:grouphug: Praying and I am so sorry.

We have to remember sometimes that "we plan, but God directs our steps." Your post reminded me of a gymnast that quit last month after hearing a minister talk about being accountable for how we spend our time. She felt she spent too much time in gym and not doing the things she felt God wanted her to do. Your dd is in His hands and only He knows what her future holds and what He has planned for her. She sounds like a wonderful girl.

The most fun my dc have had for the least amount of money is baseball. It is only $85.00 for the year. Our dance fees every month are $225, but that doesn't count costumes for performances, pointe shoes ($100) about every two months, traveling a couple of times a year, etc. Our kids have also enjoyed track with Junior Olympics, which is very reasonable at $65 a season. The only thing that doesn't cover is travel to state, regional, etc. Classical guitar lessons are $125 for 1 hour a week. By far, our most costly activity is gymnastics. We just figured up our costs for last year and it would average out to about $800 a month. We are at a very competitive/costly gym, though. One of our gym's level 10's will be going to national's next year for sure (she is an alternate for the national team this year) and I heard them talking about that alone costing around $5000.

I'm very open and love to share with others about what we use and love in our homeschool. I just had a friend ask me if she could share plans I have made for history/lit for my dd next year. She is just not good at putting something together herself and wanted to use my schedule. I gladly shared them with her. I think your friends who are so guarded sound like very small people.

There are TONS of free resources here: http://homeschoolfreestuff.wordpress.com/about/ HTH!

:grouphug: I'm sorry Jean. We may be in the same boat in the near future as my dh is self-employed and we are earning less than half what we were a year ago. We've managed so far, but I'm not sure how long we'll manage to keep our dd in gym. She is level 7 and has put in so much work and time I would hate for her to have to give it up, so I can imagine how you are feeling.

:grouphug: Praying here.

I have always gone by the 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. rule in general. The exception is my bf who gets up before dawn every day.

:party: Great news!

:grouphug: I'm so sorry. I still remember the night I got the call that my father was gone. I had the feeling that the world had somehow shifted and would never be the same. It was 8 years ago and I still miss him every day.

I have one that will be 18 next month, and my 24 year also is living here until he gets married in August. My 17yo (will stay the same when he is 18) has a midnight curfew, although we do make exceptions when there is a reason. My dh says, "If it can't be done before midnight, it doesn't need doing." :001_smile: My 24yo still calls us if he is going to be especially late for some reason, just so we do not worry.

We live in WNC and there are a LOT of cabin rentals like you described around here. You might try cabins at Wolf Laurel or Maggie Valley. Here is a link to one: http://www.brownlogcabinretreat.com/ Hope you find what you're looking for. 12 days is TOO long in WDW. We went for 10 days last year and I said I would never go for that long again!

Rachel - I agree with the other posters that you really need to talk to your dh. Does he understand how much this bothers you? I would make sure he did. My other thought is that you need to assign your children very specific chores and nothing gets done until they are completed. For example, "you can have breakfast after you make your bed." No TV when it is time to work and not until it is done, etc. I have to say that my dc still need reminding that it is time to do chores. I feel for you. I would be so frustrated. If it gets too bad, pm me and we'll run away for coffee. :001_smile:

What are your gym's policies? Our girls are required to attend even if they are injured. They make adjustments for the injury in practice, but they are required to go. Toe injuries are SO painful! Poor dd. :grouphug:

I'm :bigear: because I'm getting ready to start purging in a couple of weeks. There are three floors on this house, and I'm going to take one floor a week. I do this every summer, but it is usually just deep cleaning and organizing. I'm tired of organizing tons of stuff and I think I'm ready to just get rid of a lot of it.

I forgot to mention that there is a philosophy course that is centered around Sophie's World: http://www.smarrpublishers.com/philos.html

Sophie's World is one of our favorite books. I have read it three times, and my older boys have all read it more than once. If you're interested, there is also a Sophie's World board game. We love it.

This post reminded me of country fun my dh had about 3 days ago. He was taking his early morning walk around the property, when a bear ran past him, up the mountain past our kitchen door, and into the woods. I was afraid for a couple of days to let my youngest explore the woods. What does one do when they run into a bear? I guess I need to find out so I can tell my dc.

That is funny. You had an interesting night. You couldn't have that much fun in the city! We came home one afternoon to a 1000 lb. bull (aggressive, I might add), standing at our back door like he was waiting to come inside. He ended up eating the corn that was just coming up in our garden, and pushing over one of our pine trees. He almost got his head stuck in our tire swing. :001_smile: It took about six hours of fun to find out who he belonged to, loaded up, and on his way home. I love the country. :001_smile:

I graduated in 1981. High school was not a good experience for me, even though I made really high grades and was a cheerleader. I think my small home town is depraved. :001_smile:

Be excited to turn 30! My 30's were so much better than my 20's. I had my 4th ds the year I turned 30 and 3 more dc later! I loved my 30's, but my 40's are even better. :001_smile:

If you have the time to peruse a long list (novels for adults/children are not separated, here is a long list: http://www.lib.unc.edu/blogs/ncnovels/index.php/full-list-of-novels/

:iagree: My dd is in Level 7. It takes some girls longer than others to learn gym protocol/safety rules. Hopefully, she will catch on soon. I agree that you probably shouldn't talk to the mom, and just let the coaches handle it as long as they are making an effort. I would caution my dd to be "aware" of the other girl.

All of my children have cell phones. They all received one when they turned 10, except for my youngest dd who was probably 8. She is a competitive gymnast and I didn't feel comfortable leaving her for four hours a day away from us without a phone.

:grouphug: Praying for you.