Wow! Thanks for all the great ideas so far. I'm compiling a list; thinking about turning the list over to my DDs to research each and decide where they want to go.

DD is just finishing up her first CC course through dual enrollment as a 10th grader. I recommend talking to someone in the dual enrollment office of the CC. They hopefully have a good understanding of the courses that will transfer and could make suggestions, depending on your student's interests. DD made an appointment a few weeks ago and talked to a gentleman in the dual enrollment office about the courses she is planning to take over the next couple of years. He was able to tell her specifically which courses would transfer to our state flagship university (where DD will likely be heading) but also understood that she may have other reasons for taking a particular course. She found the meeting very helpful. Also, I just have to add that it is not just dual enrolled students that don't abide by course deadlines. Over half the class failed in DD's course, primarily by not showing up and/or not turning in work. She is the only dual enrolled student in the class and is getting one of the few A's.

I've been to North Carolina many times but we usually just visit the in-laws. This year, I want to extend our trip to see and do the North Carolina sights. I welcome any suggestions, from the coast on the east to the mountains on the west. If it helps, our DDs are 13 and 16. It will likely be in the July. Thanks!

Thanks, everyone. It looks like it is unanimous to spring for the Wii U. DH volunteered that a new Wii U system could also count towards his father's day and birthday gifts. I appreciate the note that the new system will not play Game Cube games. Fortunately, we still have our old Game Cube system and it works fine. I do like to go back and play a few of those games on occasion. Mario Kart racing on the cruise ship, anyone?!?

We had a Wii but loaned it to a friend who broke it. I told DH that I'd like a new Wii (~$130) for Mother's Day so that I could play our old games. Instead, he's trying to talk me into the Wii U (~$300 basic to $350 deluxe). He says that it will still play the old Wii games. I know that DH and our DDs would enjoy new games for the Wii U as well. So, is the Wii U worth the extra cost?

You could hang a shoe organizer on the back of the garage door. Inexpensive and keeps all the shoes off the floor without blocking the narrow hallway with a box or basket. Edited to add picture. . .

I'm a long-time fan of MUS bit I'm a bit skeptical about this 2013 update. I think it has been made for commercial reasons, to make the curriculum meet the common core standards so that it can be marketed to public schools. The FAQ alludes to this: Q. How does this affect our school customers? A. It varies depending on state; many now have guidelines requiring schools to purchase only Common Core aligned textbooks, and almost all of the 45 states will be introducing tests based on Common Core standards starting in 2014.

Thank you for the article link. It has some great practical tips. Airing out the house once a week is definitely something that I can do.

Little Big Planet, rated E, fun Edited to add: Ni no Kuni Wrath of the White Witch, rated E 10+

Thank you for the advice! Now to find those off valves. She should be safe from the danger of frozen pipes for the next several months and if needed, will have the gas turned back on by then. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the house will sell well before then!

i do not intentionally wake my children. DD16 wakes naturally on her own. It used to be between 7:00 and 7:30 but recently it has been 6:15 on the dot. She has always been an early riser. DD13 will sleep until between 8:00 and 9:00 if undisturbed. However, she usually wakes up hearing me and DD16 moving around and chooses to get up with us. IMHO, the 6-yo needs a much earlier bedtime if you are expecting her up and ready to do school by 9:00. Maybe to bed around 7:30 pm with lights out at 8:00, giving her a full 12 hours to sleep.

We've had good luck getting recommendations from our dentists. They see the results of orthodontia treatments after all. Really, you just need to visit and get a consultation from a few orthodontists. You'll get a good feel for their approach and bedside manner. The orthodontist that both my DDs have used has a large office with just the one orthodontist. He oversees everything but his assistants do most of the actual hands-on work. His treatment room is a large open room with several treatment chairs in a row. Each patient has an assistant working on them and the orthodontist visits from chair to chair to check progress and decide how the treatment will progress. He is very open and friendly and will take the time to answer any questions that the patient (or parent) has to ask. Parents are welcome in the treatment room. I had adult orthodontia a couple years go and the orthodontist I saw had a completely different set up. He was older with a smaller office and did almost all of my treatment himself. He had an assistant but she did not do much of the hands-on treatment. Instead, she readied the room and supplies for him. We were comfortable with both arrangements and feel the treatment we received was excellent. Prices were very similar (around $5K) You definitely want to find an orthodontist who will listen to your questions and concerns. The type of braces they use isn't critical, you can get good results with Damon or conventional braces. The ortho actually gave my younger DD a choice between the two. We ended up choosing conventional braces because the brackets don't stick out as far AND DD has fun picking colors for the ligatures each visit.

We've had pretty good luck over the years with established cats eventually accepting new cats/kittens. However, we did have one adult cat run off and disappear when we brought home 2 new kittens. He was also an adult stray who chose us as his home and my DH is convinced he just decided that the 2 kittens were an indignity that he didn't have to tolerate. I hope it works out at your house.

I've been considering "One Year Adventure Novel" as a creative writing course. It doesn't fit all your criteria, however, since it is not inexpensive and would cover a full year's worth of work (1 credit). Still, I've been reading mostly positive reviews and it can be done independently by the student. Alternatively, maybe use one of the NaNoWriMo workbooks (download for free!) and just go from there. You could set a number of words/pages that you require the student to finish for 0.5 credits. I'll be watching this thread for other ideas. I didn't push creative writing with my oldest but the younger DD loves to write stories.

My sister had to move for a job opportunity. Her house is on the market and sitting empty. The gas utility recently shut off the gas to the house. Do I need to shut the gas valves for the furnace and water heater? Any other tips for a vacant house to keep it show ready? We learned the hard way that the toilets need to be flushed occasionally. Yuck! And even sitting empty, it still needs to be dusted and swept every so often. Thanks.

I do the same for my independent DD. She gets a syllabus for each subject that describes all the work that needs to be done to earn the credit and offers a suggested pacing to complete in a semester or year, whichever is appropriate. For example, it may say to complete 2 text chapters, end of chapter questions, and all associated videos each week. It works amazingly well most of the time. We have had a couple courses stretch out way too long but it usually turns out that my expectations were too high. She's diligent and independent but she isn't superwoman.

I think you can find oddball behavior at interviews across all age ranges. I'm not sure I believe that the new generation displays that much more than the previous generation. I work with university undergraduate and graduate students, primarily in STEM majors, and I am repeatedly blown away by how intelligent, poised, professional, and socially skilled they are. I recently attended an industry conference with a couple dozen of our students where they presented the research work they are doing and networked with attending companies and government agencies. We received a steady stream of positive feedback from other conference attendees. They were uniformly impressed by these students. Yes, this new generation does do some things differently but that doesn't necessarily mean that they are wrong. One student gently badgered me into learning to text when I kept asking her to call me instead. I did learn how to text on my old-style phone and she became my cheerleader. They are also leading the way in getting my organization onto social media and turning our staid/static website into an interactive destination. There is no need to despair for the youth today. They are doing just fine. Pegasus

DD completed 9th a year ago: American literature and composition - Lightning Literature Writing - Format Writing by Frode Jensen Vocabulary - online word-a-day website Geometry - Math U See Chemistry - Conceptual Chemistry by John Suchocki, chemistry lab World Geography - Brenda Runkle U.S. History - a variety of resources including non-fiction books, Freedom by Joy Hakim, primary sources, documentaries, etc. Fine Arts - Discovering Music by Carol Reynolds Economics - variety of resources including Khan Academy lectures on microeconomics, Economics for Dummies, Freakonomics P.E. - walking, swimming, fencing ACT prep - The Real ACT Prep Guide Health - variety of resources including spending a day with a nurse

Looks good! As long as the student is also writing during the literature study, that's fine. It doesn't actually have to be a stand-alone writing program. Also, I missed seeing the photography course; that should work for the fine arts credit. I wish you the best of luck. We also sketched out all 4 years when DD was heading into 9th. We've changed the plan every year since so stay flexible!

I have a civil engineering B.S. and agree with the previous poster who said that it is not critical that your student complete calculus in high school but to have very solid algebra skills. I'm one of the few on this board who thinks MUS is fine for bright STEM students. We are using it through precalculus and will then have DD dual enroll into a college precalculus course her senior year. As for science, I'd focus on solid chemistry and physics courses and add a basic biology course. Personally, I took biology and advanced biology in high school and had a low quality physics class. I still managed to do very well in my civil engineering studies, just to reassure you that your student's preparation doesn't have to be perfect.

With all the planned AP courses, I'm assuming that college is the goal after high school. I strongly encourage you (or your DD) to research the admission requirements at several colleges/universities that your DD is likely to apply to. You will want to be certain that you are meeting or exceeding all of their requirements. If they have "recommendations" and your DD is very interested in that school, be sure to meet those as well. Here's my thoughts: 1. You should have 4 full English credits. A full credit will include writing, literature, grammar/spelling. I'm seeing just writing freshman year, writing and literature sophomore year, literature only junior year, and nothing senior year. 2. Looks like you have 4 solid credits for math, 5 for social studies, 2 credits foreign language. All good. 3. Some other credits that some schools will want to see: 1 credit PE, 1 credit fine/performing arts, 1 credit computer. Also, if the student only has 3 credits senior year, I'd want to be able to clearly show what ELSE of significance she was doing that year. Colleges do not want to see a year of "coasting," especially senior year.

We typically tip ~20% at full service restaurants and partial service restaurants alike. Just wondering if most folks tip less at partial service restaurants, like buffets where you fetch your own food or a Mongolian grill where you collect all your raw ingredients and take it to the grill cook.

As long as it will cause no hardship to pay to have test scores sent later, it doesn't really matter. The ones listed on the text are sent free and there is a fee to have them sent later.

DD is a teen fan of science fiction and suggests the Leviathan series by Scott Westerfield. Possibly also the Hungry City Chronicles by Philip Reeve.

I don't think I'd have him repeat the same course at school once he's taken it with a B or C grade. Consider having him go through a different algebra program at home, with a tutor if necessary, or using a self-taught program like Teaching Textbooks. He could do it slowly over the summer and continue all school year while he is taking Geometry at school. It is not unusual for students to lose a lot of their Algebra I skills while taking a year off for Geometry so by him reviewing/re-learning Algebra I over the year, he'd be very prepared to tackle Algebra II the following year.