I am totally grasping at straws here, but wonder if anyone may have ideas that none of us have used. We have some dear church friends that have a 14 yr old DD. She is mentally impaired, although not profoundly - functions at about an 8 yr old level. She is also schizophrenic and violent. Extremely violent. She is expelled from school for threatening/trying violence there. As in threatening/planning to kill people. She promises to kill her parents. She has tried. She is in and out of behavioral health places, but none will keep her long term. She is on a waiting list to get into a state hospital, but they are having issues with accepting her even if a spot does open up because of her low IQ. She is an only child. She is not safe around other people. Her parents are not safe in their own house. Behavioral health hospital will keep her only for a few days, maybe a week, at a time. Then they dismiss her to parents that she plots to kill. They don't want to pick her up, but they either pick her up or get charged with child abandonment and arrested. She just came home yesterday from another stint at the behavior health hosp. (after waking in the night and sneaking downstairs to try to kill her dad. They call the police, police take her to the hosp. She gets dismissed. Lather, rinse, repeat.) Tonight, her dad went to the ER from our house. He has health issues that are made much worse by the DD episodes. We found him in his car, breathing, but unresponsive. Didn't know where he was. Weak and headache. This happens EVERY time she comes home. It's his body's fight or flight reaction. Physically, it is killing him slowly. He will stroke out one of these days. They are stuck in limbo. Hosp. won't/can't keep her (because MCaid refuses to pay for more than so many days, even with letters from Dr's). Waitlisted at state mental hospital. Screwed every way they look. They don't have financial resources. They are just trying to stay alive. Literally. Legally, they are screwed. Is there anything...anything to be done? Can you pray with us? This is so very hard for their marriage, for them, for all of us to watch. And apparently her behavior will escalate as she goes through adolescence.

Psalms 27 and 63 are ones I really like.

This is the one I always use. From scratch and we all like it!

We previously struggled with OPG. We made it to the lessons in the mid 30's range before I called it quits and ordered ETC. While working on it just now, I asked him which one he likes better. He likes ETC better because, in his words, there's no reading, just figuring out what the word says and matching the word to the picture.:tongue_smilie: I'm not about to tell him that he is reading. :lol:

And now my 5 yr old wants to know why I am laughing. Loudly.

You're not the only one!!:D

I have no creative ideas because we are lame-o, but I think that looks cute!!

PM'd you. :)

My 5 and 2 yr old keep reinacting this over and over. :)

Wow. Just wow. I'm sorry. We have a few crazies around us, but they don't bother us much. I'm sorry!

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I'm another one who assigns chores. Mine are 5 and 2. I give them a few chores to do separate, then give them a chore to do together - usually scrub the walls side by side from as high as they can reach down to the bottom. It usually gets them to band together by complaining about how mean I am. ;) If they have energy to fight, they have energy to wash down walls.

A REAL snake??? Yikes. My 5 yr old often plants his 6 ft fake snake in my bed. I would die at a real snake. Take your sweet time plotting your revenge so they don't expect it!

I've made bread in my bread machine for a while now and have finally worked up the courage to try it without the bread machine. I found a recipie from Hillybilly Housewife with directions that don't scare me, but it makes 4 loaves. I can easily cut it in half and make 2 loaves, but I also want to experiment with freezing one of them before baking...so do I do that after the first rise or the second? Signed, A wanna-be in the kitchen department. :tongue_smilie:

Ha! This is us, too! Well, I guess I feel a little better about being a math teacher! :tongue_smilie:

Ds is doing well with Essentials so far. I originally was going to switch for first grade to something more traditional like CLE, but am considering staying with Singapore since he likes it. I am so incredibly non-mathy it is frightening. Which seems to be the better option-teaching something more traditional that I may be more comfortable with, or learning to teach Singapore if he likes it? I worry that I won't be able to teach it effectively.

:thumbup: Good to know!

We are starting ETC book 1 on Monday. I have the first 3 books, but didn't get the manual. After looking through them , I am wondering if I should have. Yes? No?

I forgot all about Circus Ship, my boys LOVE that book! Off to search Amazon...

I have 1 kid with egg, dairy, and rice allergies and another who gags, dry heaves and cries if he spots any sort of beans. A lot of the super cheap meals aren't an option for us, but I keep looking!

It has been super hot, but we've been inside a lot be ause he is quite sensitive to the heat. I will keep letting him drink the Gatorade! Thanks.

He is a lethargic wet noodle today! Sleepy, whiny, doesn't seem feverish. Eating and drinking, but seems more thirsty than normal. He also has a bumpy rash on his arms and legs. It doesn't seem to be bothering him. He has dairy related eczema when he gets too much, and it doesn't look like that. Is this just a random virus thing? I never know when to call the Dr unless it's a true emergency. I don't really want to take him in just to hear that he's fine and have the copay and 20% to pay, but don't want him to go downhill over the weekend. Scence he is eating and drinking, it's ok to wait it out, right? (I'm not a run to the Dr for every little thing mom.)

Thank you so much! This is just the kind of thing I am looking for for my K'er! The music is fantastic!

That's fabulous!

We've had 4 days of 100+ temps. DH is a mechanic in a shop, so no air since the service doors are open all the time. Personally, we have not lost anything yet, but lots of trees around have died. All the grass is dead. My garden (that I water twice a day, early morning and late night) is struggling. We did not loose power in the derecho that blew through last week, but many were without power for almost a week. My boys are going crazy inside the house. They are sensitive to the heat anyways, but this makes it impossible to be out for more than 5 minutes. It was 104 and humid today. Even the pool is to hot to be in. It is supposed to only be in the 80's tomorrow and for the next few days. We are looking forward to it! DH flew from here (IN) to FL this morning and it was about 15 degrees cooler in Tampa. He said it was nice! I would have been a lousy pioneer wife...