http://fundafunda.com/comp_courses Her beginning scratch program is just $9.95. One of my girls will be taking a class through her this fall, and they've both taken a non-programming class with her in person.

The roads around here terrify people that aren't from here. (twisty mountain roads). Makes it interesting to teach teens to drive, that is for sure.

My step-dad let me drive his truck in the fields a lot as a kid, and we had 4 wheelers so driving a car wasn't a big leap for me. However, my mother couldn't handle it without a 6 pack....that is why my husband is the one that got me road ready..lol. (I was 15 when we met) He taught me how to drive a stick. My younger two get their permits this week. It should be interesting. One has never driven anything other than a go-cart. The other has driven up the drive way a couple of times and was amazed at how hard it was to not jerk the van around. My oldest was a PAIN to teach how to drive because she was terrified and did NOT want to learn. She is a good driver now though.

If I could go back, I would have never sent them to public school at all. I pulled my kids out in 6th and 3rd grades. So much school mentality had already been ingrained by then. Instead, we would have just kept doing what I did when they were small...play, read, learn, and teach them the things they wanted to know. We were well on our way to unschooling/homeschooling before they ever set foot in a school, I just didn't realize it at the time.

Mine swell and get sore around the time of my period, and it gets much worse when I wear regular deodorant/antiperspirant.

Having gone through the torture of two parents' funerals, I don't want my kids to have to go through that. Here in the south it is a long drawn out process, and in some cases more stressful than a wedding. Then you have all these people at open-casket funerals (very common here) saying "oh doesn't she/he look beautiful!" (um NO! ) Then they play hours of depressing baptist hymns, and people that didn't give you the time of day when you were alive come by and tell your family how much they loved you. No thanks. Don't put my kids through that. So, the reason for cremation and a party here. Wear fun clothes. Rock out to some great music. Eat all the good food. Tell all my embarrassing stories. Throw my ashes in the creek or something and get on with your life. I'll be celebrating with Jesus anyway.

Rainbow Chard and Crimson Chard are gorgeous and very yummy :) In my side flower/herb garden next to the house I have: Perennials (here in TN anyway): Echinacea (coneflower) Anise Rosemary oregano sage thyme lavender mint (in pots) asparagus Annuals: Patio tomato Cilantro (this is annual, but self-seeds very easily) Basil lettuce Nasturtium Chard Some low maintenance non edibles that I have mixed in: Spirea Irises various lilies daffodils (spring only) Stella Doro Hydrangeas Stonecrop creeping jenny Salvia Not in our flower bed, but we have blueberries that are very shrub-like and work well in landscaping.

We have a major state university 20-30 minutes from our house. The community college I attend is 15 minutes from my house. There are multiple private colleges in the area, and several community and technical colleges within 30 minutes to an hour from us.

My only request is that they don't play old hymns or sad music. Actually, I've told them not to even have a funeral on my account. Just cremate me, then throw a party with lots of good food.

I never had preeclampsia, but my feet swelled so badly with the twins that I just knew I'd have stretch marks on my ankles. It was awful. And I just couldn't wear my rings at all.

Judging by the credit card offers my 18 year old has been getting in the mail since her birthday, I assume that one can get a card at that age.

We plan on playing it by ear. With today's economy, it wouldn't surprise me if all of our kids had to live at home for some period as adults, possibly even married adults. We are encouraging them to save as much as possible before moving out, no matter when that might be.

I think he'll be fine. I think most intro programming classes assume no programming knowledge. My 15 year old will be taking video and sound production classes at CC this fall. My oldest took most of her senior year classes at CC, and did fine.

I've wanted to do something like this, but I think this one in particular would kill me..lol. Lemonade gives me ridiculous heartburn on a good day. Do people that do liquid fasts/cleanses like this not have problems with blood sugar drops when they don't eat? I have never been able to go much past 1 or 2PM without eating something with protein. (the only exception has been when I was too sick to get off the couch, let alone eat) I end up incredibly shaky, dizzy, with a headache and get to the point that I can't really function. It doesn't matter how much water/liquid I drink.

I feel like most teens operate well with a level of trust. My kids know that the freedoms they get are related to the amount of trust I have for them. Right now, they have a lot of freedom because they have done nothing to cause me to lose trust in them. They have not been sheltered from the consequences suffered from foolish behavior, both in their personal lives and the population in general. They are smart kids. I know they'll test waters and make mistakes, but I don't think they operate on the idea that they need to push every boundary and go wild as soon as they are out of my sight. I treat them like people that deserve respect, not brats that are out to cause trouble, and in turn they act like people that deserve respect. My mom never believed a thing I told her. I was basically a good kid, but she ALWAYS thought the worst. Eventually, I quit caring, told her what she wanted to hear, and then did whatever the heck I liked. I drank, was wild, and out to all hours because it stopped mattering if I did or did not...it was assumed I was anyway.

The one I had today. Dh and I got up this morning, had a cup of coffee, threw the kayaks in the truck, and spent the better part of the day on the river. Then tonight, we are going to a fancy restaurant to gorge ourselves for dd's graduation celebration :) I'm exhausted, slightly sunburned, and it was such a good morning!

For a single misdemeanor, I probably wouldn't. However, I've seen so many members of my family destroy their lives and that of their families with drug related crimes that their parents help them escape consequences for. In the interest of my child's well-being, repeated drug offenses would be reported. Any crime that impacted another life would be reported.

We just sent the final grades for the final transcript.

Exploration is two people mutually desiring contact. Anything else is wrong, no matter the age. Victims of abuse can be manipulated into giving "consent". It is still abuse. A child over the age of 3 or 4 can learn when it is wrong to touch another person in a sexual way, just like they can learn not to run out into the road or to steal. (I am NOT equating those things to abuse, btw).

I'm far too cynical and have experienced too many bad things at the hands of "Christians" to have much trust in anyone, to be honest. And I DO consider myself a Christian. I just know that a large percentage of those that claim it, do not live it.

Our Uncle Jim lives right next door :) We convinced our kids that pretty much all meat was chicken. (They went through a phase where they wouldn't eating any meat unless I said it was chicken). This one is a running joke now that they kind of believed when they were little. They used to have a brother George.....

You are good on the meat and jambalaya. 2 liters, I would have one for every 5 people, and a case or two of bottled water. Don't forget ice :) (I always forget ice) 4-5 bags of cheese chips: 6 or more bags. Just buy flavors your family likes and don't set them all out at once. Have fun!

I voted 5'10" because around half the men I know seem to fall in between my height and my dh's height. I'm 5'7"ish and dh is around 5'11. (used to be 6'1"but he shrunk) That said, most of the men in our FAMILY are over 6' tall, with many approaching 6'5".

I don't know. My oldest dd has/had a friend that was severely depressed and had even attempted suicide a couple of times. For HER mental health, I had to encourage her to distance herself. He has kind of dropped out of the picture now since he stopped volunteering at the same place she does. She worried SO much about him, and it stressed her out that there was really nothing she could do to help his situation. We had the added issue of the fact that some of his stories didn't always add up, so we never knew when he was genuinely having trouble, or if he was lying. So stressful for anyone. I eventually had to tell her that while I felt horrible for her friend, my priority was HER mental health. As a mother, I felt like she needed to put some space in there. We also had several talks about how if the worst did happen, that it was in no way her fault. That was my biggest fear was that she would end up feeling responsible for his actions.

I think we are mostly planned. The girls are starting to go their separate ways as far as interests and the focus of their school work. Sarah had a very heavy year this year, so she gets to go lighter next year. She plans on going into Microbiology or Forensic Science, so we are trying to get the math and science in for her so she can start the program at college without taking extra math. English: American Lit. (co-op class) Math: Ask Dr.Callahan Algebra II with Pre-Cal Science: Chemistry (co-op class) They've pretty much finished all the history requirements for our state, so we are focusing on the science and math for her the next two years, along with prepping for the ACT. Maybe American Gov./Econ this year, we haven't decided. Miranda has her heavier year this year. She is thinking about going into video production in college, so she's trying some of that out. English: EIL Math: Algebra II (TT) Science: Chemistry (co-op) Spanish III (co-op) Programming (co-op) Sound Production (DE) Intro to Desktop Audio/Video (DE) (She has also started running the sound booth at church this summer)