free information out there. Good luck, sounds like an awesome club.