We are doing level 3 LA and are loving it. Some of the drawbacks mentioned by others are actually benefits here. My son is NOT an LA type of kid. He excels in math but really hates LA - it taxes his brain terribly. That said, he doesn't complain nearly as much about English this year and is making great strides. We're somewhere near lesson 45. I plan on sticking with their LA for the foreseeable future, something I've NEVER said about ANY LA program. Pros: Variety of topics mixed throughout prevents boredom & burnout (mastery didn't work here) Art included! Geography included! Spelling lists that I can use as I see fit Continual review of spelling rules Cons: All in one doesn't work for kids who are all over the place. Lesson length is uneven; we just work for a set time. We also work on several lessons at once since my son can't handle extended focus on one area of LA, even in a single sitting. Lit is "morally good" but not high quality IMHO (we read our own). No answer key through level 3. Not a problem for me, but many have expressed frustration with that.

We are using LA 3 for my 4th grader. He enjoys it more than any other LA we've done, mostly because of the varied lessons. We tried Rod and Staff for a couple of years and it was torture for both of us. We also did MFW's update of Language Lessons for Today - I hated it because there was no clear progression of skills. It seemed totally random. The Good and the Beautiful definitely mixes things up and doesn't follow units like R&S, but it does incorporate review periodically, which I appreciate. My son likes the picture studies and geography, and it's surprising just how much LA is incorporated into those lessons. It's a win here.

We lived in the San Bernardino mountains at the time. I remember my parents being really nervous about going down the mountain with us kids. My dad was a general contractor and got some of the clean-up work. It was a pretty scary time.

English: Good and Beautiful 3 Math: CLE 500 History: SOTW3 w/ A Child's First Book of American History, associated read alouds, SCM visits to North America, some history pockets Reading: 30-45 min/day from various genres Science: Nancy Larson 3 Guitar: daily practice on guitartricks.com Typing: daily practice on typingclub.com

2000 Dodge Dakota with 155,000 miles. It runs like a dream and ds9 wants it when he gets his license. We'll see if it's still running by then!

From the Old Testament all the way through the New Testament, the Bible is clear that homosexuality is a sin. I agree with others that it is not THE sin and shouldn't be focused on to the exclusion of other sins. Here are just a few passages: "26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done." Romans 1:26-28 "8 We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9 We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11 that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me." 1 Timothy 1:8-11 "9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 And one from the Old Testament: "22 “ ‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable." Leviticus 18:22

I had an individual policy through Anthem last year and couldn't get out of it fast enough. Every single time I used health services - even filling a routine prescription - I had to deal with some kind of problem. Their hold times are atrocious, nobody ever follows up, and they never follow through on what they say they'll do. I ended up avoiding all things medical because I knew it was going to be a nightmare. At least, that was my experience. I decided it'd be easier to deal with a health share. Since I was already keeping insane amounts of records because of Anthem's inability to handle things correctly, I figured I could keep track of stuff for a health share, and probably save time in the long run. Sorry you have to deal with them.

Sorry about the quoted post with no comment. I hit the wrong button. :) As to the cost of BC: I take a typical generic pill. We joined a health share this year, so no prescription coverage. Good Rx, an online prescription discount program, quoted me $24 for a 3-month supply. My health share included a discount card through another company, and that one dropped it to $18 for 3 months. Without a discount, the price ranged from $24-$45 per MONTH. I used Good Rx last year even while covered under an ACA health plan. The plan was useless and covered almost nothing. My discounted price through insurance for things like allergy nasal spray was a joke. I eventually stopped filling my prescriptions through my insurance and just used the discount cards.

August 1. We're sick of the heat and humidity, and we're not doing anything outdoors because of it. I figure if we're already trapped inside, we might as well start the school year - and then take time off this fall when it's gorgeous outside.

Agreeing with the above. The Bible, reading, and phonics instruction are completely integrated and can't be pulled apart into separate components. I did not care for the program at all. MFW K was wonderful. 1st was a train wreck.

You can buy just the readers and the readers guide up through Readers 4/5. The guide includes a weekly/daily schedule and study/comprehension questions. It also includes some vocabulary and historical/contextual background information on the books. As for read-alouds? You can't get a guide just for that. You'd have to get the core guide for whichever level you're looking at - and that includes a schedule for Bible, history, read alouds, and poetry. BUT - you can get a list of all the read alouds in each core (just pull it from their website). Then you buy the books used or check out from the library, and read them at whatever speed works for you. Hope that helps.

I despise cities. I've lived in Miami, LA, St. Louis, Seattle, Tucson, DFW, Austin, and Louisville. Don't like any of them. My nightmare vacation is a city vacation. Give me the mountains of Colorado, the Tetons, the Oregon Cascades! I need green grass, blue sky, space to plant flowers, peace and quiet. I have no interest in the cultural stuff offered by cities - it's just not for me. I'm much happier camping and canoeing on a placid lake. That said, I've lived in cities my entire adult life. I've learned to deal. I don't like it, but I don't see it changing any time soon.

I do 3-4 loads for our family of 3. I rarely sort, but just throw everything in together until the washer is full. I'll do a separate load for towels, and I do 1 load of sheets every 2 weeks. I'm sure I overload our machine, but don't really care - I've gotten plenty of use out of my laundry appliances before they go kaput.

We never have professional pictures done anymore. We had a family member who did some when DS was born and again when he was 1. I have a nice camera with a tripod and delayed shutter, so we do them on our own. Most of the time I'm super pleased with he results. We'll probably get some professional photos done in the next few years.

We budget $900/year for our 1 child. Some years I've used all of it on curricula (hello, Sonlight brand new!). Other years it's split between curricula and memberships. This year it looks something like this: CLE math: $40 Sonlight: $200 (history, read alouds, Bible, readers, science...I sourced almost all of it used) R&S English: $15 (as an English major, I don't need the TM) AAS: $40 Pentime Handwriting: $12 Zoo and science center membership: $250 DS is 8 and in 3rd grade-level work. It's very easy to spend $900+ when using lit-based curricula. I hate using the library because the books I want are rarely available when I want them, so we buy it all. Even then, books add up! My husband and I also choose to budget extra $$ for memberships and experiences. I figure $900/year is way less than paying for private school!

For the last 7 years, I've worked out at the YMCA and fit the rest of my life around it. Lately that wasn't working so well. Now DS and I do a 40 minute "power walk" each day and I try to also do some yoga or Pilates on DVD. We normally walk before school, around 8. Today we had a field trip, so we're going to walk at 3. My fitness needs and goals have changed. For a few years, I religiously attended YMCA classes 5-6 days a week. Then it dropped to 2-3. Now I'm good with a vigorous walk every day with some hiking, biking, yoga, and Pilates thrown in. I definitely must exercise almost daily or I become the Mommy Monster.

I've had the same experience with Brighton. I got a purse from them 5 years ago and use it daily. It still looks brand new. The zipper on it died last year; I brought it in and they fixed it for free. In addition, they removed some oil-based paint I had spilled on it - and I didn't even ask them to do that! The $20 purses I've bought in the past look terrible within 3-4 months and are completely unusable within a year. I figure the $$ I spent on this Brighton will more than return to me because of how long it's lasting.

I didn't find it to be life changing. It provides a good list of quality books, but if you already have a book like that, I don't think this one is necessary.

Hits: AAS - slow going, but he's learning! CLE math - love it! We do about half orally, half written Sonlight - did core A last year, now on core B. DS declares that "couch time" isn't school R&S English - we tried a CM-type LA last year, and I hated the non-linear, no scope and sequence type of approach. R&S is getting done and I understand what it's teaching and where it's going. Very important to this English major / lit teacher! Misses: None yet this year. In the past we've ditched Singapore, MFW, art, and Spanish (for now) I feel like we're hitting our stride. This is 3rd grade and our 4th year homeschooling. I've learned a ton every year and know this year holds a lot to be discovered, too!

I ask this sincerely...the Supreme Court ruled on one case that same-sex marriage is constitutional. However, the Court does not make laws. It only rules on confusing or unclear aspects of law, or on contested rulings from lower courts. It is then the legislative branch's job to repeal and pass laws in accordance with the judicial branch's rulings. So how is she breaking the "law of the land"? The laws have yet to be changed...unless I'm not correctly remembering the 3 branches and their separate roles.

Hits: 1. AAS. DS is gaining confidence in spelling. He may not love it, but it's working. 2. CLE math. Love it! 3. Sonlight. This has brought fun cuddle time into our homeschool. We could do this every day of the year and DS would be totally exited about it. 4. Dropping everything but the bare necessities + Sonlight and science. For us that means math, spelling, LA, and reading. Anything else is extra and only done as time and inclination allow. I began the year with great plans for art, music, and Spanish but quickly realized that DS is not ready for spending that much TIME on "school." He loves music, but not when it infringes on his free time. Misses: These actually line up with our hits. 1. R&S spelling. Absolutely no retention. No teaching of rules or patterns in grade 2. Complete waste of time. 2. Singapore math. We hit a wall and say at the same place for over 6 weeks. Couldn't move on. I watched DS's confidence slip daily, so we switched in January. 3. Trying to do too much for "school." DS values his free time. And he should!! I had to step back and really decide what's non-negotiable. It was very difficult to cut certain things, but I realized that math, spelling, LA, and reading--the 3 R's are the only true non-negotiables I have at this age (7, a young 2nd grader). Anything beyond those things only get done if they bring enjoyment and pleasure to our school days. We will add more as DS matures. We also dropped co-op this spring. It was way too much commitment for the payoff. We are much happier and more relaxed without it. This is our 3rd year homeschooling. I have gained so much confidence in what we're doing and in my understanding of DS's needs. I feel relaxed now, rather than stressed and worried. I've realized that we can get through whatever curveball gets thrown our way, and that is a very freeing feeling.

I can't imagine trying to schedule it all myself. I use the IG schedule mostly as written. I did end up reading through the 5-day books all at once, instead of doing one chapter per week; I also condense poetry to once per week. I don't use any of the notes, vocab, or questions; they just don't seem helpful to me. But the schedule?? A lifesaver!!!

I learned that it is okay to drop the extras. DS did not enjoy art or music this year. We trudged through it for about 10 weeks, then I realized, "This is supposed to add beauty and joy to our days. It is not. Instead, it is sucking the beauty and joy right out of everything and making every day feel like drudgery." I dropped both. It was very difficult to do -- I spent money on the curricula and I hate giving up on something that I feel is worthwhile. BUT. I am sooooo glad we dropped those things! DS perked right back up and has enjoyed school so much more since then. On a related note, I learned that DS doesn't want school to take any longer than absolutely necessary. Crafts? No. Projects? No. Non-essential writing? No. Fun electives? Heck no! He wants to get it DONE so he can go play. And I've learned to embrace that and love him for who he is. Last, I have learned who I am as a teacher. We made some critical changes this year. They had to do with DS, but they were more directly changes that helped ME feel more comfortable teaching. We switched from Singapore to CLE. I got tired of feeling like I was swimming through muddy water, no idea where I was going, which way was up, where the goal was. Nothing against Singapore; I just realized that it's not a curriculum I feel comfortable teaching. CLE is a breath of fresh air. And DS has thrived. Next year, we are switching from a Charlotte Mason LA approach to the more traditional approach of R & S. Again, this is more about my comfort and ability in teaching than about a change that DS needs. And he will thrive -- because I will thrive.

I noticed typos in the online samples. Love their book choices, but no thanks!