I love that whole area of the state. The Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway is a beautiful drive. Taos Pueblo is a really neat place to visit, as is Bandelier National Monument. During the summer I believe you have to take the shuttle into the park at Bandelier, but there are many miles of trails for hiking once you get down there.

I'm so glad my kid isn't the only one who does this. I can't tell you how many times I've dragged him out of the post office or grocery store or away from the park with him yelling out our address to some stranger he just met, inviting them over to our house.

I lived in West Virginia for many years. While there's not a lot there that is truly spectacular, there are some interesting places to see. Harpers Ferry is a nice historical park. The Blackwater Falls and Canaan Valley areas are pretty. If you are looking for Civil War sites, the covered bridge in Philippi was used by both Union and Confederate soldiers. They do a re-enactment there each year. Pittsburgh, PA is a nice city to visit, if make it to that part of Pennsylvania. The Natural History Museum there is great, and riding the incline up Mount Washington is fun and offers a wonderful view of the city. If you do make it to Tennessee, we really liked the Great Smoky Mountains. It was a beautiful National Park with lots of historical information.

The Adobe Create Suite lets you have a one month free trial. One of the programs you would have access to is InDesign, which is similar to Quark. If your daughter really loves it, it is $29.99 a month (I think they are running a special right now for $19.99 a month). That is the the student/teacher rate, which we qualify for as homeschoolers. You wouldn't own the programs, you just pay a monthly fee to access the programs. I know that wouldn't appeal to everybody, but for me, I'm happy I can finally afford Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.

My son turns 5 this month, so we will probably start being more formal with kindergarten later this month. We will finish up Singapore K and continuing with ETC. He is just beginning to read some Bob books, so we will continue with those and plenty of read alouds. We will add in Handwriting Without Tears and BFSU maybe once a week. I teach a once a month geography class for our very informal co-op that I will continue doing. Add in some occasional art projects and plenty of time spent outside and that will probably do it for us, at least for the time being.

I have a glass top for the first time this year and I find it to be a real pain. Any time anything boils over or spills I have to very careful about getting it cleaned up. I've spent many hours with a razor blade trying to get stuck-on food cleaned off.

Thanks for sharing. Maybe when I can tell he needs to go, I'll try a nice warm bath to relax him.

OK, I can take a look at dairy and wheat allergies. Would you just suggest eliminating both for a couple weeks and seeing if he is able to poop in the toilet after both of those foods are out of his system? As far as the sensory issues, I was looking at a list of symptoms and from that list he has a very high activity level, is very sensitive to noises, has fine and gross motor delays, can appear clumsy at times and can get over stimulated in group settings. I have no idea if any of those things are linked to a delay in potty training.

Thank you! It's nice to hear that sometimes.

I hadn't considered having sensory issues as a possible problem, but reading about it just now online, I can't rule it out. He does have some symptoms of sensory issues. He doesn't have any allergies and I don't think he is constipated. I try really hard to make sure he eats a diet that is high in fiber - lots of whole grains and vegetables. Thanks for your input.

He's using the regular toilet. Maybe I should try a smaller toilet again. He's kind of in between sized, with the child toilets being too small and the adult one too big. We'll see what I can find. Thanks for the advice!

Does anyone have any ideas that don't involve bribery? I've read everything I can about this topic. Bribery seems to work really well for some people, but for my son, even though he really wants the thing I'm bribing him with, it just doesn't seem to work. Other places online people seem to think that not having your child potty trained by age 3 just means you are lazy. I would love to know what they do that somehow guaranteed success for potty training their children. Some days I feel like I just need to stop pushing because it's just frustrating both of us. But he's going to be 5 in a few months. How long can this go on?

Maybe I just haven't hit on the right bribe yet. I keep reading stories like this online, about how a child magically potty trains in a day or two with the right bribe or the right encouragement. It just seems so impossible sometimes. Thanks for the advice. I'll keep thinking about this and maybe come up with a good enough incentive for him to go.

I agree with you, that I don't want to cause anxiety or make him get constipated. I'm trying to find the right balance between making him understand that this is something that he has to learn and not pushing him too hard. Thanks for the advice.

Sorry you are struggling as well, but it's nice to know we are not alone. When we first started potty training, when it seemed like it wasn't working, we took a break and backed off. But at this point, with him turning five in a few months, I feel like I need to keep pushing, but nothing I try seems to work. I know, logically, at some point he will get it. It just doesn't feel that way right now.

I'm new here, but have been lurking for about a year. My first post isn't related to homeschooling, but it's about an issue I hope a few of your here can help me with. My son, who is 4 ½, still will not poop in the toilet. I've tried bribing him. I've trying having him sit on the toilet when I know he has to go and reading to him or singing songs. I've tried keeping him naked when he's at home. Nothing has worked so far. We have been working on potty training for two years now. It took about a year for him to start peeing in the toilet regularly, but after two years, he's never successfully pooped. I've talked to his doctor, but she didn't have much advice for me. I'm hoping that someone here will have some advice, or at least be able to say they've been that and that eventually it all worked out.