Have a great time!

I have used SL some of the time but I always tweak. I have also done a couple of years of British and European history on my own. I don't work overly hard to completely coordinate. If I add something in" too late" it is reveiw. Too early a preview. I no longer stress. It is impossible to cooridinate perfectly. I used to stall horribly because of my fear of not having things aligned perfectly. My son thrives on review and overlap. It does not hurt my daughter either!

Personally, it comes down to do you use his program? Do you honestly expect to use it in the future? If the answers to these questions are no you go go to the game. If yes, you go as long as someone will be there for him and you are OK missing it.

How about one of the Singapore maths (NEM and Discovering) which integrate algebra and geometry. He might be more comfortable with a mix of work. They do proofs but I am not sure which year. Plus I would advise starting at the beginning. LOF has a good geometry book but both the algebra and advanced algebra need to be completed first. Both are one semester courses. Key to geometry has no proofs. You learn by doing constructions. There are no algebraic applications either. You learn the relationships through a series of constructions.

For immigration not tied to a spouse or job-- Different countries have different requirments. Some allow citizenship based on place of birth and citizenship of one's parent or grandparent. Some have a test combined with a point system which allows a work permit so you are on a path to citizenship. The point system takes into things like age, profession, education........

All three are nice. Since November does offer swimming possibilities I would stay at Port Orleans. Nice pool and I think you can use the one at French Quarter too. There is at least one other pool at Port Orlean too. Best water slide is probably Coronado Springs. But the Carribbean Beach has a new one I think. Also several small pools. I'm no help. I do like the feel of Port Orleans best.:lol:

:iagree: Start your own group with the contacts you have made!

I hope you start feeling better soon!:grouphug:

:iagree: Iam not sure how old you dc's are but if they are young I used things like "History Pockets" and " Draw Write Now" for many of my tweaking urges. If we did them great if not they were there for another day. I did not schedule them unless a connection was too good to miss. I saved them for rainy days and Saturdays. I think you will find it is a pretty full curriculum when you get started. Many of my additions were never used. We did a variety of LA programs and lots of math. I just want to say welcome. I don't want to scare you away at all. I also have issues with SL but it is a full program if used as one.

I would do a day trip in England using the trains. Getting out into the countryside and visiting someplace smaller is lovely. Bath is wonderful. We haven't managed it yet with the dc's but we used to go frequently. Cardiff or York would also be possible. York is probably 2 1/2 hours on a train from King's Cross. The station is right by the walls. Lots of atmosphere. You can walk the walls! Beautiful Cathedral. Fun shops. A Betty's tearoom. We love it! Much different from London. Another idea if you are Harry Potter fans. The Harry Potter Studio tour also recently opened. I have heard good things--we couldn't get tickets a couple weeks ago. It is in North London near Watford. We are planning to use Eurostar for a Paris trip in September. We will stay several days. One day would be exhausting. I hope you have a great vacation!

I have been thinking about you too!:grouphug:

For the guides I pulled out the fattest one and it in its own folder. For you I would that would be the History of the US guides. I have never seen this core. Maybe 2 folders if really thick. After pulling out the thick ones I was able to have a literature and a history separately. You could divide alphabetically if needed. I think dd has six folders. With the folder system(doesn't that sound fancy?) I do not pull out the week's work. They just follow their schedule and use the folders as needed. The labels make it pretty easy. We also use sticky notes as tabs. Independently -- I am trying to stay ahead of her reading and we are discussing verbally. Dd loves to read so with the novels she doesn't follow the schedule other than the starting point. For the Catechism part of 200 she is writing her answers. The book is set up perfectly for this. It also will hopefully mean she can skip a class at church, so we have our reasons!:lol: If you have time to read the Sonlight material it is really enjoyable. I really feel like I am a part of their learning when I read it all. My Ds is finishing core 7 this year--the binder system. Where i pull the weeks guides etc out to one folder. I actively read each days assignment with him. He needs constant interaction to get anything out of it. But he is getting the historical connections. Let me know if you have more questions.:001_smile:

For dh and I our closest US friends have all been divorced. In the UK many people are just partners. You never know if they are actually married or not. We work really hard at not saying the wrong thing. I asked a good married friend once why some long term couples never marry here--the answer was because the government did not give you an incentive. I just about fell over! Americans marry frequently and our government certainally doesn't reward us! She couldn't beleive that in the US tax wise it is more expensive to be married etc.

We studied the animals from each country/continent. I had a stack of Zoobooks which had been looked at but not used much. I matched them up with Galloping the Globe and we had a great time.

If she wants to go take her. I am not sure if your dd has always been at home but mine has. We have not had a great deal of co op involment either. Anyway my dd honestly does not get "it" when she is being treated poorly by others. Sometimes I hurt for her but she doesn't feel bad. Anyway I know she would probably chose to go.:grouphug:

You have been through lots of change lately. Try to relax a bit. Maybe set reading to one side for a couple of months. Get the rest of your new life organized--he is six. With my son he simply did not feel like reading. I suspect he enjoyed the drama of me trying to get him to read. I tried everything. I carried a large bag filled with his reading supplies with us when we traveled. We traveled a lot. I decided to quit. I simply could not haul the bag again. He noticed and announced it had to be packed because he was going to learn that week. He did. Went through a least 2 boxes of BOB books that week. Before that he did not even read a word. He knew his letter sounds but he had known those for 3 plus years.

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

I am a bit embarrassed to say this but when we are staying in a base hotel we take a crockpot and do hot dogs. I just dump a package in and 2 or 3 hours later we have hot dogs that are really good. We also take frozen pre-cooked chicken nuggets. They take longer to be nice. We do things like veggie chips on the side. My mom has always carried an electric fry pan. I grew up with canned spaghetti and beef stew in hotel rooms. I hope you have a great vacation.:001_smile:

I feel so sorry for you!:grouphug: Are you sure it isn't an allergy? When I have had stress induced hives they have improved with benedryl and a good nights sleep. The problem wasn't gone but as soon as I was able to calm my anxiety down a few notches the hives improved. The only way they come back is if I get really upset again. Have you changed anything cleaning or foodwise lately? I hope they dissappear completely soon!:grouphug:

Hilarious -- can't stop laughing!!!

For DS -- he wants computer game design. He is great at math and can sit down and do amazing things with computers with very little exposure. He is flying through his first programming course. He also writes hilarious essays. Definately has a creative flair so we will see. For DD -- I have always seen her as using mathematics in a very theoretical way. Something rather creative because she is so artistic. Dh just found some accounting :001_huh:courses for her. She can't wait. She loves the thought of how practical they are. I think for her it as a practical way to finance her art. You need to realize I am an accountant--I have never had a job I really liked. This whole thing is really rather upsetting but at least she can try it now and keep going with her other school. I know she will be really really good at it. It actually suit's her. My orderly and meticulous child. I just never considered it because I dislike it so much. So it looks like I will be teaching what I know best. Can't believe it.

No, you aren't missing something. It is set up in sections. In the lower years I set up in the giant binder with their tabs. Each week I pulled my schedule and the needed guides and put them in a separate folder. I continually updated my small folder. This year we have Core 200 with a new IG. What I have done is create several lightweight folders for both dd and I. I used the cheap colored folders with pockets and three brads(I think that is the proper name). Dd has blue. Mine are every other color. We both have several categories. Schedule, history--I believe one guide needed its own folder, lit guides, bible--the catechism book has it's own. I made nice labels for each folder. The system seems to be working well for dd. She is self studying for the most part. I am just reading along with her. The big advantage to the new IG are the student pages. They really are nice IMO. If you really are not happy consider returning it. I have no idea what their policy is for one item. I have a feeling it might be difficult but I don't know.:grouphug:

:iagree: Frequently people hand me the we can't afford it card. If it is given to me I use it. So much kinder then saying no interest. Recently my dc's and I listened to how wonderful camp was going to be. My dc's are part of the same group so could probably have gone. My dc's were acting really interested so as soon as we were alone I promised to send them next year. Talk about two horrified children. They ripped the week apart. Could not imagine going. I felt really good -- I do know their likes. With the money and time from that dh just planned a week in Germany. My kids can't wait. Frequently activities take time that my family is unwilling to spend. Our priorities are not everyone elses. We love to travel. We take fabulous walks in beautiful places. When the weather is good and dh is free we drop everything and go. This makes tons of lessons and commitments impractical for us. Few people understand this. I hate confronting them with my kids have no desire to.....if they say how expensive their wonderful activity is I agree. Whatever they assume from that is their business.

:iagree: I think you are really sweet to even consider going. An overnight funeral trip is a huge time and financial commitment. I don't mean to seem awful but unless you being there significantly helps someone it won't be worth it. Now if it is a trip where you will spend time with old friends and family while attending the funeral.......maybe worthwhile.:grouphug:

:bigear: The only one I know of is Quizlet. Anything else out there?