I'm Kim, married 15 years to the love of my life (I broke off a silly, childish engagement to be with him. Thank goodness!) and mom to my 9 yo Star Wars, Lego loving son and my 7 yo crafty farm girl. The kids have never attended school. DH and I read Gatto when our son was a toddler and never looked back. We're finishing up Ambleside Online Year 2 this summer and will begin Sonlight Core 3 when we're done. Stuff that we use all the time, Lively Latin, WWE, FLL, MathUSee, Discovering Great Artists, and R.E.A.L Science. I try to do nature study stuff with the Handbook of Nature Study, but haven't been consistent lately. We school year round so we can take breaks when we need/want. We're fortunate to run a family business that allows to have the winter "off" for the most part. Homeschooling is a lifestyle that we love. I love reading, crocheting, and taking care of our menagerie. We currently have: 6 chickens, 5 cats, 2 rabbits, 1 parakeet, 1 gerbil, 1 dog. All rescues except for chickens! :seeya:

Ouch! I hope you're able to get some relief soon. It sounds terribly painful. I worked with a woman many years ago that got a paper cut on her cornea while opening mail!! She also had terrible pain initially, but by the 2nd or 3rd day it had diminished significantly. Take care!

Woohoo!! We're in South Central Michigan and I'm hoping this applies to us, as well. If we never get out of the 75-80 degrees zone this summer, I'd be one happy camper.

Our whole family got sucked into it this past winter. Everyone just kind of stopped what they were doing and :blink:.

I'm so glad this thread helped many of us :grouphug:! I needed to hear exactly what many of you said. We're raising unique, interesting, bright, lovable children. I needed that reminder and reassurance and your messages improved my attitude tenfold. Dh read your responses, too. We don't feel so alone now! I do think that the qualities we're worried about now will serve them well as adults. I know ds takes his Cub Scouting VERY seriously. He sees it as "elite training" and has a goal to become an Eagle Scout. I can see him doing it! His den leaders think he's a great kid, of course, because he is so engaged during the meetings. I worry the other kids are going to think he's a brown noser :glare:. As usual, *he* doesn't care. I really outta take my cues from the kid. Thank you, again.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. It grabbed my interest from page 1. I've read several books since reading the Twilight series last summer, but this is the first one, since the Twilight books, that I'm reading at every spare moment. Very enjoyable!

I picked one up for pretty cheap ($25) a few months ago. So far, I'm kind of "meh" on it. The kids like it. It comes with Jet Pack Heroes, a math game, and I bought my 9 yo ds a Star Wars Clone Wars math game, and my 7 yo dd a Neopets role playing game that works on LA skills. So far, we haven't had much customizing going on. That's because it seems like the thing *constantly* has to be connected to the computer to "update files". Maybe we're just clueless, but it seems like when we update, we lose the "bitz" (Didj currency to "buy" customizations) the kids earn. I find it frustrating how many times the thing has "important updates". It does send information to your e-mail about the time the child has spent playing each game and what skills they have mastered/what they should work on, so that's pretty cool.

....and we make it ourselves! We put 2lbs. dry roasted peanuts (no salt) in the food processor with 2 tsps. honey. That's it! We store it in a ziploc container in the pantry. The consistency is thinner than you're probably used to, but it spreads well. I honestly couldn't tell you how long it's good for, since it never lasts that long around here :).

Thank you so much for sharing your stories with me today. I was just having one of those afternoons where it was getting to me, you know? It sounds like many of you do. I wish we could get all of our "quirkies" together....or we moms could get together for a glass of wine :D.

I'm looking to hear from moms of "that" kid. You know the one. Quirky. I just spent some time listening to my son "play" with the neighbor boys. My son's playing consists of running around pretending to be a Star Wars Clone Trooper, narrating the whole time. Other kids don't get it. Heck, I don't get it. I used to suspect he was on the spectrum, but doctors and other behavior says otherwise. The thing is, *he* seems oblivious. I think I hurt him more by asking why he doesn't play with the other boys. "I am! I'm marching around!" The kid is HAPPY! He wakes up literally humming and singing. He is very comfortable in his skin. I just wish he would understand that *his* world is not the only one going on and there is some give and take involved with playing. I guess my mama heart is just hurting today :crying:. Anyone BTDT?

The DVR is fired up and ready to record. The Red Wings are playing right now, after all :).

You sure can! :D http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200298480

Curious if anyone has purchased Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study Kindle version to use on their iPod Touch? I'm very tempted, as the book is a behemoth, but I enjoy using it for nature study. Thanks!

As a 39 year old adoptee AND an adoptive mom, I've never been asked for "adoption paperwork" at any Dr's office we've visited. That's just irritating! Thankfully, our new Dr. is an adoptive parent, too :).

Lively Latin. I'm using with a 7 year old and just turned 9 year old with very good results. It's one of their favorite subjects. I have no prior Latin experience. I'm learning right along with them. I find it to be very teacher friendly.

Cobble Street Cousins series by Cynthia Rylant. We just got the first book for our 7 year old daughter's Easter basket. I can see I should have bought the rest of the series. They are well written and sweetly illustrated. I can only describe them as charming! I bought this book because one of the Amazon reviews likened it to "Jane Austen for little girls" or something. I was all over it at that point :).

We're using Lively Latin with our VSL 9 yo son with good results!

We have used some of your suggestions for our VSL, but others are new to me. I'm always happy to have more options......though in homeschooling it sometimes can feel like too many :glare:.

I forgot to mention, if you garden, the rabbit manure you'll get is an added bonus :D.

:iagree:, too! Our buns live in the house in a condo built with office cube panels and zip ties. It was inexpensive, for the size of the cage, and easy. You can see an example here: http://www.3bunnies.org/oliver_nic.htm We adopted a bonded pair of adult rabbits last fall. They are very sweet, but I must admit, my 7 yo dd is disappointed that they aren't as cuddly as she had hoped. Rabbits are NOT like cats and dogs. Most do not care to be picked up (some tolerate it), but do enjoy floor time and being able to hop over for head scratches on THEIR terms! Personally, I have enjoyed this aspect of watching them and gaining their trust. Good luck! Kim

It sounds like you're moving to our area. We moved here 2 years ago and ran into the same thing. There are huge groups all over the state, but our area is a Dead Zone :). I asked at the library and found our group!

The www.dys-add.com site has been incredibly helpful. My husband and I are watching the seminar together. I sent an e-mail to receive the list of certified dyslexia testing specialists in our area. I have a feeling that "our area" will be about 2 hours away, but that's OK. Thanks, again, for your responses. Kim

Thanks so much for your response! Overcoming Dyslexia is actually available at our small town library. That doesn't happen too often :) Dyslexia was never even something we considered, but we have always known *something* was different. I assumed he wouldn't be able to read if he had dyslexia. Once we actually read the symptoms for dyslexia my dh and I were stunned. It was like a checklist for our son :( Thanks, again for your help.

Hello. I'm new to posting, but not to reading the forums. I look forward to your expertise. I am beginning to suspect either dyslexia or an auditory processing disorder (both?) for my almost 9 yo son. What are some of your book recommendations for learning how to help him? Do you recommend testing? Why or why not? I hate to sound stupid, but is testing done through independent offices, doctor, or the county/school district? My son struggles with spelling, following multi-step oral instructions, an inability to phonetically sound out words, and saying the opposite of what he means. Ex. "I want to ask you a question" when he tells you something and "I want to tell you something" when he asks a question. This happens EVERY time. His struggles have moved to the forefront as his sister, 19 months younger, begins to answer questions for him (he's still processing....I see the gears turning). Thanks so much for your help! Kim

My 7 yo daughter has had a portable kitchen playset for years. She still plays with it frequently. It's similar to this: http://www.overstock.com/Sports-Toys/Wooden-Portable-Play-Kitchen-and-Pan-Set/3319433/product.html She also cooks nearly every meal with me :)