Wow, I have not thought about dodgeball in YEARS. No one gets outta dodgeball without war wounds!

Oh, I really understand where you are coming from!

LOL, usually counting to 3 works great for my 4 year old. SHe has seen me in action enough to know that I just might follow through with what I say I am going to do. My 2 year old just counts along with me and is super proud when he knows the next number. I usually have to get him occupied with something else to distract him from any naughtiness. My 4 year old is an excellent listener for a 4 year old. My 2 year old is joyful with his naugtiness. He is just so curious. I want him to remain curious without killing himself in the process.

I get asked that a LOT now that I moved to Houston. I never understood why!

Yeah, my two year old dissolves into giggles every time I get stern. Drives me nuts!

Pain and hardships are relative. Knowing that someone has it worse should not cause you to minimize how you feel. There are times we all can 'suck it up' a little bit and there are times a vent is in order, LOL. What is that saying? Dont add up your hardships, count your blessings? I get it but it does not help me sleep better at night when things are going downhill and stressing me out. So, be kind to yourself and dont be afraid to ask for help/support.

Well, first of all, HS being treated as a Private school is how it is done in Texas, it ensures that the state has no jurisdiction. As for the concerns raised about the kids who were mistreated, that would have happened even if they were in school. The parents would not have been better parents just because the children were in public school. I dont see how this example is relevant. THis issue is people not acting as parents, HS'ing really is not the issue.

I hollered pretty loud when I told my birth partners (DH was offshore and could not be there for #2) that I need to push to go get the doc. They just stood there and stared at me for about a full 10 seconds until I screamed to GET THE 'insert F word' DOC!!! That created some motion. Other than that I grunted a lot and made some noises indicating effort. I am SO not one of those women who is willing to endure in silence.

Not to hijack your thread but add your yearly trip to the dermatologist to that list. Skin cancer is some scary stuff and you cant see all the parts of your body, even with the creative use of a mirror!!

The least I found was through the parks and recreation department in my town and the YMCA. Once a week for $30/month. I plan to have dd give it a try to see if she likes it before we commit to a more expensive place.

How about yoga? Walking? I suspect she is at that stage where one feels that everyone is staring and noticing every.little.thing. I hope you find something!

I LOVE my accountable kids. It seems complicated at first but it is really a piece of cake. http://www.accountablekids.com/

Here you go! http://product.half.ebay.com/The-Odyssey_W0QQtgZinfoQQprZ42923

I think you can do it just fine. You will be in learning *mode*, if you will, and having your children seeing you further your eduction could be an inspiration to them. Go for it! You wont know unless you try!

gg a planet? http://www.peacetoys.com/huggplanet.html

Funny, I have been researching that myself for the last 2-3 hours. What I have decided is that it can be done. I found a yahoo group dedicated to the WTM with a secular approach and while a good portion of the hs books that I have either checked out from the library or bought for myself have non-secular views I still have an easy time pulling out what applies to my personal philosophy and I discard the rest. It helps that I have at least 3 or 4 secular HS groups within a 30 mile radius from me. I hope that helps, pm me if you want a link to the secular WTM homeschool yahoo group.

Outstanding! We just had the same moment of epiphany last week when we decided to HS. I want to raise my kids to be people, not sheep-le.

I think you get an 'A' for patience. i would have had to try really hard not to kick her in the shin, LOL.

Wow, I don't think stand a chance to win an argument with her! Nothing you do will be 'right' and the contradictions are so involved I don't think your MIL knows what would make her happy. Did I read that right? She thinks your child should only read 2nd grade books rather than chapter books? Why regress? Weird. I know you are aggravated but that was a funny read, thanks for that!

Hmmmm.... -my reproductive rights -Mommy wars - I am so over the mommy wars -Victims rights, specifically, trying to help people to understand battered woman's syndrome -people assuming that just 'cause it is in the newspapers it must be true

Well, next time you feel like you need some control, my walls REALLY need to be painted!

Outstanding, thanks!!

while I teach my 5 year old? I would prefer to lay off the TV. I cant give him crayons cause he thinks they are a snack, LOL. I am looking for safe projects/entertainment that could keep him occupied for about 30 minutes at a stretch. Any unique ideas?

(ummm...I sort of want to know :D ) Best of luck!

Yes, I do. It does not help that I seem to need to process EVERYTHING. It is annoying. I call it paralysis by analysis and I drive DH crazy, LOL, oh well!