I haven't used these because I had found these first: http://www.historyscribe.com/hs-products.htm I love the way the History Portfolio's are packaged and they seem to be quite similar to the History Scribe in concept. Based on that I would say they would be a great resource. We like History Scribe, but if I had found History Portfolio first I am sure I would have purchased them instead!

I had to work today so only got in a 30 min/2 mi. walk on the treadmill this morning. I work tonight at Kohl's, too, so I may do an easy day tomorrow. We will see how I feel. :)

I have been in a mood and haven't done much the past few days. Yesterday I did about 15 minutes of yoga. Today I did about 15 minutes of yoga and the Lotte Berk Muscle Eats Fat DVD (30 min.). I do feel better. I wanted to walk, but dh got to the treadmill before me so I will try to get that in tomorrow.

There is also Garden Grocer who delivers to Disney resorts. You wouldn't have to pack food to take, just place an order online and it will be delivered to your resort. Something else to check into.

Based on what you are saying about how your family eats, I would go with the discount. Yes, the dining plan is nice, but there are so many ways to go about eating while at Disney that the it is not always the best route for everyone. I say take the discount. JMHO

Here is a web-site that has a nice introduction to sentence and paragraph writing. It might be a good place to start. http://www.tustin.k12.ca.us/cyberseminar/paragraph.htm Also, I wouldn't expect my dc to do this on his/her own. I would go through it with them in small chunks and then practice until it is easy/natural. This will take some time so don't rush through it or expect his sentences to be wonderful right away. Just continue to practice and help him by modeling good sentences and eventually paragraphs. At your ds age, this would be plenty. And it is free! :) ETA: I just wanted to add that you should keep this fun. One problem with writing programs is that they dictate to the child what to write about and many times the topics are of no interest to the child. This web-site is nice because it gives the basic process and leaves the topics up to you (yes, it gives some example topics you can use, but you can ignore them and come up with your own). I would use topics that are of an interest to your ds as this will help ease some of the "pain" of writing. :)

Great job, everyone! I walked for 20 minutes to warm up and wake up (I worked last night) and then did the Lotte Berk Muscle Eats Fat workout (about 30 min.). I always have a point in my cycle where I crave sweets and tend to over eat. I am in that week right now, ugh!

My version says that there are no new vocab words for lesson 8 and lesson 10 is a vocab quiz week, so there are no new words. Lesson 4 & 9 are the same as Shasta Mom posted.

It is nice to see the weather getting better. :) I did 30 minutes on the treadmill doing walk/run intervals. I also did 50 bicycle sit-ups and 10 push-ups (4 reg. & 6 cheater).

I did the Lotte Berk Muscle Eats Fat video today (30 minutes). I worked last night and was tired this morning so didn't do too much.

Here is a link to the book: http://www.excellenceinwriting.com/index.php?q=product/blended-structure-and-style-composition HTH

This really is not a bad telling back of the information especially since he is somewhat new to IEW. Everyone will choose different words when doing the KWO (I might have chosen invaders, Assyria and kingdom depending on the other sentences I was outlining). Besides they are not supposed to tell the sentence back word for word as long as they get the idea/point of the sentence. He can always dress it up or add to it when he does a rough draft. I tell my dc that it is more important to get the main ideas on paper as we can always go back to clarify and embellish later. I guess what I am trying to say is to keep working with IEW. Are you using a student writing intensive or working through the TWSS on your own? If you are working with just the TWSS, don't get stuck on a level for too long. Also, as far as summarizing goes, I have had my dc do different things. Sometimes I have them identify the main idea of the passage. Other times I have them write 3-5 new or interesting facts they learned. I have also had my dc KWO short paragraphs and then rewrite the paragraph in their own words. Also have you modeled how to do summarizing? Maybe he is not really understanding what you are wanting him to do and having you walk him through it will help. Just a thought, sorry if you have already tried this. These things take time and practice. Kids will not do a stellar job on the first try (maybe not even the 10th try :)). Just keep plugging away and it will get easier and you will see improvement. HTH

I am a fabric snob. I refuse to buy cheap fabric for a quilt project. I will buy quality fabric on sale and try to as much as possible to make my quilting dollars go further. I feel that if I am going to put in my time and energy to make a quilt then I want it to be one that will hold up well to use. It is a good thing I now work at a quilt shop so I get a discount. Feed the addiction, feed the addiction! :tongue_smilie:

Great job, everyone! I walked for 1 mile at a 15min/mile pace to warm up and then did a 50 min. kettlebell workout. I am hoping to not be quite so sore this time. I had forgotten how this workout can kick my behind even though it seems easy. :)

My dc did Judo for 6 months and then we switched ds into Jui-Jitsu which he attends 3-4 nights a week. He loves it! He also bowls on a youth league every Sat. and participated on the high school team this year. My dd has swim team through our local Y 3 times a week, skating 1 night and recreational hip-hop class 1 night. This is the most our dc have done at one time (we used to limit outside activities to 1 thing). It has been a lot of running around for me as someone has something every day.

I just wasn't in the right frame of mind. I almost quit part way through because I wasn't focused. I made myself stick with it to the end and I am glad I did, but an hour seems like a long time when I am not really into what I am doing. I hope today is better. :)

I did an hour of yoga today. It felt good, but I was distracted mentally so it wasn't as calming/centering as it could have been.

Here is a web-site if you want to check it out. http://www.ironcorekettlebells.com/index.html If you scroll down a bit and look on the right hand side they have some DVDs. I have the vol. 1 & 2 DVDs and really enjoy them. I need to get myself some more kettlebells as right now I only have 1 ten pounder. It is fun and something different. :)

I did a 50 minute kettlebell workout. My legs will be sore tomorrow! :)

Well, I don't usually say it, but those who call me that say it the first way. :) My name is really Denise, but my brother and sister have called me Deece ever since I can remember (my dh picked it up a few years ago, it surprised me the first time he said it) so when I started joining message boards it seemed like a good user name. Though it wasn't until then that I had to try and spell it. Maybe I should have spelled it differently?! Ah, well. :)

Great job, everyone! I walked 3 miles at 4.2mph and did 50 sit-ups and 4 regular and 8 cheater (from the knees) push-ups. I really need to work on my ab and upper body strength. I also did 1/2 hour of yoga yesterday, but didn't get on to post.

I hope you had a nice vacation! I did 35 minutes on the treadmill doing walking/jogging intervals.

I think it is a way to try and incorporate different learning styles into the classroom. It can certainly be done in a more effective manner. :blink: The kids "teaching" each other is very chaotic and though, in theory, it is a good concept they need to come up with a better way to implement it. Again, it just illustrates that in a class of 25-30 students, it is next to impossible to accommodate all types of learning styles. There are going to be kids in that classroom who cannot handle that process and kids who will do well with it. A more varied approach that touches on multiple learning styles would be a better avenue of teaching to try and benefit all students, but even that is tough to implement well. Anyway, just preaching to the choir here I am sure. :)

I have been quilting for about 7 years. I recently started working part-time at a local quilt shop and love it! I just finished a sample for the shop and am now working on a scrappy Jacobs Ladder quilt that I started a couple years ago. In December I made a quilted tree skirt for my sister and a baby quilt for my new nephew. I sew on a Bernina most of the time, but I have a Babylock that I take to classes or sewing days. I also have an HQ16 though I don't quilt for others. My dh also quilts though he does so in phases. He has a couple tops he made that need to be quilted and the main quilt on our bed was one he made. Just curious what part of MN you are in, if you don't mind my asking. We are in central MN. Nice to see a homeschooling quilter in this neck of the woods. :D

Wow! Thanks for this list! I did come across a couple of these, but this is so much better than most of what I was finding. I must not be very good at google searching. :) Anyway, I will be spending some time with these and bookmarking them. Thanks!