This is so cool...I've broken most of our drinking glasses, so we are drinking mostly out of the canning jars. I felt a little awkward when that is all we had for a guest. It turns out I am chic!

Huge metro area, so an hour is a normal drive here. I drove nearly an hour to ds's party, but that was because we chose a location closer to most of his friends, so I do think it's important to be considerate of guests. The time is hard. I said 10 because most things open then, the zoo, the museum, etc. I can definitely see the point in dong it early, before things get too crowded or traffic gets too bad. And the families can spend the rest of the day at the venue, usually for free. (I'm just assuming it is at some venue since it's an hour away for both guests and host.)

The reference to antihistimines made me think of something else. Antihistimines like Benedryl, decongestants and other drugs (anticholinergics) dry out your nose and throat, but they also dry out other areas too. This can disrupt the balance and either make an environment for infection or just make you feel like you have one as your body reacts.

What one eats can affect the chemical content of sweat and saliva, so it might have an easy solution.

I'd go with allergies, I've treated the heck out of things that turned out to be allergies. A new allergy to the detergent you use for underthings or even your toliet paper can cause a whole bunch of symptoms.

I was usually a top student, but it is tough to be the recipient of a grading system like that. You work your rear off for an 86% average in a tough class and end up with a C. I much prefered the mastery method of grading!

I can see an average grade being a C in an intro class, but in higher level classes, I would think there would begin to be a selection effect. Students who don't have aptitude for a subject are going to change their major or drop out. By senior year I would expect a B+ average in major classes. Maybe it's because I went to and taught at a school with a higher transfer rate, but I wouldn't see A or B averages in upper level classes as grade inflation. I'd see it as self-selection. I wouldn't expect Mensa members to have an average IQ of 100, either.

Thanks Lori, Some of the colleges that he is looking at require the writing, so he's trying to make a good showing. He did very well on the ACT without writing. To get a "full diagnosis," where would we go? I can't imagine anything through the ps here, so I'd want to go private. Would a psychologist handle that? I'm not sure who to call or what to say. Is there such a thing as handwriting testing? I haven't really thought much about accomodation. I can't imagine adding time to the long marathon SAT. I was really hoping this would be one of those things that works itself out by college. Ds is actually willing to work with someone now, but I just don't know how to find the right person (preferably someone who doesn't blame the entire problem on homeschooling.) Thanks so much for your input and sharing your experience.

I guess it has always been there and I should have done something years ago, but with homeschooling you can just work around things. Ds has difficultly writing and is incredibly slow at it. He's been working at it because of the SAT, but he is NOT getting any faster. His endurance has improved, words per minute haven't. I have watched and tried to adjust letter formation that seems to take more time, but this is not my area. I might as well be teaching him ice ballet! Would there be any chance that OT could help this? Do they take kids this old? Would changing his writing make him slower in the short-term and make thngs worse for the SAT? I've had plenty of thoughts on what I should have done, but would love some on what I can do now.

It's cheaper for grocers and markets to ship and store dried fruit than fresh...raisins and dried apples don't usually bruise or rot. So that higher expense of moving the fresh fruit is usually passed on to you, unless it is abundant in season or local. So most of the time it is cheaper to buy dried (per piece of fruit not per pound!). Growing your own, buying in bulk, or picking at farms would likely make it cheaper.

She probably is, but kids (and grown-ups, sometimes) are blind when it's family or a family friend. That's why "stranger danger" is so hard to teach, it's not usually a stranger.

Stress, weather (too hot or too cold), a night of poor sleep (which becomes a vicious cycle), an allergy attack (like having to take the dog to the kitty-filled vet), overexertion.

Retirement and college funds! I don't even have to think about it.

This is how I was taught, too, but in terms of chemicals and then mild biohazard, not Ebola. I still do this when I handle meat out of habit. (I was immuno-compromised and was supposed to do this for preparing meat, changing diapers, etc.) It does take practice. If you slip when doing that single finger thing, the elastic pops back and liquid on the glove can splatter all over you. From working with chemicals, I know how hard it is to be perfect every time, but there is some minimum safe exposure in most cases. Ebola seems to be a zero tolerance situation. I can't imagine having to be that perfect all the time.

My ds really enjoyed the Psychology as a Science Coursera course, if it becomes available in time. https://www.coursera.org/course/psy The course used the CMU Open Learning Initiative textbook,which is very interactive and has most of the videos and demonstrations from an intro class embedded. It is one of the best implementations of multimedia with a text that I've seen. And it is free! https://oli.cmu.edu/jcourse/webui/guest/join.do?section=psychology (just choose to enter without an account. The account is only necessary for a prof to track your progress.) ETA: For those who are interested in AP, ds did get a 5. He went through sample tests to understand the format, but he didn't have to learn anything more than what he got from the two resources above.

For everyone applying or thinking of applying to college:

Yes, you can have up to 10 devices. I got dh's old iPad when he upgraded and it is still on his id so I have access to all of the apps he buys. If I buy an app, he can download it to his new iPad.

"Phone and wallet" every time he leaves the house. And, yes, I also admit to be an anxious momma. It's no trouble to him (thin wallet with ID, cash and meds, and a tiny dumb phone). In addition to peace of mind, it's a good habit to get into for driving. Police aren't super tolerant of forgetting your license. Our cars are getting old. And sometimes he goes places with my elderly father. Before he had an ID, he had a business card he could tuck in his pocket with name, address and emergency contact numbers. We mostly only used that when we were traveling, though he still has it in his wallet.

Paddington and Little Pear come to mind. Ds liked the My Father's Dragon series, too.

Never heard of it, but there is one close to me. Any chance they have gluten free options?

Could it be anxiety? The excuse may be that she doesn't want to miss anything, but maybe there is more to it. Anxiety does seem to increase in the teen years.

I didn't respond before as I don't have much to add to all of the advice you've gotten. However, now I will say, "Follow the doctor's orders post-surgically!". I thought I was better enough to teach just one class. Not only was I wrong, but I caught a cold with a terrible cough. Rather unpleasant after abdominal surgery :-P. Take care of yourself and let your dh and bff pamper you.

When I searched for uranium ore, I got Canned Unicorn Meat!http://www.amazon.com/ThinkGeek-Canned-Unicorn-Meat/dp/B004CRYE2C/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1409567344&sr=8-2&keywords=uranium+ore ETA: Read the 45 question before you purchase, lest you risk spreading MUD (Mad Unicorn Disease)

I spent the last few days at DragonCon. Sadly I didn't take any pictures to contribute to this thread. The costumes are just awesome, but it would not be a good place for the likes of this Mr. M. (Then again he might have been the guy on the corner with the megaphone demanding that we all repent?)

For ds it was 10 or 11. Like most of the other posters, I got it when he started going places without me. He had a couple of activities and free ranged at park days a bit. I also liked him to have it if we got separated traveling or in the city. It's a dumb phone (or, as they say in the biz, feature phone), but so is mine. He's nearly 17 and that has worked out just fine. Dh wants to get him a smart phone when he starts driving independently so he'll have access to maps, traffic, schedules, etc. (I may do the same if we're getting a plan anyway. Right now I just have one of those 200+ page map books in the backseat...never needs charging, but a bit cumbersome.)