oooo, I do both of these. And my favorite CW cookbook recipe, chicken and dumplings is an excellent way to use leftover turkey. Yum, yum, yum! My signature dishes are sweet potatos (see above) and my stuffings. They have no recipes but always include a dish of cornbread oyster stuffing and another with some variation of apple, dried cranberry, sausage and the like. And my most important job - I am the eggnog spiker! I add the rum, the Jim Beam, the nutmeg. It makes me very popular with the adults. I love to cook Thanksgiving dinner. It makes me so happy, and we have a routine that starts on Tuesday with all my little sous chefs helping with the prep work. By Thursday late morning everything is finished and it is mostly a matter of putting things in and taking things out of the oven. We play family football, games and try to really enjoy the family and friends that are with us on any given year.

Awww, I think it's cute. My yorkies act big, they are a little breed but they act big! I know you will have so much fun with the puppy.

Congratulations!!! I was so hoping to see baby news when I logged in this morning. Praying for an easy recovery and adjustment for all of you. :party:

For the clothes we used the plastic drawers that stack and come in sets of 3 at Walmart. Initially each drawer held two outfits with accessories. It kept the shoes, tights, hair bow etc. with the dress it belonged too and was big enough to lay the dress in without wadding it up. We added sets of drawers as her collection grew. Eventually she had 15 drawers categorized Sports Outfits, Hats, Colonial clothes etc. It did help keep the outfits organized, but we still had a laundry basket with all of the bigger things such as the horse, chair etc.

Lots of prayers for you, baby, Wolf and your other kids. Praying for an easy delivery, quick recovery and patience as your family adjusts to a new member. :grouphug:

:iagree: For special, my kids love the CrayolaGelFX which draw on black paper, foil and colored paper, Color Switchers (they color one color and then when you go over it with the "special" other end, they change color), and Pip Squeak skinnies which are thin versions of the regular pipsqueaks. Window markers are fun for those days when you need to make math a little more interesting.

Try holding CTRL and pressing + until the font is back to the size you prefer

"Get your head out of your pocket" and "you would lose your head if it wasn't attached" which I use more and more as my boys get older and enter the 'boy fog' that causes them to forget what they are doing sometimes. My father used to say both of these.

I think you made a great choice! We have 2 Yorkies, a 2yo and a 4yo. We got them both as puppies. They run around and play and are so cute. They are easy to bell train (which helps train the kids too) and lay on pillows under our kitchen table while we do school.

Lots of :grouphug: and prayers.

My boys had football playoffs this morning. The snow covered the turf field and we couldn't see any of the lines. Cold and windy, but so fun. Feels more like Minnesota than Maryland. My DD said Iit's weird that we have snow before we have had enough leaves fall to pile and jump in."

:iagree:This matches my experience. It was my 12yo DD who turned her brain off that day!

This is why our eye doctor recommends daily disposables for kids. No tracking, you start with a new pair each day. All you have to do is make sure they get removed each night.

My two glasses wearers began wearing contacts at age 8 (DD) and 10 (DS). Neither wore them every day at first, and they began wearing them because of dance and sports respectively. I am a contact lens wearer and have been for decades. They now make daily disposable contacts so the child does not have to learn all the steps to cleaning and care that are necessary with non-disposables. Dirty contacts can cause many eye problems. Honestly, we have had good experience with them. The kids vision is better with contacts than glasses, there is nothing to break or lose, and the kids were easily able to learn how to put them in and take them out.

I wouldn't worry. My DS (turned 9 in late summer) just lost his top two middle teeth in the last few weeks. Prior to this he only lost 2 other teeth and those were at 8 1/2. The dentist was not at all concerned and stated that some kids lose their teeth later than others. I was worried because my other two lost many of their teeth when they were 6 and 7. It actually works in your child's favor if they get their adult teeth when they are older as they will likely be better brushers by then.

My DS turned 9 the day before we started 3rd grade. He could officially be a 4th grader here by less than a week (Sept 1 cutoff) but we decided to declare him K the year he was turning 6. He does several subjects ahead of grade level, but maturity, attitude and size wise he fits 3rd grade to a t. I do worry where he will end up if we put him in school (which we currently have no plans to do), but I know it was a good decision. The only grade is relevant for us is Sunday School and many years two grades are in one class anyway. Sports here are by birth date with the cutoff varying by sport and league.

CBD has the ship date as 10/26 so I think it is about to be released, but not out yet.

Lemon Chocolate cinnamon Chocolate citrus http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/chocolate-citrus-biscotti-recipe/index.html all so good with a well brewed cup of coffee :001_smile:

:iagree:

If you can't find a good bargain elsewhere, Land's End has had a 30% off sale on their winter gear in late fall for at least the past 3 years. I have purchased my kids gear at this sale for fantastic prices.

It is so counterintuitive, but I have seen it work time and time again. Kudos to you for mixing it up, and fingers crossed that the tactic continues to be successful at your house.

Recipe cards - that way when "helpers" spill something during the cooking process the recipe isn't ruined. My friends tease me as when I give someone a recipe I laminate it automatically. Timeline figures Story of the World Review cards

One of my boys tried this trick. I found it most annoying! :glare: but I had to laugh because he couldn't figure out how I knew he was doing it.

Coffee at $12 :ack2: that would make me cry too! Groceries have gone up significantly here as well.

It doesn't sound like you have unreasonable expectations. My third and fourth grade boys complete WWE lessons, a grammar lesson, Latin and Science or History which all require some form of writing. They don't always do it without complaining, they don't always do their best, but more often than not we don't have many issues. Here are a few things I have learned homeschooling (and raising) two boys who had a compliant, fairly cooperative older sister. I grew up in an all girl house, so some of these lessons were revelations to me, but were more obvious to those who grew up with brothers. Some of these things may be sterotypes, but if they are then my boys fit the stereotype. 1. Boys need LOTS of exercise. Currently my 9 and 10 yos run a mile before school begins. That has helped our morning focus tremendously. We also take a 10 minute run around break after math, and at least 2 more 10 minute breaks during the day. They are required to do something physical during these breaks - run around, play lacrosse or football, shoot hoops, run steps etc. Initially I thought taking more breaks would extend our day, but it has shortened them. 2. What my boys eat matters a great deal. These boys are growing like crazy and burn tons of calories running around and at football practice three times a week. They need lots of GOOD food - protein, fruits, healthy snacks. Some debate snacks, but my boys are more focused if they eat a snack mid day. 3. There are certain foods that changes my boys' behavior. Red dye, too much sugar and caffeine are all foods that make my boys more hyper and less focused. Some people think I am way too strict for not allowing my boys to drink soda, caffeinated drinks and eat tons of sugar. It just isn't worth the behavior issues. I have wonderful, relatively well behaved boys if I feed them right. I do let them have sugar - ice cream, cookies etc. but not all the time and not laced with red icing and coupled with a coke. I make exceptions and am not militant about it, but it is a lifestyle choice. 4. Boys are wiggly. When reading aloud, give them something to do or something to fiddle with. Try having them sit on an exercise ball while doing their work. Sitting still and focusing takes some practice. Encourage them, start with 10 mins of focused work at a time. When my littlest was 4 we used to practice sitting still for 2 or 3 minutes at a time. 5. Remember they are kids. They need patience and understanding. They need achievable goals and training to meet those goals. Try giving him his tasks in smaller bits. Praise and reward. Then extend the tasks. Stay nearby and provide immediate feedback, good and bad. If he needs a plan, as you stated, give him a list of tasks for the day so he can see what finished looks like. Some kids get overwhelmed if they don't have the whole plan and can't see progress towards the goal. 6. Boys need correction and consequences. Remind them, warn them and then calmly give a predictable consequence. For my boys, if they don't do their school work in a reasonable time, they have to do it after school when their friends are out playing. If they don't do their chores they get an extra chore the next day. They know what we expect, and they know what to expect if they don't comply. Lastly, don't take their behavior personally. IMHO, parenting (and homeschooling) have to be adjusted based on the child. What works for one child does not necessarily work for another.l