runninmommy
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Posts posted by runninmommy
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Part of what may give me a different perspective on this is that I'm noticing that many of the responses here are from families with younger children, who may feel defensive, or that they have something to prove, or who may feel that they are representing homeschooling as a whole, and are uncomfortable with that role. I've very comfortable with where we are as a homeschooling family. Two of my dc have now gone on to slide right into college as high school sophomores, and are succeeding. I don't so much care what other people think about where my dc are in their academics, and never really did care what *the people who quiz kids* think.
The reason is bothers me is because it offended my son. He thought it was rude. He was uncomfortable. He was at the YC under this persons authority and supervision. Even though he answered the questions correctly he felt put on the spot and made to feel stupid.
I don't expect my children to be perfect. Just that people would have some manners and boundaries.
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Thank you so much for your kind responses this far. I am still so mad this morning.
I posted some thoughts on my blog just to get it off my chest. I doubt it will make a difference with anyone but I had to get my thoughts out.
The YC worker is there on/off. I don't know if it was just temporary or what. I do plan on speaking with the director, I just don't know what I am going to say yet.
Here is what I said on my blog;
May I get something off my chest?
Homeschooling my children is a personal family decision that was not taken lightly. It is a decision we made because it is the right thing for our family and children. I do not think homeschooling is a good choice for all families.
Our family is not in competition with public or private school children or even other home school children. We do not think we are better than others because of our choice to home school. I would not be condescending or rude to other families who chose to send their kids to public or private school.
There seems to be quite a few people who assume that home school families really don't do anything. These same people make inaccurate assumptions and feel the need to quiz home school children and ask them questions based on what they think that child should know. This in intrusive, insulting, offensive and singles out the child making them feel less than.
There are so many different methods and curricula that homeschoolers use. Most of the time it is completely different that what public schools use. Maybe your fourth grader is studying The Civil War so you think that all fourth graders should know everything about The Civil War. So, of course, if my fourth grader (who is home schooled) is not studying the The Civil War and does not answer your question right, he must not be getting a proper education.
I can not tell you how inaccurate and frustrating this is. It would be the same thing as me asking a public schooled child if they know the Latin Declensions, The first Sumerian Dictator, the components of formal logic, or how to apply the Pythagorean Theorem all while raising my eyebrows and thinking they are not educated if they can not answer. Maybe they know these things, maybe not. What an uncomfortable situation for a child to be in.
The point is that when others go out of their way to single out a child and ask them questions like this it is really just a person who is not properly informed on home schooling trying to prove their bias. It is rude and hurtful to the child.
Most home school moms I know would be happy to talk about their curriculum, method, and lessons. If you are curious, just ask her. You would be surprised what you may learn and how your perception may change.
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quiz your children upon hearing they are home schooled?
In the past week I had a Youth center worker quiz my 9 year old on math problems and actually had him write down the answers. (I was not there at the time)
and a librarian asked my other son (6 yr. old) if he was home schooled then when he said yes, she asked him to read to her. He read her a whole book and surprised the heck out of her.
What do you say?
I would be very interested in what you would say about the Youth Center worker. I'm in mamma bear mode and just ticked. I don't go around quizzing other people's children. :glare:
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Is there a youtube video, or anywhere online that shows a typical public school day? Something you may have shown your children to give them an idea of how it is? I know we could go to a local school to observe but I'm not ready to do that at this point. I just want to show them how a typical PS day would be set up.
I have looked but can't really find what I'm looking for.
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How much different do you think it is to butcher a turkey? Our neighbors just offered us one of their HUGE turkeys. My mouth waters just looking at him. I'm thinking, same idea, just bigger?
Blessings,
Lisa
Hmmmmm. I'm thinking it is probably the same kind of thing. I have not researched it yet though. Let me look it up in my Encyclopedia of Country Living. I'm sure it will be in there. It is my Country Bible. :lol:
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Oh, I am so sorry.:grouphug:
I hope you feel better soon.
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Thank you so much. You guys are just the sweetest. I really appreciate your kind comments.
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Camille - are you treating your animals? I've been at your blog & I'm just guessing that you're bringing them in from your animals. I'd consult vets & treat every. Chickens etc can all carry them.
I'm just guessing that you're just reinfesting the house from the outside. They can also live in the grass etc so it's a big battle.
Also - I'm wondering if you could nab one & have it id'd. There are different species with differing favourite hosts & it might help you narrow down where they're coming from.
For yards etc, I've heard regular watering of grass etc can help as they're less likely to survive if they get really wet. Also there are some predatory nematodes which you can get & spray on the grass.
Last thing is to improve the quality of your animal's feed. Time & time again I've seen animals begin to no longer be as troubled with parasites when we change their diets.
No animals are allowed inside. We have sprayed the front/back porch and treated with several things as well. These are sand fleas. I don't know if it makes a difference or not. We have a lot of sand around the property.
The animals have been treated every month and we are pretty careful about that.
I have not heard of Flea Fix. I will have to look that up. I do know that the pest companies have been turning people away because they are so busy just with fleas this year.
At this point I am willing to sprinkle salt, borax or magic fairy dust.
The worst part is that I am a very uptight/clean person. Having bugs in the house drives me insane and makes me feel dirty.:glare:
Thanks for the suggestions. I will look up the methods mentioned that I have not heard of.
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Well, I thought my disclaimer at the beginning of this post was enough of a warning. Someone from here left a comment that I was a murderer.
Interesting. I'll have to digest that for a while.
Everyone has a different perspective. That is certainly not mine.
;)
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Chicken feet make wonderful broth! Don't throw them away until you boil them up first! (I don't recommend saving the feet from old chickens, howevr).
On snapping necks. The man was right-handed, and he held the chicken securely in his left arm, one wing against his body, the other wing against his inner arm, his left palm on the chicken's breast. The chicken was perfectly still and calm. He put his right hand on the chickens head and his thumb around the neck and gave a quick, firm twist to the right. I didn't even realize he'd done it right away, it was so fast. That was that.
I have never done this. ;)
I never knew you could make broth with the feet. Interesting. :lol: Thanks!
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I wouldn't use those poisons.....I would vacuum about every 3 days....and if you have a bag....throw it out each time. If you have a canister type....dump it in a plastic ziplock baggie!
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I did everything I could before using poisons. I am against chemicals and endured various failed treatments before deciding to use them. We vacuumed and cleaned very well, very often. As I have said, we have no carpet anywhere in the house. I used diatomaceous earth (which is organic and made of diatomes) several times, various home remedies, cedar chips etc.....
My poor son had bloody bites all over and we were all miserable. The chemicals knocked some out but they are still here. This has been going on for 3 months. It is better but still a problem.
Really, what would you do if your kids/family were miserable and nothing was working?
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Seriously, I am done. I had my best friend move who had 2dc, then another precious friend whose 4dc were the same age/gender as my first 4dc, next came a wonderful lady w/6dc same ages/gender as my first 6dc. All of them moved within a year or so of our friendship developing to the point we were at each other's house every weekend, talking so far into the night our dc would fall asleep and get carried to the van. So after the lady w/6dc moved I swore off any more friendships...until I met one of the dearest ladies in the world who has 8dc (yep, almost the same ages/gender as my 8dc). And guess what? She's moving! In 2 weeks!!! I knew it was coming, even told her last year that if she became friends with me she would move before 2009 was over. She laughed at the time. Now we're both crying because this woman is my twin, my soul-sister. I feel deflated and defeated and so lonely I want to sob. The only consolation I have is that after each friend moved I had more babies and met someone who had that many dc as well so hopefully that pattern will continue. ;)
I'm just glad our dc weren't as close as with the other friends' dc because when the lady w/6dc told us she was leaving, my sweet 10yod looked at me with tears running down her face and asked me why God would let this happen again. My heart broke for her, for all of my dc who have lost too many friends over the last 4 years.
:grouphug:
This is the dilemma of every military wife. It is so hard to loose good friends and people but truly, you can do so much these days through Skype or other web-cam chats (my girlfriends and I have coffee together that way)
phone calls, letters and visits. You can still keep very close with a little work and technology.
Don't stop making friends or you will miss out on some really wonderful people. Even if it has to be long distance.
:grouphug:
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We just use salt. Put it down, leave it (wear foot covering while it is down). Vacuum in a day or so. Put it down again and vacuum again. Twice is probably enough but you may want to do it a few days later.
Hmm. I have not heard of salt. We are in Alabama and the fleas have been really bad here. We do not have animals in the home either and we have had issues with fleas. I have had an exterminator out 3 times and we still have them.
I have heard burning cedar helps.
What does the salt do? The same thing as diotomaceous earth? DM is supposed to get in the joints of the fleas exoskeleton and cut into them to kill them. It did not work for us though.
I don't have a stitch of carpet in my house. All hard wood and slate. I learned that fleas don't actually "live" on their host. They only get on an animal when they need a blood fix. They like to live in cracks and corners where there is debris like hair/lint or near feces like a cat box.
If you have a sure-fire way, I'd love to hear it. My exterminator can't even get rid of them. We have had the house professionally bombed and sprayed, even the couch. The week after the last treatment we had fleas. :glare:
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What did you do with the chicken feet?
I tossed them with the scraps. After they danced around, that is.:lol:
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Thanks so much for sharing.
I was interested to read your opinion of the dual breeds. I have several dual breeds as laying hens and I just can't imagine eating them at 16 weeks. They aren't particularly meaty. Will you post after you get and butcher the Cornish crosses?
So, what made you decide to skin them rather than pluck them. And finally, how did you wrap them to store them in the fridge?
I will be glad to post after we get the crosses. I'm not sure when I'll get them though.
I usually don't ever use the skin on chickens. The only real use I see with the skin is with frying. I guess it would be good for soups too. I fry chicken maybe 1-2 times a year.
I found an interesting way to wrap them for the freezer. You put them in a bag, kind of like a produce bag or very small trash bag. Then, you dip the bag in the sink filled with warm water (being sure not to let any water back in the bag) the warm water expels the air and creates and airtight seal over the whole bird. I also put them in another bag just to make sure they were good and sealed. I checked on them this afternoon and they were frozen solid with no ice crystals at all.
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I'm getting ready to butcher mine for the first time. Very interesting to see your experience. I noticed that book, would that be the Encyclopedia of Country Living? Same book I'm using. Thanks for sharing!!
Lisa
Yes, it is the Encyclopedia of Country Living. I love love love that book. It was very helpful.
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Don't click on the link below if you are squeamish, or hate seeing blood, guts, or animals used for meat.
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Oh, Okay.
No it is not laid out quite like that.
It is laid out day by day. I tried to copy/paste but it did not come out right.
Basically, you would fill out all the information for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday etc.
You can make it so lessons are repeated every day or certain days. It is not really a block plan and does not really look like a lesson planner.
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Does it only set up from top to bottom, or can you set it to look more like a lesson plan book?
Hmmm.
My brain is not processing the top to bottom concept?
I know I can change the order of subjects and can drag things around/rearrange to suit my day.
I'm sorry I am such a simpleton tonight but what does top to bottom mean?
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I'm with ya woman.
After a whole summer of working my tail off, sweating, and having kids run around like crazy fools, I am so ready for a predictable, steady, calm, and repetitive routine.
It is hard to balance everything. I hope this year will be a good one for you.
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I can't say enough about http://www.myhomeschoolplan.com
I joined when it was free. It is only around $3.00 per month now. I think it is worth it.
I have been scheduling the entire year of lessons/activities/assignment/field trips for all three of my kids. You can do so much with this planner, including printing it out, rescheduling, adding in supplimental materials like DVD's or projects etc..
Go and play around with it. You may find it useful.
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My daughter accidentally slammed my Americana's leg in the barn door. Twice. Oh, my.
When she went to shut the door she heard a squawk and the door would not shut but she did not bother looking down. So, she slammed it again and
heard another squawk and finally looked down and realized what happened. The chick is hopping around so pathetically. I moved the chick to a large box on my front porch with food/water. I cleaned the wound with iodine. I don't know what else to do.
Can you look at a video of my chick and tell me what you think is best to do? Besides banning my daughter from the barn? Just kidding. She feels horrible. They both need some TLC.
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I thought you all would get a kick out of this. It made me chuckle. (Click to enlarge)
:lol:
Tempurpedic Beds
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
Love mine. I'm in heaven as it has cured a lot of *my* back pain but my husband's has not improved. He thinks ours is too firm. Maybe you could go test one out at a mattress store.