That's what I was thinking! I was going to use this year to really focus on phonics and reading...and then start spelling.

When I was in 4th grade, all my lil' friends and I shaved our legs on the sly. I was very hairy, and I still get ticked off when I remember an adult male at a summer camp saying I had Teen Wolf legs. (Oh, I could throttle that *#*($....) Anyway, DD is 6. Once she wants to shave, I will let her. We'll probably go with an electric shaver.... easier and safer for younger girls...

If I am using a phonics program for DD (newly turned 6, about to begin 1st), supplementing with ETC & games, do I need a spelling curriculum? R&S Spelling begins in 2nd grade and I'm interested in it...but I think it's too much for DD, who is just beginning to read CVC words... Thoughts? Anyone else not do formal spelling until 2nd?

Thanks for the reassurance. I'll have to think on it a bit more -- look through things to see if adapting the program will solve our issues... Thanks again for the feedback!

I am leaning toward returning our AAR1 curric. We've used it about a month and it does have a generous return policy. DD & I both like the idea of it, but are just really struggling to implement it and make it work for us. :( So, like I said, I'm considering returning it...but I feel *badly* about it. Have you ever returned something like this? Did you feel guilty about it?

I'm not sure how I feel about AAR; I'm actually thinking about returning it... DD thinks the activities/games/tiles are fun, and I like the concept.... and yet, we don't seem to progress with it. Each lesson has a lot of components and usually takes us several days to work through (DD has a short attention span and is very impulsive/active). Then by the time we finish that lesson/step...she's almost forgotten what we did during it. :confused: I'm sure *I* am the reason it's not working because so many have had great experiences with it. Or maybe it just doesn't fit DD. All the reviewing (letters, words, fluency passages) in each step overwhelms DD and I'm having a hard time figuring out how to make it flow better for *us*. Anyway, just throwing in my 2 cents...

LOL, that was awesome!

I am not into public tEa. Not happening. We are too small-town to do that; last thing I need is my lil' brother (the cop) or my cousin (the trooper) to find me out. Ick.

Hahahaha, so funny you said that because DH likes to tease me about this song. I am terrible at hearing lyrics and I don't care...I just sing what comes out. For the longest time I sang "Dirty Feet, dundle cheat" (don't ask what dundle cheat is...) :D

Ditto. OP - I ask my self this question at least once a week, if not more. But I never seem to change... :( Funny, we were coming home from vacation this past weekend, listening to Frog & Toad books on tape. We were listening to the one where Frog & Toad couldn't stop eating the cookies and they stated: We need willpower. I told DH that I needed a tattoo of F&T stuffing their faces with the words "we need willpower" under it, LOL. He wasn't amused.

I will be doing the first half of How To Teach Art to Children (Evan Moor) with my 4 and 6 year olds this coming year...

Wow, I'm amazed! I waste an embarrassing amount of money each week on coffee, take out and other junk.... but not late fees. I think my one late fee was $1.27. (It really helps that the library sends email reminders a few days before due and then gives a 1 week grace period.)

We close bedroom doors at night for this reason. All of them -- even the kiddos. Our kids don't have locks on their doors, just the type of knob they have. We (DH & I) have a lock on our bedroom, but seldom use it (only for ...special... circumstances. ;)) Bathrooms have locks, but rarely used.

My 4 yr old will be doing: 2 days church Preschool (Tu/Th) LOTW (mostly arts & crafts) R&S Preschool workbook C Bible time with big sis science with big sis (animal studies)

We are also leaving for vacation in about 23 hours and I haven't packed a thing, either. In fact, I still have 2 loads of laundry to do before I can pack. (We'll be gone 8 days, but we're headed to the beach. :D) I also want to get the house tidy. I can't stand coming home to a messy house...

Christian Light's 1st grade program has a workbook-y Bible that might be do-able for your little one. It looks to have a 1 pg. Bible story (that you read) and 1 page of coloring/activities/etc. http://www.clp.org/store/by_course/17 Bible Study Guide for All ages has a Beginner's workbook for ages 3-K. Looks like something that could easily be done 1 on 1, not too strenuous. http://biblestudyguide.com/beginner-student-pages.php (Both of these would have mom reading story/directions, etc. but look do-able for one that age.) For something "lighter", I'm considering this workbook: http://www.christianbook.com/big-book-of-preschool-puzzles-2/9780830752270/pd/752270?event=CF

I found the Diva cup tricky. (And I tried a smaller version...) And this from a woman who'd vaginally birthed 2 babies... perhaps my inner plumbing isn't typical, but I could NOT get mine to fit properly or comfortably. May be more than an 8 year old can handle (required quite a bit of internal fiddling to position, etc...) I think I would've found that very uncomfortable (physically) as a young girl.

We used Comfortis and now use it in a combo with heart worm meds (Trifectus? Trifecta? something like that). My dog (10lb. chihuahua) has shown no side effects from it...

Yes, I was going to say that one can often find these at yard sales/thrift stores. I would NOT pay full price for it -- not when you can get a much better one for a little more...

Ah, yeah. I definitely get some pelvic floor/etc. exercise when I bounce! (I also, generally, have to stop 1-2x per workout to go potty.) I would say that you probably want to *at least* look for something in the Urban Rebounder price range, if not better. No need to cause more damage (ankles, joints) when trying to heal another issue... Good luck!

I didn't care much for her products (I sampled quite a few things...and often if you buy some samples, they'll send you a $5 coupon....and you can turn around and buy a bunch more samples!). I did, however, discover my fave toner from her recs (Clinque's Sensitive toning lotion).

I'd be pretty angry as well, but less because of the SODA and more because the mother's wishes are being disrespected. That said, I think (and I'm neither a scientist nor doctor) a little soda now and then will not harm the baby. My girls drink mainly juice and water (and the juice was diluted until they were 3-4). My oldest (now 6) does drink Sprite when we go out to restaurants; my youngest is allowed to choose fruit punch or lemonade, and they're not much better. I don't worry excessively over it. They eat & drink well when at home and that's the majority of their intake.

Well, I guess the question is: what are you going to use it for? I bought my JumpSport for *me* -- it was my birthday present last year. And I use it 30+ minutes at a go, several days a week. I play Walk It Out (Wii) on it. It's my indoor cardio. Because I already have knee and ankle issues, I didn't want to go cheap and further aggravate them. If I were just buying one for my children to play on, then I think cheap-ish is okay. You could probably even find decent ones on craigslist.

I have had 3: A cheapie from Walmart (terrible!) An Urban Rebounder (squeaky! but decent. But squeaky!) A JumpSport 350 (love it! kids love it, too!) So unless you can't tell from the above, I recommend the JumpSport. It's got some of the benefits of a higher-end bungee, but a smaller pricetag. Bought mine from Amazon. (I really wanted a Bellicon but I couldn't justify the price!)

Having a look at this book, it seems like it is geared toward a classroom setting. Does it translate well to just one child? (the mini-lessons, etc.) Most of this is familiar to me (writer's conference, author's chair, etc), we taught writing with a similar philosophy when I worked in a public school teaching 1st grade... I'm just curious how well it works with just 1 student...