For another take, I consider myself a "devout" Christian, and because of that, I DON'T celebrate Christmas. Now, when someone wishes me a "Merry Christmas" do I go on & on about how I don't celebrate Christmas & the whys & what for's? No. No, I smile and I say thank you. Am I offended? Absolutely not. In this area, it's practically the same as saying, "Crazy weather we're having...hope you have a good week!" It's just pleasantries. Sometimes heart felt, but mostly it's just out of habit that people say it. Things get a little bit more complex when people ask me my plans for Christmas. People always look genuinely confused when I nonchalantly say that we don't celebrate it. :laugh: And I don't want to offend anyone, so I try to just keep my response non-judgy and low key if they ask why. But I usually feel like I'm walking on eggshells this time of year.

We plan on being there forever. There are 4 bedrooms upstairs, a bathroom & then the large bonus room (school room). Sounds like it's a lot like yours; it's designed to be a second living room. The base price of this house is also significantly less expensive than the competitor. So there's that. :)

This thread has been both very helpful and not helpful at all :lol: I guess really either one COULD work. Obviously. Because school rooms aren't a necessity. I really thought that the school room would be a 'make or break' factor, but maybe it's not? DH likes the floor plan with the large upstairs room better (school room is not really a factor for him) but the floor plan with the small office has a living room & a family room, which I love.

We're looking into buying some land & building a house. We've pretty much narrowed it down to 2 floor plans; each with different build-on-your-lot builders. The first floor plan has what would be the homeschool room on the 2nd floor with the bedrooms. And it's huge. 23'x18. The second plan has the potential school room on the main level, but it's only 9' 6" square. Which would you prefer? Larger homeschool room away from the main living areas or a small school room on the main floor? We're very early on in our homeschooling, but I anticipate us being more of the types to school all over the house; I have no interest in duplicating a classroom, but I do want a "home" for all our school stuff. I would want our room to have a white board, a table that the kids could all fit at (3 kiddos) and bookshelves (obviously). I'm leaning towards the smaller room, simply because it is more central. I have a hunch that if the kids (or I) had to go upstairs to put the books away, the wouldn't get put away; negating the purpose of a homeschool room entirely.

Oh, I'm not questioning the sources I found. Just saying that not all Christian religions are Catholic or Protestant. It's rather irrelevant but I felt the need to point it out none-the-less :)

"Snipped" for brevity This is the 2nd time this has been mentioned, and for some reason I needed more information :) The sources I've found (which are all Catholic) saying this specify that all Protestant denominations "condemned" birth control. But not all denominations are self-defined as Catholic or Protestant. This is probably irrelevant, but for some reason this really stuck in my craw and I felt the need to point it out. Carry on... And Moxie, I just have to say that I admire your resolution to stick to your convictions. Particularly when there is such "grey area" among Church members on this issue. In the end, it is your conscience & your God that you are held accountable to.

The Catholic Church views all types of birth control as a sin, but what does the bible say?

I saw you ask this in the yahoo group and was hoping you'd get some responses there. I've all but abandoned RS level A that we have because the lessons are just SO disjointed to me. I'm thinking about trying the 2nd edition of level B next year. I love the RS concepts but the layout makes me twitch.

I'm considering trying out ETC with DS. He just turned 5 & I feel like we're at a bit of standstill with phonics. He's basically memorized the first few Bob books & in the past we've dabbled in The Reading Lesson and OPGTR. He completely freezes up whenever I get out one of the "cuddle with me on the couch while we do our reading program" books. He's also not quite "getting" blending. So we've backed up a bit & are working on syllables, rhyming & "hearing" beginning & ending sounds. Basically we're doing the activities from AAR Pre Reading. The kid loves workbooks and he did enjoy the little we did with Progressive Phonics (to be honest I'd forgotten we'd done this for a bit until I started writing this post). I feel like I need to build up his confidence and get something a little more hands on. I'm wondering if ETC would be worth a try (obviously I'm of the 'throw everything at the kid until something sticks'...but at some point is it going to be too much)? Just out of curiosity, does ETC include any sight words? I wonder if I could combine the script from OPGTR with the workbook aspect of ETC?

I bought a comb binder months ago. I cut the spines off all our workbooks and teachers manuals and bound them. I hate them. I hate them with a fiery passion. They don't lay flat, the combs come undone. They are ugly. The corners are sharp. I'm very much a 'make it work' type person & since the comb binder was cheaper (though not by much, now that I really look at it) I "settled". But I'm really paying for it now. Every single day. Next up on the homeschool purchase list? A ProClick and some spines.

I believe that if what I am asking for furthers/promotes/is in accord with God's will, then yes. He is involved. This can work out in a myriad of ways. But no. I don't think Jehovah gives me good parking spots just because it is convenient for me. Because what about the person behind me that needed it more than I did? And he hasn't miraculously cured this headache I've been fighting today. I don't like the fact that God ALLOWS suffering (which is completely different from CAUSING suffering). But I greatly look forward to the day when natural disasters, starvation, and evil is no longer allowed.

I've never liked turkey. At all. But DH gets a free one every year from work. So last year I brined one using Alton Brown's (I think that's his name...) method/recipe and it was FANTASTIC. Even I thought so. I've never had a turkey taste so good; and I come from a family of very good cooks.

Lately I've been meal planning week by week in order to take advantage of the weekly sales. But in the past I have done monthly meal planning. \ I started a list of all our dinner meals. All of them. Even variations of the same meal (like tacos & nachos or spaghetti & manicotti- we wouldn't really want to have them 2 days in a row but it'd probably be ok within a week of each other in a pinch) In the Fall this includes soups & casseroles, but I don't make those in the summer. I tend to think by protein, so they kind of naturally got sorted by ground beef, chicken, pork, etc. Once I had them all (I think there were about 29 meals total) I randomized them three or four times. Theoretically, you could just take those lists and make that your meal plan for the month, but I would usually go through & move things around (no spaghetti night followed by manicotti night for example). Or make sure I had an easy meal worked into the plan instead of 3-4 meals that take a bit more effort in the same week. And most of the time I just rotate side dishes. Biscuits & potatoes with beef, Cheesy bread with Italian meals, cornbread with taco type dishes. Rice or noodles usually with chicken. I'm really trying to implement the Simplified Pantry approach to my cooking.

We're currently looking into buying some land with the hopes of building in the next 2-3 years. We're probably going to go with a custom home builder (the kind with pre-designed floor plans). The Garden Web website had a number of things that I wrote down to keep in mind when we do finally build.

I think this is what I'll end up doing. Just waiting a bit & starting level B. I think the revised editions also "fixed" many of the common RS complaints.

I'm struggling with getting Right Start A done, too. It jumps around a lot & it's just getting to be too much for me to prepare for as the teacher. We're relying heavily on Math Mammoth, which I originally got with the intention of using it to supplement since my DS loves worksheets.

Oh!! I think I know this! A Clickman?

We're going to do a unit on the human body over the next month or so & I'd really like to have it somewhat mapped out. Pinterest is great for a visual reference, but I'd like to be able to add my own notes & resources. I have downloaded Evernote in the past but haven't really properly utilized it. I much prefer paper & pen, but since so many resources are internet based (videos & such) it just makes sense to keep it "digital". Maybe a plain old Word document would be best. What do you guys use for your planning?

We've made huge strides in the last year, much in thanks to our budget software, You Need a Budget. We're debt free except our mortgage (which is pretty small). But now we need to build an emergency fund and/or down payment for a larger home. This coming year (starting NOW) I'm going category by category & trying to cut back. First was groceries. I started a price book, am dabbling in couponing, shopping sales & stockpiling. This month I'm trading in my iPhone for a no data phone and ditching my landline for a VOIP (basically a phoneline using the internet). Doing those 2 things alone will save me about $120 a month.

Hmm. I would take the check to whatever bank it was drawn from (if that's an option) and try to cash it. They won't let you cash it if the money is not available.

My friend just got a call like this last week. I'm hoping they call me so I can mess with them.

Our 3rd was a complete surprise. The kind that made me question if I really did know where babies came from ;) He's 15 months now, and I think about this a lot. My oldest DS has started asking about "the next baby". For me, I love babies. I will ALWAYS want another baby. I loved being pregnant, I loved labor and delivery (not at the time, but you know...) But I strongly feel that at some point, that sacrifice gets too big. It gets to be too much. Financially, emotionally, physically. Mentally. And I think that there are families that can THRIVE with way more kids, but for me, I just feel like...a fourth might be too much. Especially since mine would be so close in age. I can't help but wonder what sacrifices another baby would require my other 3 to make. Would I be able to homeschool all 4? Take all 4 on trips?? Sure, people do it all the time, but could I?? I completely agree with others that said do you want a baby? or do you want another person in your family?

I've never heard of such a thing! All of our family & friends know our beliefs & respect them, so I'd have to assume it was from a neighbor we don't know well. Honestly, I'd probably throw it out. :001_unsure: It's such a personal thing...my DH might be ok with eating the candy or whatever (but not passing it on); my conscience is more sensitive. I don't think there's anything wrong per se with any of the options, but like I said, I'm pretty sensitive to stuff like that. It would bother me.

Sorry to derail the thread, OP, but I've been trying to figure out Social Studies & I think these fit the bill! Since they're shipped quarterly I wonder what I would get & when if I ordered now.

It's rather irrelevant, but I wonder....did they use the same "tactics" with their biological children??