Library for sure! Especially with those windows. Line the walls and under the windows with book cases, get a nice rug, some comfy chairs....ahhhh... My dream room. As for the computer, it depends on its use. Is it for school? Put it in the school room. Is it for family use? Put it in the family room. Is it for your personal use? Put it in your huge master bedroom.

Tampax and Playtex both have a slender size. If you can't find them in a local store, you can get them on amazon.

I started using them at 14 (I also started my period at about 13.5). After 6 months of pads I was DONE. I actually found a box of tampons in my mom's bathroom, read the instructions, did it myself... and I have never looked back. It made a huge difference for me in high school to be able to do all my activities without the pad.

It has been a good reading week! I finished two books and read two more and made some headway in a few I am still reading and started a new one and hit the halfway mark for the year two weeks early. I am not usually that productive. :) Started Reading: A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson (American author, DD class 900) Still Reading: The Conviction to Lead: 25 Principles for Leadership that Matters by Albert Mohler (American author, DD class 300) The God Who is There: Finding Your Place in God's Story by D.A. Carson (Canadian author, DD class 200) Finished: 26. The Last Camellia by Sarah Jio (American author, DD class 800) 25. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (Ethiopian author, DD class 800) 24. Having Hard Conversations by Jennifer Abrams (American author, DD class 300) 23.The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe (American author, DD class 600) 22. The Infernal Devices #3: The Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 21. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (American author, DD class 800) 20. Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill (British author, DD class 200) 19. The Infernal Devices #2: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 18. The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 17. God's Big Picture: Tracing the Story-Line of the Bible by Vaughan Roberts (British author, DD class 200) 16.The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag: A Flavia de Luce Mystery by Alan Bradley (Canadian Author, DD Class 800) 15.The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner (American author, DD class 900) 14. Prodigy by Marie Lu (Chinese author, DD class 800) 13. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand (American author, DD class 900) 12. The Disappearing Spoon: And Other Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements by Sam Kean (American author, DD class 500) 11. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman (American Author, DD class 600) 10. A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World by Paul Miller (American author, DD class 200) 9. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick (American author, DD class 300) 8. Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald (American author, DD class 100) 7. The Bungalow by Sarah Jio (American author, DD class 800) 6. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen (American author, DD class 800) 5. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen (American author, DD class 800) 4. The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion by Tim Challies (Canadian author, DD class 600) 3. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton (Australian author, DD class 800) 2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (English author, DD class 800) 1. The Dark Monk: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch (German author, DD class 800)

That is so awesome!!!!!

No. Absolutely not. It is irresponsible.

Supposedly 4mbps. But in reality more like 1 or 2 Mbps.

Not at all. In fact, it has confirmed my faith. Looking at the complex story of mankind, the amazing things and the horrific things, proves to me that the story of mankind's creation, fall, and redemption is 100% true. Otherwise, it is all random and pointless. I love history! I wish I had loved it more as a child. :(

My deepest condolences. :(

The Violets of March by Sarah Jio was wonderful! Anything by Sarah Addison Allen.

We have an adopted ds who is Korean and an adopted daughter who is Indian and a birth child. Having an international family has some challenges but the benefits are far greater. It has been an amazing experience for all of us!

Started Reading: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (Ethiopian Author, DD class 800) Still Reading: Having Hard Conversations by Jennifer Abrams (American author, DD class 300) The Conviction to Lead: 25 Principles for Leadership that Matters by Albert Mohler (American author, DD class 300) The God Who is There: Finding Your Place in God's Story by D.A. Carson (Canadian author, DD class 200) Finished: 23.The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe (American author, DD class 600) 22. The Infernal Devices #3: The Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 21. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (American author, DD class 800) 20. Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill (British author, DD class 200) 19. The Infernal Devices #2: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 18. The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (American author, DD class 800) 17. God's Big Picture: Tracing the Story-Line of the Bible by Vaughan Roberts (British author, DD class 200) 16.The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag: A Flavia de Luce Mystery by Alan Bradley (Canadian Author, DD Class 800) 15.The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner (American author, DD class 900) 14. Prodigy by Marie Lu (Chinese author, DD class 800) 13. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand (American author, DD class 900) 12. The Disappearing Spoon: And Other Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements by Sam Kean (American author, DD class 500) 11. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman (American Author, DD class 600) 10. A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World by Paul Miller (American author, DD class 200) 9. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick (American author, DD class 300) 8. Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald (American author, DD class 100) 7. The Bungalow by Sarah Jio (American author, DD class 800) 6. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen (American author, DD class 800) 5. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen (American author, DD class 800) 4. The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion by Tim Challies (Canadian author, DD class 600) 3. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton (Australian author, DD class 800) 2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (English author, DD class 800) 1. The Dark Monk: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch (German author, DD class 800)

Praying!!!!

Thailand? Any chance you want to swing by here for a visit? :)

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Many universities now REQUIRE kids to purchase a laptop... And often a specific laptop... Before attending. Tablets and laptops are ubiquitous in universities now. I would be surprised to hear of a professor not allowing them. My students are really proficient at this although some do choose to use an external wireless keyboard. It's really amazing to have this tool. For example: in the high school English class, kids read their assigned novel through kindle or iBooks. They can highlight, make notes for discussion, look up unfamiliar words instantly, etc. A teacher can create vocabulary lists and share them through our Mental Case app. Students can study these e-flashcards then take a quiz through our school's network that corrects the quiz and records the grade in PowerSchool instantly. They use Noodle-tools when writing research papers. It helps them organize notes, cite things properly, create bibliographies and format their papers. The papers are submitted electronically through turnitin.com which checks for plagiarism. We use the air server to share what we have on our iPads with the rest of the class. I could go on and on. I just finished teaching a year-long honors English course and I didn't use a single physical book or piece of paper all year. No one in my class picked up a pen or pencil. No one had heavy books to carry. It has been awesome!! We don't miss cursive at all. :)

Our school has an insurance policy that covers damaged or stolen iPads. It is a small fee per student (about $25 a year). They can opt out of the insurance but then they take on the risk themselves.

We use this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/ And this: http://www.sense-lang.org/typing/tutor/keyboarding.php?lang=EN The kids love them! My ds just finished 3rd grade yesterday and brought home his certificate of 46WPM. So he is almost there! Not every student hits the mark but most of them do. They have one hour of computer class each week and spent about half of it on keyboarding. However, we do a lot of other things on computers all week long and all of our students have computers at home so they get lots of practice. My oldest ds learned at home on Spongebob typing and he is a FAST typist now (but that is also because of facebook!).

All of our students in our high school use an iPad. It is required. We teach penmanship in preschool through grade 2 with manuscript, one year of cursive in grade 3. After that,we do most things on laptops or iPads. We teach keyboarding skills from kindergarten through grade 4 as well. The goal is to have all kids typing 50 wpm by the time they leave grade 4 and it is working well. My 15yo never learned cursive except to sign his name. He is doing quite well academically. I almost never write anything. Everything is on a computer or an iPad or an iPhone, etc.

Thanks ladies! I had no idea kids this young can wear them. We are going to make an appointment this week. I am excited about this possibility!

I have a: BA in Spanish and English Secondary teaching certification MA in Education MA in Theology And I am in the process of getting a Doctorate in Education (about 3 years still to go).

I am in Malaysia. No Sam's Club here. :(

That is a very accurate description! I have never seen a smoke detector in a store here. So importing them would be key. The only fires we have seen here have happened in all the ramshackle kampung neighborhoods. Their homes are made of scraps of wood and when a fire starts, the whole neighborhood burns down quickly. It is quite sad.

I have read a bit here and there that kids can wear contact lenses. Have any of you done this? My 9yo wears glasses. He is also very active in sports especially soccer and tennis. He needs to wear his glasses when he plays. However, we are having multiple problems with it: - he is Asian and has virtually no bridge on his nose to hold them up. A little bit of sweat and they fall off. - he keeps breaking them. He plays rough, especially in soccer, and we have gone through 4 pairs this year already. - we looked into prescription sports glasses and they are $1000 here!!! - we are trying to use a croakie with his regular glasses but with them breaking and sliding down his nose from sweat, the croakie is only minimally helpful. He is quite good at tennis and will be competing a lot so this is becoming a more urgent need. So, anyone have a 9yo that wears contacts? We would get disposables for sure so he doesn't have to clean and care for them daily. Any other ideas I am missing?

Zero. Most homes here do not. In fact, I have not seen a smoke detector anywhere since I moved here. I've been told it is because all the homes and buildings are made of steel and concrete (wood is way too expensive here).