Thanks! That is helpful. :D

I've been eating very low carb and it's taken me a over a month to lose 5 pounds. It can be slow! I too have to recommit every day! Some people lose weight easily and some of us just... don't. This is the 2nd time I've seen that weight loss challenge group mentioned. I think I'd better go join!

I probably wouldn't think of it at the time, but it would be good in those situations to collect the information to make a complaint call to the company. We get kids dressed like thugs coming around at 9 pm soliciting for some charity. I've told them it's too late to be knocking on doors and now I don't answer. I just let our dog bark loudly at them till they go away.

I voted for nurse/co-sleep all the time but that was just with my 2nd. My first went to his own bed and slept through the night early, maybe about 4 weeks. I would get up to nurse him occasionally. My second was completely different. She was not a good sleeper at all. I was up and down so much in the night. So, we just brought her into bed with us. It made it easier for both my husband and me to get our sleep. We both slept well with her in the bed, even though she would position herself so she was touching both of us. (At 13 this girl still likes to hold my hand, snuggle when we're reading or watching tv together, etc.) My husband did some reading about co-sleeping at one point and it seemed that the vast majority of infant deaths due to co-sleeping occurred when the mother was impaired (drugs or alcohol). I don't have any cites for that, though. My MIL was scandalized. She only knew about it because we visited once and told her we wouldn't need a crib as the baby would sleep with us. But she also had wanted me to wean my son at 8 weeks and give him cereal in a bottle, so we pretty much ignored her baby advice. :D When I stopped nursing, she had no trouble going to her own bed as long as we had a few minutes of snuggle time at the start.

We are going to get Visual Latin for my rising 9th and 8th graders. VL's FAQ suggests Lingua Latina as a supplement to bring it up to high-school credit level. They also offer free guides which key Henle and Lingua Latina to their materials (if I am reading the information correctly). Anyone have an opinion on which might be better? My kids have had a fair bit of exposure to Latin vocabulary and a little bit of grammar which they've most likely forgotten. We are not looking for the most rigorous program out there. I want them to get a good basis in the language, particularly the grammar since they pick up vocab easily. Thanks!

I usually do chores and he does house projects or works. Our kids go to bed pretty late now so sometimes we all watch a movie together. Sometimes we'll have a glass of wine or a cocktail together and talk. It's very rare we watch a movie or tv show without the kids. I like to do needlework while watching tv; he likes the lights low. So, our watching styles are not compatible. :) Once or twice a month we meet some friends at a local pub for a drink. But we don't spend a ton of time together, and as far as I can tell it's not a problem for either of us. We too are introverts so no one feels a lack of attention.

We give our kids an allowance based on their participation in family life. So, it's not directly tied to chores but if there is a general attitude problem such that chores are not getting done, allowance can be cut off. I've only had to do that once. :) In months when there is significant yard work, my son gets extra if he mows, rakes, shovels, etc. without grumbling. We opened up savings accounts at our credit union and I write them each a check once a month. They must put 20% into the savings account and hold back 10% for church or other charity. The rest they can spend. Usually they put more than 20% in their savings. Savings isn't necessarily untouchable but they have to have a mighty good reason to get into it. Video games do not count as "mighty good." They keep track of their own cash. I do get angry when I see $10 bills under the bed but I have seen less of that since I started pocketing them. :) If they are paid for work by someone else (mowing for neighbor, babysitting), or get money as a gift, the same distribution rules apply. I like being out of the loop for everyday small purchases, and I like seeing them think about something before they buy it.

Hello - I can't answer your question but I have one for you. Is this from the Pennsylvania homeschool law, or a diploma program you are using? I haven't memorized the PA law but don't remember such specific requirements and can't find that in the text of the law now. (I think I'm looking at the full text but am not sure.) Sorry I can't help!

I am sorry you're dealing with this. My sister and I have had similar problems. Not necessarily about finances. The day my closest friend died suddenly at age 34 my sister said she knew just how I felt because her 20-year-old cat died the same night. I've learned to brush it off with her. We have a difficult relationship but it's going to last the rest of our lives so we try to be patient with each other. I'm sure I've said/done things that baffled or hurt her too.

Has anyone used Visual Latin for high school? I see on their website they suggest supplementing with Lingua Latina Pars 1 and Lingua Latina Exercita 1 to bring it up to a high school credit. We have flirted with Latin but always fizzle out so I feel as if we are starting over. A few years ago we started Prima Latina but I think I got it it a little late for my kids; they felt it was "babyish." Last year we got about halfway through Getting Started with Latin but had some distractions (long sickness among other things) and just never went back to it. I felt it wasn't strong enough on grammar for our needs. Vocab is fun and easy to pick up but grammar doesn't come as easily. We're going to watch the preview lessons today, so I'm just wondering what other people have experienced. Thanks!

Well, thank you for the fast and helpful responses. It looks like our plan to "re-start" 9th grade in the fall and just keep working along is fine. I am not sure why I got so wound up about dates. Well, an afternoon with some very intense homeschool mamas put that in my mind. It has nothing to do with PA law. Now that y'all have helped clarify that, I feel a lot less burdened. :D Late June! (27th to be exact!) Not a late birthday! :D:D Thanks, y'all!

I am pretty new here and have spent a lot of time looking around. I feel a bit insecure about high school with my 14-year-old son and have some questions about transcripts, credits, and dates. I'll try to keep this short as I can, but... it's long! He has a summer birthday, late June. The year his same-age friends went to Kindy he stayed home with me. At age 7 I had to register him as a homeschooler for our state (we lived in Oregon then) and had the option to put him in 1st or 2nd. I chose 1st because that's what most people did, even though if he'd gone to school he would have been in 2nd. I figured we'd get him on grade level track when we needed to. Very early on we knew our boy was a different sort of learner than his peers. Testing when he was age 10 confirmed that. His IQ test scores were all over the place - exceptional (verbal) to normal to deficient (working memory and processing speed). We were told to keep homeschooling! And do some therapies as well. When he took his 8th grade standardized tests this past spring, his scores were pretty much what we expected: very low in spelling and math computation, good to fairly high in everything else. The IOWA test doesn't show composition skill, but his is quite low. Anyway, this year (2011/2012) was going to be his freshman year, even though "legally" it was his 8th grade year. (We live in PA now and don't have to declare a grade level, but I've always done the standardized test according to the year we first registered him.) Some local homeschool moms told me I needed to move him up (though no one could explain how because the school district doesn't care and has no mechanism for this) because it would cause problems with transcripts, credits, and his age peers. I'm not worried (nor is he) about his age peers. His main friends are kids from Boy Scouts and they don't care about grade level. It's the transcripts and credits that I'm wondering about! Late last summer he got sick and did not recover till around Christmas. Our entire first "semester" was shot because he was too nauseated to do much work. We read and watched good DVDs and did a little math, but it was not a high school semester. He also still struggles mightily with math computation, and algebra is giving him fits. He has not completed even a semester's worth of that. His algebra tutor (Dad!) is thinking about how to move forward on that. I'd say we have about a semester of History and Language Arts, and maybe a quarter of Biology down (because we keep making curriculum mistakes); we plan to continue to work on those throughout the summer. So I'm thinking we will keep working and as we finish out the plans I've made for each "class," I'll award him the credit. So he might have an "English 1" credit by early fall. He will start the 2012/2013 academic year off as a 9th grader, again. Most likely no one will notice. There's no paperwork to mess around with. I guess he will be on the older end of 9th graders, but because of his birthday I am not sure it matters anyway. If he takes 4 years to finish high school from this Sept, he will still graduate at 18, though very close to his 19th birthday. We knew all along our kid might need that extra year, and we seem to be right. Does this all make sense? It seems like there should be no problem. But I don't quite see how it will work on the transcript if I have to show completion dates for the courses. Won't it look odd to have a credit given for English 1, say, in September of his freshman year? Or if high school appears to take 5 years? Or is that something no one is likely to question? Or rather than a completion date for a credit, can I put it in the 2012/2013 school year - even if the work was mostly done before that school year started? How do people manage who don't use the Sept-June academic year, but rather calendar years? We are not even sure this child is college material, given his difficulties in some areas. But we want to do things right as we go along and not limit his options. I don't want to stop or slow down what we're doing just to make the dates right - that seems ludicrous! Yet some people have told me it's very important that the high school work is completed within the typical 4 years or else it "looks bad" or doesn't count or something. I have not applied for any diploma programs (we expect to be moving sometime this year) and I'm not sure it matters anyway. I know I sound like an insecure newbie homeschooler yet I've been doing this a long time. :001_unsure: I do admit that high school and doing the transcripts correctly does intimidate me a little. My apologies for the length. All comments are welcome. Of course I know our situation is not unique and possibly not even unusual. But I still am not sure what to do about it, or even if there is anything to do but keep homeschooling and awarding credits as they are earned. Thanks for reading this far and for any comments.

This is exactly what we did.

I had been about to shout out To Kill a Mockingbird myself. :) I've never understood why The Awakening is on so many lists. (I don't mean here; I mean in general. Seeing it on one person's list reminded me of it.) I read that in college and plan not to have my kids read it unless there is some reason (college pre-req) that they have to. I'd be happy to have someone explain it's value to me, though. ;) Of course I realize there are differences of opinion about literature, but that one has always baffled me. My husband too, come to think of it.

We usually school somewhat lightly through the summer with some breaks. Last year I was completely burned out and we took the entire summer off. It was so nice. It took me a few weeks just to be able to wake up in the morning without feeling burdened by a long to-do list. I sewed with my daughter, we read together and my kids read a ton on their own, and we had fun day trips around the area. My kids did keep up a little math because of difficulties they both have there. They also each went to a week-long instructional/fun day camp and one also had a week at Scout camp. So they were not idle. Your kids are so young! I agree with others who've suggested listening to the rest of SOTW in a leisurely way. Maybe you are like me: I had to be reminded that the first trip through history would not be my kids' last. We ended up having a rough start to our year after last summer, when one of my kids got sick and stayed sick for a couple of months. But I still don't regret that summer of rest! :001_smile: Hope you are able to figure it out quickly and are happy with whatever decision you make!

I'm a slow learner too, but once I learned how to say "no" without feeling the need to justify myself, it really was wonderful. "I have other commitments" is my personal favorite phrase. The hardest part is when people challenge me: "oh, what are you doing?" As a homeschooler, it's easy to say "school stuff with my kids" even if that means I am cleaning out the pantry (or reading a novel, as if that ever happens :001_smile:) while being available to help with my kids' independent work. I've had several of these types of relationships, and when I think back I am ashamed at how I have at times shortchanged my kids in order to help someone - friend, or even near-stranger - out. Margaret

I wish my in-laws would express such enthusiasm for my kids' accomplishments! As for the gift card - if you can't figure out how to access it without linking your facebook account to Amazon (something I wouldn't want to do either), have your husband talk to her about it. Our house rule is: if there is an uncomfortable conversation to have with a family member, the in-law doesn't have it. My husband has all the difficult conversations with his parents, even if the problem originates in a conversation with me. (When my MIL complained to me that our son isn't communicative enough on the phone, I listened politely, then had my husband call her back to discuss.) This keeps me from being the bad daughter-in-law. (My parents are deceased but it would work the same way with them.)

I need to lose about 30 pounds. I've been saying that for about 13 years, since my 2nd (and last) child was born! My husband and I cut way down on carbs after he read a book on the topic. He lost 20 pounds quite quickly, but it took me a while to lose 5. I am post-menopause, and I'm told it gets harder to lose at that point. So trying to lose before that hits is a good idea. I have been tracking my calories, exercise, and carbs and when I track, I do much better. When I slack off, the weight creeps back up quickly. I am a mindless snacker, and it is rare that various types of chips (chocolate, potato, tortilla) are not within reach. Happy to cheer you on! Margaret

I couldn't vote. :001_smile: I would suggest hiding most of the pop but leaving out enough so your pop-loving family members can enjoy their favorite drink but not clean you out. Because we sometimes have young guests who weren't taught not to open cupboards and refrigerators uninvited, I often hide food I don't want to offer. But I also like to have things that I know my guests enjoy, so if I can afford to provide a favorite, I try to do that. My own family (none of whom live close enough to be guests in my house) would expect anything visible to be fair game. :001_smile:

My children and I did it in 2010. It was my idea for them to do it, but they talked me into joining them. Kids can set their own word goals. Adults cannot. So they had an easier time of it. It was great fun but also stressful for me. We ate very badly that month. I did discover that I don't enjoy writing fiction. None of our novels were any good, but everyone did write a complete (bad) story! We never did anything with them, though. I do know a young teen girl who self-published her story and sold a few copies to family and friends. She already had the writing bug but that reinforced it for her. In 2011 my kids did it again, without me. It wasn't as much fun for them and though they "won" by completing their word goals, they did not finish the stories. My son works on his occasionally, though. It was a crazy month where everything else fell by the wayside, a lot of pizza and coffee (or hot cocoa) was consumed, and we talked and laughed about our writing. So glad we did it together at least once. I would do it again!

My daughter took that test. She spit into a cup, and the orthopaedist sent it to the lab for analysis. Unfortunately for us, her results came back as "moderate risk" for the curve getting worse, so she kept the brace. We did it last year; at the time the test was quite expensive and insurance didn't necessarily cover much of the cost. The company that does the test had financial aid, though, if I recall. I don't remember how much we paid and in a year much has probably changed. At the time we felt it was worth it for the chance, even though as I said the brace isn't that big a deal. BTW my son, who is 14 was found to have a fairly large curve last year. The orthopaedist didn't brace him (he said they don't with teen boys), but put him on a watch - every year till he's 20. He said he can correct almost any curve if it gets to the point of surgery I'm not sure why they don't brace teen boys, but I have read that it has something to do with compliance.

My daughter has scoliosis and has had her back brace for almost 2 years. She's got a couple years left to go. Our orthopaedist said there are no treatments for ideopathic scoliosis. The brace is to keep the curve from getting worse, not to straighten the spine. He and another doctor pretty much said that anyone offering scoliosis treatments is a quack. Note that I did not say this, just repeating what I was told. Maybe your daughter's scoliosis is of a different type which is why treatments are recommended. Of course there are all different opinions. We never sought treatments, though, based on their comments and my own research. The brace is uncomfortable in the summer, but mostly it's not a big deal. She is supposed to wear it a minimum of 16 hours a day, preferably 24. It's not visible under all her clothing, and it doesn't stop her from doing the things she wants to do. She just takes it off if she is biking, swimming, playing soccer, etc. Honestly, the biggest hassle is finding the right type of camisoles to wear under it. Today we found a bunch of "wife-beater" style ribbed ones in Walmart - they are long, tight, and perfect! I cried more than she did when we got the diagnosis. Your daughter's curve is pretty mild! And at 14, she is nearer the end of her growth. I think our doctor said she should be out of the brace at around 15 or so, depending on when she starts menstruating. Hope this helps! Margaret

I can't imagine a situation in which either my husband or I would want to share email. But, we both get a lot of mail, and little of it is of interest to both. If he suddenly started using my email address, I'd be pretty annoyed! I don't really love admitting that, but I believe that's the truth. And I think he'd feel the same way. FWIW, our kids also have their own email addresses, but I get a copy of all their incoming into my box as well so I can keep an eye on things. Margaret

Oh, this is bringing back memories. For a long time my daughter couldn't ride. She was embarrassed by the training wheels, but every time we took the bike out for practice without them, she'd give up so easily. It was frustrating for all of us. The summer she was 10 years old, the bike didn't come out of the garage at all. (We always had a bike the right size for her, just in case. So thankful for garage sales and hand-me-downs!) My husband and I decided we'd just not mention the bike, ever, and let it go if she didn't learn to ride. The summer she was 11 she said "Mom, if I don't learn to ride this year, I never will. I have to learn by the time I'm 12 or I know I'll never do it." We took the bike to a school parking lot and started. It was a hard day. But by the end of it, she was riding pretty well. For her 13th birthday we finally bought her a brand-new bike. Whew.

Without any idea of your family dynamics, I would say ignore the comment or tell your sister to suggest your cousin do his own research. Your cousin didn't even come to you directly, so there is no need for you to respond to him at all. In our extended family, there are various opinions about homeschooling. Funny how the ones who don't like it never come directly to me or my husband with their concerns. Rather, they talk to other family members, who then tell me about it. If someone would come directly to me, I'd be happy to respond, but when it comes through a third party, I just ignore it. It might get worse, or it might not. If you and your husband are confident in your choices for your family, you don't have to worry about anyone else! Margaret