That is fantastic. I have a 7 yr. old whose college could be paid for by now. Of course, she doesn't have any quarters unless we give her one. Janet

No, because somebody would always forget to water them. Janet

We have 5 girls. I had a co-worker tell me that unless you could provide separate bedrooms, you should haven't more children. It wasn't fair to the child. Had to laugh. My husband comes from a family of 14. 9 boys, 5 girls. The boys all shared one bedroom. I was going to say you could never tell, but maybe that's the reason they're such responsible, hard working, honest, contributing, well educated members of society. Janet

To be very free in extending kindness, affection, tenderness, respect, forgiveness, and grace. It's not my way; it's our way. And a sense of humor. 23 years and I'm sure I still have a lot to learn, but I can it's good. I'm very, very thankful for my husband, and I try to remember to tell him that often. Janet

I've also used K12 through a charter school for two children - K, 1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th. I like the K12 curriculum especially the phonics, history and science. I'm not a science person so there program was great for us although I've heard complaints about it. One draw back when I was using K12 was that you couldn't separate the strands in Lang. Arts. I don't believe that's true anymore. The biggest negative was the charter school. Too many hoops and regulations for this independent minded mom. Other than that, I really didn't have any complaints. In fact, if it weren't for being part of the charter school, I would use K12 again. Also, regulations vary from state to state so you ought to check with the school in your area. Janet

I love Fiddler on the Roof and cry every time I see it. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Paint Your Wagon, Singing in the Rain, Meet Me in St. Louis. The list goes on and on and on. Janet

Sometimes my brain just needs downtime. Pure lighthearted enjoyment. Nothing that requires me to work very hard. And so I've been re-reading the entire Amelia Peabody series this summer. Probably my 4th time through. Agatha Christie is the same. I can pick one up at night, relax, sort of go on auto pilot. Of course, I've read them more than once. One of the nice things about aging is forgetting exactly who did what so it's almost like new. :lol: I've also read two Susan Vreeland novels, The Luncheon of the Boating Party and The Passion of Artemisia although I don't count those as twaddle. Now for the big confession - I enjoy Peter Mayle's novels. Those I do consider twaddle, but for a time I can pretend I'm a beautiful, slender 30 something living in France drinking good wine with romance waiting around the corner. When school starts, I'll get serious again. Janet

I hadn't heard about this, either. Like the other poster, flabbergasted! This type of behavior is just unbelievable. Janet

I'm planning on doing Latin and Spanish daily with my 6th gr. dd. She will be using LCI and Latin for Children. We are repeated Latin drop outs, and my goal is to finish that dang book this year. If it gets to be too much, we will do Latin every other day but Spanish will be done every day. Keeping my fingers crossed. Janet

I think I'm seriously out of touch!!! Have I got this right? I can join the Homeschool Buyers Co-op for no charge and then enroll my twins in the on-line ETC for $35.00 each? I have heard of the Co-op but always assumed there were annual dues to belong. Since money is a little tight, I never checked it out. I need to be more aware. The online ETC looks like it would work very well for my girls - they have been the slowest readers of all my children. Anyway, I would be interested in starting in August. I understand this is for an annual subscription. Is that 12 mos. or 9 mos.? Janet

I knew there was a reason why I don't like margarine! Butter, and as with all things, in moderation. However, I do have Smart Balance in the fridge. Janet

My hubby eats 1/4 c ground almost daily. He mixes it with applesauce, yogurt, oatmeal. He doesn't mind it. I eat some too, but not as much as him. I would like to try some recipes, but I wonder if it still has the benefits if they're cooked whole? Janet

I totally understand what you're saying; you have a very valid point. But I am wondering: at what point does society aka 'the government' have the responsibility to step in? I'm thinking when child's life could potentially be in danger. I don't think any of us would argue about CPS taking a child out of a home where there is true physical/sexual abuse of a minor happening. What about lack of medical care? At what point does it become equal to physical abuse. In the family I knew, they NEVER went to a doctor. Ear infections, illnesses of any kind were treated at home with prayer and annointing. No dentists, no cavities filled. But a 7-8 yr old boy with appendicitis? I liken to homeschool regulations. Give them 'the government' an inch, they'll take a mile. I pick and choose what vaccinations my children receive. We rarely go to a doctor I don't want to be told what I have to do as a parent. But still, it seems there's a point where society needs to step in. I'm thinking I'd rather take a few risks with the government and protect innocent children. It's sure a hard call. Janet It's sure a hard call.

I'm on my way out the door, but: our next door neighbors, when I was a child, belonged to a church that forbade any type of medical intervention. They would pray, bless with oil, etc., but no doctors. That family had 10 children, and they all lived. However, I remember 3 different occasions when a child in that church died. One time was from a ruptured appendix, another was from pneumonia. I can't remember the other. Then just a few years ago, one of the younger daughters of these neighbors lost her little boy due to a hernia. I'm not sure if the causes of death were from a post mortem, or if they could refuse that based on religious beliefs. That's just 3 or 4 deaths of children here locally I knew about. There was a larger group of them in another state, and I read several articles about the higher than average child mortality rate in that area. Oh, and there was a young woman, probably about 20, mother of 4 children who died of pneumonia. I actually met her when she was sick through my friend who belonged to the same church. I remember going home and telling my parents how upset I was. She couldn't get her breath and she was burning up with fever. The next week my girlfriend told me she had died. As I said, she was over 18. Yes, at that point the government needs to step in and do what is right for the children. Needless deaths don't serve anyone, even God. Janet

Oh, I wanted to add that I have a friend who is a counselor and worked as a high school counselor for some time. She's also lived in Europe. Anyway, she is a strong supporter of a gap year based on her experience with counseling teens and what she witnessed in Europe. I just don't know how this would work financially for a lot of people - especially us. Janet

My oldest dd is not academic although the expectation has always included post high school education in some form. After high school, she took a 'gap semester'. During this time she worked full-time, enjoyed more freedom and made new friends. Although I would have liked to see her spend that time reading and studying, it's not her. Anyway, by her own choice (with encouragement from mom and dad) she started college, part time, at spring semester. We explored different educational options with her, but she chose our local state university and intends on pursuing a 4 year degree - although at part-time this could be a long process. :tongue_smilie: However, considering that she's never been 'academic', starting with part-time hasn't been a bad idea. She has also moved into her own apartment and completely supports herself. She does have health insurance through her employer. We help with college tuition/books. She talks about taking another semester off and traveling (we have family living overseas). We'll see. My other dd will be starting college full-time in August. She will turn 17 in September so she's ahead of the game some. I don't think a gap-year would have been a good idea for her since I think it could have turned into a permanent gap. Also, she only works part-time and could not support herself during a 'gap-year', and while we are happy to help with a college education (as much as we can with 5 children to raise), we're not willing to support her entirely if she's not in school and/or working. So going directly to college seemed the right move for her although I do worry about her immaturity. We shall see. My other three, I have no idea. Janet

I always thought those green squares must signify something good, so Congratulations! But what good thing do they signify???? Janet

Colleen, I'm so sorry. Not many words but wanted to say I do know what you're going through. My father, while he wasn't diagnosed with Parkinsons, had many Parkinson like symptoms after a very botched bi-pass surgery. It was a slow, downward spiral. It's just hard and never easy. My only advice is to enjoy your parents all you can right now. Both my mom and dad have passed away and thankfully, I have many more good memories than the not so good, hard ones. God bless you. You're in my prayers and thoughts. Janet

I have an odd love/hate type relationship with solicitors. I get so many during the summer. A large van will pull in the near vicinity and let out a group of people selling ...something... I feel sorry for them. Maybe that's wrong; I'm not sure. I get the feeling that they really need to make some money and do not have a lot of education. I know I'm making a big assumption there, but it's my gut feeling. It's hot, discouraging work. I can't believe they get many customers. So I feel this need to do something nice, but that doesn't include buying a product I don't need and can't afford. So I smile, say no thank you and good bye. Sometimes they get pushy and don't take my no thank you seriously, and that's when I quit feeling sorry very quickly. Then some don't illicit any kind feelings on my part! On the other hand I truly resent being interrupted in my home on my property. They have to walk down my long driveway, open my gate and come up my front walk. I just feel invaded. If they leave quickly, no harm done. If they persist, they've crossed the line. I guess I need to put up a no soliciting sign. Janet

After 27 years with the same company, they decided to outsource his dept. He is now doing contract work with the same company. He's a technical writer. But in his dreams he's a farmer - Pa Ingalls is his hero. Poor guy. Janet

Prior to staying home, I was a commercial lines underwriter. I quit in 1995 and haven't looked back. Janet

We tip waitresses/waiters in restaurants. We would tip pizza delivery if we ever had pizza delivered. I have never tipped an appliance delivery person. I wouldn't tip a roofer - we are pricing re-roofing right now. $$$$$$ I tip the gal that cuts my hair. That's it. Tipping just gets out of control in my opinion. I cannot afford it. Probably a good thing we don't buy many appliances. We just replaced our 30 year old range last Christmas. Janet

Okay. I left this thread and had to come back. You've got my curiosity piqued. And then again maybe I'm being impertinent and rude, which is likely. But I just love peoples' stories! Janet

What a delightful story. One that will be passed down. That is special. Janet

You are an inspiration. Congratulations. Losing weight is hard, making a change in lifestyle is even harder. You should be proud. Now maybe I can be inspired to do something about my weight. Janet