After so many "ick" posts, I was so happy to see your "meh" post! :D We also grew up swimming in greenish pools. Florida + concrete pool = Dad going nuts trying to treat and keep clean. Dad did a great job, but once in a while, there was a greenish tinge and we went in anyway. Once, though, we went swimming at a friend's house and it was green, green, green. We all just made an effort not to swallow any water. :tongue_smilie: I also don't remember any ill effects. It was routine to add the vinegar/alcohol mix to ears after getting out, though.

Oh my goodness! Tons and tons of :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

My dd just finished French 2 and the French 2 conversations classes w/Mme. S. and I *heartily* recommend her. I'll try to answer your questions: 1. I'm not sure on this, as dd did the work in her room. It wasn't tons, but it got the job done. Dd scored very well on the National French Exam. 2. I'm not sure on this, so I asked dd. She said their accents were corrected and suggestions made on how & what to change, but not overly so. I would imagine greater emphasis on accents would come in French 3 or 4. Honestly, my French is understandable, but I have problems with certain accents, and I have never had an issue speaking French while in France. While I know the accent is important, I wouldn't worry too much about it. 3. Yes. Dd caught on quickly to vocab that was covered in French 1 (we did French 1 at home with a mish mash of stuff, and she jumped in to French 2 with the BJU text). It didn't take long for dd to catch up. 4. Hhmm. I think 'no' (remember I only have experience with the French 2), but she assigns cultural events, and other assignments. She also has them listen to songs in French. I think the reading comes in level 3. This is what I remember from my own high school French classes, too. 5. Mostly BJU, but the mid-term and final were made up. The orals were BJU, but Mme. S. would ask questions that were not on the test paper. The *only* thing I regret is that I didn't find Mme. S. several years ago so my ds could have taken her classes!!

I'm so glad to hear things are improving! Your threads had me worried (and I even bookmarked them for future reference!). I hope this is the end now and things will be back to normal soon! :grouphug:

Instead of "it's the little things in life", we should be saying "it's the frivolous things in life" that are important. I'm glad you found the salon. My hair salon (10 minutes from my house) does nails, massages, etc. I'm just too chicken to venture out of my stylist's chair to partake in the other offerings there. Maybe one day....

This reminded me of a time many years ago... a bunch of us went out after work for 'Happy Hour'. One lady said she was opposed to anyone drinking alcohol for moral reasons, and proceeded to order a non-alcoholic beer. The rest of us were like :001_huh::001_huh:. :confused: Oh, my. **SNORT** Denise, I don't care what title your thread has or what term you use.... I'm glad you found something that works for you!!

My problem is that it isn't allowed, yet people flagrantly ignore the rules/laws rather than act to have them changed. I liken them to speeders and stop sign runners. The rules are meant for others, not them. In all my times in France I have never seen a dog in a grocery store, shopping mall, or a home & garden store. And never *inside* a restaurant. Outside on the sidewalk cafes? Yes. But not inside those places. Does that mean it doesn't happen? Of course not. I just haven't seen it in my time there. It just really bothers me that this has become so widespread here and that people are using the 'service dog' guise to get away with it. I do not want dogs (I'm referring to 'pets', not honest-to-goodness trained service dogs) in restaurants, grocery stores, or places I shop. Period. :iagree: What she said. I have a dog. She is gentle, loving, and small. She comes with us to the soccer field which is at a PARK. I would never *dream* of bringing her to Lowe's or to the grocery store. She is not a person.

I am so sorry you are going through this. :grouphug: :grouphug: Hijack alert... this is funny. I had to explain the "peanut gallery" comment to several people older than me. I thought the thread a while back about the 'pod people' was funny, too. I also had to explain to a younger-than-me cashier (but not *young*) a comment dh made (when we bought hot dog buns, chips, and cole slaw, but no hot dogs) about hot dog buns with ketchup being like hamburger helper, and didn't need the meat (from Vacation w/Chevy Chase). I'm feeling old. :glare: To get back on topic, I agree with those who say these pervs should never be let out!

:iagree: (but substitute "babies" for "baby"). How interesting!! I had multiple ultrasounds with both pregnancies, but many more with my first. He is a lefty.

This thread has me going :001_huh: :lol: :smilielol5: and :ack2:. Just over the weekend, I saw some very scruffy looking woman and her Dog Baby coming out of Kroger. Eeww!! I sure wish stores would clamp down on these dogs being brought in. I think it's gross to bring them in stores, etc. A few weeks ago, some guy had his pitt bull in Lowe's. :confused: Diane, I would have said something. Being a gracious host(ess) is one thing, but when it comes to hygiene issues that affect the rest of the people eating.... I wouldn't have been able to stop myself. I wouldn't have been nasty, but just matter-of-fact. I'm amazed at your self-control.

These questions aren't ones we can answer. As others have said, ccs are different. Also, teachers are different within a cc. I think the thing you should most consider is your son and his abilities/strengths/weaknesses. He should take the placement tests and/or the ACT or SAT. This will give you, him, and the college an idea of where he stands wrt college readiness. Other things to consider (in no particular order) are: * is he mature? * how will he handle a difficult course? * how will he handle a course where no grades are returned until the week before finals (ds had one of those!!) * how will he handle a prof who doesn't show up for classes or who doesn't test on material taught (a friend had both of these happen). * will he ask questions and seek the prof's help if needed? * will he participate in class and not feel strange being 'the young one' there? * how will he handle grade disputes or syllabus questions? * he will have to be the one to communicate with the cc ~~ is he comfortable doing this? (you might pay the bill, but the cc most likely won't speak to you unless you are trying to give them money) * is he organized enough to follow a syllabus/do assignments/study for tests where a class meets once or twice a week? * is he prepared to take a class knowing that his grade will follow him throughout his college years? The grades are permanent and official. I'm sure there are other things that I should mention, but that's all I can think of at the moment. Dual enrollment, to me, is the next step to take when a student is ready for more challenging, advanced, and fast-paced learning. My ds was ready, but was still surprised about several of the items I listed. If you and your ds think he is ready, then, as others have said, choose *one* class to start, and make sure it is a class he is strong/interested in. If he is shaky in English, I would not place him in English... that, IMO, is asking for trouble. You said that you know your son will be OK.... does *he* know that? He has to be ready. It is definitely a scary thing to consider. I wish your ds success if he decides to dual enroll.

Arrgh! None of the unis my son is looking at are listed there. Does that mean each app will be different? Ugh! Thanks for posting that list. I thought (mistakenly!) that it would have been the privates that used their own app. Interesting (in an annoying way!).

Thanks, Jane! That link is great. We do plan to have ds apply ASAP if for no other reason than to get it out of the way. :001_smile: Thanks for this, too. I keep poking around the unis' websites, but see no mention of common app or their own. I'm assuming (dangerous, I know!) that since they are all public unis that they'll use the common app. This whole process scares the heck out of me! When I was ready to think about college, I took the ACT once, sent in one uni application and that was that. No LORs, no guidance counselor letters, nothing. Just my app and a check for the app fee. I'm feeling so, so nervous about the whole process!! And I had to make it worse by homeschooling, so now those forms are way more scary and confusing to me! I'm not sure who is supposed to fill out which forms!!! :scared: :sad:

I have a senior in the fall, too. I'm quite nervous about the whole application process!! Can I ask about the part I bolded? How does one gain access to the application to print out? I checked three unis that my ds is interested in, and they are all online and require a password. Do I (he) just create an account and when we get to the application, just print it out? Also, the three unis I looked at all say their apps will be available Aug 1... am I just looking at unis with different procedures than you? TIA!

Wear a watch. The first time ds took the ACT, the clock was in the rear of the room. :001_huh: Bring extra batteries for the calculator and extra pencils with good erasers. The test is long. Be prepared for a very tired child after it is over. Ds found it easier the second time he took it because it was familiar to him. Good luck to your son!!

Ooh! I received a spam e-mail in Latin last year, but I can't remember what it was about or who sent it. I wish I could remember, though, as it was hilarious. I must say that I wasn't able to translate mine as well as you translated yours. Mine was much shorter, though, so I got the gist of it. Yours is much more funny than the one I received. :lol::lol:

We use a product by Bayer. I have bought it at both Wal-Mart and Home Deopt/Lowe's. It's fairly pricey, but it works. I hate that it isn't organic/friendly, but it works. Those pesky buggers eat leaves from our roses, crepe myrtles, Japanese Maples, and other plants. We can't stand them!! We can't have chickens here, but if we could, we would need a ton of them to eat all the beetles. They pile up in the yard. Seriously. They *pile* up. Totally gross.

I suspect it has to do with several factors. The aforementioned worries of being scammed, and the economy, for starters. Toss in the fact that many of us are still finishing up the current year and have no energy to think about next year makes for 'late year buyers'. I also wonder if there just aren't more people selling the same things, hence slower sales. I really don't know about that, but it seems that when I look at the sale board, I see lots of the same stuff, so maybe it's 'happenstance' when someone clicks on a sale link. That isn't scientific, I know, but I have wondered about that. I have a bunch of stuff I should/could list after six years of homeschooling, but since I tend to use 'off the beaten path' type stuff, I'm wondering if it's even worth it to do so, especially since sales seem to be slow(ish). Huh.

Congratulations on the birth of your daughter! I love her name. :001_smile: I am so, so sorry to hear of the complications, however. :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: to you. I can't even begin to imagine the trauma and upset of what you went through. I'm glad you and Olivia are OK.

Ooohh... that sounds neat! I may have to try that. I have a few of the 'cheapie' ones that I will then reinforce with a few heavier books stacked up next to it. That only works, though, if you have the extra room on the shelf. It does, however, add a certain 'something' to the look of the bookshelf so have the odd book laying down. OP, I hope you find what you are looking for!

I totally know what you mean. When the kids were younger, I was tired from running them around to all *their* socialization activities. Now that they are older and can drive themselves.... I am tired of all *my* socialization activities!! :lol: Jean, you'll find balance soon! :D

I wish I could help, but I'm only here to commiserate. :glare: I have a similar problem with coffee cups. The only thing, is they are newer ones. I bought them new (made in China) and they were fine for about two or three years. Then, all of a sudden, the handles started getting so, so hot in the microwave when heating water (one minute & 50 seconds). We stopped using them in the mw and just use them when we heat water in a kettle. Interestingly, our old, old, old coffee mugs bought at various tourist places like Disney & Rock City, are just fine. Those are also made in China, but are much older, by at least 10 years (and some are 20 years older). Since the microwave worked/works just fine (and was new when we bought the first cups I mentioned), I am wondering if there isn't something different about the composition of the ceramic or paint in the newer cups that causes them to get over heated after a time... maybe some protective coating wore off after a bit? Dunno. I'll be watching this thread to see what others have to say.

This is what I do, too. The reformatting is part of that "tweaking time" I mentioned upthread that caught me off guard. :D I copy & paste these, too. I also am keeping the downloaded catalog of descriptions as well as the syllabi from all classes, as well as the texts' ISBNs. I'm pretty sure I have too much info saved, but if someone asks for something, my hope is that I will be able to grab it quickly, and not have to recreate something after the fact.

Ugh. I just hate to eat out anymore because of stuff like this. Prices keep going up and up, portions keep getting smaller (on the things that just MIGHT be worth paying more for), and cheaper/lesser ingredients are being substituted for better quality ones. Add to the above that half the time the servers are rude, indifferent, drop food on you (had this happen twice in a year), or just not around, AND the fact that the restaurants are kept TOO COLD, AND the folks with screaming kids.... yeah. I hate to eat out anymore. I'm sorry you lost such a great place to eat.

Oh my. So, are they coming out ASAP, or did you accept the ''we'll try'' answer? After reading your updates, I am positive I would be calling to complain. It wasn't clear (to me) how much flooding occurred, which is why I was on the fence about calling. Often times, IME, the 'we'll make it right' return calls result in other messes, which is why I took the position of going either way on calling. However, I do believe you need to complain... and someone else needs to come out. I wouldn't want that tech in my home again.