I absolutely love AAS with my dd, but have found the short word lists to be of issue as well. I think a really cool addition to AAS would be additional lists organized by level of difficulty. Say, an optional supplementary list with a few words each at easy, med, difficult, challenge levels. It would really be an asset in tailoring the program to different needs:) As it is we supplement with the lists found in the book The Natural Speller as they are organized in a manner complementary to AAS and offer a much greater variety in terms of vocabulary and levels of difficulty, along with more volume.

Ah Aimee, I doubt very much you will get anybody over here insisting that he is too young, but I totally understand that sensitivity. I cringe every time I read that response simply because I know how it made/makes me feel. There are just some kids who do much better with a bit of a structured program at very young ages. Alex did/does so much better with a schedule and a program...sometimes I wish it were different, but you go with what works. Whatever you decide curriculum wise, have you considered ASL? The Signing Time videos are themed, so teach as well, but in addition to the sign language show the written word along with the action/vocabulary for language acquisition. And ASL is the reason we knew that Alex could read long before she was really verbal. She would sign to us to read. It also really helped with frustration.

Can I just say that all the planning threads have me in a bit of a panic?! I FEEL like I have been homeschooling Alex for years, primarily because we have been using the same curricula and programs that more experienced homeschoolers do...but this fall will be the official start to homeschooling and it just feels differently. I suddenly feel like I need to make decisions and at least some definite plans. Wahh,maybe it is the upcoming birth of baby, and everything up in the air, but I feel like I am suddenly balancing on a ledge:) Ultimately, I guess it will be a very non-traditional Kindy year for Alex. After reading the Kindy thread in the Ed forum I absolutely can't even relate. I am trying to put together plans for deeper, wider, 'extras' that don't necessarily follow anything remotely traditional. It is frightening, because up until now we have had only 2-3 days per week to 'do school', and the pace she has absorbed it is somewhat shocking. Having a full homeschool week (and I KNOW she will insist on every day!) is very intimidating! I guess I should start a panic thread of my own, but for now I am thinking in terms of the following: LA: continue with MCT and our homegrown eclectic mix. It is working, and whilst I keep eyeing cool resources, don't really want to mess with what works for us. She will finish AAS level 7 very soon, and wants to do spelling bee prep as her goal for the year. History: continue with our Greek/Roman/Ancients path, but we also have several other threads going. I finally bought the Pandia Press timelines with stickers and am using that as a way to keep track and follow rabbit trails. We might spend a week or two learning about a person or event, then put the sticker on the timeline before jumping to whatever strikes her fancy. She has specifically requested that we focus this year in Civil Rights. Science: we have been doing out our Marine biology/Oceanography units but she wants to do chemistry next:) However, science is a huge love for her so there again we always have a few topics going in an informal inquiry-based way. Adding: programming, typing, and we will spend the year first taking apart our old computer and then letting her build a new one with dad. Language: we have been doing Spanish, and Greek/Latin roots study but she has asked to do French after being inspired by our vacation. Math: this is my biggest area of issue. I have no idea at the moment. She is doing so much math, but it isn't ever enough for her. With more days Per week I am going to have to really reach. She is doing SM 4B, but when I looked ahead as far as scope/sequence for SM realized that she has covered so much by 'playing' with the books in the Key to...series that I have a feeling we are going to run out at some point. She has done all or most of the fractions, decimals, percent books, played in the geometry and algebra books (alongside HOE). I wonder if we can organize a year of fun Dover books? Extras: she does gymnastics, piano, violin, a creative dance class, and swimming. She wants to add acting and an art class, but SOMETHING EC will have to go! Random goals: she wants the training wheels off her bike, needs to work on not throwing fits when she doesn't get the spot/sticker/stamp/cup/color/whatever she wanted, and feeding issues. Getting sensory issues a bit more under control, especially with regard to clothing. She is also going to have to spend much of the year adjusting to not being an only child and the center of the universe! It all looks like a TON when it is written out, but I am so worried about stretching it across the week and it being 'enough' to satisfy her. What I would really like is a major project for her to tackle, but she is just not quite there to do it independently for the most part...

Yes, that sort of stretchy rubber tubing. It comes in different strengths, but I like it to be as firm as possible. It just helps her burn a bit of excess energy as she works in a way that doesn't interfere with what she is doing and isn't distracting:) Who knows, the teacher might be willing to let all the kids try it as it is is a relatively inexpensive option...

Dd was young for her math program, as Dmmeter mentioned, and doing analog clocks during regular math time was frustrating for both of us. I just skipped that portion BUT got her an analog watch in her favorite animal and made her the official time keeper for the family. At random times of the day I would ask to check the time before we had to be somewhere, or how long before dinner, etc. I did not put any pressure on her to do it all by herself, just helped her look at the watch and count it out. Often times there was a digital clock within sight so she would look at that, then 'calculate' on her watch. It became a fun game,and she liked being in charge:) After about 2 weeks of this I wrote a couple of random times on a sticky for her: if she came to me and Identified the time on her watch when it rolled around it was M&M time:) We did the same things it's coins- no stress in formal lessons but if she correctly counted the change (or later beat the cashier to determine change from the nearest dollar) she got to keep said change. Once per month I took her to the Dollar Store to spend her loot. Fun times:)

Do you have an IPad or player with headphones? I did this one time when I had to take my dd with me to see her doctor...

You mentioned props, and I imagine they are specifically geared toward kids with IEPs...but would the teacher allow you to tie a stretchy rubber therapy band around the legs of your dd's chair? I have an extremely high-energy dd5 that this works wonders for. She simply needs to bounce to release the some energy, and it really helps her focus at those times when she is doing something that requires being seated:) It is virtually silent, unobtrusive, and does not interfere with anything she is doing: yet she is able to bounce her feet up and down constantly. I recently saw an entire 1st grade classroom outfitted so that bike pedals had been added under the desks of each child! Whenever the urge struck, a child can pedal away as they work! Obviously not a perfect thing as I am sure the kids could benefit from less time in desks, but still...how cool is that? Hubby is going to try to make one for my dd.

When I was almost five I declared myself vegetarian. I might have changed my mind young, but my parents were of the 'you WILL sit there until you eat it' mindset and I was incredibly stubborn, lol. So, 33 years later I am still vegetarian, mostly vegan. My dd5 has never had meat although we make it clear to her it will always be her choice. She is also allergic to eggs and dairy, as well as being very picky with sensory issues. Mostly we just eat, but we have kept seeing a pediatric nutritionist (mostly for the records!). It is useless. I have read more, learned more, invested more in vegetarianism/veganism than the nutritionist. At this point in time we do supplement with a multivitamin and fruit/veggie smoothies with protein powder-but that has more to do with her being picky than it does the veggie issue! I don't feel like we do anything more than any other parent would do with a young picky eater! Btw- the only useful bit of advice I Ever recieved from the ped nutritionist was regarding the lack of dairy/calcium. Turns out that giving them a Tums gives them all extra calcium they need, me too:)

There was a recent thread about this, and I posted my thoughts about taking my extremely sensitive dd5 who had seen virtually no real movies. We saw it at Christmas time in London and was pretty pleased with how it went. http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/539269-please-come-here-to-review-the-paddington-bear-movie-after-you-see-it/?fromsearch=1 As far as just how 'evil' she is...there are a few scenes of her working in the taxidermy lab, but much of it is alluding to the fact. Such as long hallways of stuffed animals:) There are a few overt threats but they are well-done: no 'I am going to kill you and stuff you!!!!' Type things. Really, it doesn't get much better for movies for kids:)

Yeah, can't blame a girl for not really being into VD, lol!

Well, I never would have believed the hype about pickle cravings during pregnancy but today I ate a whole jar of kosher dills...and wanted more! Hubby thinks I have lost my mind, lol.

I want to cry for that kid:(((( Geez, if *I* were the officers arresting them it would be all I could do not to stage a little scare tactic myself--say about the dangers of prison and abusing small defenseless children. Probably a good thing I am not. On the other hand, their logic and parenting skills cannot have been isolated to this event, so I am grateful that poor child now has a chance to get away from them...

So...panicking a bit. I was admitted to Labor and Delivery this afternoon...hopefully everything will be fine and I will have several more weeks to think about names. In the meantime, anyone want to chime in on a few potentials? Bonus points for cool nicknames as these hugely long names may need it. Atticus Maximillian Charles Archimedes Sebastian Charles Aristotle Maximillian Charles William Frederick Charles Maximillian Sebastian Charles Edison Charles Perseus Maxillian Charles And a few other permutations I can't think of at the moment because I don't have anything with me here...further suggestions extremely welcome:)

Oh, I really like the idea:) I shall ask hubby tonight... Thanks for thinking of me, and for reviving the thread! Here we are at 29 weeks, with a csection scheduled for 36, and hoping we make it that long...with no name agreement in sight:( Hubby likes Aristotle Maximillian Charles at the moment...and told dd that if mom went for it she could nickname him Ares. I am totally under pressure:)

I agree that it is so easy to just incorporate most everything into reading time with little effort or formality when kids are little. Picture books actually have the best examples:) I have Figuratively Speaking in a shelf at home, and read through it for ideas...ultimately, it just seemed to flow organically during reading time. We do most of our night time reading in my room, so I made pretty cards with about 30 different elements and decorated the wall nearest my bed. It is a great reminder for me, and It has become almost a game for my dd5 to pick out the best examples, and we have a small notebook she keeps to record her favorite examples. She is particularly enamored of similes and metaphors, and really enjoys pointing out examples of foreshadowing:) Things like onomatopoeia, anthropomorphism, personification, portmanteau,etc., are so much more colorful and abundant in picture books and lit for littles that it is fun and natural! We also read some of the Brian P. Cleary books on literary elements. I highly doubt that when she is older anything more formal will be necessary because it just is a part of reading.

Dh sent me a link to an image: a public school teacher in Scotland is asking for help in demonstrating to her Kindy students just how far an image can spread across the Internet. He saw it in Reddit:) I think it could be a really effective and memorable way of teaching kids about Internet safety. http://i.imgur.com/UjVXKGZ.jpg

Wow, she is beautiful! And I don't say that lightly, lol. Honestly, I think most newborns are 'cute' only because they are sweet😄 Love the name too! Dd will be jealous, she REALLY wants a Greek mythology name for this coming baby! And you didn't have to come up with a boy name after all...

So cute! One to definitely save:) It made me laugh because Alex did something similar last fall...I had to dig it out and couldnt resist sharing. Of course, she was four and Frozen was the theme of choice!

'accidentally went to the grocery store wearing yoga pants today'... SO much better than accidentally going without them.

Mine isn't nine, or a boy, but I have a dd5 who is like that. She just seems to absorb the material, and really enjoys the memorization part of it. I try to put it to good use as long as she is enjoying it. We have long lists of things I find from Living Memory and things I have compiled. Everything from Linnaeus' classification system to parts of speech lists to history timelines. Long Poems. She has memorized things like squares, cubes, the first 100 primes, and formulas. Famous quotes and things like the Preamble to the Constitution. She is working on the beginning of the Declaration of Independence at the moment. But by far the most fun for her are speeches. This is awesome because it gives her the words to practice her oration/prosody skills. What better way than by copying/imitating some of the best in history? She saw Pres. Obama deliver the Gettysburg Address as part of the Ken Burns documentary and decided to memorize it herself. She did it! She says MLK's 'I Have a Dream' speech is her next major work. We shall see, but I printed it out for her:). She also has some Shakespeare... I made a 3 ring binder for her divided into subjects, and just always make sure she has something new in each subject. She usually flips through the old material periodically to make sure it isn't forgotten. Whilst Classical Conversations isn't for us, I do have the 3 apps and have pulled quite a lot of material and ideas from those. It is nice that they are divided by subject, and we have done things like the timeline, skip counting, scientific laws, and so much more from there. Lots of fun...and great for me because I memorize it along with her. Just not nearly as fast and with a great deal more struggle😊

Yes. And obviously, we will never know the cause. It is my understanding that heterozygous factor V leiden does not preclude the implant, but CAN lead to increased risk. Homozygous more so...

I actually think my factor V leiden results came back only when the fertility doctors were attempting to discover the cause of so many miscarriages in a row. But then my husband was also tested. It is just an easy blood test.

Absolutely. In discussing options for after the birth of this baby my OB-GYN ruled out Mirena as an option because I have Factor V Leiden. He says it just isn't worth the risk. My sister, who also has the mutation but was unaware (and was using govt assistance/free healthcare) developed a clot and serious complications:(. Of course, there is no way to know exactly why...but definitely have the test.

If you do put up stars (we have glow in the dark constellations and a moon nightlight that changes phase), or even if you don't, take a look at these light switch extenders. Ours are moon-themed glow-in-the dark like the link but you can get other themes. Much safer and less bulky than stools in the bedroom and bathroom, and gives them independence:) They just attach with safety screws to the light plate and extend the switch about a foot. They also remove easily with no issue. http://m.toysrus.com/skava/static/product.html?type=TRU_product_us&url=%2Fproduct%2Findex.jsp%3FproductId%3D34815056%26cagpspn%3Dplab_18398050%26camp%3DPLAPPCG-_-PID18398050%3ABRUS%26eESource%3DCAPLA_DF%3A34815056%3ATRUS&domain=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.toysrus.com&productId=34815056&cagpspn=plab_18398050&camp=PLAPPCG-_-PID18398050:BRUS&eESource=CAPLA_DF:34815056:TRUS We love the peel and stick wall decals as well. There is a whole Frozen collection of them. Then when she is a bit older she can do a whole theme of her choice:)

Ours is just a simple charger that plugs into the 'cigarette lighter' hole. It plays through the stereo system in the van. In our old van the stero was older so we bought this combination charger/radio adapter where it's loosed play of the IPod through the car's radio. I think it was about $20.