We just got a dehydrator a few months ago. We make fruit leather and dehydrate any veggies or fruit that might go bad if not used. I am hoping it will be especially useful when the garden is in full swing this summer. We can the dried produce to use in soups and stews (veggies), in baked goods (fruit), or just to snack on. Dried fruit hardly lasts a couple days with the kids snacking on it. Will also be drying all our extra herbs from the gardens. Hoping to not have to buy any more dried herbs in the winter.

I started with dd watching me take notes in outline format from more simple style lectures doing middle school science with PLATO. Then once she had an idea of how to do it, she and I took notes together with one of us writing and the other pointing out what should be written…taking turns in each role. She is using Thinkwell high school biology now and taking notes on her own and she likes that the program highlights important information on the screen to help her. With the Teaching Company lectures we use for history, she does most of the note taking but we watch lectures together and stop the DVD if she feels she is getting behind. She is getting better and better at getting all the important information without stopping the DVD but it does take practice. I always re-wrote my outlines after class as a way to study in college.

Do you mind sharing the names of the supplements you are taking?

Reading all the baby ones reminded me of when dd was a tiny baby (before she had much hair). I had two boys before her and was sick of baby boy clothes/excited to have a girl. I always dressed dd in cute dresses or flowery outfits with little flowered headbands. It used to leave me scratching my head when people would ask, "Is it a girl?" Her clothes screamed "I'm a girl."

My dd plays fiddle really well. Besides the usual questions on her age, how longs she's been playing, etc…after a performance, at least one person asks, "Does she take lessons?" I always give a short, polite response along the lines of "yes" but inside I'm thinking, "Seriously? You think she was born playing like this? Try 2-3 lessons a week, some over 2.5 hours away one way and don't even ask me what it all costs."

I would let a 15yo go with a phone…younger than that probably not. I would talk to the parents when I dropped her off. We live in a rural area and rarely know the parents of kids my boys meet at school until we take them to their home and take a few minutes to speak to them. You are not a bad mother.

You've already had some great replies but I thought I might suggest that maybe they'd prefer to try different instruments? Maybe they were initially enthusiastic about their current instruments then discovered learning them wasn't exactly what they thought it might be. Maybe a different teacher or a different approach to the music learning might work better? I have allowed my kids to quit music lessons at different times and for different reasons…none of them really practice related. Practice has not been an issue because it has always been part of the routine. My oldest quit drums when he had learned all he could from his teacher and decided to spend the time on his sport in high school. My ds16 quit guitar after about 6 months when he first started because he wanted to learn electric guitar and his hands were too small plus we weren't impressed with the teacher he had. He asked to start up again about a year later and then took lessons for years from a teacher who really inspired him and taught him in a way that worked really well for him letting him pick pieces or parts of pieces (if he didn't have the skill to learn the entire piece) to learn every other week so he stayed interested. Funny, after a couple years, he switched back to acoustic guitar and plays that exclusively now. He quit lessons again in high school but still practices/plays on his own a lot.

Even if a person is not one of those extremes there are numerous ways for them to use the actual skills they gain learning an instrument (or a sport) in their adult years. Not every musician who teaches lessons in a school or privately, plays in a local amateur orchestra, hangs out in a pub making music with others, sings in a choir, accompanies for church, or plays for their own enjoyment was once an outlier. People who played sports in their youth might end up coaching their children in the evenings when they get home from work or joining an adult team (I know a number of people on adult "for fun" soccer or hockey teams). My kids haven't even hit their adult years and already have used their skills to teach and coach. Even if none ends up being a professional in their current area of passion, they have skills they can use to earn money to help finance their way through college or simply an outlet for their own enjoyment.

Haven't read all the replies but my ds was not even on growth charts until his teen years. He was under 68lb at 11yo and tiny (we know because dd is wearing a sweatshirt with his wrestling weight class on it and a date). In 8th grade he started lifting weights and eating a lot of protein (boiled chicken, tuna, fish, occasionally a protein bar though I didn't approve of that as an option) to build himself up and get stronger for wrestling. He still has very little body fat (I think around 2-3% when last checked) and isn't the tallest guy (there are some short genes on both sides of the family) but he has built muscle and is no longer skinny.

Two of my three are in expensive, time-consuming activities they enjoy immensely. My other ds does his share of activities but just isn't as passionate about anything…he prefers to dabble a bit more. I used to get completely overwhelmed if I thought too far into the future but when the time arrived, more was do-able than I thought when thinking ahead. I now take each decision as it comes based on what we, as a family, are able and willing to do. If there is some experience we feel as a family one of the kids should have, I try to find a way to make it happen even if I have to think outside the box. My dd spent much of her baby-toddler time sitting in gyms at wrestling practices and tournaments. I made it fun for her by taking her outside to play, bringing special toys she only used while away from home, finding playgrounds or bookstores nearby we could visit while ds was practicing.

$300 in NJ and they must have one of these classes in order to get their permit at 16. My kids had the class in school for free…book work and test then we have to pay for 6 hours behind the wheel with a licensed instructor. Just another way NJ grabs more money from its residents. The driver's ed instructor did nothing for my son that my husband and I couldn't do.

My wrestlers have had ringworm a number of times. We use Lotrimin to start but both have needed prescription cremes (don't remember the name) when the Lotrimin didn't work but this was rare. My ds16 ended up with cellulitis from what started as ringworm and it was very serious. Started with ringworm (while being treated) looking pimply and like it was spreading then overnight his entire thigh turned swollen, scaly, red, and warm to touch. Nasty! I do not mess around with ringworm at all especially not with him. It is contagious until it scabs and dried out. I treat until it is gone. On rare occasions it has spread but usually we do skin checks regularly during wrestling season and treat right away. I am sure it spreads from wrestler to wrestler but the non-wrestlers and pets have never gotten it. Good hygiene keeps it from spreading….hot water washing with soap and we keep it covered at night when sleeping to keep it off sheets but let it air out otherwise.

No, I don't think they get better. I purchased one a couple years ago after reading about it on WTM (may have been the last curriculum junkie purchase I regretted), thinking it would be a transition to Algebra, then wondered how someone might use it as their total math curriculum. Don't get me wrong, my dd liked reading about math and enjoyed it. It was an enjoyable supplement for a summer but I felt it had too little substance for my liking.

:grouphug: Praying for your family as you go through this difficult time.

:grouphug:

I agree. Terrifying. We had an incident last year where there was a threat on a bathroom wall of violence on a specific date at my boys high school. Parents were notified. I kept my boys home the next day. I know, someone planning violence is most likely not going to let people know when it will happen but I kept thinking if something did happen and I hadn't kept them home, I could never live with myself. I pray your situation is a hoax as well.

We had a similar situation when my boys were younger and we lived in a different town. There were a lot of grandchildren living/staying next door especially in the summer. I schooled year round though lighter in the summer. Kids would show up at the door all times of the day. I talked to the grandmother and explained we were schooling through the summer and my children had chores as well so they would be available to play after 3pm unless they were already outside playing because they had finished earlier. If the weather was bad, they needed to call before coming over to see if it was okay to play inside. My children were aware they needed to ask before bringing kids in the house and they preferred playing outside anyway so it wasn't usually a problem. There was one boy who came over and went through my kitchen cabinets looking for food and drink so I had to go over some rules about asking rather than helping oneself. I also had a rule of no food unless I had their parent's or grandparent's permission and my kids were not allowed to take food from anyone else unless they had my permission. It helped to keep very little junk food around. My kids liked fruit and veggie snacks but they weren't such a hit with the visitors.

That is really cool! Sounds like a lot of fun!

We are having a similar experience, lewelma. Not in different fields but within music. Dd had been playing classical violin and fiddle for years. Except for some rare instances, one has not really interfered with the other but as she is getting older and going more and more in the direction of fiddling, we are needing to streamline and she is having to make decisions on where her priorities lie because she can't be in two places at once. I have tried to put off heading down one path more than another for a long time because I didn't want to burn any bridges and pigeonhole before she was old enough to weigh options and think about how current decision affect her future options. Violin teacher sees dd as having a bright future in classical music if she wants to put her efforts in that direction and has made suggestions to promote development of that area...but dd's passion is her fiddling. I feel dd is old enough to begin making decisions with us helping her weigh the pros and cons of her options. She is currently trying to decide whether to continue in her current orchestra program moving up to the next level. It is not an easy decision for her. She has friends in orchestra who will be moving up, likes the repertoire, and she is currently concertmaster, so could in a year or two be in the next level but the higher orchestra is more strict with attendance, requires more repertoire/practicing, and has more concerts during the year. She already has fiddle gigs on her schedule for next year in conflict with the different rehearsal day. So, we are considering other orchestra options, there aren't many, or taking a year off and re-evaluating her options next year. She is worried that taking a year off, if she decides to go back to the current program, will affect her seating. She is approaching the end of productive time with her current classical teacher (who is a violist, not a violinist) and we don't have a clear idea of what's next. Dd has decided she is happy (right now) with the current teacher so we are staying for the time being. She's made it clear she has pieces she'd like to learn in classical music but she does not have future plans in that genre right now and doesn't want any more involvement than she already has. She and I are having very frequent heart to heart discussions during this time of change. She has a lot going on musically and emotionally. It is very difficult to close doors when the path is not completely clear.

My middle ds does weird stuff in his sleep. We found him standing on his bed playing (air) guitar once in a hotel. We asked him what he was doing and he said he was waiting for his sister to start a tune. He has gone to the top of the steps, called for his brother, then run downstairs and was found sleeping on the couch…all while asleep. He ends up in different spots on his bed or down on a couch when we know he went to bed. For awhile we thought he might be eating while asleep because food items would go missing overnight. Talking in his sleep happens regularly. He is a very sound sleeper and very difficult to arouse if we need him to get up.

When ds16 was 3yo, he once told me, "Mom, I know there is no Easter bunny." I was a little shocked and sad that he had figured it out so quickly. So I said, "Oh." and he continued, "I know he is a man dressed in a bunny suit who comes to the house." Dh and I laughed for days joking it must be Santa in the off-season.

"We practice to make things easier." and "Let's break this down into smaller, more easily accomplished components."

A friend of mine is boat-schooling her children right now and I am living vicariously through her photos and Facebook posts. Thanks for posting this.

My dd and ds16 do a Celtic music camp every year and I go along with them and do some volunteer work at the camp while they take classes. There are classes in many different instruments and in different Celtic traditions plus dance and singing. The campers are mostly adults but my kids love the instruction, concerts, dances, and late night music sessions. It is their favorite week of the year! Dd has done a number of Suzuki Institutes and music camps from weekend workshops to 1-2 week long camps. She enjoys the intensive music classes and meeting other kids who share her love of music. I have always felt like we got our money's worth. My oldest does wrestling camps every summer. This year dd is doing a 10 day camp with Irish musicians and dancers where they put together a Broadway/Riverdance-style show then perform it at the end of camp. She is really looking forward to it.

My husband bought a mobile home for himself when he was very young and had to move on his own due to a horrible family situation. We lived there when we married and selling it provided a good down payment on our first home. Through my work doing home based therapy for very young children, I go into a variety of homes and meet people who live in a wide variety of situations. I think it is extremely unfair to make judgements about someone based on where they live. Most are doing the best they can for themselves and their families. Some are happy where they are and others feel stuck or are trying to change their situations. You cannot tell who a person is from their home. Many times the people living in the most run down homes have so much going on in their lives...trying to make enough money to be able to eat, pay bills, and/or caring for sick/disabled children and/or other family members….fixing up their home is very low on their priority list. I have been in some of the poorest areas and worked with some of the nicest people. People who offer me a drink or a snack, people who are interested in watching what I am doing with their child so they can follow up during the week, people who are appreciative for any assistance I can give them, etc…