We are 2/3 through our first year, doing Year 2 Middle Ages. I bought the Companion but I don't like it. The info is waaaayyy too detailed for elementary age kids, and I don't think I'd like it for olders either, since the chapters consist of just a bunch of boxes of random facts without any narrative connection. But that's just me. Love the family guide - would use it to plan all grade levels. Nice to coordinate between multiple grades. We use SOTW 2 (according to the BP schedule) and use the SOTW activity guide for our maps, coloring pages, and extra activities. It just tied in more nicely for me, since that book is our main history reading. Also, I think the SOTW handouts are more nicely done than BP's. For additional reading we use the BP-suggested titles and timing. Many of the BP readers overlap with those suggested by SOTW and also VP. What I wish the program included? Memory work. There are writing assignments included for upper grades, but you have to buy the cool history.

FWIW they have an oregon trail app that came out a few years ago for the iPhone - my older daughter really enjoyed it at the time. I know you said you're looking for paper, but this one...no set up :-)

A wise woman I know with six advised me that the biggest difference between having 3 and 4 is that you have a little extra laundry. She was right! Even if your kids are fairly closely spaced, like mine, by the time you get to your fourth, the older one(s) are able to help out.

Really? I loved it. Only satisfactory ending they could've given IMO. I had been thinking for a while that they were going to kill off Betty, nowhere else for her character to go, but I thought it was just going to be a car accident or something. Way better to do it like this, let her do it on her own terms, and some smallish reconciliation with Sally. Despite her many issues, I always kind of liked Betty. Sally has actually been one of my favorite characters this season. You feel like she's going to turn out all right in spite of everything. I really liked that they gave Don, Peggy, and Pete optimistic endings.

I realize I'm not required to, but for oldest DD I was thinking about keeping basic grades for her courses next year (she will be in 3rd grade). I don't really know why, I don't have a particularly compelling reason, just more along the lines of wanting to give her some sense of being accountable. Do you all keep grades at this age? Why or why not? If so, how do you structure the grading? TIA!

Dave Ramsey has helped us tremendously - even if you don't go for his personal beliefs, read Total Money Makeover. He walks you through the steps on what to prioritize. You can read the gist of it on his website. The first thing will be to make your budget. Then he has seven Baby Steps to get things on track. First you do 1, then 2, etc. If you're already doing half the stuff, then you know where to pick up. He helps you see The Big Picture IMO.

We started IEW this year with my 2nd grader. She is somewhat advanced in her reading/language skills already, and we basically "dabbled" this year, only doing the first 4 units from the video. DD took well to it. I think she was ready for it. The first units are easy for younger kids to grasp, and Andrew Pudewa says in the videos, don't be overly attentive to correcting their spelling and grammar when they first begin writing - so I don't think the fact that they're learning grammar should be a deterrent to using the system. That being said, was it necessary to start this young? Absolutely not. But DD was reeeallly getting tired of the whole dictation/narration thing, and for us it was a fun way to build a little bit more of an activity around some passages we were reading in history and science.

We read the original Old English when I was in high school and it was not that difficult at all if you read it out loud. We were also required to memorize the prologue. Studied it 3 separate times as a lit major and they always had us include (1) Wife of Bath, (2) Knight, (3) Nun's Priest, and (4) Miller. Those are still only ones I recall. Wife of Bath is probably most famous and according to my profs, relevant literature-wise.

I actually think that he has a very good sense of humor and is quick to make fun of himself. On several of these movies he plays the self-centered celebrity. And Naked & Afraid? Anyone? Am I the only one who saw that? And laughed hysterically? :-)

Yes. Ever since Freaks and Geeks I have seen everything Judd Apatow has done. But this is my kind of humor. Team America is way worse - props to the Alamo Drafthouse for that - but I guess now they don't get to show that either. Grow a backbone, executives. It's not like you didn't know that NK was going to be offended before. Nothing has changed. Anything the hackers "have" on you is going to surface either way.

Let us know when we can get it!!

Hi, welcome! :-)

Just chiming in to say, when I was at college (big party school) I was very involved in sorority and spent quite a lot of time with fraternities and one in particular, including "little sisters." It was a very positive experience and all the guys I knew were upstanding gentlemanly types, treated women with respect, considered their female friends as true sisters and would never stand for such abominable behavior. Never. Not to say it doesn't happen, not at all, but please do not condemn the entire "Greek" community. For many people it is truly about close-knit community and service.

Somebody's baby. My heart breaks.

Saw that Zulily has CC stuff on there at good prices, if anyone is looking!

Vet set http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/product/productDet.jsp?productItemID=1%2C689%2C949%2C371%2C928%2C458&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181113&bmUID=1417023314867 or doctor's kit http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/product/productDet.jsp?productItemID=1%2C689%2C949%2C371%2C912%2C797&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181113&bmUID=1417023397360 Maybe too old for a 3YO?

DH makes all the insurance decisions for our company, which covers our family and the other employees. We have a deductible plan with HSAs. This year, after several years of 20+% increases per year, we have two choices. Stay on our current plan, $4500/$9000 deductible, for a 6% price increase, or move to our ACA-compliant plan a year early: either a $4500/$9000 ded. for a 33% increase, or step down to the lowest ACA plan for a $5000/$125000 deductible for an 11% increase. Kicker is, either ACA plan - although it costs more - comes with a subsidy which will cover almost half the cost to the company. Then over the next couple years they gradually wean you off the subsidy. I don't get it - they take a plan that has been working for us, tell us it's not good enough, that we need to move to a plan that has a higher deductible yet somehow costs more - then they offer us someone else's money to pay the higher price. Huh??? I'm not as smart as Gruber, obviously, but...something doesn't add up there. Our ins. company is Kaiser by the way, a non-profit.

Personally I think the FP one is "meh" and the Calico Critters stuff is WAAAYYY overpriced for what you get. The figures are really cute but the focuses and furniture are cheaply made. I was thinking about getting my DD5 one of those beautiful "real" dollhouses from Hobby Lobby. Maybe like this one? http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/alison-jr-dollhouse-kit-415273/ Very nice, large variety of furniture/accessories, big enough so you can play with all your other dolls and families in it...and I THINK you can use the 40% off coupon on it (??). DH is fighting me though, saying it is entirely too big for their room (and he's probably right). Maybe I'm just nostalgic because when I was little my grandma bought me one like this, and she used to paint furniture for it, and knit little rugs and such. And I am totally not that crafty. Sigh.

Seriously, I have many friends who describe their DHs this way, and I would too! I think it is common for men, who are out at work all day, and almost exclusively in the company of adults, to not have the same perspective as we do, stuck in the house all day and in the company of our kids! My DH said it's a big source of stress for him sometimes, driving home, knowing that the kids are going to bombard him screaming enthusiastically the second he walks in the door. He said all he wants is peace and quiet and to relax after being at work "dealing with idiots" all day. So, the first thing we practiced is cleaning up the living room. DH likes to put his stuff down and lay on the couch first thing, so we know that that room has to be CLEAN when he gets here. So that has helped. Now we're working on "quiet time" for that hour, where they can talk and play quietly. Mostly he doesn't like noise, and running in the house, and clutter. So little by little we're trying to remove that. Personally, I know my kids are still young, and they're cooped up in our tiny house a large part of the day, so when they're with me, I'm much more lenient. Except at nap time - either go to sleep or play or read quietly in bed, those are the rules. That's momma's hour. :-) DH is really a wonderful, loving father, but he does have a very short fuse and high expectations. Should never have let him see The Sound of Music - the first time he watched it he saw Captain Von Trapp and said "YES!! Hand me my computer, I'm going to order one of those whistles." When he has one child at a time, he's very patient and has a great time. When I leave him to babysit for an hour or two, no matter what time of day it is, it's always "Get in bed!"

Good idea. In a similar vain, I got each kid a school-type folder with his/her favorite character on it. I tell them at night that whatever papers they like best and want to keep, need to go into their folders. Anything else will be thrown out. It *almost* always works. :-)

Well if you go with this company, you know what to expect the day the job is scheduled to be done. :-/

As owners of a service company (HVAC to be exact), it is NOT normal to flake out on customers. It is NOT acceptable. We do not do residential work any more, but when we did, we would absolutely not tolerate that sort of thing. Emergencies come up but you always let the company know so that they can contact the customer and make alternate arrangements. I would say that 90% of the companies in our industry are run by people who either don't know what they're doing, or care about nothing other than screwing the customer out of as much money as possible. And I mean that with complete sincerity. Many companies are started when a technician or other person working for a contractor says to himself, "It doesn't look that hard, I can do that!" and they steal a few accounts and then boom, there you go, they're a company of their own. They operate out of their garages with their wives answering the phone. They don't know how to price things or design a system, and they can make all the guarantees they want - if they're out of business in 5 years you can't really call them on it. Always, always, check the license number. Your state should have its own website where you can look them up and see how long they've been in business, etc. Do not go by "reviews" on sites like Yelp or the BBB. Those are shakedown organizations that remove unpleasant things from companies' profiles if the companies pay to be "members."

We get the order forms at home through our homeschool. 95% of the stuff is junk, I agree, but I also admit to also allowing DD7 or DD5 to get the occasional Judy Moody book or something I'm confident that I'm ok with them reading, even if it is "twaddle." Otherwise I just stick to the few classics they include. Huge bonus: when you're the "orderer" (i.e. the teacher) you can search Scholastic's website for other books not in the order forms. They have a bunch of good stuff that they don't advertise because it isn't the latest Disney character. Other bonus: you can order a "class set" of book gift certificates, 20 certificates for $25 I think? Each one is good for one book up to $5. Then you can order all your other books using these certificates! ETA: Then you also get the teacher bonuses for your own order!

I agree. I watched the first part, thinking maybe there was a good reason the man came forward, other than his own personal glory. If there was, I didn't see it presented. We already had most of the details of the mission. The entire interview was about this guy's childhood and his own life story. It seemed, to me, inappropriate for him to be carrying on for hours on end for this interview. Most military men and women are humble and don't want to take personal credit for things. They have to be pressed to give more than "yes, sir" or "no, sir," or to say anything more than "I was just fulfilling my mission" or "we had a great team and we had each other's backs." My other immediate thought was, shame on Fox on Veteran's Day for making it all about this guy, and not about the tens of thousands of faceless soldiers who are currently going about their jobs and doing a damn fine job. Where is their two-hour special? I don't know, no disrespect to him, it just seems weird and...like I said, inappropriate. I won't be tuning in for the second half.

I went to college there. Go see the bats. If you have a car, go eat at the Salt Lick (Dripping Springs). If you don't, head downtown. Try Stubbs for dinner and a show. How many days do you have?