Have you checked into Mystery of History? It is Christian based , three volumes.

My boys really liked VeggieTales Very Silly Songs sing alongs, real cute and funny songs! They also loved Rack, Shack and Benny, Jonah and Larry Boy.

My mom and I have had our moments too. I try hard to love and honor her. I fail and so does she. But we pick ourselves up and talk it out and forgive each other. At one point we had to take a year break from each other. It is much better now. We have had many talks about what I need from her and what I have problems with. I like it when she expresses her "humble" opinion on occasion because sometimes I really need to hear what she is saying. But she can't force it on me. I won't allow her to disrespect my husband (that's why we needed the year break!). We can't have these talks in the heat of the moment, though. It has to be over a cup of coffee/tea after the kids go to bed or over the phone when we are both calm and in good moods. She did not have an easy life and I try to give her as much grace as I can within reason. She will always be my mom and she is my kids only living grandma. It's important and essential that she is in our lives. We disagree on a lot, she can be pessimistic, but I still love her a ton!

I don't know if there are any "rules" about when to do this. For my family I like to do it sometime between 3rd and 6th grade -- take out the state map and dive right in. :) We do field trips all over the state throughout the year.

I got mine last week. My last order from them was the end of August if that helps. Lots of fun stuff in there!

Thanks for the info. I did search for past posts and there were a bunch and should've started there! :001_smile:

Sorry, This post was meant for another thread. Guess I'm still learning the ropes!

I have a recipe to make my own laundry detergent out of Borax, Washing Soda, Fels Naptha bar soap and tap water. Cost is about $2 for 10 gallons. Also heard 1 part borax and 1 part baking soda makes a good dishwasher detergent. Has anyone had good/bad results with homemade detergent? I'm thinking over time this would be a great savings as long as it gets things clean. :)

Dental floss pulled straight down on both sides of the cheesecake and gently pulled out from the bottom of the cheese cake. Also make sure you don't use flavored floss!

My first two children were the same way -- my oldest struggled, while my younger child -- 3 years younger, picked it up with hardly any effort on my part. He sat on the floor working puzzles and listened while I taught his brother and picked it up. :) My biggest suggestion is pick one real good reading program and stick with it. My son finally got over the hump with Saxon Phonics Intervention, he was older. I wish I would have just stuck with one program -- but I jumped around looking for the "perfect" one and that probably delayed him more than helped him. I also would pick out books slightly under her reading level and have her read one book several times out loud to you and other family members to increase her fluency. Still have her read books at her reading level at other times so she is still challenged and not bored with the content.

Candyland, Memory, over sized floor puzzles, alphabet/number magnets

I have two boys who are built very differently. Our twelve year old, tall for his age and fairly strong, has been push mowing since he was about 10 -- the first summer with much instruction, supervision and small sections of the yard. This summer he was able to do it all on his own. Our nine year old, while he is responsible enough, is small for his age and not as strong -- he will most likely wait until he is able to physically handle the job, maybe a couple years, depending on his growth. I think it is important that responsibility, ability, and supervision all work together.

I'm on board!

Do you live close enough to one of the "wealthier" suburb libraries so you can get a library card from there and go a couple times a month?

My ds loves Draw Write Now and it also helps his handwriting! We always have a large supply of construction paper, large roll of paper from our local newspaper (they sell the ends of rolls for a coupl dollars and it lasts a long time -- it becomes our indoor sidewalk in the winter months) , computer paper, paint, markers, crayons, colored pencils, lots of tape, glue, clay etc. He also loves k'nex and smaller legos. Sometimes we'll check out art books from the library. Much of the time he just likes to create from his own imagination about what he is learning in Science and History.

I have a lot of Homeschool friends who use MFW and have never heard this. I need to read up on this.

I have to check everday otherwise it's overwhelming. I try to do it as soon as we're done with that subject if possible.

I have a 12 year old ds and sometimes wonder the same thing. He likes being homeschooled so the topic hasn't come up, but I'm sure it will at some point in the future. I do have him in a couple summer/after school sports, we have a good supportive co-op and church and he might try the band next year. We are talking to him and our younger ones that we would like them to be homeschooled until they can do PSEO if we feel the Lord is leading us in that direction. About once a year my DH and I take a few days and pray for direction in this area and talk about each of our childrens different abilities and where we feel the Lord is guiding us to help them excell. I think its good to get a child's input as they grow, but I feel the final decision is yours. If all your ds wants is extra time to socialize then provide some type of outlet for that outside of school. Our local Park and Rec department offers a wide variety of sports and workout programs for our youth. Last summer we paid for him to play baseball (our rule is we pay for one activity during the summer) but he also wanted to do the workout program for boys going into 6th grade -- so since he has his own paper route, he paid for it and biked there and back -- it's about 8 blocks away. I could tell it gave him a sense of independence, responsibility and a good workout that he greatly enjoyed. We also let him ride bike to the library this summer --about 10 blocks away -- and he would spend time there playing chess, checking out books and a little time on the computer. He loved it. Sometimes the rest of us drove there at the same time, but when I realized it was going well he went himself. He always got back in the time that was requested of him. He loves that our trust in him is building. We talk alot about making good decisions, consequences and rewards for actions, etc. Sorry I'm rambling. I'm new to this -- who knew I had so much to say!

We use Mystery of History and fun Medieval and Renaissance literature is hard to find for young readers. I have used MTH books with my boys and have listened to some on audio book. I don't really care for the witches and magic -- we talk that through. But it is fun for them to pretend and imagine going back in time. We also used it for science when we were talking about biomes and ecosystems. My boys' interest in reading really took off with these books.

My DH rarely stays home unless he absolutely can't get out of bed or unless I can't -- which is very rare. It is very easy for us (the kids and I) to stay put if someone isn't feeling well. With this H1N1 stuff going around I refuse to take them shopping and usually go at night.

Fun! Kids are great. :) One of my kids did that kind of thing, we just played along.

I would start searching the library. I can search for books/movies all over the state at home through my public library's website I'm sure they have several books about Christmas around the world. Around Christmas we usually have a couple baking days and deliver our goodies to friends and relatives that are close by. They also make goodies for their Sunday school teachers and piano teacher etc. We listen to a lot of Christmas music -- everyone has their favorite. We watch movies -- It's a Wonderful Life, The Nutcracker Suite, A Christmas Carol, Little House on the Prairie Christmas Special, The Sound of Music, etc I like to read aloud "The Legend of the Candy Cane" and a few nativity books. Sometimes we make paper chains and popcorn chains and they can string them on their own little tree or in their room/door. I also help them make their own Christmas cards.

Pulled pork -- put a roast in a crockpot early in the morning and pull it apart with a fork after it's cooked for about 4 hours or more and add your favorite seasoning like BBQ sauce. Serve it on a bun with a big veggie salad and fruit that's in season -- like right now I'd cut up apples and serve it with a fruit dip or caramel. Sometimes I'll make a roast with potatoes, carrots, onions.

The same thing happened to me last spring after I had walked barefoot on cement for an hour or two. My calf was so tight and couldn't bear weight on my heel. I have a large bone spur on my heel -- its also known as plantars fasciitus. It developed over time, but was agrivated by going barefoot on cement. I have wood floors and constantly went barefoot . I'm not a fan of shoes --especially in the house. Now I need to wear shoes in the house and wear good running shoes with support even if I'm just doing errands. I was told to take ibuprofen and ice my heel (frozen plastic water bottle helps -- you can roll it back and forth on the bottom of your foot) for a few days until the swelling goes down. And to do the exercises that were posted earlier. I keep slip on shoes by my bed for when I get up in the morning. I wear walk fit insoles in some of my shoes. Hope it gets better.

How is this for my first ever post -- and it's non academic. Shame on me! We're thinking of getting a Wii for family enjoyment/entertainment and some fitness during the very long, below zero winters we have. Does anyone NOT recommend the Wii? We have never had a gaming system, not even a small handheld one. My dh and I never had one when we were growing up. Our kids really don't know what they're missing. They have a moderate interest, but it's not like they HAVE to have it. Will we do more harm than good by introducing our kids to this type of entertainment? Or is it more about setting time limits and not letting them play for hours on end? One of the reasons I ask is because I have adult friends who are highly addicted to games (they started playing as young kids), some whose marriages and families have suffered from them. Are the Wii games as highly addictive as other games out there? It looks fun and harmless, but we want to make a wise choice. Thanks for the input!