We will really enjoy this -- thank you Christie! Do you like chocolate? Alicia

oops, that's how out of it I am -- up w/ an elderly dog last night -- Christie gave full instructions. I'm looking forward to "meeting" everyone! Alicia

Wow! I just hopped back on here and saw this awesome response! Christie ~ If you're up for organizing this effort, I'd be hugely thankful. :001_cool: How should we start this? I'm really excited! Alicia

Wow, I thought it was just me and my PMS. It's hard to home school five year olds. They want to PLAY. Which is fine, of course, but the charter school (and me too!) want to see some progress. If you're anything like I was, you'll feel a lot better once your gallbladder was out. I sure did. Thanks for this thread. Alicia

Hi Everyone, We did Valentine's exchanges from home schoolers throughout the country and every time we received one, we marked the name of the child and age on our large map. The kids love it and so do I. I'd love to keep this going year round. Maybe there's already a postcard exchange group? If so, I hope someone will tip me off. Alicia

You guys are great -- thanks! I'm over the worst, but yesterday I just felt so depressed and like, "can I do this??" Alicia

Google Clark Howard. He's the nicest guy who has a long running money show on the radio. Get his advice. He's awesome. Alicia

Hi Everyone, I was not a happy mommy today. I couldn't believe how cranky I was with the kids -- and then I started my period. I almost feel like I need to calendar better and then have my dh take time off work to care for the kids and I'll hide for a couple of days. It's hard enough in regular life, but with home schooling it really throws a wrench into everything. Anyone else notice this occurrence? Alicia

Hi Everyone, Having pulled the boys out of ps at Christmas, I'm now trying to figure out what to do for these remaining months. Now it's dawning on me that I also need to be prepping for their first grade starting in August. Any suggestions for me? I ordered five in a row for this year. So I assume that means I'll need to buy Volume III for August. Ideas for math? Science? Geography? (They love doing postcards w/ others and learning the states.) Piano (Can't decide. Would age 6.5 be a good time to put them in? A friend's son loves his teacher.) What am I missing? I'll be honest, I'm so overwhelmed. Alicia

Thanks for giving me all the info. I'm so new to this and I'm trying to figure out this year (as I go) and plan for next year. Please know I'm not anti-Christian at all, but if the focus on the conference is strictly Christian then that would be a draw back for me. I'd like to take a look at everything so to speak. I'm more lost now than I was before. Alicia

Not to make this even more confusing, but the Modesto conference is July 25 and 25. That doesn't give the planning time you're talking about either. Also, just from the site it looks like a Christian hs conference. Alicia

Awesome point. So, Shannon, which one are you going to? Modesto? Alicia

LunaLee ~ I don't take any offense. I love your blog. Is there a way on there to contact you privately? Alicia

What is Comic Con?

I'm so new to this. How come nobody is recommending the Homeschool Association of California? They hold their conference each August in Sacramento. I was planning on going to it, but it's concerning me that it's not being mentioned here. It's Aug. 6 to Aug. 29. What do you think? Alicia

I should add that this school is a charter and no charge. Although they ask the parents to do parent participation which is fine. My worries: so much less time w/ my kids because they'd be in school until 3 every day. Plus I'm worried about the Hannah Montana culture trickling in. I don't know if Montessori is better at keeping it out or not. I read the book, Hold onto Your Kids, and it scared me! Because of what our larger culture teaches kids. Also, it's a K - 8. No way would I put them in middle school. Alicia

Hi Everyone, My last option for public school is a very, very nice Montessori that several friends have given the thumbs up to. When we say "public school" I never know: are we including Waldorf and Montessori in that? I still can't come to a firm decision whether I'll hs during my boy's young years and possibly consider the Montessori later. Or hs the entire time. Or put them in Montessori this August. Are there fewer horror stories at Montessoris? The kids have a dress code, aren't allowed to bring logos into school. In general the whole atmosphere seems gentler, sweeter than our last school. I'd love to hear your opinion on this -- possibly going w/ a Montessori. Thanks, Alicia

yes, I use the library regularly. I just wondered if people had something specific they'd really recommend. Thanks! I hope people will keep sharing. Alicia

I just wanted to add that I'm also a messy Add-ish type who would much rather read a book than mop. Anyway, I'm motivating myself this way: I think of one really hard thing that I "got on top of". In my case it was losing weight. Over a period of about five years I lost 45 lbs. and am now at a weigh where friends, who didn't know me before, think I'm naturally thin. Cracks me up b/c I still follow Weight Watchers or my old habits will be right there to join me. So I'm trying to think of it like this: if I can turn my weight issues around, I can figure out how to get organized and somewhat tidy. I'll never be OCD (like my parents), but I would like to have an overall proud feeling about my cleaning up work. Good luck (to all of us!) Alicia

Hi Everyone, We're in the car a fair amount and I like to let the boys listen to Magic Tree House on tape or books like it. But I'd really like to find some addition or subtraction or spelling CD's or tapes to let them listen to. Hopefully something fun and catchy that might help our process. Or even something fun about the states. Anybody love a singing or talking tape/cd on the basics for Kindergarten or 1st? Thanks for any advice! I'm open to anything that might be stimulating and fun for the car. Thanks again!! Alicia

It finally dawned on me that we're not being very helpful to your niece (me included). When I first started considering home schooling, I read every book I could find in the library. I started with A Well Trained Mind and went from there. I've probably read 20 books cover to cover on the subject. And I'm still ordering books on the subject. Funny enough, I haven't read a single John Holt book so I ordered him. That's what helped me the most as a newbie: information. Because what happened was this: the stronger I felt, the easier time I had feeling good in the face of naysayers. It was an "inside out" type of job. Not to belabor the point, but as I felt more and more like I was taking the right steps, then when people looked at me funny and said rude things (my dad told my son that hs was "stupid". My dad is extremely mature), in my heart I felt like I had to do what was best for my children. I hope that's more helpful. Also, the longer one reads and becomes educated on hs, the clearer it becomes that many ps teachers are never going to understand. Tell your niece good luck!! And put her on this board! Alicia

Hearing that you cried last night broke my heart. Please know that you're not alone. I was so thrilled to find my kid's school: I thought it would be an awesome experience. And when it wasn't, I didn't know what was wrong with me. Had I done something to my boys to make them not like the school? the teacher? the routine? Once I got the guts to pull them out, life improved by leaps and bounds. In fact, I grow stronger every day in my resolve that that particular school really was bad for my kids. I wish I could have seen it sooner. I still may put them back in -- I'm thinking about a Montessori that seems calmer, gentler -- but I don't know. This hs thing is really phenomenal. It's definitely out of the box and how sad that more people don't have the guts to try it. Congratulations for taking the first steps!! Alicia

My dh was let go when we had two year old twins. I completely freaked when he came home early and immediately told me the news. You're smart enough to know: don't eat out at the steak house, don't buy expensive clothes etc. At the time (the economy was still awesome), we took a second out on our house. He was out of work for six months. We're still paying off the second. The main thing that helped me was hearing from so many friends that they'd once gone through it too. Oddly, that made me feel better. We didn't know anyone else at the time getting laid off. Also, and I know this puts me in the vast minority. I was more than willing to sell our house and move into a condo. My dh flipped at the idea. But I had two year olds and I sure didn't want to put them into daycare. I also would have sold a vehicle if need be. And we didn't have cable to turn off, but I would have turned it off. I stopped the paper etc. Also, I wouldn't be beyond going to a food bank. To be honest, I've never done it, don't know anyone who's done it, didn't know how or where to go. But I thought about it. I wouldn't hesitate now to use one. If I had decent parents, I would have considered moving in with them, but my parents are both beyond difficult. I don't know how they live w/ each other. I wish I had been reading the Little House on the Prairie books back then because Ma and Pa's problems sure put our problems into perspective: fast. The thing I hated the most: people who said "maybe something good will come out of this". I thought, "how dumb. Maybe something bad will just as easily come out of this." And, "the Chinese symbol for crisis is the same symbol as for the opportunity." But, you know, something very good did come out of it. Today, I want to call my dh's former boss and thank him for laying my dh off. Dh's new job is far better in many different ways than his last. Take care, Alicia

Hi, I have twin 5 yr. old boys and pulled them out of a "great" school finally at Christmas. My dh and I knew around the first week that things weren't quite right at the school, but we wanted to give it the college try. I'm glad I gave it enough time to really know that the school was/is a joke, but I wish now that I'd pulled at Thanksgiving instead of Christmas. I really believe kids have so much wisdom. If they're saying they want out and you feel ready (as if there is such a feeling), then get off the school schedule and pull them out. You're in a tough spot -- believe me, I was in agony!! Alicia

In my opinion, if the teachers, who are in that system every day, don't get why intelligent, sane parents want to pull their kids out of school -- then they've been drinking the punch too long and they'll never get it. Of all people: they should get it. Alicia