Have you been tested for Celiac? There are a host of symptoms that can come with it. Malnourishment from malabsorption can cause fragile bones, bruising, wt. loss... If you have tested negative you may want to try eating gluten free for a while to see if your symptoms improve (may take time though.) Hopefully you get some answers soon!

See a urologist! That has a good chance of being too big to pass and why wait until it's an emergency to get it taken care of? Are you in any pain? I beg to differ that stones in the kidney don't cause pain. Sure, it isn't the severe pain of passing one but I had vague, unpredictable pelvic and back pain for 7 + months with blood occasionally in my urine and it took to the 3rd doctor to even suggest a kidney stone because I wasn't in 'enough pain'. I did end up in more pain when a 2mm piece broke off from the big one (over 1 cm) in my kidney and started down the ureter. I thought it was a cyst because then I had the lower abdominal one sided pain but the OB said it was a kidney stone. Sure enough it was. Had a lithotripsy that week!

Check out these: http://characterconcepts.com/store/product.php?id_product=1572 http://characterconcepts.com/store/product.php?id_product=3260 The first one is for 4-6 year olds and the second for 6-9. I have not used them but am probably going to for next year. They seem to be open and go (which I need!) There are stories (Biblical, historical, and everyday life), projects, questions, memorization of definitions/Bible verses, coloring pages and even CDs. It has 36 lessons but only 12 character traits (3 weeks on a trait.) I saw the author at a conference last year and really enjoyed listening to her. They have books all the way through high school.

Thanks for responding! I'm feeling led to do this (and less stress for next year..)

This is very timely. I have been seriously considering the VPSP history for this fall with my 3rd and 5th grader, but I also have some questions! (Hope that's ok.) I was hoping to just let them share a login, but can you only watch a lesson once? (Do they have to watch it the same time?) Or can they watch it at different times? I read somewhere that they can only answer the questions once, which I am ok with. It says there are tests and worksheets - does that mean all on the computer or do you actually print something off? I would like to be able to talk to them about what they learned about (I was thinking about just going through the questions with them at the end of each lesson, for example), but is there any other guidance or way to know what they are learning if I'm not watching it? Is doing the once-a-week history cards a good summary of each lesson? I really need to outsource something... I might not even care if I don't know what is going on because they'll likely learn more than they are now! Yet, it would be nice to have some talking points about what they are learning. TIA!!

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll look into those. I'm not sure if there are right or wrong ones to buy.

I'll add that they don't need to be the fashionable kind but I do want thigh highs.

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions of a good website or brand to look for. I'm planning on buying online. I have worsening varicose veins this time around! UGH! (But not really any edema.) Also, anyone recommend a type or brand of one of those pelvic supports? Thanks!

Oshkosh, WI has an airplane festival the end of July - 25-31st this year. Every year we want to go but something comes up so I haven't been there but it would be so cool with a bunch of boys! http://www.eaa.org/en/airventure Manitowoc, WI (on lake Michigan) has a maritime museum. I think they have ferries that cross over to Michigan so that could be one route with something to do there. If you go around Chicago and up through Wisconsin you'll hit the Wisconsin Dells. There are some neat scenic boat rides/Duck rides and, of course, water parks. I wouldn't spend the night near there, though, as it is really expensive. Driving out 30-40 miles would be much cheaper!! Superior and Duluth have a lot of things to do as well, even just stopping to see the lake. Pattison State Park and Amnicon State Park on the Wisconsin side are some of my favorites (cool waterfalls!)

I was told if I would eat organic wheat by one person (an organic agronomist) that I wouldn't have problems with it. Another person told me if I didn't eat any GMO wheat (doesn't exsist...) or any GMO product (especially corn) I wouldn't have gluten issues. I told her, "Really? I just ate Triple-stack, Round-up ready sweet corn and it didn't bother me..." I wish my autoimmune issues were that easy to fix. Don't get me wrong, I like alternative medicine choices and living/eating healthy but some people really lack (or refuse to see) common sense.

Boundaries with Kids by Cloud and Townsend (about developing character) The 5 Love Languages of Children

OOooo.... I'm also curious if anyone has tried out the recipes!

One thing I didn't see mentioned is beef jerky sticks that are prepackaged.

My son did MM for grades 1-3 and I liked it ok but felt he didn't know the 'basics' either... So I started him on CLE in 4th grade hoping to be a little more independent.... he cried almost everyday and it would take 1 1/2 - 2 hours (and sometimes not doing all of the problems!!) He couldn't handle the switching around of topics and I'd have to re-teach everything, even the review everyday. I just switched him to R&S a few weeks ago and we are both doing much better!! R&S sticks with a topic longer and expands on it, but there is plenty of review at the end of the lesson. CLE felt all over the place. My 2nd grader likes CLE a lot, though, and that may be because she started out with it in 1st grade. I plan on switching her to R&S for 3rd or 4th grade (if she lets me...) because I like the format better.

Apparently my maternal grandmother is the 11th generation from John Hancock (who signed the Declaration of Independence.) Her maiden name was Hancock but her father only had 2 daughters and so he didn't have any sons to carry the name on. My aunt apparently has the lineage written out... I should get it!!!

Yes :)

He can read the stories and then answer questions about them. It's getting him motivated to do it without groaning and applying himself is the problem! Most days he works very hard at it. Yesterday was just a bad day. He's not ADHD. IMO, they aren't exactly the most exciting stories - but that's what it is when there is the limitations of sticking to the only the rules that have been learned so far. I had him read to me a story out of the level three books and he seemed to just be reading too fast. When I had him slow down and follow my finger he didn't skip or say the wrong sight word nearly as much. It's like I was hoping by now Barton would have fixed his old reading habits. At the same time, should I be expecting perfection? Also, I'm frustrated because he doesn't know if he read the right word or not because he doesn't know the word to begin with. Obviously I'm there and explain all the words. We read only one story a day at the end of the lesson, then another the next day. And he does the silent preread and uses a pencil to divide all the multisyllable words. Maybe's it's just that I'm not confident he'll continue to use the syllable rules if we move forward. I can hardly remember how to explain the rules! Yesterday was just a frustrating day. Sorry, I feel like I hijacked this thread to share my frustration. Either way this is my experience. Thanks for your help. Thanks for whoever posted about Spelling Success. That looks like a great supplement. I wish there were lists of all the words that follow each rule. Then I could make little practice cards. Does anything like that exist? I took him to get his vision checked and the dr. actually did developmental eye screening for 3 years prior to this job. He said he couldn't do the all the specific testing because there wasn't the right equipment there. He did check convergence and tracking and watched him as he read and said he didn't see any outstanding problems. However, the closest place to do a technical screening and therapy is 1 hr 45 minutes one way and I could do that if I was still concerned. It's just not possible. I wish it was but I have 6 children and can't be driving nearly 8 hours a week for 6 months for therapy.

Chiming in to say we finished lesson 4 of level 4 today... But we'll probably need to review. My son is like yours - he can encode (spell) well, but the decoding has always been his struggle. He is 10. I know he shouldn't be guessing, but now on the multisyllable words he's guessing again!!! How 'normal' is it to revert back to that? I know we'll just have to keep practicing dividing the words into syllables but he gets angry because he feels like he shouldn't 'have to'. He's started putting sounds in that aren't there, esp. l, r, n sounds (racket = rackent.) He also can read the sight words on flashcards and spell most of them but then skips them or reads the wrong one in the phrases and stories (a for the, then/when, what/that, says for was, etc). The stories are difficult for him to understand because they are about things not of his maturity level (does that make sense?) So I think he doesn't catch sight words he reads wrong because to him the whole story is 'dumb' and doesn't make much sense; he finds that frustrating. What can be done about that? Just keep plugging along? That's what I'm planning on doing... I can't imagine using this program (level 4 anyway) on a child younger than him because even if a child can decode a word, many of them are not of a child's vocabulary (skeptic, omit, shoddy??)

I feel like the 'mommy brain' always has many 'windows' or 'tabs' open, like on a computer, even if it isn't consciously at the forefront of what you are currently doing or thinking (or suppose to be doing or thinking!) After you have kids, you are never 'off'. Your constantly trying to hold up all of yours and your kids (and husbands!?) tasks and obligations AND stuff you want to do! All at once! Even if we get a relaxing time away, we're always thinking if the kids are ok or did dh forget to do this or that.... That's how I see it anyway, and I don't know if there is much a mom can do about it.

Maybe look into Logic of English Foundations. I have not used it but I think it is OG and has workbooks.

I got rid of our dish drainer because it took up space on the counter (or in the sink if that's your thing.) Lay a towel on the counter to set them on then dry and put them away right away. That's what we do anyway.

I just remembered one. My cousin was a teacher and had a student in her class with the name Shithead. It was pronounced Shuh - THEED. No, I am not making that up! Maybe she was though, but she wasn't that type.

Philomena Holden (holdin' what?) Mnason - where the M is silent... frequently misspelled Manson.. (reminds me of Marilyn Manson!) Axel

We have Excede and I like it for the most part. Our only other option was for dial-up. My sister recommended this company because she didn't like a different one, but I don't know what the name was. We had cable internet at the previous place we lived... I was spoiled. I haven't had really any issues. We didn't have to sign into a contract because of some special sale at the time so we can cancel at any time. Maybe you can wait and see if a sale like that comes up. It's about as fast at cable but once you use up the amount of 'data' you purchase for the month, it runs at a slower speed instead of cancelling your service. I only wish we could get Netflix but that would eat about data within a couple hours... :( I'm super paranoid about stray electrical current and wireless signals (we don't have a cordless phone or wifi and I won't carry my cell in my pocket) but I still got the satellite. I can't live without internet!! You can have it put on a post away from your house if you don't want to draw signals towards it. I've never heard of wildlife getting hurt. I live in a rural area and lots of people have them.

All these threads about how you can't throw out 'other' peoples stuff... well that ain't workin for my kids!!! None of them will part with anything and grandparents won't stop giving them anything!!! SO - Dh and I are sending them to grandma's for a day soon and we are picking what is kept and getting rid of the rest. I have 5 kids and can't do it with them here because they scream and cry over every little stinking paper-whatever project or broken toy. I guess they'll have to go to therapy as adults but this is my house and if you can't pick up your stuff, you aren't allowed to have stuff. It's consuming my life. (Thanks for letting me rant!)