We school 4 days a week, but we also do year-round. I don't keep a schedule really, and we take off whenever we need to.

I have white tile floor in my bathroom from ca. 1960. We have no desire to retile. However, there are spots on the tile that look like the finish as been eaten away. Circular drop shapes that get dirty much quicker than the rest of the tile. You can't see the drops that well when it has just been cleaned. Everything I've researched so far has said the only option is to completely strip the floor and reseal. This is apparently almost as time consuming and costly as retiling. Is there any other option out there?

I would go for a light color (light stone color) with a sand colored grout. We have two small bathrooms tiled in white on white right now. I'm with you...not a fan of cleaning them. However, the white does make it bright and not as cramped feeling.

We have a friend from Brazil with this name. It's pronounced EE-lee-us.

I've bought years ahead (mostly math and science texts)...if it was a REALLY good deal. That said, I may not use some of it. I HAVE used most of it as a reference in some form or another, but find myself wanting to change our approach to math.

Forever and two days. I've timed it. Actually, the younger two get up and get going pretty quickly. Sometimes Sarah has been up doing school work an hour before I even get up. Kelsie(14) though, she's the one that takes for.ever. She's hard to wake up, and hard to get going. It runs about an hour for her. Unless I am cracking the whip :D

I've been wanting to try it again for awhile, but it's expensive here (cheapest I had seen was 8.99 a pound) But our grocery store had it on sale for 4.99 a pound this week, so I grabbed some. Now that I know how to cook it so my family will eat it, I may buy it at Costco. (never had before because I didn't want to risk buying a lot and no one eating it)

It has been raining here for about 2.5 hours. Nice steady rain. It's wonderful! I mean, there are actually puddles and stuff!

Thanks everyone! I followed the cooking suggestions, and for the seasoning I used Seafood magic, olive oil and lemon juice. The grilling came out perfect, and everyone, except one child, liked it.

You are such a nerd. (Said by the mom who was factoring quadratic equations with the family at the dinner table last night....for fun ;))

I have girls, but my 14 year old is taller than me, and my 11 year olds are almost there. (I'm 5'7.5")

My dd's would trade :glare: My 11 year olds are TALL, and everyone assumes they are much older. I actually heard the trash men WHISTLING at them the other day. :eek: My 14 year old has horrible posture because she hates being taller than most and slouches.

We watched it after seeing it recommended here. I've long suspected many members of my dh's family (dd included) of having autistic tendancies. We have one person actually diagnosed in the extended family. My dd probably could have been on the Aspergers side of the spectrum, if I had her tested. My dh looked at me early in the movie and said: That's how I think! He really identified with her. Two of my girls did too. It was a great one for us to watch. :)

I have some salmon fillets (skin on one side). The last time I attempted them they were a little :ack2:. I would like to grill them this time. What are your favorite seasonings/marinades?

Temperature. Which means about 85% of the year here. Maybe more this year :lol:

Our favorite is to cook them with a ham bone and onions. Yum. And I have always added my salt at the beginning...never had tough beans.

Well, if you can hold them still long enough, dipping them in the paint head first works best...all that hair makes great bristles.. :lol: Sorry, I'm feeling my oats tonight... When my kids were that age, I just stripped them down, squirted finger paint onto a paper plate, covered the table with paper and let them at it. I have some great photos of them covered in paint. ETA: Shaving cream tinted with food coloring makes great "paint" for the bathtub as well.

Your dishes are RINSED?? AND in the sink?! You are way ahead of me, and my kids are much older! (embarassingly, I am actually typing around my breakfast dishes that never made it back to the kitchen this morning) My house gets actually clean maybe once a week, or when people are coming over. All other times it's just barely contained chaos. :lol:

One of my dd14's favorite authors is Bryan Davis. Today, we got the opportunity to attend a Writer's Workshop led by him and his daughter (who is a published teen). He offered some great tips and strategies for budding writers, and he was very good with the questions the kids had. They hung around after the workshop (briefly) to talk with the kids and sign books. Great experience for my daughter (who is an aspiring writer) Anyway, they are on tour and it's mostly for homeschoolers. :001_smile: http://www.daviscrossing.com/ If your child is interested in writing and you have the chance, I recommend going if you can.

My oldest is sitting on the couch reading a book. Twin #1 is washing dishes Twin #2 is watching me on the computer. And wondering how to connect a metal angel to a clothes pin.

Been trying like mad to get my dad and step-mom to stop the gift giving all together. They are not in a good position financially and have a child of their own to raise. After much begging and pleading, I stopped giving gifts in hopes that they would also stop (assuming it was a reciprical thing) They haven't :glare: But it has diminished somewhat. My inlaws...we stopped birthday gifts just a couple of years ago. Before that it went both ways. Now we just stick to Christmas. My siblings...we don't exchange.

In this economy, I wouldn't unless the house had been on the market for a long time.

We eat at the table in the kitchen. When I was a kid, we ate wherever.

What a great update! Thanks for sharing how God has provided for you! Prayers for fast growing babies.

I was actually in the parking lot of K-mart when it came over the radio that the first plane had hit. I was headed home, where my dh was packing for a business trip. By the time I got home, he was watching the TV and we both watched as the 2nd plane hit. We were horrified. We debated on whether or not to go pick up my oldest dd from preschool. We wondered if our area would be hit (we lived near several large government facilities) and actually were discussing evacuation routes. We decided to leave dd where she was so that she wouldn't be as exposed to the horror of the news that we couldn't turn off. Dh's trip was cancelled, and I was never more thankful that he wasn't on a plane. (which he often was)