Is there a GOOD, affordable tablet that doesn't cost as much as the cheapest Ipad? I want to be able to download and read books, read online, watch online video (youtube) have access to some neat educational apps to use in our school. I also do NOT want anything as large as the ipad.... I have been leaning toward the Nook Color but the only thing that holds me back is ability to download Kindle books :tongue_smilie: and the fact I have heard they don't handle PDF's very well. I know there are a lot of android tablets out there but I have no idea how to chose one. Debbie

how often do you read things on the web, articles, blogs, msg boards etc...??? I am not necessarily talking about surfing the web, just reading online stuff. How pleased are you with this option? Does it do a decent job or do you find it frustrating? Also, how is your battery usage? Thanks Debbie

question..... other than downloading pdf's, kindle type books I wouldn't even begin to know how to get this stuff on an IPAD.... are they apps? free? cheap/ expensive? I am not up to date on all this technology :001_huh: I have a basic cell phone, no bells and whistles, NO texting..... can someone help me understand it all..... I am debating between a nook color and ipad..... however I am quickly being pulled toward the Ipad :001_smile:

I can't seem to decide which I want. If I go with Nook Color I can get it by my bday next month....Ipad will have to wait a bit longer.... Size wise for holding I like the Nook color....it just fits better..... screen size I like the Ipad. I want something I can download and read books on, read blogs on. Both Ipad and Nook will give me that. Apps on Ipad available...... well that just confuses me..... we have cheap basic phones so Apps are not something I am familiar with. Do I get worthwhile apps for free or fairly cheap that will be useful in our homeschooling? Just trying to determine if the $$ difference is worth it to go with Ipad vs Nook color. Debbie

Probably won't read on it a ton because I am too fond of REAL books :001_smile: but for the FREE books online such as at Gutenberg I would use it for that. I also want the online access it provides compared to the Kindle.

I want something I can access the FREE books that are online..... SCM free ebooks, Gutenburg project books etc.... But I also want something smaller than my laptop that I can read things online with (blogs,message boards etc...) Also looking forward to listening to Pandora radio on it... Is this Nook Color going to give me what I want? I guess the only apprehension I have is inability to download anything from Amazon...which seems to have better pricing than B&N..

We tried Easy Grammar and he did NOT like it, didn't too very well either. I believe his biggest struggle was remembering the prepositions.... he memorized them without a problem but when it came to recognizing them in the lessons he struggled. Not sure what to use....any suggestions? Thanks Debbie

I saw an old blog post that showed what looked like the plastic drawer/cart thingies...but were large enough to hold file folders and looked like it might have been made to support the hanging folders as well. Would walmart carry something like this? I know they have a ton of plastic drawers/carts but don't ever remember seeing any that hold file folders. Thanks Debbie

thanks for the input ladies.... I might try splitting the math up early morning for new lesson, review for right after lunch. Not sure if DS will like it that way or not but we can try it and see. so is 87 planned out to take 2 years or is that just the way you are planning it? I did buy this used so if we go another route I won't be out of too much $$$.... for now though we will stick with it...just don't wanna make him HATE math... debbie

DS is 8th grade, placed 1 pt away from 8/7 so I decided to go ahead and put him there anyway. Might be why it is taking him so long?? MOSt of the time he takes at least an hour to complete it NOT including the drill pages..... has been as long as hour and a half. I can tell he is getting frustrated... We moved from Singapore to Saxon so it was been quite the change.... I know some people cut back on the review problems but honestly I don't know if I should at his level and can it still be successful if I do? FYI...he is a slow worker anyway Thanks Debbie

We are possibly looking at buying a used Odyssey.....but for our budget it will certainly have 100,000 miles ++ My only concern is the known problems with the transmissions.... I have heard of some people replacing theirs on their Honda Odysseys several times... Can you give me your experiences or known experiences with yours? Debbie

Anything you have built for storage purposes specifically(cabinets, shelving etc...)... Looking to build some pieces for our house...just trying to get some ideas.. THanks Debbie

misunderstood...not a problem:) we will NEVER buy new for that exact reason of losing so much in depreciation.. our biggest hesitation right now is buying a used car and still potentially having major repairs. I would love a honda van but I also know they are more costly to repair and seem to have their own set of issues... IF our van can be fixed... it is at least paid for...YES we will potentially put more into it than it's worth but we can easily buy a $10,000 van, few months later have to sink a lot of $$ into it as well... now that I have my head back on straight today :D our hope is that the van can be fixed (probably going to be DH tearing it apart and trouble shooting it himself) and we can get the rest of our CC debt paid off and then get something else. If we can hold out til next year on another car we will feel much better about it all ;) If we cannot figure the van out...well then we will have to find something...

well we know even though we wil have a car pmt.... we will lump that into our debt and attack it with our snowball just like any other debt.

also....Dh and I were doing a lot MORE reading online last night (I've been doing a LOT of this lately) The others vans that have this problem seem to at least throw a code, ours doesn't. That is frustrating..If we had a code we would know what the issue is. That is why I am also thinking electrical... The list of possibilities is endless and although each of the sensors,parts don't cost a lot.. when you start replacing one thing after another and it doesn't fix it...well then you have spent a lot with no solution. DH works on our cars quite a bit, this time he did a few things, determined he didnt' mind paying somebody to take a look at it. Sounds like maybe this place (not Dodge either) isn't as great as they sounded on the phone :confused: They hooked it up and let it run yesterday...don't think they even drove it:glare: I think DH decided if they don't get it figured out by today we will pay what we owe, pick it up and DH will tear into it and see if he can replace a couple things that are possibilities and see if that fixes it. honestly I am so tired of this van I don't ever wanna drive it again....

first of all...we won't buy NEW..... I am fine with a nice used van. We are doing too well on DR to finance a ton of $$ for a car that sits in my driveway most of the time. Probablly go with Honda since I know of a non dealership A++ Honda guy in our town. He only repairs Honda. Now just figuring out what year is a good one, with our budget will certainly have at least 100,000 miles on it. I know we will go into this with potential repairs needing to be done. Looks like I don't have much of a choice if we can't figure out what is wrong with MY van. At least I know Honda is good and reliable...

yours had the same problem? Do you remember what it was? DH talked to the mechanic and he sounded a bit unmotivated to figure it out... he said "we will try" but it's running fine for me :mellow:

well it's not DH's commuter car, just the ONLY car our family fits into. We have use of inlaws truck but due to seatbelt issues in the rear seat we have to take 2 cars anywhere we go as a family. Not to mention I hurt my back the other day getting in and out of that truck :eek: I honestly don't like borrowing anyone else's vehicle...cause if something on it breaks...I would be obligated to fix it...

We are working the DR steps..... currently doing well on BS2. However I am at my wits end with our current family vehicle. 97 Dodge Caravan.... bought it back in 2000. We have spent a good amt of $$ repairing it over the years but only because we were in debt to the point of not being able to finance anything and have breathing room. Well, we have some breathing room now, even though we have quite a bit of debt still to overcome. Our 97 van... problem began last fall, out of the blue, intermittent problem.... mechanic couldn't find any problem with it when we took it in. Problem disappered until about 3 weeks ago. Now we have it to a different mechanic....still can't find the problem :angry: Not angry at them...just the van, the situation etc... This van will suddenly drive like it's barely running, cuts off without warning and then out of the blue is fine again... DH talked to mechanic earlier.... he ran it, ran it, etc.... runs fine for him. Yeah don't doubt it....it's an intermittent problem... you can drive it for days and it will be fine...then suddenly out of the blue the problem is there... I don't have a problem spending some $$ to repair the van but if the problem doesn't appear, it can't be fixed and I won't drive it the way it is :glare: I KNOW we shouldn't take on any more debt but honestly I am at my wits end.

yes we are hoping to get 2wd for that exact reason...

What do you use to pull it? Is this your daily driver or do you drive something else? We have a travel trailer and have used inlaws truck to pull it but now that my dd is in a booster seat, seats have been rearranged and whoever sits in the middle rear seat doesn't have a shoulder strap. So, now we either drive 2 cars when we go camping or get something to pull it. From the beginning our plan has been to get a suburban to pull it and for it to replace our older van (which is potentially on it's way out for good) but I do like driving a minivan and obviously the gas mileage is a bit better than a suburban. I have contemplated getting another/newer but used van for a daily driver and getting an older than planned/cheaper suburban just to pull the camper. However I also know this means double costs on insurance, tags, upkeep etc... not sure it would be worth it just for the gas savings..kwim? Especially since we are home most of the week. thoughts?

thanks all... this normally hasn't been a problem in the summer because his mom usually keeps he and his sisters busy doing things....evidently not this summer though. we can go out on the front porch and sit and talk and if he sees/hears us he will come over, if my kids go in the yard and he sees/hears them he will come over... guess I will have to set it up to let him know if my kids can play they will come and get him...

I was really hoping to have some relaxed summer days with my kids.... some school but also time for relaxation WITHOUT the neighbors.. However we have 1 boy, same age as my 9yo ds who has nobody else to play with so he just WAITS to get a glimpse of my kids and he's out the door. The kids like to ride bikes in the mornings while it's cool (we live on a dead end cul-de-sac perfect for this) however that just sets the stage for the day. This kid must stand at the window and wait til he sees my kids cause he is out in a flash as soon as their bikes hit the yard. I don't mind they ride bikes with him...but it makes it really difficult to reclaim the rest of the day..KWIM? Any suggestions on how to deal with this?

Has anyone ever used the "Key to" math series to supplement? 12yo DS is using Singapore but has just expressed to me that he doesn't feel like he remembers certain things..... Even though he is doing great, he doesn't feel like he remembers it long term. I know I could use the Extra Practice books but he doesn't need EP in everything.... Right now he says he isn't sure he learned fractions well enough so I was thinking maybe going with the Key to Fractions books in order to help him. Would I add in the Key to book along with the singapore or halt singapore all together and work on just fractions for now? Any advice?

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