Men seem to have an inflated view of how quickly they can accomplish things/how much they can accomplish in a given time. DH regularly tells me he's leaving the office and will be home in 30 minutes. It's a 45 minute drive.

We like Pandia Press's History Odyssey. This year in 5th was our first year using it (we used SOTW for 3rd and 4th). We will be doing their Level II (medieval) for 6th next year. There are quite a few literature selections included, but it's easy to switch them out or drop them altogether if that's your preference. ETA: We also use a lot of the same materials as you for other subjects: CLE math, R&S grammar, CAP Latin, etc.

Totally agree: They are horrid. A friend invited me to her friend's page on Facebook, and at first I was like, "Oh, fun! I could use a few things!" Then I saw the merchandise. Yeah, nope. :ack2:

Yes. Which is why I oppose both.

Yeah, I'm totally jealous! If I wasn't too old and chubby to pull it off, I would! I'm only one vote, obviously, but even on older girls who are more filled out, I think it can be done tastefully and look cute.

I personally think leggings or jeggings (the kind that are thick like pants -- not tights) are super cute on tweens and young teens, even with a regular shirt. I think my dd is adorable in them. The ones she wears are fitted but no more so than skinny jeans. My biggest problem with dd is getting her to actually care what she looks like, though. I am happy for her to wear what she likes, but I do insist on her being neat and clean. Some days that's a challenge. (Neat, I mean; she's always clean. But she could go for a week without brushing her hair and wouldn't even notice!)

As someone who got married when I'd never had sex, and married a spouse who'd also never had sex, I can say that there is some truth to what you're saying. Our wedding night was not fireworks, by any stretch of the imagination. On top of not really knowing what we were doing, we were EXHAUSTED. It did take us awhile to figure out what worked for us, certainly. But the whole learning process was fun, and solidified our relationship. We learned together what was best for each of us. There is a learning curve for sex, no matter when you start or who you start with. It's not a bad thing to experience that learning curve as a couple, within the confines of a relationship that's committed for life. It was a safe space for us to learn and grow in, together. Having only ever had one partner, I don't know what to say about compatibility. We are compatible sexually because we are compatible emotionally, intellectually, etc. We are compatible because we've grown to be so. We love each other, and we express that love, sexually, by each discovering what works for the other person and striving to each meet the other's needs. In that way, our sex life resembles the rest of our marriage. We are compatible because we choose to be. Maybe we're missing out on something (or just really lucky that we turned out to be a good sexual match), but I kind of doubt it. I read a really interesting interview awhile back with a woman who came of age sometime in the first half of the 20th century (I don't remember when, exactly -- 20's or 30's maybe?). I was fascinated by the way she described attitudes towards dating when she was young. Her parents actually ENCOURAGED her to date as many young men as possible. By dating, of course, she meant going out dancing or whatever, no sex involved. But their theory was that this actually helped to curb premature sexual relationships by keeping young people from becoming too committed too quickly. It allowed them to get to know one another, and get to know what they were looking for in a potential partner, before getting serious with any one person. It seemed from the way she described it that this was the norm for her peer group. I wonder if our current view, which seems often to peg young women who go out with one guy on Friday night and another on Saturday as sluts, actually does young people a disservice in this regard. The extreme courtship model that requires a couple to more or less agree to marry before they can even date is an overreaction in the opposite direction. I wish I could find the interview, but I have no idea where I saw it.

We believe that sex is for marriage. I am happy to be able to tell them honestly that their father and I waited six years for our wedding night, starting from age 15. So it is not impossible, no matter what anyone says. I'm not sure whether our story will work for us or against us. I'd like to think it would be inspiring, but it's just as likely to incite rebellion, I suppose. So I guess we will wait to see just how much we reveal when the time comes. Regardless, we intend to make sure they are fully educated on all the aspects of sex that impact emotional and physical health and safety.

Sure! IIRC, I got a lot of my ideas from Farrar's blog post as well -- which I forgot until the pp mentioned it!

We write very few paper checks, but our credit union issues them for some bills we pay online to places the bank doesn't have a direct relationship with (e.g., ds5's preschool). Those get put in the mail and don't clear until the institution actually cashes them. So while I don't formally balance the checkbook anymore, I do keep a checking account register, and once or twice a month I will check the balance in there with the balance online, plus/minus any debits/credits I know are outstanding. I can do it quickly since there are usually only a couple. That I way I know I haven't made mistakes, and neither has the credit union. But I am fastidious about our budget and money management, ever since I let dh take it over a few years ago and we got into a real mess. :glare:

I also weigh myself daily (more or less) and find it very helpful. I also write it down. Sometimes I weigh more than once a day (after exercise, for example, because that often boosts my confidence) but that first number is my "official" number for the day. I agree that it's more important to be consistent about time, but I usually weigh the least first thing in the morning so I take whatever advantage I can get!

No surprises here. And not surprised in the least about Brian Houston. He's as much a wolf as Driscoll (even if he sounds like Bruce the shark).

Controversial Megachurch Pastor Finds a New Flock Mark Driscoll, whose Mars Hill Church (Seattle) imploded in 2014, has started a new church in Phoenix.

No textbooks here, either. There are classroom sets, but they are required to remain at school.

Thank you -- this is what dd's teachers used when she was in public school. I remember now. Not as helpful for her now, unfortunately, as most of what she reads is at the Z level, and it seems like more or less everything from 6th grade-ish up is given a Z. But, this will be helpful for ds as he moves into independent reading!

Can you explain more about guided reading levels? Or provide a link? This is what I typically have done as well. It's not foolproof, but it does help. It seems like LM's should be more useful than they are, though. DD has always read above grade level, but I've had trouble deciding exactly where to place her, especially her challenge level. Now that she is moving into more complex literature, I find it increasingly difficult to pinpoint what's too hard. I had hoped LM's would give me a better picture of where she is (based off things she's read already) and what else might be the same or slightly higher level. Mostly we just use trial and error (if something is too hard, we put it aside for later) but I wish I could be more accurate. She will plow through practically anything without complaining, so it's hard for me to know when I've crossed the line.

Do you find them helpful at all when it comes to choosing literature for your student(s)? How do you use them? I thought this would be a much easier way for me to select books for my dd's assigned reading, but it confuses the heck out of me! The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series is the same reading level as The Hobbit -- really?!? What am I missing?

If you are, then so am I. I didn't leave the house and only did 4 loads, and I'm ready to call it a day.

Hooray!!!!!!!!!!!

My friend lost a loved one very unexpectedly. She needs to travel to the funeral several states away and will be driving alone (14-15 hours one way). A few of us are putting together a gift basket of things for her to take along to hopefully make her trip more comfortable. Any suggestions? ETA: We will also be providing meals for her husband and children, who will stay home, so these things are just for her.

That's what we've been doing as well. I printed off a few of the worksheets and have let him do some of the games, but I haven't forced it. He enjoys the reading, so I was thinking of picking up the pace. But the lesson plans seem a bit intensive to me (some days call for four worksheets, plus two handwriting lessons). So I was just curious what others do. We have OPGTR, which we tried awhile back, but he really wasn't ready so we dropped it. Now that he's reading a little, maybe we'll give it another try.

I'd love to hear how you use it. Do you follow the lesson plans included, or do your own thing? Thanks!

Sounds yummy!! I throw frozen chicken in the crock-pot all the time; it will be fine. We're having mini-frittatas with ham, cheese, and green onions, plus a spring mix salad with balsamic vinaigrette. Might throw some baked apples in there too, if I feel like it. :)

Congratulations! We are building later this year! Yay!! I have a bunch of Dream House boards on my Pinterest that I've been collecting for years now. Feel free to steal my ideas -- I stole them from somebody else!

Yep. I am just now working up to doing the chaturangas on my knees. Couldn't do them at all before. I hate Sally. I identify much more with Ol' Miss Lucy -- dead and gone! -- after a round. But nothing builds strength like Sally does!