Melissa in St Louis -- on so many levels, what you've invited us to watch is incredibly fascinating. The chances of me being in St Louis are slim to none, but if IF IF -- I'd definitely do dinner and a foo-foo drink at your restaurant. Very inspiring! T

I'll check out your recommendation, 74Heaven. Thank you.

Lovely report . . . thank you ladies. Singapore Science for the next two - three years, with Apologia on the horizon. Lisawa - your response made me giggle. T

Apologia Science is on my radar for the years leading up to highschool, for years 7 - 9. What did you use in preparation for Apologia . . . My boys are heading into 3rd and 4th. I want to use Singapore Science starting in the fall and leading up to Apologia . . . has anyone followed this route? TY Tricia

My favourites for marriage/relationship building/freedom and joy in the midst of partnership: Captivated by John/Stacy Eldredge (already recommended above but it's so good -- I read it with my heart . . . ) Love and Respect (can't remember the author off the top of my head) T

I would take a look at Brave Writer - it's a really special writing program which puts an emphasis on writing well *and* happily. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BraveWriterMoms/ I'm not exclusively classical in my hs'ing approach - this program gets mixed reviews here. For our family, being a "Brave Writer" has revolutionized how we do writing -- it's a great fit. HTH's a little bit and welcome!

This is my favorite spot for sleuthing out Canadian content. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/cmcanada/ Join the group and look under files -- a plethora of uniquely Canadian history goodies. And we're in Halifax -- welcome to the WTM community! Warmly, Tricia

Yes, I'm right there with you. Since we started to renovate our other property, my own home has gone to "you know where" in a basket. After we do school, I just try to do a bit of laundry, find the countertops and sweep. It will have to be what it is, just for now. You'll "attack" your mess when you've got the headspace. In my case, it's the crazy "all or nothing" personality -- I want it all done now, or I'm not doing any of it . . . ever. lol Be blessed as you tidy, or not. Love, Tricia

I am against an increase in domestic drilling -- oil & gas companies are all about the bottom line -- $$$. They care very little about run-off, ponds of sludge, wild-life habitat, people -- it's all about $$. If, IF IF, big O & G corporations found a way to balance their bottom line with a sincere desire to work within the fragile environmental eco-systems, than maybe I could support that. As the industry currently operates -- no.

The classic case of risk-reward. We've had no problems with any of our units. Management is key.

I like this idea: it was the pastor's wife who originally got you into this mess, and since you've not been able to successfully orchestrate the return of your books, let the pastor's wife get them back for you. My approach -- it's probably the "bull in a chinashop method" --- I'd tell the other mom that you need you stuff by certain day at certain time, and if it's not in your possession, you'll be knocking on her door and not leaving until you have your stuff. Bring a lawn chair for added humour. Good luck. Tricia

We love Miquon in tandem by book 3. After book 3, my boys do Miquon and MEP. I attribute my older son's mathiness to the thinking he did with Miquon and the cuisenaire books, as a preK'er and K'er. T

I think I'll spend a few years eating bon-bons on the couch.

Really nervous to throw this out to the hive, but so be it. When we were living downtown in our very small square footage semi, we had no space to breathe, let alone manage a truck-load of birthday presents. I asked all the parents to bring along a toonie (A Canadian $2 coin) and a poem for my son. Of course, some parents brought a bit more, but I don't think anyone brought more than $5. I didn't do treat bags either. We then took him to a toy store, and he bought one gift, for the sake of space. Tacky? Practical?

Totally depends on the kid and the family. For our dearest dear friends, I might drop $40 a kid. For the neighbour up the street, $15 would be a stretch. For friends in our church who are struggling financially, I might buy a really special gift for the child and give it to Mom and Dad -- they can decide what to do next. It just all depends . . . I'm absolutely no help! *sigh* - why do I bother posting my useless answers? T

Grace-Based Parenting -- revolutionized our family life, almost two years ago now.

I wouldn't pay that much to just have the square footage cut in and rolled, but since this painter is also willing to do trim, cabinets, doors and double coat -- the whole nine-yards . . . I think it's a great price. Will he do the prep work as well for that price? (fill the holes, fix any surface cracks with painter's caulk) The professional painter I know would quote around $2500 for the square footage you've mentionned and he wouldn't go near the trim, doors or cabinetry for that price. Good luck! Tricia

{Under normal circumstances} We are in the "rare to never" eater-outers category. We just spent the last two weeks renovating the first of two semi's in preparation for a May 1st lease . . . and we've eaten out so much, it's embarassing. Wendy's McD's twice Take Out Pizza twice And the other meals consisted of: grilled cheese, soup, sandwiches. *sigh* Another few months of crazy staring at me. On a positive note, we're still plugging with school in the mornings and the laundry pile is up to date. We're gonna be ok. Haven't been here all that often -- but hope you are all well, enjoying spring, planning fall curr, playing hard . . . Warmly, Tricia

Hi there, tell me how much of a time committment was it to turn the SWR text into worksheets. I like the concept of SWR, we work with the phonograms and use the spelling ideas, but worksheets -- I need worksheets so I can say to older -- here, you do this while I work with youngers . . . I find it tough to manage in the run of our day. Tricia

Sticking my big toe into this conversation: I think it absolutely depends on the disposition of the child . . . my first son would thrive in an intense academic environment. He doesn't need "fun" as a pre-requisitie simply b/c learning is fun in his world. He's very competitive and would see the work-load as a challenge. My second son, on the other hand, would shrivel up and die in the academic class you described. He'd need more interaction, more social time . . . I guess you have to decide based on your child's nature. Will the academics spur her on into deeper waters, or leave her ship-wrecked on the beach? Good luck with your decision. Tricia

In all fairness, this is the first "historical documentary" I've watched so I had nothing to compare to . . . the maps reminded me of Google Earth on high speed. lol. The costumes were great . . . I loved how my littles got a sense of the size of Persia compared to the Greeks. DH commented that he'd feel less a man with a broom on his head, but whatever works.

Hi there, I'm a Latin Newbie . . . we started Lively Latin in January. It was my fabulous experience with English from the Roots Up that actually softened me for actual Latin study. Now, it's one of our favorite subjects and LL rounds out the learning experience. Grammar, vocab, derivatives, history, art appreciation . . . I find the derivatives stick longer, because we play with the same 12 words for a bit longer. EFRU is a great program, and I'll return to it when the kids are a bit older. Tricia

Hi Hivers, We watched this History Channel Documentary last night and were all thrilled. If you want to see the Spartan warriors in full dress and how they battled, this is for you. A note of caution: I did tell the Peachlets to close their eyes a few times, like when they were showing the strength of the Spartan women (she would beat off unwelcome advances), when the Spartan Warrior was whipping the young trainees (tmi for our eyes, even mine) and language like "h*lluva". The historians are fabulous story-tellers, funny, engaging. I just liked the whole thing. Overall, I know we'll be watching this many times, and I'll be looking for other movies in this same genre. The computer graphics were unbelievable and I'm awed by how much my boys enjoyed this movie. Tricia

This is such a lovely place to be! Enjoy. My dear friend and experienced hs'er was the first to tell me that trusting God for the details was a great path. The proof is in her pudding . . . her third daughter (who hs'ed until ninth grade) was just awarded the Governor General's Award for academics in high school.

GWG starting at third grade. Very impressed with how quickly, easily, painlessly that we've worked grammar into the routine.