Yes, you're probably right...I'm not denying that at all! :iagree:Me too....lately I've been feeling like homeschooling makes me the big outsider--they all talk about the kids' school, teachers, etc...and I don't have much to say in these discussions. So I guess knowing that I'm left out, again...well, I guess it hits a nerve, you know? However, even without this little episode---I have been feeling lately that FB gives people permission to say things that they would never really say in real life. I'm sure if a bunch of us were hanging out together, the three shoppers would never go on and on about their fabulous shopping trip that they took without the rest of us. These are normally very polite, friendly women. I do agree with the birthday party analogy. Yes, we're not in 5th grade anymore, but there's still a little sting when you discover you've been excluded.

Exactly! Thanks for understanding. I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels this way.

You're exactly right, Springmama. Of course I'm not the first person everyone thinks of when they have an event. I know people get together without me. That's the reality of life. And I agree completely with you...the last place I want to be is where I'm not wanted. My irritation is more with the advertising of the events that take a sort of bragging tone. Kind of like, "We had fun and we're BFF's and none of you were there! HaHa!" Immature and petty of me....yes.

Ok, so let's say you are friends with A, B, and C. Then you start to see these types of status reports: Friend A: "Had a great time shopping with B & C today!" Friend B: "Thanks for the fun day, C & A!" Friend C: "Lets go shopping again, B & A!" For the record, I'm not a "group" shopper. I like to go on my own, and couldn't have even gone shopping that day even if I had been invited. Really. (I'm not just saying that.) But, all of a sudden, it's like you're back in 9th grade and you didn't get invited to the cool party. Has Facebook removed all sense of social niceties? Like, don't rub it in other people's faces that you all had a fun time, and no one else was invited. I'm probably making too much of it. I'm 36....these types of things shouldn't bug me anymore, right? And, I'm not the only one who's friends with these ladies. Was anyone else bothered by these reports, or just me? How would you feel? Has FB made bragging an acceptable part of communication? I'm not losing sleep over this, and I'll have no problem being friends with them but it's just an irritating reality of Facebook-world. Like I said, my new pet peeve. Rant over.

I think mincing is probably the same. My understanding is that to get the cold-preventing effects, the garlic has to be cut up and raw---something about cutting it up releases the chemical that helps the immune system. I did a quick google search and found this article on the benefits of garlic: http://www.disabled-world.com/artman/publish/garlic-benefit.shtml

I cut up a clove of raw garlic and gulp down the pieces with a glass of orange juice. Those days, I'm also VERY grateful to be homeschooling....because my breath is rather stinky! Maybe the cure is two-fold---you stink so much that everyone leaves you alone!

No to hijack the thread, but I had a long discussion with our bug guy yesterday about bed bugs. He didn't tell me much more than what I already knew, except that the heating method is probably the easiest, and most expensive way of getting rid of them. (But then he said they don't have that machine, so if we do end up getting them we're out of luck in that department!) I've also been thinking about the numbers I've been hearing about bed bugs. Yes, they are much higher now than we've had in the last few decades. For example, I heard that in New York City alone they have had 11000 infestations. That sounds like a huge number, and in my small town that would mean everyone would be itchy. But in New York....with it's millions of people (and buildings) it's really not a huge percentage. Even in our town of 15000, Mr. Bug Guy said he's only dealt with 4 cases of bed bugs. Does this make sense? Please correct me if my theory is wrong. I'm just trying to put it in perspective. Lots of times the media inflates a story to sound a lot worse than it really is. I know I've been panicked about this, and it is certainly wise to be vigilant. (I probably check my mattresses 4 times a week!) But it's also comforting to know that it's not in every hotel and every movie theater, just an unfortunate few--relatively speaking. Garga, I am in no way diminishing your plight right now. Just like everything else, the statistics don't mean anything when it's you dealing with the crisis. (We had a very close call this past summer, and I still haven't brought those suitcases back in the house --so I know a little of what you've been going through.) I really hope your treatment was successful, and I am grateful that you have shared your experience with us to help us know what to expect if we end up in the same boat. For me, knowing what to expect certainly helps me not freak out so much. I'm praying that you'll be sleeping peacefully again soon.

This thread has freaked me out. We had a family reunion this summer and the room my SIL stayed in (close to ours) had bedbugs. Her family all had tons of bites and she found one in the dresser on the last day. Ever since then, I've been panicked. It doesn't help that every other news story is about bedbugs. Even that Dr. Oz show...which I NEVER watch, but the one day I was flipping channels and stopped on it...there he was, talking about bedbugs. On public radio (I can't remember the name of the show..."Tell me More" maybe?) there was also a story on it. The bug guy said the challenge now-a-days is that we have so much more stuff and clutter that it's so much harder to find them. Also, 70 years ago we weren't nearly as germ-a-phobic, so the thought of bugs crawling on you at night wasn't nearly as horrific. Finally, he said the reason they're so hard to kill is that in the last decade or two pesticides have become very bug specific. Since we haven't had bedbugs in a long time, we don't have the pesticides we need to kill them. DH also thinks I'm overreacting....but I'm still a little traumatized by our lice infestation last year. Now I'd take that over bedbugs any day! I'm cautiously optimistic (delusional maybe?) that in the very near future someone will come up with something that will knock them out. To the OP, I'm so sorry you are going through this. I would react exactly like you. To everyone else, thanks for letting me post this. It's been almost cathartic to get this all off my chest!

I thought it was ok. I liked that it talked about the more obscure parts of history that we don't hear a lot about, and I liked that it focused on regular people instead of the big names that we all already know. However, I wouldn't base my American History studies on this. I'd say it was 1/4 educational, 3/4 entertainment.

We are on Lesson 14 of Nancy Larson Science 3 and we LOVE it! I'm a little jealous that you got to start at level 1--I'm already panicking about what we are going to do next year. We are finally consistently doing science this year. The kids are learning, and they are asking for science everyday (this, in itself, is a small miracle.) You're right....it's totally worth the big bucks.

OMG! I thought my kid was the only one. Whenever we get to something mildly challenging or (gasp!) I point out a careless mistake, he cries like a 2 year old! Maybe it's because with a classroom teacher, it's not so personal. A teacher would be criticizing the work. In his eyes, mom is criticizing HIM. Just a theory.....but it still drives me crazy. During one of these crying fits, it's not unusual for him to say, "See mom....this is why I want to go to school. In a classroom there's be a bunch of other kids who could answer the question. Here, I have to know EVERYTHING! " (To which I'm always dying to say, "Oh really? You mean you actually have to learn?" )

I was talking to the religious ed. director at the local church when we first moved here. He was singing the praises of their parish school and it only got worse when he found out that we homeschool. Finally I said something like, "Well, it's not exactly easy to pay tuition for 4 children." He piped back with, "Well, you do need to understand that providing a good education for your children is going to require some sacrifice." I should have said, "You're telling me, buddy....we're homeschooling. Don't talk to me about sacrifice!" (Naturally, I didn't think of that response until I was driving out of the parking lot!)

This one's my favorite: I get this All. The. Time. Usually I hear, "I just don't think little Johnny would listen to me." I had this concern a little at the beginning, but then I just started to teach them and they listen....because I'm their mother! I'm going to use this quote next time I get that line.

"Stop wiping your nose on the couch!" "We don't bite people, we only bite food." "I have no more chores for you to do." (I had given them the rare chance of earning an expensive Lego set by doing chores. I figured it would take them a week or two, but they really wanted the set and wanted to cram as many chores in one day as possible. The need for the toy outlasted my amount of chores!) And finally.... "We homeschool." (I was quite the anti-homeschooler when my kids were younger. Three moves in one year and ds being bullied and learning nothing at one of the "good" schools in town changed my mind!)

I ordered their complete MapTrek set about a month ago. We love it, and we didn't have any security issues. What kinds of problems are you having...or are you just wanting to make sure it's a safe site?

Yes. I find that if I have kind of a social lull in my real life then I tend to post more frequently on here. So the combination of not a lot of real life activities, and the occasional feeling of being attacked (real or perceived), ignored, or just not that important on here makes for a bad thing. Almost like, "Gee whiz, if my 'pretend' friends don't even care, I must really be a loser!" In other words, the less real-life stuff I have going on, the more I need the attention/reinforcement from people on this board. But that is a very bad system, because in internet-land so much of the social niceties get lost in the medium. It's much easier to be honest, even blunt, in this environment and if I'm already in a sort of fragile state, something that I would have brushed off at another time will affect me much more negatively. Hang in there...maybe you just need a little board break. I've done that before, just to get some perspective. After a week (or a month...or more!) it's much easier to say, "Why did I get so worked up about that?"

I agree. I do think it's neat that we can go to a different part of the country and find English spoken in a whole new way. We lived in New England for a while, and one day I came home from church to tell my husband (who was sick that day,) "Well, did you know there's a new character in Bible? Marther? You know....Mary's friend?" Where did they get that "er" from? It would also crack me up everytime I'd hear the commercial for Toyoter of Newport. However, I did not laugh when I'd hear "might could." As in, "We might could do that." Nails on the chalkboard for me.

This is exactly the dilemma. Finding a place that can handle all the kids and keep them busy while still providing an opportunity for moms to talk. Also, an indoor place would be nice so that we don't have to worry about the weather. Thanks for all the ideas...keep 'em coming!

Hello, Just out of curiousity--a friend of mine and I are trying to start a homeschool group for our area, and I'm interested in finding out where other groups have their regular meetings. I know we'd have park days and field trips, etc.... but for the planning meetings, where do you go? Do the kids go with you, or is it moms only? TIA!

Me too! Another NO vote here.

Grey's Anatomy Modern Family NCIS CSI: NY

I don't think it's unusual for family members to be a little "concerned" at the beginning of homeschooling. As many of us as there are on here, and as much as it's growing, it's still something that's not the norm--especially to those of an older generation who were raising children when homeschooling was really out there. Give it a little time. We all got some resistance when we started out, but as family members begin to see how well the kids are doing academically, socially, etc--and that you're not turning them into anti-social hermits--they'll start to come around and (dare I say it) even come to support homeschooling. As you see the growth in your daughter, you will also become more confident in your decisions, so these little comments won't bother you so much. (I'm not saying you're not confident now....but in a few years you'll have actual proof that homeschooling is good, and that will make your even more confident.) And then, there are always going to be times when people question your choices, and it won't be as obvious as them saying, "I don't like that you are homeschooling." Just wait for the first time your daughter gets "tested" at Thanksgiving Dinner. Have a rescue plan (for her) ready in advance, and find a polite, diplomatic way to say "She knows everything she's supposed to know, and more. Now, please pass the mashed potatoes. " Congratulations on your decision to homeschool! Don't let the little comments bother you too much. You know your daughter best and you know this is the best thing for her.

I'm in SC...and my husband is military so I hear Ma'am and Sir all the time. I really think it's a regional thing. I'll say it to cashiers at Walmart or waitresses. We teach my kids to say it to other adults, but we don't expect them to say it to us. I don't know....I just feel it sounds too formal or "official" for a parent/child relationship. However, I do not allow "yeah" or "huh" If I'm calling for a child, I expect "yes, mom?" Funny related story....the duty was calling over here one night to talk to dh. My (7 yr old) daughter answered the phone, had a funny look on her face, then gave the phone to her dad. I asked, "Who was it?" and she said, "I don't know...but it's for daddy and the guy called me "Ma'am!"

This is the time of year that I really miss sending them to school. That whole backpack/lunchbox/little plaid uniform thing is so tempting....I think we're all a little bit "programmed" to think that's what we're supposed to do, no matter how committed to homeschooling we are. Hang in there...there are so many moments in homeschooling when you think, "Thank God they're home...we would never get to do this if they were in school." And, maybe you just need to force those kind of moments during this part of the year. We all went out to breakfast at IHOP on our first day this year, and I told the kids (more than once, I think!) "See, we'd never get to do this if you guys were in school! Isn't it good that we homeschool?" I think I said it more for my benefit than theirs--but, it worked! Try to do some things that make you grateful to homeschool, and it will help ease those bouts of nostalgia.

From everything I read during our wonderful infestation last year (and I read everything!) I learned that lice can only live away from a host for 2-3 days, tops. I also read that the first time you get lice it might take a few weeks for the bugs to start itching. (something about the body takes that much time to develop an allergic reaction, and that's when the itching starts.) My guess is that (if this is actually true) a couple of the little buggers jumped onto you when you were cleaning the girls room, and now they're just making their presence known. Our cure-all turned out to be listerine. I think it's in one of the lice threads on here, but if you can't find it pm me and I'll let you know what we did to finally get rid of them. Also....my Marine DH also has a high & tight haircut, so even though the kids and I all got infected, he stayed bug free.