11, 9, 6. the 11 and 9 are the main ones requesting this, the 6 is along for the ride.

So my kids want to have a more formal exercise program. They don't want to just play outside. They like the fitness DVDs we have (Power 90) but we have to be there to make sure their posture is right, so and so gets help next, they can't do it as fast and so a 20-30 minute DVD takes 40-50. We have a larger backyard but it is rocky/weedy. anything on the ground has to be done inside. we have a soccer ball. We are 15 minutes away from a park and I'm not willing to do that drive on a daily basis since we have 4-8 hours weekly in a car already. There is no good area to bike in our neighborhood. Are there exercise DVDs for kids that you guys have used and liked? Or an exercise program/list of exercisese to do outside that seems more wellrounded than "run around for 10 minutes"? TIA!

Kids are 10, 8, 6, 2. (Older two will be 11 and 9 within the month) We did get the book but haven't been using it. It will probably be just on the shelf for the kids to browse through when they want to. I won't say it's not helpful, but we have enough with the box to keep us occupied, and I don't want to throw too much at them.

Yes!* *A little bit, lol We've received the first box in October, next box will be coming in the next week or so. So far so good! The kids really enjoy it much more than the other curriculum we are doing (Spanish for Children) and it immediately got us talking in Spanish. We've had a crazy couple months and haven't given it half the attention it deserves, but we are still speaking Spanish around a lot of food. The kids' accents are starting to improve. The 2yo has immediately taken to it especially and my mom (who's original language is Spanish) is overjoyed to have her walking around asking for naranjas y queso, lol. The app is helpful, and the charts are used every day. The app has a good accent, slightly different than what is used in my family, but one of the better ones I've heard and I like that the kids have a good model. We are still struggling with some of the vocabulary, mostly the foods that aren't eaten on a daily or weekly basis, so the charts will probably stay up another couple months at least. We are primarily concerned with being able to do conversational Spanish, as we're in the minority as English-only-language in this area, and it's a part of my heritage that I want to pass on (I am not fluent, either, so I guess a part of my heritage I want to reclaim). I'm not as concerned with formal grammar at this point, though they are picking some of that up naturally (and 4 weeks of the Spanish with Children and past attempts seems to have given them the basic structure to apply to this program). I've never paid this much for 1 single curriculum before, and wasn't sure I was going to let the subscription continue. Now, I'm definitely intending to stick with this.

I think that's the gift you give when you want out of the relationship but are too chicken to do it yourself, LOL

I don't have experience with the programs you mentioned. I have 2 lefties, my 10yo and my 6yo. New American Cursive worked well for one, and seems to be working for the second one as well. It's cursive, I couldn't tell if that was okay for what you were looking for. The copybook is coiled on the top so it doesn't get in the way of the left hand, they have reminders on paper orientation for both right and lefthanded users. Also, my now-10yo started when she was 5 and wasn't too difficult for her.

Well, the good thing is half of the house was rewired in the 00's, so that it could support the washing machine. So it's only the bedrooms that need to be looked at. The house is already going down pretty cold if it's cold outside. It doesn't seem to retain heat very well. So you only have to do the water drip thing when it's in the 20s, not 32? And, why remove hoses from yard faucets? I've wrapped the yard faucets with old towels, plus they had some insulation already. Are hoses an issue? No, we haven't turned on the heaters yet, but I'll try this out when we do. So, I don't actually know how to get into the attic area of the house; I know there has to be space up there since the roof it slanted, but I don't see any openings into there from the house. Can I insulate the ceiling from the house side? Like, putting heavy fabric along the ceiling, or something? I couldn't do it for every room, but maybe down the hallway and in the school room if it would actually help. Okay, and I was looking for the thermal underclothes people have mentioned, and I saw both"thermal underwear" and "performance baselayers" . I'm wondering if one would be better than the other for layering? Or, do these function basically the same?

I literally have been doing this dance all day! I'm looking for something not "all-weather" and that has good reviews. Found a couple and have some in my cart, but glad I saw this thread before I pulled the trigger

It is seeming like she baked/cooked during the day and froze at night. There were no curtain rods on the large windows, the curtains in bedrooms were thin, windows don't seal, etc. Maybe she slept sometimes in the room with the heater? But I think she just endured the cold more; there were a lot of crocheted blankets but nothing else you guys are describing for warmth. I did not know this is a thing!! Thanks, it looks like we do. Will have to see how it works since we don't own the house, but this is awesome. Ahh, we have these as screen doors for during the summer to get a breeze through the door without the bugs. didn't know they had thick type as well, thanks. Yeah, my Amazon cart is adding up 😳 But I found flannel sheets at Ross today and some wool socks, too, so hopefully I can just keep an eye out and gather things slowly before it gets too cold. But yeah, I should get an electrician anyway and see what's actually going on. But, some things should be done regardless, like the windows and flannel sheets, so I'll do the easy stuff now too. eta: Up to this point we've been fixing issues like plumbing, the mold, broken doors, sealing cracks, etc., and the electric got pushed to the side. And since we don't use the bedrooms during the day (and the summer it wasn't needed at night) it was easy to push aside. But now that we're at the point where the electric is an obstacle to daily living it should be moved up the list.

Thanks you guys, this is all super helpful!! Just to make sure I'm imagining this correctly: do you have a curtain rod above your door, then hang a curtain in front of the door as if it was a window? No, moving is not possible at this point. I'm reminding myself that my nana lived in this house for ~40 years until she was 95, and it was her dream house (so, much better than what she had for most of her life). So, a brave face and whatever I can do to make it warmer seems to be my best bet 🙂 I had someone else quoted but just deleted accidentally and can't find again, but some people have suggest merino wool and others have said smartwool. Are these the only two types of wool I should be considering? Or, is one good for blankets and the other better for socks?

Thanks for all of the suggestions!! I'll try to answer the questions Okay, I'll keep them trickling, the plumbing has enough problems as it is, lol. I can put a bucket at least on the kitchen sink so it can go out to the garden in the morning. The shower already has a leak so that's a win I guess ? lol Correct. Only heating we have are two small gas heaters built into the wall. They are situated so that they won't really heat up anything except the rooms they are in. Can you warm these up in an oven or does it have to be microwave? Wow, there are a lot of different type of heaters! Thanks for this We don't own, and while we are allowed to make any changes we want to the house, I don't know if we'll be here long enough to recoup the cost. No to both. I do know that there is no insulation in the walls, we had to repair some mold when we moved in and found out when we opened up the wall. And the gaps...well, this is the definition of a ramshackle house, lol. But! we got through the monsoon season with no real leaks so that counts for a lot. Another type of heater, wow! All the ones I'm seeing need to be plugged in, is there another type that I am missing? I was told it's best not to plug anything stronger than a lamp into the room outlets "just in case." So, we just don't plug anything in.

This is our first year where we are going to actually have a cold winter. Average low will be 20-30 at night, highs during the day are 40-50. According to "averages", there are 4 months of the year to expect this fabled snow, Dec-Mar, around 3" each month. So obviously not the coldest, but still a change in how we need to think. (And I know, some of you will not call my winter cold at all) Main problem I see is at night: the wiring in this house is old, and wouldn't have met code even when it was built. We cannot use space heaters in the bedrooms. Electric blankets are a no go as well. The windows are correspondingly old, the panes are thin and the windows are not tight (there is 1/2" gap between the different window sections) so they seep a lot of chill even now. The main room and the bathroom have built-in gas heaters, but other than maybe one bedroom, the heat will not travel effectively through the house. I've started searching for comforters. What else would you do to stay warm at night?

Everything sealed, I heard pops, and can lift the cans by the lid. The plums were raw packed, not heated before canning. I did can with sugar, yes. Main concern is botulism but hoping plums are high acidity for that to be an issue. Called my cooperative extension office but they are closed until Monday. Guess we'll wait and see.

So, this is my first year canning. I had a bunch of plums that needed to be done, canned whole. I read a bunch of recipes and chose the one that seemed the most average, since the recipes did not seem to vary much. Canned with 25 minutes in boiling water. A few days later I did peaches. But this time when I was reading about canning peaches, one site talked about adjusting for your elevation. So, I adjusted the final peach recipe for altitude (I'm between 5100-5500 ft) by adding 10 minutes. But now, I'm looking at all these plums and thinking they weren't adjusted for altitude, because I didn't know about it. Are these safe? Can I eat them all within another week and be okay? A day? Or just toss? I'm super sad about it but don't want to poison anyone.

Thank you for the wordings, those are very helpful, much simpler and direct. To reply to some questions: @Attolia He's been considering it for the past 8 months at least, longer for some family members. Some conversations in the past couple weeks have been unhappy events and has started having panic attacks at the thought of continuing to have contact with them. @gardenmom5 Yes there is narcissism (imo) in one of his brothers and his dad. His level of current contact with his dad is maybe 2-3 phone calls a year about an hour each (Christmas, Father's Day, his dad's birthday). Previously we thought this would be enough space (has been like this 3-4 years), the past week has shown it's not. His brother is more sporadic, maybe 3 conversations a year + holidays. Basically any more limiting is cutting contact. We've thought about just sending Christmas and birthday cards, but don't know if there's really any point to keeping up the pretense at that point. @TechWife I'm #2 for at least one of them on POA 😕. We don't want to leave them in a lurch and we don't want to spring the news on them when they need a POA, but we can't fulfill the role anymore so we'll bring that up in the same convo. @Tanaqui He doesn't really know; he definitely feels like making a forever move but is trying to take it one step at a time. This isn't really a happy outcome for him because he really did put a lot of effort into trying to mend bridges, be the good son, good brother, etc. But, it's taken a big toll and things don't improve if he's the only one putting in the effort. So, at least a break until after next Easter, that is the minimum length of time for him. He's starting with a new therapist and working through a couple recommended books, he'll probably make a final decision once he's worked through those. @Farrar exactly re: different approaches. I think any approach is going to make them mad. I mean, we missed Christmas one year because we were sick and saw them the week before for a different family function, the next three years we were accused of skipping Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Years and told that we needed to put more emphasis on family and how hurt they were we didn't even try the whole season to see them, etc. So I don't really see a way that this goes without a lot of angry calls. But I also want to get it out of the way now so hopefully there won't be so much trying to contact around the holidays. So he's leaning towards a text message to his mom cancelling the playdate and saying he is taking a break from the family. Also one to his dad, much shorter, saying he will be taking a break and will not be contacting him for the foreseeable future. Then letting the news trickle to the brothers and not return any texts/calls. He may return the call of the neutral brother, but neutral brother does not reach out typically. We recently moved 2 hours away and have not given out our address.

Please don't quote, I'll delete details later. So, not me, but DH. It's gotten to the point that he wants to at least take a long break from his family, perhaps permanent but he's not sure yet. One brother is not necessarily included, but I personally think his hand will be forced there by the rest of the family. This is probably going to be a surprise to them, and he has always been the most dutiful out of the brothers (he's POA and executor for both parents for example, which is also something he wants to decline now). I don't know if details are really necessary to get appropriate advice; suffice to say that he was abused as a kid and there has been no mutual respect or apologies as an adult, and his attempts to talk about what's bothering him have been unsuccessful or unsatisfactory. So, to those who have been in this position, or think you have a constructive ideas on how to approach this: what do you recommend? Just ghost them? Block on phone? Tell them individually that he is going to go quiet for a while (his parents are divorced)? Don't reach out and just tell them if they ever reach out themselves? We have a 2 hour playdate set up with his mom in October, he wants to cancel that, so it seems something will need to be said to make it clear (I agree with the cancellation). He does not want to do holidays with them this year either, so I think ghosting will not work since they will get more persistent in contacting him right before Thanksgiving. And, since there is details that need to be address, like the POA, it can't be put off forever. But maybe there is an option/approach I am not considering?

And those who put those supposed-to-be-cap-down bottles always cap-up, so you can never use the pour-quickly feature you bought the bottle for! And then put the can't-hold-stuff-in-caps upside down so there is a little puddle on the fridge door you don't notice until you take out a package 3 bottles down >(

I've never seen the goose thing (probably because we don't have much in the way of lawns and gardens) BUT in my parents neighborhood there is a giraffe! His neck and head stick out above their wall. And they put on hats and neckties for the holidays. Last time I saw him he was wearing a straw hat and luau flowers.

I'm sorry for her stress, and also for yours by association. I do know that a high-achieving friend in college officially requested not to know their grades for the junior and senior year because it was overwhelming for them, they were obsessed with the grade, not with the education, and were starting to have panic attacks. I don't know if this would help or just exacerbate for your daughter, but a thought maybe of something along these lines that can be incorporated into the balance (limiting extra activities to things that require minimal delayed feedback, etc).

Cut the squash up (1/2 to inch squares), add a chopped tomato and a onion if you want. Saute with a little olive oil until soft, add salt, can add thyme/oregano and cheese (optional). You can add garlic if you want, too.

We've liked the Virtues in Practice program, and the faith/hope/charity year breakdown fits the happier focus you're looking for (mostly). It's not quite enough to do everyday, we do 1-2 days a week on it but focus on the virtue of the month throughout the week. You could go deeper on either the virtue or the saint of the month. Bonus, it's free and has multiple levels; so if you are doing it with a younger and an older, you'll get twice the saints for the month (idk how the virtues sync up). Daily we do a few set prayers and work on a psalm (usually from the Sunday mass) for memorization, and I've been teaching them the traditional songs that they haven't really gotten exposed to yet.

Thank you for the suggestions! Alas, in my impatience I found a copy of Spanish for Children by Classical Academic Press. It looked like maybe it could be less teacher intensive, and maybe in future chapters it will be, but it's a bit more than I was hoping for, lol. It doesn't focus (as of yet) onto conversational Spanish like I wanted, but at least they are getting introduced to it and hopefully it'll give them a good foundation so the next program we do will be successful. A lot of the suggestions here look perfect, so thank you! I'll definitely be doing some of these once we finish up this first program.

Do they like spicy food? Right now chile relleno is on my weekly rotation. Paired with Spanish rice and refried beans on the side it can be pretty filling; add tortillas . But, you mention cholesterol, and this does take eggs, so maybe not the best fit. - lentil soup without ham/bacon. - stirfry with shitake mushrooms and/or tofu instead of meats. My DH doesn't even need the mushrooms or tofu, he will do veggie stir fry quite happily. ymmv on that lol. shitake mushrooms are better from dried than canned if possible, I was shocked how much of a difference it can make (I know you mentioned mushrooms are not generally a good sub in your household) - as mentioned above, tacos or tostadas with beans instead of meat as the base. - okra gumbo (again spicy, or optional spicy). I usually cut the shrimp down and have done without the shrimp as well. - a bunch of pasta sauces are meatless, especially with summer and fall produce. We have a few favorites that are peppers-based.

For learning new things this well, I need to learn to make cooler dinners! But I have chicken in the fridge so tonight is another hot one. New subjects this year: Spanish (more formal), Creativity, Nature Study/Botany/To Not Kill Plants (first time we have a garden!), Drawing (more formal). For the kindergartner it is all new to him, though.

Hey Scrap, we are down around Bisbee now. A bit hotter in our actual location than the weather service says, but overall cooler than the valleys: in the winter it is fully expected to have snow. We can see the border from our front yard, it's an interesting place to live. We've had a few hard rains, but definitely not as much as it should have been. The weeds, though, don't seem to mind... 😉