Thank you so much Lori D for the congressional award tip! I will have my daughter look into that--this just might be the extra she is needing for herself.

Congratulations--now what do they mean? What do they represent? But people seem to be happy about them so WAY TO GO!!!!!:lol:

We live about 7 mins from Costco and I really like it for some things like toliet paper, paper towels that sort of thing. I also get my chicken breast there--hands down it is the best price around. I also get bread there, potatoes, bell peppers, things like that and cut them up and freeze them (not the potatoes of course :lol:) but the other items. I don't buy any meat there usually, except the frozen chicken breasts. It's well worth it for what I buy. I mean I can get a huge box of tide detergent much cheaper than anywhere else. But you really have to know the prices on some items as Costco has been about the same or higher for some things.

Thanks guys--:iagree: In the light of morning, everything that you guys have said is exactly what I am going to do! I did, finally, find a bathing suit (at Kohls) that is modest, didn't quite require I sign over my first born and is my age!!!!! I'm almost looking forward to the picnic instead of dreading it. Thanks for listening to me gripe:tongue_smilie:it really helped alot!

Ahh...a women after my own heart. I do get intimidated by beautiful women!! and the super thin ones somehow seem very "pointy" to me--you know all angles and bones and such. I am wanting to be healthy too and that doesn't mean for my body a size 2. I will gladly settle for a size 6 or a smaller 8 at this point. I mean I have to stop telling everyone I still haven't lost my baby fat when my baby is 15 years old now but I also love food and don't want to worry about every little calorie I eat! You are right about the 20 year olds too. (Ahem, getting on my discounted soap box here) I was there--I looked like they do (then) and you know what--I wouldn't go back for all the thin-ness in the world! I have earned every little gray hair (as my daughter says gray hair denotes wisdom) and wrinkle with years of living and doing and being and by golly I just need to look at myself in the mirror and say "you're special and beautiful and by golly people like you!" ;) (just a little throwback to a classic SNL skit) Oh my, I must be tired--I am cracking myself up here! Or maybe just cracking up????

I am not surprised. I agree--it really is a buyers market. We have friends who not only took an offer for much less than they wanted, but they had to go to the table with 20k just to make the deal. They desperately wanted to sell and saw that the market was only getting worse, so that is what they felt they had to do. I will pray for you also, that you get just the right buyer who will see the great worth in your home and fall in love it!

I was 21 and he was 30 (raising three girls on his own!) and within 3 weeks of knowing each other he asked me to marry him and I said YES! It will be 18 years in August:D

I hate it, I hate it! I can fool myself with clothes but in a suit, forget it. I haven't bought a new one in years. Sometimes it's not just how I look in a suit, it's finding one that is modest, yet stylish!:ack2: I mean really, am I asking too much for a suit that makes me look my age--not like a teenager but not like my mother either, costs less than a vacation, and flatters me even a little bit?!?! I wouldn't even bother getting one this year but my dear husband decided to invite his entire family (and extended family) to celebrate the 4th at our local rec center and he wants everyone to go swimming. Uggghguug! Okay, I am feeling much better now....just needed to vent. I think I will have another brownie and just not worry about it. I mean a great author I really like (Federicka Mathews Green) once wrote an essay about our changing bodies (as we age). She said in fairy tales who is thin and who is plump--think about it. The evil witch/step-mother/evil fairy is almost always thin and vain and well beautiful but in an ugly way, where as the plump woman is almost always the fairy godmother or other kind lady who is beautiful inside and out. She goes on to say that as we age we maybe we shouldn't be afraid to be a little plump, it seems cosier, nicer, kinder somehow. At least that is what I am going to be telling myself as I slaunter into the pool area on the 4th!:thumbup:

Some colleges might not accept AP courses as college credit. My daughter wants to go to the AFA and she was told that while AP courses in high school will help her GPA (as in a more weighted grade point average), they will not credit her with the class on a college level. Maybe because they are military they want you to take every course from them? I don't know the exact reasoning but maybe that is it. So, if you want them to take classes at a community college to get a feel for college or you want to challenge them with a harder class, then go for it. But if you want to have those courses counted at a college after they graduate high school, I would check with whatever college they are interested in attending and see what courses would translate into that school's credits.

My daughter wanted to take Algebra II and Geometry both in the same year also. She is going to take the Algebra II at a charter school but she is taking the Geometry through the online course at BYU. I don't know much about the school, but they have several courses for high school students. You get one year to complete the course and it is entirely at what ever pace you set. It comes into two parts, Geo I and Geo II and will give you 1/2 credit per class adding up to 1 full credit for both. It costs 120.00 per class so 240.00 for both but she really likes it so far. She decided to get started this summer, that way she will be half way done before she starts Algebra II. We went with BYU because the school counsler recommended it and it was the only online program that the school would allow a credit transfer with no hassles. I don't know if this is an option for you but thought I would throw it out there.

Good luck!! Wow--will say a prayer for you! :001_smile:

Hey NancyL, Thanks so much for all the info--I will get right on it. So did you homeschool your dd all through high school? You can email me off board if you want but I would love to hear how she got accepted. You know what are they looking for--more leadership positions or more academic grades, etc. Also, maybe your dd and my dd could email back and forth. She is into the Civil Air Patrol, plays basketball and tennis (for two different high schools), plays piano and she still thinks she needs to do more to stand out. She works and is going to volunteer at Habitat for Humanity. I think that is alot already but I don't know much about what they are really looking for --past what I have read on their website about requirements and such. So to get inside info would be a blessing. Our email address is cirbofamily@msn.com How did your dd decide to go into the Air Force? Does she want to be a pilot? That's what my dd wants to do--fly fighter jets. She has wanted to go to the AFA for about 3 years now. I wish she would do something else but she wants this and I fully support her. I just don't know how to help her sometimes reach her goal so I try and find other people who have children in the services to help me help her. Anyway thanks so much (again!) for the information! Candice

I think this course has always been traditionaly a one semester course and not two. I think most AP courses and most public schools would count it as one semester. You could do Economics, like someone suggested or you could do something completely different to count as an elective. You have to have so many electives to graduate anyway so why not throw in an art class or journalism class, photography, computer class, etc. Candice

I agree with BeckyFL: I would list them as two seperate courses. Trig can be a course all by itself. So can the Algebra 2. So one credit for Trig and one credit for Algebra 2.

Hello! My dd is going to be a sophomore this year and she has been working at a friend's restaurant for two years. When she started the job we had a talk with her about the money she would earn. Since she was going to be getting a paycheck and tips, we all decided that she would deposit her checks into the bank and she could keep her tips minus her tithes. She uses the money to buy what ever she wants (as long as it is approved by us). You know, we told her she couldn't buy skimpy tops just because it was her money but if she wanted to get clothes they would still have to be appropriate. She can also get money from her account at anytime and spend it on whatever she wants--usually if we are out somewhere and she wants new headphones for example, and she doesn't have any money, she will say, "mom will you buy these for me and transfer the money over from my account to yours". We have her account and our account at the same bank so I just do this online. It has really worked out for all of us. She hardly spends any of the bank money at all. She knows that in order to get a car, she will have to buy one and pay for insurance so that is what she is saving up for. Allowing her to have the tip money gives her spending money and makes saving the checks worth it to her because she still can buy gum or hair things and still save money for her car. I find that if she wants something I am unwilling to buy (something I consider she doesn't really need or something I don't have the money to buy) if she bugs me about it, then I just say, "are you willing to spend your own money?" 9 times out of 10 she will decide she didn't really need the thing after all! She realizes working so many hours for the trinket isn't really worth it at all. What I also thinks makes this work is that from the outset we had a family discussion before she made any money. We listened to what she had to say, and she listened to us and we came to an agreement we all felt good about. Candice

Hello! I was on the old boards too--changed my name to go with one I already used in other places ;-) Have you done much with personality types? You know the Briggs/Meyers tests? I don't agree with everything about their teachings but I do think it is a great starting point. We had to take abbrieviated versions of the test for a church exercise--our paster did it as an exercise on what gifts to do we have, etc.--and I really loved learning about all of it. Anyway, God really used it to give me some insight into myself and why I have certain tendencies--for example I learned I am definitely an introvert although most people think I am an extrovert--etc. Well, there is several books out there based on the Meyers/Briggs test that help you determine, based on your personality type, what jobs or careers are most suited for you. You could check one out of the library. One of them is called DO WHAT YOU ARE by Paul and Barbara Tieger. It's very easy to read. You can take the tests online (an abbrieviated version) for free or pay to have the complete test. I found another book though, for my daughter that made me fairly sure of what type she was without having to have her take an indepth test. It's another book by the Tiegers called NURTURE BY NATURE. Again, I don't subscribe to everything they talk about but it was facinating to see the breakdowns of type per each type of child. This book is very good for determining children's types from toddler to teen. Sorry this was such a long post but I hope it's just another avenue for you! Candice

My daughter wants to go to the Air Force Academy and I found a fiction book called Battle Dress that tells the story of a young girl going to West Point. I can't remember the author but she (the author) actually went to West Point and became an officer. My daughter really enjoyed the book because it showed her what going to West Point was like in a novel sort of way. She doesn't want a non fiction, this is what it is like kinda of book--she want's characters and such and so my question is: can any of you recommend any good living books about a female in the military--would love one set at the Air Force Academy but would take any suggestions. A book about a boy going would be okay as well. Thanks! Candice