RKWAcademy
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Posts posted by RKWAcademy
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I have a Lego obsessed DS. It took me awhile to give up the idea that a set must be built and remain as that set. My son has other ideas. He usually builds the set as intended. And then the set is torn apart and reworked into many different designs - mostly a battleship or gun or cannon or other weapon. The really expensive Star Wars sets remain together and up on a shelf (particularly if it is a retired set I had to pay more $ for because it is only available secondhand). Everything else becomes random building blocks (ALL OVER THE HOUSE). I think I've finally accepted that it is a good thing that he's using his imagination. He really does build unique creations. I don't know how to answer your question because my son has no qualms with mixing and tearing apart sets. Maybe just buy one of the books mentioned above and tell him to use his existing pieces for something new?
I also have to be careful with letting my son know certain sets exist! He's only almost 6, so not yet into Harry Potter. But my nephew is into HP but the sets were all released many years ago and are retired. Same with some good Star Wars sets, which my son is VERY MUCH into.
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I don't know about either of those, except for that age, pretty good mileage. My 2005 Tahoe has 210,000 miles! But, I used to commute 60 mi per day for work.
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I give books to the library for their annual sale.
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I would ask what I could bring. When they say nothing, bring something anyway, even if it is simple like a bottle of wine, a plant, flowers, dessert, something Easter related.
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My son has Apraxia. He's now almost 6 and has been in speech therapy for over 3 years (doing well!). I suggest if your pediatrician is concerned, have him evaluated by a speech therapist. For over a year around age 3, I used something called Speak Nutrients. I watched a youtube video by the developer who is a doctor with a son with Apraxia. I can't say it necessarily helped, but he did make good strides in Speech Therapy that year. They aren't cheap but neither is speech therapy.
By the way, my pediatrician only referred us because I asked to be referred. She didn't think it was anything to worry about at first. A lot of kids, boys more often I think, are late talkers. And my speech therapist goes back and forth on the diagnosis, so it's pretty mild.
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I use it with my 5 year olds. They love it. However, if they were much older, I don't think they'd get much from it without a lot of supplementing. We don't do the craft, and we do each "week" in one day, including the state(s) (which is their choice). We read the supplemental books, too. Of course it takes us more than a day to read the chapter books. I think for much older kids (like maybe your 9 year old), it wouldn't be worth getting it because there isn't that much to it. Beautiful Feet has an early American guide. I have trouble with it because I need secular material and it is difficult to make secular. But, it has an excellent book list in the back that I use to request books and add to Adventures in America (some books are in both).
We are early in Adventures in America but we enjoy it. It has made my kids love to hear about early America. They already loved everything Indian/Native American beforehand, so they are so excited to read various stories about Pocahontas and Squanto. They can tell you who were Leif the Lucky and Eric the Red (Beautiful Feet). They light up and beg for history now. So, something is working for now.
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My kids are 5, so take this with a grain of salt. I'm 38 now, so my high school was probably mild compared to what schools are like today. But, I went to a large public high school in a perfectly fine town, and I'm not especially socially adept. I'm an introvert, to put it mildly. Still, I wish my parents had taken me out and homeschooled me. None of us knew that was possible. I would have put up a giant stink about it, but it would have been the BEST thing for me in my situation.
College would have been easier (and I would have made a better choice in colleges, too). I even skipped a year of high school because it was so easy and I was so miserable in that environment. Academically, homeschooling would have (or could have if done right) challenged me when high school stopped challenging me. Then, when I got to college, I would have known how to study. I thought grades were just handed to me because high school was so easy. Not really the case where real academics are concerned.
I don't have much advice for your situation other than to say, I'm a case where I should have been pulled from high school - and I would have been mad at the time because I was on the varsity team for my sport, in the top 10 of a class of 800, and in some clubs. It still would have been best for me.
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I second Space Camp as an enjoyable aside. I went to the one in Huntsville, AL many years ago (I don't know if that is the only one in the country). I think I was about 12. Lots of fun around the space theme. Plus, it's fun to just tour the rocket center. There is a lot more there now than when I was a kid.
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I'm as surprised to be answering this as you are to be asking. My kids like the Trader Joe's brand. It is uncured, no nitrates or nitrites. There is a name brand type available in various places that is grass-fed. I just can't think of the name. It is beside the TJ brand at TJ. If you don't have one of those, I think I've seen them at Target or Whole Foods. Hope that helps!
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I like Trader Joe's a lot. However, their produce is not great. If you have a big budget and are making really healthy changes, Whole Foods is nice. Really great produce and interesting specialty foods. But people don't call it Whole Paycheck for nothing. I go to Whole Foods maybe 4 times a year. I go to Trader Joe's once or twice per month. Neither are close to me. I pass WF to get to my TJ. I wish I could afford to buy my produce from WF. I just get produce at Kroger or Costco because they are better than TJ on most things. But at TJ, I buy frozen vegetables, chicken, peanut butter, crackers, cheese, occasional lunch meat, tortillas, olive oil, dried fruit, nuts, and other miscellaneous staples. They do have their share of junk food, so I don't assume everything is necessarily health just because it's TJ.
I went to an Earth Fare once and was surprised how expensive it was.
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The advice here, and everywhere, including from doctors, is going to be mixed. I've watched my dad develop diabetes - it runs very heavily in his family and he's always been a slight man with a good diet. His solution was drastically reducing carbs. In your situation, I'd start a diabetes diet to reverse the progression in that direction. But, like I said, the advice is everywhere and all over the board - low fat/high carb, high fat/low carb, vegan, atkins, etc. Hard to know just what to do. But, my first step would be cutting sugar and other non-veggie carbs. I'd load up on veggies over fruit (so hard, I love fruit). I wouldn't cut fat from non-meat sources. I'd eat nuts, avocados, coconut oil, etc. Lots of luck.
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We really like oatmeal, too, but I always find that it never quite satisfies. An hour or two after having some- ravishing hunger. I've even done baked oatmeal with egg in it to no avail. If you (or anyone) has recommendations how to make oatmeal fill you up and keep you from getting hungry not too long after, I'd love to hear it.
You could turn your oatmeal into homemade granola made with coconut oil and maple syrup. Add nuts or dried fruit or coconut. Much more fat makes it much more filling. My kids won't eat it, though. And I don't make it just for me :sad:
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My go-to cheap dinners are:
Breakfast for dinner - eggs, pancakes, we add bacon or sausage sometimes, grits, etc.Spaghetti and Meatballs - I make the sauce from big cans of tomatoes from Costco (I use Alton Brown's recipe, loosely, and freeze extras), Meatballs from Costco meat, you could use gluten-free pasta or zoodles (zucchini made into noodles)
Taco salads - full of avocado which ups the price, kids get quesadillas or tacos because they are otherwise appalled at salads as dinner.
Soups/Stews - leek soup (leeks are ridiculously overpriced at the store and take FOREVER to grow yourself), tomato soup, corn chowder, tortellini soup, beef stew
Chili
Baked Potatoes loaded with whatever - broccoli and cheese
Oops, it seems difficult for me to remove the meat from my meals! It's easier for me to remove the gluten. I make a large black bean salad often. Of course, I'm the only one who would consider that a meal. How about nacho/tostado combo - like nachos but include refried beans, etc like a tostado.
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I'm in a similar situation. I'm an atheist that doesn't fit the very liberal, wear their atheism as a badge kind of person. I'm pretty politically conservative but just happen not to believe in God. Outside my family, I'm often not sure there are others like me. Glad to know you're out there. I just have no advice because it's something I'm really struggling with too, particularly since we started homeschooling. The friends I connect with most tend to end up being pretty liberal. It doesn't bother me at all until political conversations come up, then I just cringe and almost never speak my mind. So, I'm a non-believing libertarian (who more highly values fiscal conservatism than social liberalism, although that is my "mix") in a world where most people are more polar opposite at least one aspect of that.
I do agree with a PP that said not to join a church just for the social aspect. I've tried that and it never works. Even if the members are welcoming and kind, it just never feels right to me, and I can't stomach the religion. From the few I've tried, I think it permeates everything they do. And I don't mean that negatively, just that it is who they are. They are proud and vocal about it. As they should be in their churches.
I feel for you. Hang in there.
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RKWAcademy- The scope and sequence of MUS concerns me a bit, too. What do you see as the differences between MM and SM? I find it interesting that they are allegedly so similar but your kids had very different feelings towards them.
The content of MM and SM are very similar. I don't think you can go wrong with either, if they work for you. My kids are just about to turn 6 and technically still in kindergarten. So, they are still young. They enjoyed the color and pictures of SM. SM has the home instructor's guide which really helped me, and walked me through the manipulatives (a lot of times I did my own thing but the HIG is good). MM was boring for them. I've seen mentioned that some people cover some of the problems or cut the pages to make MM less overwhelming. At this point, we just all like the whole SM package. For my kids, it was probably all about color and pictures and a gentler approach. But, it moves swiftly and the kids are retaining it. For what it's worth, we do the mental math a lot (from HIG). they jump on the trampoline while they do it. It works for us and they remind me to do it if I go too long without requiring it.
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My library will only hold books for 3 days and they are shipped from all branches in the county. So, when I request a book, I never know when it will arrive. So, some weeks I have to go more than once. It is close to other activities for the kids, but it is still 30 minutes from my house.
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We are just barely into first grade math. We did MUS Primer and Singapore Essentials for K. My kids loved Singapore. One did well with MUS primer for some basics but they dreaded the worksheets and the slow pace. For first grade math, because they were still so young, I decided to experiment to see what would fit with them. They HATED MM. It took less than two weeks to determine those worksheets weren't for them, at that age. Maybe I wasn't teaching it right. But they went from loving math to hating it very quickly. So, I went back to Singapore 1A. They love it. It works for all of us. They like the colorful books, and I like the HIG. But we also use some RightStart games and the abacus. I never tried MUS Alpha because I didn't like the scope and sequence of MUS. Not sure that helps with your question, but my answer would be neither MUS or MM.
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Fantastic Mr Fox and James and the Giant Peach. Quick reads. Very enjoyable.
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I generally don't eat warm breakfasts, unless it involves eggs.
How about:
Kind bar - nuts, low sugar
Nuts and fruit
GF pancakes (? for warm food)
Smoothies - protein powder, greek yogurt, fruit - could use almond milk and fruit to make dairy free.
Greek yogurt with strawberries
muffins
baked eggs - would those smell to you?
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I wash, then iron. Avoids possibility of colors bleeding or shrinking causing puckering at the seams. But I'm not even close to being an expert. I might make an exception if I bought a jelly roll or other precut pieces. In that case, the fraying from washing would make the pieces uneven and difficult to work with.
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I've been using the advice to put everything in a Wish List or cart for at least one month and if I find myself still needing it a month later, then I can buy it. I've been doing this for the past year and I'm shocked to see how very little I've bought during that time because I simply waited one month. Maybe you should try that. :coolgleamA:
I try to do this, too. Especially for used books, I have to avoid buying with 1 click. If I put it in my cart or wish list for awhile, sometimes the book shows up anyway (because I already ordered it!). This says two things - I'm not organized enough and used books through media mail take FOREVER compared to 2 Day Prime! Maybe it says two more things - I'm big on instant gratification and I order too many books!
Seriously, I do save a lot by thinking about things in my cart for longer than a day. Very often I'll decide the library wait time isn't too long or I just don't need something.
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I can watch you do it but I cannot do it. There is just too much likelihood that I will NEED something in the next month. I thought at one point I might add an Amazon line item to my budget. Instead, I just left it all lumped in school/kid activities, knowing full well that a nice little chunk is for Amazon. Yes, my books come from that budget, too. It's my "School".
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You should be very proud of your son! I feel your frustration and share it. Secular activities are hard to find near me. Even when I find secular moms, I end up feeling like not a fit because they are more..um...crunchy? liberal? than I am. My kids are so young I haven't experienced much YE. In fact I never knew such belief existed until I started researching science curriculum. I generally just bop along with my non-belief and get along (i.e. smile and keep my mouth shut because I prefer to live in a predominately Christian society), so I had no idea of some of the various beliefs out there. And my husband is Christian and he didn't know about YE either. Of course he's not a very good Christian in that, while he went to bible college at one point 20 years ago, he doesn't attend church and married a ... me!
For activities, mostly I'd just be silent and teach my children my beliefs at home, if the opportunity was overall worthwhile (for instance a Landry Academy lab). Otherwise, I'd not let them participate. I'd find an alternative if you are that concerned about the camp with the cell phone issue.
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Martial arts. Swim team. Diving. Ballet. Soccer.
Let's talk Legos!
in The Chat Board
Posted
Keep him away from Star Wars, then. They can be $400 easily. Of course, my son and I are getting the Ewok Village next Christmas together! We've been talking about it since last Christmas. We both can't wait. :drool5: . But Santa has to save up for that one. His obsessions are probably all my fault. I encourage the behavior. I guess I didn't get Lego when I was a kid. I enjoy "helping" him. Maybe that's why it's so hard for me to see him tear a set apart.