:iagree: And thanks for the Reading Pathways link, Abbey! I bought my copy of Phonics Pathways when my oldest was in preschool (so, 1999 - ish) and have used the same copy with all the boys. I never knew the author had other materials out there!

You can always call them and ask you to take you off their mailing list. In fact, if you feel strongly about it, you really *should* call them.

Phonics Pathways would help with decoding, but it doesn't sound like that's what she's struggling with. Reading aloud is a skill, and it sounds like she just needs modeling and practice. Start with books that are WAAAAY too easy for her. Have her read aloud to you a short time every day. You read aloud as well, and model for her. With my boys, we frequently read aloud together. I would read all the left-hand pages, and they would read all the right-hand pages. The back-and-forth and modeling really helps smooth out their reading aloud and increases inflection.

I've been ordering from RR since 2000. At that time, I combed a TON of hs curriculum sites, as well as Amazon and B&N.com. I found that occasionally I'd see a product listed somewhere that was cheaper than at RR. But on the whole, RR prices were usually the lowest. When I factored in the shipping rates incurred when ordering from different websites, and included the FREE shipping from RR when i order over $150, I eventually stopped hunting all over for the best price. Now I simply order from RR (unless I see an AMAZING deal somewhere). I know I'm getting the lowest prices on 90% of my items, plus I do not pay shipping costs.

We live about a half mile from the tracks, and we only hear the whistle.....sometimes. :) Usually at night, but it's not loud. It's kind of a nice sound. Comforting, as someone said. Occasionally the trains stop across the road, and it usually seems to happen when we are late for something. :glare: But it's not a huge inconvenience. I wouldn't want to live any closer to the tracks, but 1/2 mile has been fine for us.

A lot of the places we rented (when we used to rent, maybe 5-8 years ago) charged first month, last month, and a deposit. The deposit was usually $500, or so.

I voted for other. I was neither abused nor mistreated. I had a happy (though far from perfect) childhood. My adulthood is entirely what I've made it, and it's been fine.

See, I would be one of those people who would not have said anything to you about it. For one reason, I would assume that you would be tired of talking/thinking about the situation, answering everyone's questions, etc., and would want to talk about ANYTHING else. :001_smile: How am I supposed to know that everyone else is doing the same thing and you're desperate to talk about it? Secondly, I'm not a person who shares details of that sort with acquaintances. Close friends and family, yes. People I just see at church or Bible study - no. It wouldn't occur to me to bring a subject like that up with an acquaintance unless she took the first step.

In a sense I think that it's a valid question. But in a larger sense I think that by asking it you are assuming the negative about people involved. "Well, they only did that because of ________. I'm sure if the situation was different they wouldn't have been so wonderful." I can't assume what people will do or how they will behave. None of us can. I can only see what people do in the situations they are given. And in this situation, they were wonderful.

I have been married for nearly 20 years, however a close friend of mine got divorced 2 years ago. Her husband had an affair (well, several, actually) and left the family. Her church was AMAZINGLY supportive of her and the kids. I am so thankful for the loving, encouraging people that were there for her. The church elders and close friends of her husband also approached him *repeatedly* about the issue. Letting them know that they loved him, but that he was in sin and needed to deal with this issue. I respected how they handled both of the people in that marriage.

LOL! My sophomore is memorizing the book of Obadiah this summer. He does a LOT of memorization of Scripture during the school year, but during the summer he wanted to memorize something unusual. :D My younger two sons are memorizing "IF," by Rudyard Kipling.

:lol::lol::lol:

I haven't read all the other replies, but as a mom of 3 boys (and as the wife of a former boy :D) I would say this sounds normal. Have them take the rough-housing outside and let them go. They have LOTS of energy and need to release it. Arm them with squirt guns or purchase shields and swords. Lightsabers are HUGE at our house! have fun! :001_smile:

Oh, I'm sorry. You're just going to have to make yourself invaluable. That's all there is to it. :001_smile: I volunteer for TONS of things my children are involved in, simply because it gets me involved with others and then people HAVE to interact with me. (I mean that in a nice way. It's harder to ignore me, when you have to come see me to sign your child up for AWANA.) Plus, I have some impact or a say in my children's activities. So, I'm a hs co-op's webmaster. I'm the AWANA secretary. I teach Sunday School, etc. It's not something that is 100%, but it helps. Are you having flooding issues in your area? We're dry here, thankfully, but we're seeing photos from everyone further down south!

Nope. Not just you. It's the same in nearly every small town in which we've lived. Occasionally we have mentioned the phenomena to natives, and they are always surprised, but then they start paying attention and see the reality of it. :lol: May I ask, what part of the state are you in? We're in NE Nebraska, near-ish to Omaha. I think it's a bit easier here, because of the proximity to a large metropolis; there are more newcomers here.

I hear you. We live in a small town in Nebraska and are not natives. We've been here for 3 years, and while natives are friendly, our friends are all families who have moved here from somewhere else. I honestly don't know what to recommend, other than clarifying your remarks to the woman you spoke with. It might smooth things over, but it won't help your dd play infield. What I've found in small towns is that I can run things the way I want if I run them. Are you interested in coaching softball next year? :D

We worked through "Training Hearts, Teaching Minds." We did a bit of the Explorer's Bible Study, but not a whole lot. (1 book: "Psalms, Proverbs, and Job," I think.) Ds is working through the AWANA books in pursuit of the Citation Award. He also has his own personal Bible study daily. Our Middle-School Sunday Bible Study at church was very meaty and doctrine-oriented. The high school group is not. So once ds hit 9th grade he began attending Sunday School with us and has been very happy.:001_smile:

OK, I was just reading replies and saw that everyone else answered your questions and I don't have to! :lol: FWIW, I actually used the Singapore version, BEFORE there was a US version :D My kids learn 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B from the Singapore version texts. Since they came out with the US version, I have stuck with that, and prefer it.

I've been using Singapore for my children since 2001. I only purchase the textbooks (A and B) and the accompanying workbooks (A and B). Once my oldest hit 4th grade (he's in 10th, now) I purchased the Home Instructor's Guides. There are other items, but those are not *necessary.* We supplement with other things, if I feel it's necessary for the child to master a concept. But, so far, we haven't needed to purchase anything else to supplement our math.

Boob job? Ransom? Bail? You need money urgently to help out a Nigerian princess who has just e-mailed you asking for help? You really want to get in on Bradley Ruderman's next Texas Hold 'Em poker game, but need to have cash? A good friend just PM'd you from Spain, where she has been mugged and REALLY needs money to help her get home! This is kinda' fun! :tongue_smilie:

I remember reading something about "Pottermore" a couple of days ago, but I've no idea what it is. (The article I read was asking Daniel Racliffe what he thought it was. Answer: He has no idea. :D)

Ds 15 read "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" with his dad. Dh read it first, then gave it to ds with instructions to read it and write down any questions. They went to breakfast for a couple of Saturdays and discussed the book and ds' questions. It was a wonderful, structured way to have a conversation. I've also read "Raising Purity" by Gerald Hiestand, which is, quite honestly, one of the best books on purity and relationships that I've read. Ever. It's not a "Dating is evil!" book, but neither is it a "Courtship is the only Biblical model" book. It's not a step-by-step, "Here's exactly what you need to do," sort of book. It examines what the Bible does say about relationships. It helped *me* to align my thinking with Scripture in that area, thus changing the sorts of conversations I had with my children. And in one of the chapters on dating I found myself thinking "Wow, I've never thought about it that way before" more than one time. If you go to the "Downloads" section, you can download the first couple of chapters to sort of familiarize yourself with the book.

Did you take it orally? Or via injection? If you took it orally, I'd wait about an hour. (It can take 30-60 minutes.) If you received an injection, I *think* that you'd notice a change within 30-45 minutes.

Did the actors at CW know this was going to happen?

I would absolutely steer clear. I would also remind my dd to be careful- when you tell someone "Make me" some people will!:D