same thing happened last year with my then 7th grader in math. Im making him re-do over the summer. (but he was already weak in math, and there's no way he could have gone on to the next level). He knows if he cannot pass at end of summer, he repeats the math. As far as your situation, I feel your pain! Can you get an extension on the videos? I'd make him redo as much as possible.

We're avoiding takeout/eating out -- big trip to florida in september we are saving up for. I'm kinda trying to use up the freezer/pantry/fridge before we go... but am buying milk, bread, veggies, eggs/cheese as needed. :D

I have some buns and some chopped brisket in the freezer. I think I'm goiung to do that. I am ALWAYS looking for summer-friendly meal ideas! So if you have good ideas, please share them! :D

It's 105 degrees with a heat index of 110. I'm MELTING!!!! It's wayyyyy too hot to use the oven today. I don't have air conditioning working in the car, so I don't want to go to the store. I have a well stocked pantry, freezer and decent fridge, but I'm out of all fresh veggies right now... I might have some zuchinni and bell peppers, but that's it. I have a stove, microwave, toaster oven, and crockpot (but I'm out of time to use the crockpot for today). There's baseball practice tonight, so I need something everyone can grab as they are able. Any ideas? HELP!!!

HI!!! We are not jewish but went to our first ever bar mitzvah ever last weekend! First, you need to call the synagog. I have read that some require a shawl (no idea what it's called) for girls/women. The one we went to did not for the women, but the males all wore the circle hat things (no idea what that's called, sorry!!!) They handed them out at the door for anyone needing any-- they looked like baseballs! So cute! The one WE went to teen girls were wearing dresses (like church dresses, no sundresses, no sleeveless dresses). Women wore dressses or pretty blouse and slacks. Young boys wore dress up button shirt, khaki's, older boys wore ties, dress pants, nice shoes. Men wore suits. (hubby didn't wear his suit jacket but did to the shirt and tie and fit in just fine...) It was awesome! We had a blast. As far as gift-- every single person we saw gave a gift of a card with cash, check or gift card inside. We did a visa gift card inside a congratulations card for $20 (recommended to me by the gal at the synagog that I called! LOL) Good luck trying to find a bar mitzvah card! IT's hard to find! LOL If there's a reception afterwards, it will be food she's mostly familiar with. Only a few things stumped my kids. LOL Many will have a DJ and activities planned, so have her bring shoes she can dance in. :D She will have a blast! :D

my hubby wont eat soups-- he's weird.

(following thread) :laugh: I'd love to know also~! I've been pushing the salads to fill up before the meal, but now we are ALL sick of salads. If I see another one, I'll puke.

well, my "best" friend (who moved away last year) didn't even wish me a happy birthday yesterday, and I know she saw people wishing me a happy birthday on facebook... nothing. I am a low-maintenance gal. A simple text message makes my day. I don't need alot. :( I guess I need to "let go".... Praying God sends us an awesome family for friendship. I sure could use it.

This game makes me feel like a total hypocrite. LOL I am often accused of being a over-protective mom when it comes to tv/movies/games. I don't allow violent movies AT ALL. I have a kiddo that has nightmares for MONTHS if he watches scary COMMERCIALS! However-- we do own Halo Reach and Halo 4. Halo reach, I make the younger kiddos (10, 8, 7) turn down the volume because of the language. Halo 4 does not seem to have the language issues, so they are allowed (so far) to keep it normal volume. I have not had any issues with nightmares in our home. These are kids that play airsoft, nerf, etc... alot. The violence is not bad. I usually am in the room when they are playing and I have not seen anything that worried me-- and I"M OVERPROTECTIVE! LOL Neighbor mom -- who is more protective than I am-- lets her first grader play with my boys, and has watched the game at our home without any issues either. I recommend you rent the game for a weekend and let hubby play it to see what ya'll think when you see it in person.

lonely here too. had a best friend for 20 years who just one day stopped being my friend. no reason, no explanation-- she said it was just "easier" for her to have her neighbor be her best friend that it was a hassle for her with me being 30 minutes away... I believe since she no longer needed me to babysit her 6 kids, she didn't need me anymore.... I don't know. Had nobody for several years, then became close with another family-- the men liked eachother, and the kids all played together wonderfully. They moved a year later out of state, and now she has moved on too... So here I am again.... I've been praying for God to send a new friend for me/hubby/the boys, but still waiting. I "know" lots of people, but none of them I could genuinely call a TRUE FRIEND.

Older son just became Quartermaster Middle son just elected Patrol Leader. -- He's SOOOO close to finishing first class, I'm trying to get him to complete it, so that the leadership as Patrol Leader counts. Hubby just became ASM and MB Counselor. There is a HUGE amount of drama going on with the SM. The parent committee went nuts demanding changes/improvement on several issues and made the Committee Chair go to him (they're best friends so the committee chair was NOT happy about it)-- now there's all kinds of drama and attitude flying. It's BAAAAD and I think the next committee meting will be really bad. Hoping things calm down fast. It's stressing me out!

wrong. :D You'll find mis-informed people throughout BSA. Not completely their fault... I do think many people are very poorly trained. I run into it ALLLLL the time. Just yesterday, got info from 3 people-- each person's info was completely different. And this is at Council level!

I have not even figured anything out yet. Feel better? :D :D :D I got the early enrollment for Virtual Homeschool a few hours ago, and my kids (and me) are SOOO disappointed their history/grammar/math isn't offered this year for the younger two. :( Now I have to figure out another plan too! (Just to be clear, I LOVE the program and am very grateful for everything that is offered. We were just hoping to continue those items this year...) So NOW-- I have to figure out and purchase: 8th grader: Math (will probably do TT pre-algebra) History (no idea) English/Grammar/writing Literature -- he fights me on reading EVERYTHING. uugh. Science with Virtual Homeschool 6th grader: Math (will probably do tt) History-- no idea English/grammar/writing Literature Science with virtual homeschool 5th grader: Math (will probably do tt) History-- no idea English/grammar/writing Literature Science (may already have something for him... will have to check my shelves/boxes)

WOW-- Margaret! Tell your son congratulations! That's HUGE!

YES! Oldest got voted in to be a candidate for OA! :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: It was a very ODD ceremony though. There was a fire-ban (Texas, it's hot and dry here)-- I totally get that. BUT because there was a fire ban, they had NO fire. No flashlights. No lanterns. No light. It was practically pitch black. Kids were stumbling in the dark to do the ceremony. So odd that they didn't do lanterns or SOMETHING. I'm sad I didn't get a single picture. :( I know-- it's a mom thing. LOL) But all I kept thinking is "what about his scout scrapbook? I need a picture, Darnit!!! Hubby told me I have lost my mind. LOL As far as son-- he's very happy! Since voting, he had been acting odd about OA-- saying he's not sure if he's even interested (but we KNEW he was!)... I think it was his way of not getting his hopes up in case he wasn't voted in or something. (he does have self esteem issues) After the ceremony, he was ALL SMILES. And he LOVED the attention of all the other scouts congratulating him and shaking his hand... Middle son got a taste of the OA and is now wanting to get his requirements done before next voting so he can try to get in also. :D

one of my boys' favorite things we've done is to find old things that don't work anymore and repair them. No joke. Started with a gokart that was destined for the dump. Kids took it apart, rebuilt parts, added some salvaged parts and now it runs perfect. They ride the thing all over-- heroes of all the kids in the neighborhood. LOL They also helped their best friends rebuild a wave runner. The wave runner was free, they spent a year rebuilding and for less than $75 got it running perfect. The boys are looking for a dirtbike now to rebuild.

In the summer, we stick to using the crockpot, the microwave, a little bit of the stove and alot of GRILL! :D Are you willing to grill outside? This is a kid/adult favorite-- we even made it for mothers day and both my parents and inlawas begged for the recipe. *note we usually do the kabobs of meat only, and other kabobs with veggies only-- they cook more even that way. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Yummy-Honey-Chicken-Kabobs/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Thumb&e11=kabobs&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page We use onions, tomatoes, zuchinni, mushrooms, bell peppers, sometimes fresh pineapple...etc... I buy the chicken when it's on sale for $2 a pound or less, but you didn't say exactly how budget-friendly you wanted... (I CAN do cheaper, and often do! LOL) Salad is cheap. I often grill up a few chicken breasts or thin slices of beef fajitas then put on a salad. Kids will usually eat the meat only though. LOL Tuna is affordable. You could do tuna melts inexpensively. Yesterday, I made something new that I assumed the kids would hate, but they actually liked it-- Tuna mixed with garlic hummus toast bagels, spread tuna mixture on it. Top with fresh slices of tomatoes, onion. I thought the kids would hate it as they refuse to eat hummus alone, but this they gobbled up. We do alot of quesadillas, tacos, bun pizzas (in the toaster oven), homemade corndogs (super cheap if you do it yourself!), grilled pizzas

Oldest (13) and Middle son (11) are at summer camp 2 1/2 hours away. I've heard they are having fun, despite the 100+ degree temps. We go up friday night for the dinner/OA ceremony. We don't know if oldest was voted in or not. I'm nervous! (middle is brand new scout, not eligible for OA yet) Planning on bringing boys home with us Friday night late. I miss my boys!!!!!

Hubby has been hinting he wants a safety third tshirt... I'll probably do that.

There is the part that I want them home-- I enjoy their company. I like protecting them from some REALLY bad school by us. However, for us-- it is 99% about the kids. One kid is dyslexic-- there is no program here for him. One kid has CF-- he is healthier at home. The third kid? Just easier to keep him home. :D

Brand new scout mom whose not used to sending kids off to campouts-- worried. experienced scout mom -- not worried. scout mom with kid that has health issues-- very worried. I'm all 3, depending on the kid. LOL

Our dog is 17 and 1/2. Ours does that, but ONLY when she has a UTI. If we don't medicate it fast enough, she will also have pee accidents, then try to drink her urine-- also symptoms of a UTI. $4 of perscriptions usually fixes it for us... We're watching her closely to make sure she doesn't suffer.

It was a good 5 years ago, so do not remember the exact plan she had me on- it was similar to Adkins though--, but i had no energy, felt weak and nautious ALL the time, could not concentrate, always felt like crying. People who knew me said I looked (green) sick. I don't think it was low fat though. Night Elf described it well-- " I'm not a fresh food eater"==I don't do fresh veggies. Canned/frozen is my life. I HATE grocery shopping! LOL So I will eat the typical "normal" veggies-- green beans, corn, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, zuchinni, some squash, tomatoes, canned pumpkin (in recipes), avacados, edemame, fresh spinach (not cooked). Cooked cabbage. Lettuce if it's on a sandwich OR covered in some kind of dressing. Fruits have always been a hassle to me, never have gotten very excited about them, but will eat some occasionally. Broccoli, asparagus, brussel sprouts, and Cauliflower will make me vomit-- even when prepared expertly. Not interested in Metformin. That stuff is horrible. My mom has been on it for years and I don't want to go that route. 3 years ago, A1C was fine. Not diabetic, but do have some blood sugar issues. Not going to specialist or even regular doctor for this.

Yes, I can. I just have no idea how to calculate calories. Is there a book or something that has that?

I'm with ya-- no advice. I actually just posed my own thread, then saw this one on top! Maybe we need to start some kind of support group/weightloss where we can encourage eachother! I don't have any local support for that kind of thing.