The primary charities that I support are Shriner's Hospitals, Ronald McDonald House and Haven House (St. Louis). These are organizations that have helped us in the past and I choose to support them now. I also support our local homeless shelter/food bank.

I have had excellent luck with clorox 2. It gets out a lot of stains, especially blood, even after it has gone through the dryer.

We have donated vehicles on more than one occasion to St. Vincent De Paul and it was the same deal. They picked it up and towed it away.

As usual, our menu includes far too much food. Hoping for good leftovers. Our thanksgiving is a mixture of my extended family and my in laws. Turkey Ham Chicken and dumplings Mashed potatoes sweet potatoes corn green beans green salad Two different kinds of dressing to appease both families deviled eggs crescent rolls pumpkin pie apple pie with ice cream chocolate cupcakes I am not cooking all of it. The responsibilities are divided up among those attending.

I was not allowed to work as a teen. My mother felt that I had plenty of time to work as an adult and I should be a kid as long as possible. With the exception of short periods of time in between jobs and maternity leaves, I have worked my whole adult life. I was never impaired by not working as a teen. I will not force my daughters to work as teens. My 12 year old recently got an offer to work at the art studio where she takes classes in exchange for extra lessons. She wants to study art in college so that is right up her alley. I do encourage volunteer work and need to find something else for my 14 year old to do. She used to be a junior volunteer at a local historical park but is looking for new opportunities now. I think the value is in making a commitment and following it through, not so much getting paid to do it. I encounter a lot of young adults that are seriously lacking in this skill. I think it is a big problem.

I made enchiladas. Next week, I am planning to do a week of slow cooker meals. I want to try some new things. I am so tired of rotating between the same 6-8 meals all of the time.

I am another one that doesn't miss it and have no desire to go there again. I do look back pretty fondly and remember the cute and endearing things but they were difficult times. My oldest is almost 14 and mood swings aside, I find I am enjoying her now more than ever. We have wonderful conversations and I enjoy the person she has become. My younger daughter has glimpses of this but she is in the grip of the worst puberty symptoms right now and she is harder. I see the day on the horizon though where she will be on the other side and things will get better.

Math is not my daughter's strong suit. She is in 9th grade this year and we are doing Lial's Basic college math/pre-algebra this year. Then, it will be algebra 1 in 10th and geometry in 11th. Then, the goal is to get her to take the Math Excursions class at the CC in 12th grade. She wants to be a musical theatre major and that is the only math class required for her college major. I am also planning on taking the ACT rather than the SAT as it has less math requirements. If we make it through this plan without complete meltdown, it will be a miracle but this is the path I feel will work the best for her. would it get her into a super competitive college? Probably not? But, I think it will be sufficient for the BFA programs she is looking at.

I ordered a copy today. Congrats!

I start with The Pioneer Woman recipe but for the cheese, I use 1/2 sharp cheddar and 1/2 smoked gouda. It is so good. It is the only homemade mac and cheese my youngest daughter will eat.

Xenia is very close to Dayton where there is a very active homeschool community and tons of things to do. Also, great things to do in Cincinnati and Columbus. I would rather live in Xenia than Chillicothe.

This happened to the house next door to us and it remained vacant for three years. For the first year, no yard work or anything was done. The neighbors pitched in to keep the small yard mowed so it wasn't so obvious that we had a vacant property there. Once the bank became a presence, it still took them two years to get it sold.

Theatre is where we spend all of our entertainment budget for the year. We see almost every Broadway touring production that comes to town plus we are blessed with amazing University theatre programs in our vicinity. Both girls have been to the ballet and philharmonic. Dd 13 is more interested and has also been to several operas. We are also involved in community theatre and go to see many community theatre productions. We are a theatre family.

Thanks everyone for your help but I actually think I have answered my own question after reading some of Regentrude's posts on the subject. I am going to focus on solid pre-algebra and thorough understanding of algebra 1 no matter what that takes and then see where we are. I know that my own struggles with upper level math were because I lacked a good foundation and moved on too quickly. Thanks for allowing me to have a panic moment.

I plan to teach it to her, we are just not mathy people at all so I need to take the path of least resistance. I will admit that my math education in high school was lacking due to multiple reasons but I don't think my life is missing anything because I can't easily figure out what time two trains will pass each other at station B. Thanks for the recommendations thus far.

I should add that math is not a struggle because she is incapable. Math is more of a struggle because she hates it and sees no value in it beyond basic functional math and honestly, I don't think she is wrong. I struggled in high school with algebra I all the way through pre-calculus and it was for nothing. After I took college algebra (as a theatre major), I have never used those skills again. I am trying to give her a better foundation than I can so she hopefully doesn't find the upper level classes as tedious but I would like to get through it all as painlessly as possible.

So glad this seems to be having a good resolution.

Afternoon is my morning as I work full time third shift and get home a little after 7. I don't function well until some sleep is had. I am planning for my children to begin working at 10 this school year on independent things and they can have me in the PM. They both need that little extra sleep in the morning also.

Thanks for the assistance.

I need some help but please be gentle with me. My dd13 is entering 9th grade. She is firmly set on a musical theatre/vocal performance BFA path. Her math skills are not great and a source of great anxiety/tears for her, which makes it particularly painful for me. I am planning to do Lial's Basic College mathematics with her this year, adding some extra pre-algebra stuff next summer and then, Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra II. If she gets into the theatre program she wants, it only requires one math class called Math and the Modern World. I need some ideas on how to get through the next 4 years and do passably well in math on ACT. Her language skills are off the charts so I am hoping they can help pick up the slack on her standardized tests. Please help me survive the next 4 years.

Congrats!

Thank you. That is along the lines of what I have been thinking but wanted some other input so I don't miss anything.

My dd11 has expressed an interest in going to public school next year if she can get into the local school for the arts. This would be her first experience with public school. For anyone who has been there, what should we be focusing on in this school year to best prepare her for this possibility?

Have you tried baking soda? Dilute 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 cup of water and drink. This gets my heartburn most of the time. I feel so sorry for you. My first pregnancy was like yours but nothing ever helped. I remember distinctly that as soon as my daughter was out of my body, the heartburn was gone. I was hungry for real food and felt great for the first time in months.

My 13 year old shaves her armpits on occasion but not always. She does not shave her legs. This is her choice. We have discussed it and I just for information, I told her before she went to girl scout camp last year that she might get teased about it because the hair is quite dark. She does not care. She feels that it her body and she can do what she wants to with it. She has a razor, knows how to use it and knows the option is there. She doesn't choose to do it. I have no problem with it. My 11 year old is not there yet but her hair is quite light, unlike mine and dd13. She is much more conscious of her appearance and society norms. She will probably want to shave earlier and I am OK with that too.