My first thought too.

That is all. If my k'er had to be out the door for school early in the morning, we would never make it! It routinely takes him half an hour to get dressed. Breakfast, bathroom time, getting dressed...the child gets up at 7:30 but isn't ready until 9! :D :tongue_smilie: he's finally dressed, so that is all.:tongue_smilie:

I thought they were cute, and the martini one cracked me up.

All week this week, it seems. We schooled the first 3 days then took the last two off for a break. I,m getting frustrated, DS is getting frustrated, the nearly 3 yr old is wreaking havoc...and I am downright grumpy. W have been at it since July and it's sinking in just how hard this is.

My 5 yr old stands now, but sat until he was tall enough. My nearly 3 year old (who is almost all the way there, so close!) sits backwards, otherwise there's a mess.

Haven't read all the replies, but just chiming in. We are a church of about 250. Over the last few years, we've worked hard to implement a safe child policy. All our children are in a children's wing. There is a front desk that is manned by volunteers. You sign your child in and out and they are released to only you unless notified at check in. Each class has 2 adults. There is 1 boy bathroom pass and 1 girl bathroom pass at the front check in desk. If the kid is old enough to go by themselves, they take the pass, that way all are sure there is only 1 person in the bathroom at a time. The restrooms are right outside of the check in area, so the desk volunteer knows who is coming and going. If a young one needs to use the restroom, the desk volunteer takes them and a teacher will watch the front area from the hallway. We've added security cameras this year too. They are recorded, but not necessarily monitored live constantly. You can check on your child from the monitors though if you want to. It's to protect any adults from accusations as well as to protect the children. Our back yard area is fenced in with cameras also, it's where the kids play and we are adding a playground later this year. If you don't have church clearance, you are not allowed back in the children's wing when kids are there. Anyone who works in the children's dept, from nursery to teens, gets 2 different background checks, fills out a questionnaire, and undergoes training about spotting predators and grooming behavior. Once a kid reaches jr/sr high age, they move out of the children's wing and to the teen area. They don't need to be checked in or out by an adult, but there are still cameras and the (at least) 2 adult policy. Except for the restrooms, every door in the church (to classrooms and offices, kitchen area, etc) have windows. At first, it seemed like a lot of overkill, but we're used to it now. We just don't want to give anyone a reason to even question anything at all. And really, I know about 75% of the church members well enough to trust them, really trust them. We have plenty of men that help from the preschool age on up. The men that help in the nursery usually are dragged into it by their wives. ;) This is just part of the way security has changed at our church in the last few years. Our church has a lot of doors to enter by. About 15 minutes after the service has started, all doors but the main ones are locked. (You can get out but not in.) The front unlocked door is monitored by ushers. We know emergency exits and have a lockdown policy (as well as fire and tornado). Um, wow. Reading all that makes us sound crazy. We're not, I swear. We're not militant or extremists. Our leadership (our local church as well as our denomination, to an extent) has just really felt that this was something that we needed to do, especially with church shootings making the news occasionally. Some people think it's overkill. I'm so used to it that I was a bit shocked when our homeschool co-op ended last week and they just turned all the kids loose at once go. It was our first time there, and with an anxious kindergartner, it was a bit panic inducing for both him and me to automatically not know where to find each other.

Snort. My first thought was The Princess Bride movie. Sorry. :) You are much more elequent than I am today! My DH is so very good about this. I am honored. I am loved. I joyfully - and I truly mean that - serve my family...until they make me crazy. ;) It's not a competition, we just have different roles in the family. (and today's been a bit better!)

I'm sorry, Tara, and anyone else, I think this was a misunderstanding. I didn't mean to necessarily mean that I need help in the evenings, it was more of a "my nerves are shot and my kids are making me want to drink" sort of thing. If I had a legitimate need for help, and there have been times when I have just HAD to have him put the precious darlings (aka little monsters, by that time of day:D) to bed for me. When I literally just can't do it, he steps in. THIS. This explains it so very well. This is just how we are. The kids go to bed about 7:30. We are changing today and incorporating our night reading into daytime so we will see how that goes.

That's why I quit trying to use the calendar for scheduling and went back to paper scheduling. No help, sorry!

I think I love you. :) I haven't yet mastered all that, but I'm working on it.

I'm not the only one! :tongue_smilie::lol: We do have an afternoon quiet time and the lovely little darlings (ahem) are usually in bed by about 7:30. I do rather like the get ready for bed at dinner time idea! And just to clarify, DH isn't hands off, really. It just works best for our family that I handle the bedtime stuff.;) I'm going to be pondering how we can change it up a bit. In the meantime... It gets better. It gets better. It gets better.

My babes are 5 and 3 (next week). By the time dinner comes around in the evenings, I am DONE. Just grouchy and tired. I don't want to read. I don't want to play. I don't want to basically do anything with them because I've been at it since 7 am constantly. (and they've been touching me, needing me, talking to me, hanging on me, etc all day!) DH is home by that time, but the primary child care is mine. He's around to read books, play, etc, but the bedtime/story/all that jazz is my baby. His work is pretty high stress right now so he's easily frustrated at night and doesn't have the patience to run the evening routine either. I've tried caffeine. I've tried a short cat nap while they watch a Netflix. How do you get through the final push of the day with younger kids when you are just DONE?

BBQ chicken, baked potatoes, and mixed veggies!

We received our stuff in the mail today. Anyone else get theirs?:D

:iagree::iagree: (and I also AA children)

I would love the Nora Gaydos books, but our library doesn't carry them and we're not in a position to buy them right now. I'm thinking of working through some of the book again on our whiteboard and doing the activities in the TM for a month or so then moving on. I'm on the lookout for a cheap 1 1/2 book in the meantime.

(almost 3 mo in, my first time ever) We seem to be finding our groove, most days I am sure this is the right thing for us, and I am constantly fighting the battle of "is this enough?" in my head.

After a miserable run with OPGTR, DS has hit his stride with ETC. We are finishing book 1 in a few weeks. He is reading the words, just not fluently. He still sounds out every word every time. He is doing well with the format, so we are sticking with it for book 2. But what I don't know is if he is ready to move on to book 2, are they supposed to be reading the CVC words they use fluently? My options are: Etc book 2 Continue with BOB books and go through the I See Sam books, then book 2 See if I can find a 1 1/2 practice book Spend some time working through the games and activities in the TM for a bit Which would you do? (and why?)

I just did ours this spring and it's a pale blue on 3 walls, white on 1 wall (and of course, that's the wall with black Sharpie on it already) and brown trim.

Psalm 27 1 The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When the wicked advance against me to devour[a] me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident. 4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. 6 Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord. 7 Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!†Your face, Lord, I will seek. 9 Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. 10 Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me. 11 Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. 12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. 13 I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

This is very helpful to me, thanks! I have a K'er who is doing very well learning to write letters and can copy short words. It gives me someplace to go!

Oh, NO WAY JOSE! I get downright surly if woken up. Early morning (before the alarm) is out of the question as well. If DH wants any teA participles at all, he knows to leave me alone when sleeping.

Way back when I knew how to crochet, my SIL lost a baby by miscarriage. I had also lost 3 before that. I made her a tiny blanket (way to small for a baby) with a card that said something along the lines of "born or not, every baby deserves a blankie" I had forgotten all about that until she casually mentioned it a year or so ago. I know she still has it and I know it meant a lot to her.

Ok, so how do you set up collections? I am normally pretty savy at that kind of stuff, but can't figure it out. Oh, wait...just looked, I use the iPad kindle app. I don't think I can use collections.

I have no idea! But I hope to find out, I have the same problem. (sorry, absolutely zero help!)