I thought that was a very interesting video. I am wondering how some of you implement the learning community ideas. Do you have your kids write online journals? Dou you have a group on Facebook?

My husband is not much of a reader either. He does enjoy audiobooks though. His favorite by far has been Eragon. The guy who reads it does a great job.

I know there have been a lot of puppy questions and you ladies seem to be very knowledgable. We have a 17 week old puppy (shepherd/doberman/husky/? mix) and have been feeding her science diet dog food. I am just wondering if anyone has any opinions on dog food. Is there a cheaper dog food that is just as good? Also, I am not interested in going the raw food route.

I make a cucumber onion salad. One Large Cuke Sliced Thin One Onion Sliced Thin 1/4 C. Vinegar 1-2 T. Sugar Combine and chill for a couple of hours

We love our whole house fan here. It cools our house down to outside temp quickly. One thing to remember though, it doesn't get rid of the humidity.

Our family loved Eragon. However, be warned, it is long.

The post office has a policy that allows them to open media mail to make sure that people are sending books and not something else as media mail. Definitely annoying.

One of my favorites that hasn't been mentioned is Rat Race. It is stupid, slapstick, and goofy, but I love it.

Most of the time it is arguing over who has to feed the cats. However, a while back one of my kids was arguing with her cousin over whose Latin program was better. I just cracked up.

My husband is a carpenter in MI. He got laid off about 6 weeks ago. Needless to say, there is not a lot of hiring here. We are hoping he will be able to find something without us having to move. Although I must admit, I am not sure why we live in Michigan. I guess it is because of family and the beauty of the countryside. It surely isn't anything else.

I really enjoy the Jasper Fforde books. They are light reading, but fun.

I am taking a trip to the east coast for three weeks with two other families. The kids range in age from 6 to 12. This is a trip for the kids to see and learn about a lot of historical places. Tentatively we are thinking Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Washington D.C. and Virginia. Three weeks seems like a long time, but once you start listing all of the things that you can see, it is not much time at all. That is where you, the hive mind, come in. I am hoping that you can give me suggestions of places that are worthwhile seeing and guide me away from places that are just a waste of time.

Bump! I am curious as well.

I watched the first half. That trick play was great. I thought Chris Collinsworth did a good job, but it is not the same as Madden. Also, does anyone know why the refs were wearing orange?

I know a good realtor if you are looking for one. He would probably know what all the areas are like. Also, Michigan does have its winters, but it is sooooo beautiful. It gets even more beautiful the farther north you go. I hope you enjoy.

I live in Plainwell. Actually, half way between Plainwell and Richland. Michigan homeschool laws are very easy. I don't know if Plainwell has a homeschool group, but I do know that Kalamazoo has KAHSA, a homeschool group. I have not joined, but I have friends who have. Allegan is a little farther from chain store shopping if that is important to you. Also, check out the property taxes of different areas. They can vary widely. If you have any specific questions, I would be glad to answer them.

Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley. It is an older book and a little harder to find, but it is really cute. Our whole book club really enjoyed it for summer reading. Silence by Endo. This is a darker book on persecution in Japan. The Brothers K by Duncan. It gets a little long at the end and has a lot of cursing, but is a very good book. Life of Pi by Martel These are all nice summer reading.

The good thing is that their season can only be better than last year.

Its been a while, but if I remember correctly, she was a set up girl by Jack Nicholson's character. Morgan Freeman's character basically told her he was not interested. I think that was when he decided to head back home.

Peter and the Star Catchers Series

Happy to hear that. I would have been concerned as well.

I've always had them pushed back, but just redid the room and am thinking about pulling them forward. I'm not sure where to put my picture frames then. Also, the thought of all that dust just collecting behind the books. I don't know, I am so undecided.

I am just curious what other people do. Do you have all of your books lined up at the front of the bookshelf or pushed to the back of the bookshelf?

One note about Carhartts. They are cut narrower in the thighs than some types of jeans, so you might want to have him try them on instead of ordering them from a catalog. My husband can not wear them. Of course it has been a couple years since he tried, so maybe they are different now.

I have had my Acer Aspire 3000 for several years now. I really like it. However, I have run into a few problems. My disk drive stopped working shortly after I got it. It was cheaper/easier for me to buy an external disk drive. My battery life is the pits. I just bought a new battery less than a year ago and I am down to getting only 10 minutes or so on it. I am not going to pay a ton of money each year for a new battery. Also, the cord broke and it costs a lot of money for a new one. That said, I really do like the computer. If having a long life battery is not important, I say go for it.