My kids love Sum Swamp for basic add/sub skills, Money Bags for learning about money, and Wrap Ups for math skills. hth!

:grouphug: Oh I feel for you! I had a day just like that with my ds (7). He pushed EVERY SINGLE button I have and found a few I didn't know about. I've felt like **** about it every since. Just apologize with heartfelt remorse and ask forgiveness. Kids are amazingly good about forgiving us. :grouphug:

I started my ds in 1st & my dd in 2nd and they're both doing fine. They both have very nice legible print and and are continuing to master their cursive. I don't think it's a problem.

I'm glad to see your review. I wanted to see it last weekend, but I had a wedding and church picnic that kept me too busy. Maybe this weekend. DH & I could certainly use a date night. And since I was a believer for 10 years before DH, and since we've been close to the brink before, I'm sure there will be a lot of parts in this movie that we'll both be able to relate to.

I just made this 2 nights ago. It's a family favorite. Taken from Allrecipes, without changing 10 things. ;) So yummy! Mexican Shepherd's Pie 1 1/2 pounds ground beef 1 onion, finely chopped garlic powder to taste salt and pepper to taste 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes 1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix 3/4 cup hot water 1 (11 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained 1 (8.5 ounce) package corn muffin mix 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (optional) 1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced black olives (optional) DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Place the beef and onion in a skillet over medium heat. Cook until beef is evenly brown and onion is tender. Drain grease. Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix in the tomatoes, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in the taco seasoning and water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and continue cooking 5 minutes, until thickened. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, and top evenly with corn. Prepare the corn muffin mix according to package directions. Spread evenly over the corn layer in the baking dish. Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until puffed and golden. Garnish with olives and cheese.

Interesting. I'm Anglican btw. Pentecostal As a Pentecostal, you believe that with salvation comes a direct personal relationship with God, gained through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. You place faith above all other things, truly embracing the idea of being 'in this world, but not of it'. These beliefs are what unites an otherwise very broad category of Christians. Many Pentecostals identify themselves as being Protestant, Evangelical, or even Restorationist. The differences within Pentecostalism stem from one major split - that of the issue of the trinity. Whether or not you are a Trinitarian or a Oneness Pentecostal, you belief is a direct relationship with God through Baptism places you firmly in this grouping.

I just borrowed the book from a friend b/c I was considering buying it. I hate to say that I hated it b/c I wanted to like it so much, but I really did hate it. Coming from a Christian perspective, I immensely disliked the beginning, but I tried to look past that part of it. I tried to read many sections throughout the book but I didn't like his style at all. I gave the book back and decided I'm not going to buy it. hth!

To homeschool them or not was a decision I personally struggled with since they were born. I was too scared to do what I felt was best, so dd ended up in school for 2 years and ds for one year. When I finally got over my fear, I knew I'd never put them back. And now that I've done so much research in the hows and whys of ps beginnings, it would be a cold day in :D before I'd put them back in. P.S. I almost chose "Until they have me committed." :lol:

Oh yes, my dh works very hard to allow me to stay at home and hs our kids. He works his regular full time job M-F and has a part time job he works every Sat & most Sundays, putting in additional 12-24 hours. I also work part time 10 hours a week. As far as paying taxes to the public schools, it's a hard pill for me to swallow. We have the highest taxes in our county, and our town is not one the rich towns that surround us. Out of the $4,600 a year we pay, I think $3,600-3,800 of it goes to the schools. That blows my mind, and not in a good way. :confused:

I'd start him in level one, and if it's too easy, at least you know you laid a firm foundation under him. He can blow through it quickly and then move on to the next level. Better than starting him at a higher level and then later realizing he's missing pieces of vital information that would've helped later on. It has a nice resell value, so you should be able to recoup most of your cost as you finish each level.

Just a comment on the semi-gloss. I wouldn't reccomend it unless you like your walls shiny (I don't). Eggshell cleans up very nicely for almost all normal usage. As far as paint colors, I'd shy away from bright, and go with soothing. Maybe a cooler shade of a light grey/blue, not baby blue, not country blue, not sky blue, but grey blue. ;) hth!

My ds really wanted to learn cursive last year (1st grade) so once I felt comfortable that he knew how to print correctly, we started him on HWT cursive. He just finished the orange book and is working his way through the blue now. I'd say if he's interested, let him go at his own pace and don't worry about his age.

I'll third the IEW Poetry. We love it!

That was awesome!

I understand where you're coming from, and while I wouldn't technically call those experiences "educational" in the school/book learning sort of way, I believe they are essential experiences that round out the whole child. I try to make days like those a bit more educational by pointing out related educational tidbits here and there, but not so much that it takes away from the fun of the experience. An example is that I took my kids and one of their friends to a large Japanese garden this spring. There was nothing purely educational about it, but my son is fascinated with Japan and everything Japanese. I knew he'd love it. The trees and flowers were in bloom, they got to feed the fish in the giant Koi pods, rake the sand/rocks in the garden, see inside a real Japanese tea house, etc... I was able to point out the Japanese architecture and lots of other interesting info concerning Japan. They weren't sitting there enraptured with what I was saying, and I certainly wasn't lecturing, but they left there, all three of them, fascinated and wanting to know more. To me, this is THE best kind of education, and I love that through hsing, they can experience learning in such a rich variety of ways.

I think it's very common at that age & I wouldn't worry too much for another year or so. My 8 yr old dd still reverses stuff ALL THE TIME, to the point of making me insane, but she is dyslexic and that's part of the problem. If it's bothering you too much and you think he's not not improving, try teaching him cursive. At least that way he can't reverse things. That's what I finally decided to do with my dd and it's helping. hth!

On one hand, it's sweet that her parents (I assume) thought enough to surprise her in an unexpected way. On the other hand, I think it's strange to have them delivered to her at school. That sounds more like they wanted their dd to get attention, and probably not the good kind.

I've actually become less blunt as I've aged. I'm a red head, a BIG TIME hot head, and it's not something I'm proud of. I've gotten myself in major trouble more than once b/c of it. I've felt convicted in recent years to be more ladylike, if that's the right term. I've become aware of what a poor witness I am when I act that way, so I've been trying very hard to tame the tongue. ;)

The Outlander series ruined every other book for me, maybe forever. I've read the series many times over now and I just can't seem to find anything else I've liked as much. I was in mourning after finishing the series and had Jamie & Claire withdrawals for weeks afterward. Funny thing, I went to a Diana Gabaldon book signing when the last book came out and I got to listen to her speak & meet her and have her sign my book. She was very feisty, just like Claire. Someone in the audience also noticed and asked her if Claire's personality was like her own, and she just winked. I really loved her!

:patriot: I'm one and I support McCain/Palin. Btw, the military has never cared that much about soldiers, IMO. We were property, pure & simple.

I would hand off menu planning in a heartbeat! I don't mind cooking, but I hate planning. Maybe you could give him a tutorial ;) and let him have at it.

We went in on an organic, grass fed beef coop and paid $4.99 lb. accross the board, no matter the cut. Everything from ground beef to sirloin. I thought it was a pretty good price, and yours looks even better. I'd go for it.

Mine are the silliest goof balls pretty much all day, every day. The only time I worry about reigning them in, is if we're in public (church, store, etc...), if we're doing school, or if someone in the house is sleeping. Then I send them outside to be silly. :D I figure they'll outgrow it some day.

George Strait, no contest.

Linguistic Development Through Poetry Memorization book & cds from IEW are huge hits. We started them in early summer and we're using and loving them. The kids always ask to do poetry. My other picks are working well too, but the poetry is our favorite.