I can't post a photo, but it wouldn't help anyway. My dh and I wore white t-shirts with pink & silver hearts embroidered on the upper left side with Bride on mine and Groom on his. I wore white jeans and my dh wore blue jeans. We got married here: http://www.chapeloflove.com/ It was the two of us and two friends of ours who were there as witnesses. Anyway, not what you are looking for, but I like sharing. :001_smile:

Life of Fred would be a good supplement to MUS. If you have Saxon, you could look for the lessons that support the topics covered in MUS and assign some extra problems for practice/review. I don't think it hurts to present some problems in a different format than the child is used to seeing as this will help you to see if your child really understands the concept. Oops, I hit post before I meant to. If you don't have any books to supplement with and want to save some money you could do a Google search for extra practice worksheets/web-sites. There are lots of things out there and it would be free.

You can order it directly from the publishers web-site. http://www.homescholar.org/ There are samples there to look over. She has a special with free shipping and $10 off $100 or more purchase. You can get the SM & TM for $115 and if you need the books you can get the softcover set with the SM & TM for $130.

This place isn't a restaurant, but it is a great place to go. It is a local store that offers cooking classes (you do get to eat your culinary creations :001_smile:) and kitchen accessories. Recently a lady who opened a tea shop in town moved her business into this kitchen/cooking store. I love to go and browse and buy new teas. They are all loose teas. She has some wonderful blends. I bought 5 new flavors the other day and have tried a couple and just love them. My dd and I are taking some cooking classes over the next few months as well. It is a neat place to go and it helps support my dd dreams of becoming a chef and opening her own cafe/restaurant someday.

A local pizza and bagel joint. They have the best pizza.:drool5: I also really like their cardamom bread. It is my favorite place to go.

Thanks for the reply. The link you posted is from a site I found and bookmarked. :) I think I am just going to pull some labs and activities from the web. It is nice to know that someone else has done this successfully. I have quite a bit of science supplies for labs and experiments so I don't want to buy a kit and have a bunch of duplicate items. The one thing we do need to purchase is a microscope, so that is what I should research and invest in. I appreciate your reply as it has helped me feel more confident in my plan. :)

Have you looked online? I don't know what your budget is, but if you Google first communion dress there are a number of sites that may have something that you like.

Hits: Life of Fred ~ we have done Fractions and Decimals & Percents and are a couple chapters into Beginning Algebra. My ds loves these books! We are always talking about Fred and what he is up to. Sad, I know. :001_smile: All About Spelling IEW TWSS ~ I will be purchasing one of the SWI in April at our hs conference. Exploring Ocean Life from Teacher Created Resources Evolution: The Grand Experiment and a free lecture series from HHMI about evolution Critical Thinking from The Daily Spark series Sonlight 5 books Ancient Far East kit from Hands and Hearts That is all I can think of for now. We really didn't have any big misses. Dd didn't like the EHE from SL 5 so we dropped that and made some adjustments. I like the concept behind Trisms, but we just could not get into a groove with it so we are not currently using it.

I don't know that anything (with the exceptions of reading, writing & arithmetic) is really necessary. ;) But, to be serious and answer your question, you don't really need a curriculum. You can do a quick Google search for literary terms and read over them to refresh your memory (if necessary). Then you can use this information to start informal discussions with your children based on a read-a-loud, their assigned reading or whatever book you would like to use for this purpose. Here is a link with a nice list of literary terms to get you started if needed: http://www.rscc.cc.tn.us/owl&writingcenter/OWL/ElementsLit.html There are lots of curriculum choices out there like Progeny Press guides, Drawn Into the Heart of Reading, Teaching the Classics, etc. if you would like to go that route. I don't think they are necessary, but may be helpful if you like to have a plan or some guidance on what to cover. Otherwise, just introduce a literary element each week or so and then find ways to discuss that in relation to what you are reading that week. You can start this at anytime. Your dc are at great ages to have some really fun and interesting discussions. :)

I agree. I have used a few different sites, but have had the best deals through Hotwire. We are going to our state conference in April and the hotels that the conference suggested were all $80 or so and up. I went on Hotwire and was able to get a hotel room for $49. It is at a hotel that was not on the list in the brochure, but this hotel runs $129 and up for a night so I got a good deal. Anyway, all that to say, I would try Hotwire. :001_smile:

What would be the best way to approach labs for Biology? I just ordered The Teaching Company's Biology: The Science of Life course and Campbells Biology text (it was recommended for the Teaching Co. course). I was looking on-line for some lab ideas. I found some free high school Biology lab activities that I could print off and have ds work through. I also found this: http://www.sciencecourseware.org/BLOL/ You purchase a lab manual for $30 and get a 1 year access to the on-line labs. I think you can also purchase a 1 year subscription without buying the lab manual. I was also looking at Castle Heights Biology lab manual. Should I choose 1 of these options or do a combination? What types of labs have you done if you have completed a Biology course? Thanks for any advice!

Is each book equal to 1 hs credit for Latin? We are going to study Latin in hs and I was planning on following TWTM suggestion of using Latin Road to English Grammar. Would you recommned Latin Alive! over LRtEG? Also, do you think the books will be published so that we could use the first one this fall and the next book the following year? Thanks for any advice.

Yes, a couple drops of Tea Tree oil added to your shampoo is supposed to help prevent getting lice. Also, coconut shampoo and conditioner is said to help prevent lice and there are some links that I have read that if you get lice the coconut shampoo can help get rid of them. Not everyone likes the smell of Tea Tree oil, so the coconut shampoo might be a good alternative.

From looking at the descriptions, one is the student text and the other is the student workbook to use along with the text. They are not the same book. I have not ever used Daily Grams, so I couldn't tell you which is necessary, but would guess that the student text is necessary and the workbook is possibly an optional book for extra practice? Anyone else know? HTH

Well, plural possessive nouns don't end in 's, they just have an ' added to the end because there is already and s on the end (for most plural nouns anyway). The ' is to show that you are talking about possession not just the plural of the noun. Is this what you are asking, or am I missing something? :)

I hope this comes across in the spirit it is meant and I am not picking on you, it is just that your post sparked the thought. I don't think it is surprising that interests change in the way you described. I think sometimes we put too much emphasis on one or two focus areas (usually a childs "favorite" subject) so that some other subjects/areas get little or no attention. I think this focus is not good because it burns a child out on those subjects. A balance needs to be maintained in all areas. If a child loves history, of course make sure that passion is supported, but we also need to make sure other areas are still emphasized. This will support a well-rounded education and give opportunities to make connections between the favored subject(s) and other areas and keep the favored subject in a place where the child is getting enough to maintain the passion, but not too much that they burn out on it and no longer enjoy the subject. I know people who emphasize sports over academics and vice versa. I think we need to be careful about jumping on this bandwagon of over supporting passions. There is a balance in everything and I think we need to keep that in mind.

I have watched/listened to a number of these talks and most of the time have found them very interesting and enjoyable. My ds and I watched one by the creator of the Sims games (Will Wright, I believe is his name) about a new game he was designing. It is called Spores. We received our Nintendo Power magazine yesterday and, lo and behold, there was a short article about a new DS game coming out called Spores! They designed a special game for the DS based off the original game design (that I believe will be a computer game). I just thought it was cool how we had watched a TED talk about this and then it came up somewhere else. Anyway, yes, I really like them and watch them whenever I get a chance.

I have ordered from Office Supply Outfitters and have had great service and great products. I can buy a black ink cartridge and a colored ink cartridge for less than a black in cartridge in any local store including Wal-Mart. I have an HP all-in-one printer and have been ordering from OSO for about 2 years. I have never had any problems with the ink I purchase from them. They also sometimes will have a free shipping special or something like that going on.

Not Christy, but LoF Fractions and LoF Decimals & Percents are considered a pre-algebra course when both are completed. So, I would say 7th-8th grade level or whenever your child is ready for pre-algebra. HTH

We have a rule that the kids cannot play video games or computer (unless it is approved educational sites/games) until all school work is done. I am trying to follow this guideline myself. I do ok if I do not turn my computer on in the morning, but that is difficult as I do an online yoga class and I try to complete that before noon. Once my computer is on, I struggle with not checking the boards once in a while. I need to work on this because I have so many things that need to be done around the house. Sorry, I know I am not much help as I am in the same boat. :o

I understand about being able to afford fabric. That is why I try to buy fabric when I can get it on sale. I also only buy fabric when I need it for a project as opposed to buying for stash building (though I will buy some if I come across something that I just really love, but this is rare). I also wanted to say that the fabric I buy at quilt shops is for quilts. If I am making a tote bag or clothing or something else, I usually hit JoAnns or Mill End Textiles. I also understand about being tactile when it comes to fabric. I am always saying to my dh, "Oh, you have got to feel this, it is sooo soft.". :) But I have found that online shops are good about carrying quality fabric so I am ok with not being able to touch before I buy. Anyway, I sometimes don't like answering this question because I have seen some big arguments spring up because of it (on a couple quilting lists I am on, anyway). I don't want anyone to feel like I think I am better than they are because I buy from a quilt shop. I maybe shouldn't have used the word "snob", but I did mean it in a tongue in cheek sort of way. Ok, now I have to go and start this quilt for my sister. She is visiting this weekend and I am hoping that I can get it done by then.

Here is a link to Snopes about the Vicks on feet thing if you want to read it. They listed it as undetermined as to wether it is true or not. http://www.snopes.com/medical/homecure/vaporub.asp

But, I recently read that if you rub Vicks VapoRub on the bottom of your feet before bed, it will stop your cough and help you sleep better. I haven't tried it as I haven't had a cough and don't have any Vicks, but I read that it works. I guess it is worth a try. :) Hope you feel better.

Here is a link to a listing of over 500 online quilt shops. Some shops are really good, some are so-so (selection wise, I mean), but there is pretty much something for everyone. http://www.quiltindex.com/QuiltShops.aspx Have fun browsing! :D

I buy my fabric from local quilt shops or on-line quilt shops. I have purchased some fabric from JoAnns, but not for anything that I really cared about because the quality is not that good. I use their coupons to buy batting, trim, fleece, buttons, etc, but rarely buy fabric there. I know quilt shops can be expensive (I just dropped a bundle today on fabric for a couple quilts for my sister who is going to have a baby, really blew the budget for this month :o), but the quality is good and (most of the time) the people that work there are very helpful and knowledgable. Also, they will have a sale/clearance section where you can fabric for less. If you want to get quality fabric for a good deal, look at on-line quilt shops. Many of them have really good clearance sections where you can get quality fabric as low as $2/yd. Usually it is more around $4-$5, but that is still a good deal on quilt shop quality fabric. I have to go make dinner, but I will try and get back and post a few links to some on-line shops.