I'm enjoying a homeschooling through high school book that I picked up at a used curriculum sale. It's definitely focused on Christian homeschoolers though. Any good secular books you could recommend? I do have Rebecca Rupp's Homeschooling Year by Year book. Thanks, Pegasus

How long do I need to cook them to make them mushy? I soaked overnight, boiled 10 minutes, then simmered 2.5 hours. The beans were done but still a bit firmer than I like. I like them mushy. :D Also, what can I add to them to add flavor? I ended up using lots of salt on my portion but would prefer to use less salt if something else can be used. Thanks! With everything going up except for income, I think we'll be eating more beans. Pegasus

:lol: I was about to offer him my cat. She leaves a mole or two on the back patio every day. Pegasus

Try adding water to the pan until all the blackened parts are covered. Dump a bunch of salt into it and bring to a boil. Boil for several minutes and leave the mixture in the pot to cool. Then rinse and scrub again. It should come clean. Good luck! Pegasus

I don't know a lot more than has been posted here but for what its worth: Daisy K-1st Brownies 2nd-3rd Juniors 4th-5th Cadettes 6th-7th-8th Seniors 9th-10th Ambassadors 11th-12th I think it is a positive thing since I was NOT a fan of the Studio 2B teen thing. The new Daisies will include more than previously. They will be able to sell, for one thing. :glare: Earning badges, while still an option, will be de-emphasized. They are coordinating everything around the theme of teaching the girls leadership. The new books and such will not be out until this summer sometime and I won't be surprised if we start the Fall without them. I never get my Girl Scout membership card until that year is almost over so I don't have a lot of confidence in them moving quickly to get something this comprehensive out on time. Pegasus

What's the surface of the pan (nonstick, copper, cast iron)? Pegasus

We have a casket store close to us. It may seem disturbing but would it be less disturbing to have to pay 10X the cost of the casket at a funeral home just because they didn't have any competition? By law, funeral homes have to accept an outside casket. Put me in a paper bag and light the edge. ;) Pegasus

Can the country club members bring a guest? I'd be grooming some country club friends. :lol: Pegasus

Wow. Lots of great experience and advise here from everyone. Thank you very much. Neither DH or I drink at all but they don't have a model for light to moderate drinking. I can see that would be helpful. They don't spend time with relatives that are still drinking heavily. I also agree with all the advise to be open and honest. However, I will admit to struggling with that. I find it so much easier to be honest and open about **x, to put it in perspective. My tactic so far has been more one of isolating them from alcohol, drugs, and even smoking. Now that my eldest is 11, I really do see the need to start talking. Someone wanna hold my hand? :tongue_smilie: Seriously though, do you talk in general terms "Our family has a history of. . ." or do you start naming names "Uncle Billy is a an alcoholic. It has kept him from holding down a steady job and is the main reason his wife left him. Your beloved Aunt Lil is a recovered alcoholic and cocaine addict. She lost a well-paying job and many friends because of it before she started her path to recovery. etc." Does anyone think it would help if I became involved in al-anon or anything? Would that help me to help my kids? Thanks again. Pegasus

Please allow me to serve a full shaker of salt with my statement. I pick up bits and pieces of news stories from several different sources and now I don't remember where I heard/read it. A quick google search didn't turn it up. I'll definitely post back if I remember or find the original reference. It makes sense to me to be upfront and honest with the DC, as you have been with yours. Especially since addiction can be such a family secret. Did I mention a strong family history of denial as well? :glare: Pegasus

convey to your DC that they carry an extra risk if they decide to drink or take drugs? I have a strong family history of alcoholism and some drug addiction and I am struggling with how to protect my DC. I recently read that warning your children that these things run in the family can backfire and make them MORE likely to become addicted. Ack! I guess it could become an excuse, "I can't help drinking/drugging, it runs in the family." Just wondering how other families handle this. Thanks, Pegasus

Yes, it is weird. Is there any chance your DD found the watch and told the story about it being a gift? I would definitely be weirded out if a sub driver really gave it to her. When I was in elementary school, our regular bus driver was fired. He walked onto the bus after school one day when our new driver was off the bus (I don't know where he was, now that I think about it, probably distracted talking to other bus drivers on the playground), asked who wanted to ride home with him, and instead of taking the kids home, he took them to a park. I don't think anyone was actually hurt but the potential for danger was huge! My best friend at the time had raised her hand, wanting to go with him and I jerked her arm down hard and said no way. She thanked me later when she found out that he didn't actually drive the kids home. Hope you find out what is going on. Pegasus

I know families pay these large pool fees each summer but, yikes, I could never justify paying that much. However, we do have a near-by (20 minute drive) community pool that has an inexpensive "per visit" fee plus a free lake to swim in. Any natural bodies of water? Can you look around for private swim lessons? It seems like you could buy a LOT of swim lessons this summer for that much money. Pegasus

I really wanted another baby for a while but DH was satisfied with the 2 we have. I thought I would continue to crave more but as time has gone by, I'm more and more content. I'm ready to wait for grandbabies at this point. My DC are 8 and 11. Pegasus

Mine - genetics DD8 - wildlife (she's saying she wants to be a wildlife rehabilitator. . .now i just need to find out what one of those is!) DD11 - used to be astronomy but now seems to be anything with hands on experimenting Pegasus

Our main rules are no hitting and no name calling. They are allowed to say things like "I am so angry at you right now" but they can't called one another "booger-head" or whatever. They can stomp, go to a room alone and punch a pillow, scream into a pillow, go outside and yell. DD8 especially uses pencil and paper to express her anger. She doesn't write words but there would be no mistaking one of her drawings for anything but anger. When she was younger, I used to tease that we could never allow a psychologist or DHS to see one of her "mad" pictures. Best of luck. We do struggle with sibling fighting but it is 90% pestering one another. We seem to have physical stuff and name calling under control. Pegasus

This is what Netflix recommends when one of their DVDs isn't playing right. I've also found that some players are more sensitive than others. I'll start moving around the house trying the DVD in everything we have (main DVD player, computer, laptop, portable DVD player, etc.) So sorry you and your DC were disappointed. I once babysat a little 4-yo girl and she begged to be allowed to handle the DVD that we were going to watch. She insisted that she was allowed to do so at home. I decided right then that we would NOT be loaning DVDs to her family as we had loaned videocassettes so often in the past. Pegasus

I've only recently learned about repping and I didn't even realize that I'd been repped. . . but there the evidence sits in my user control panel. Totally unexpected. I'm going to start repping when I see especially helpful posts. Nope, no begging. Pegsus

I appreciate all the input. I seem to remember my typing class (way back on old fashioned typewriters) that we were pushed for speed with the thought that accuracy would develop over time. I do agree with what is said here about writing neatly though. I've seen too many adults who can't write neatly to think that neatness will come with time. Thanks. Pegasus

My library offers them as downloads. You might want to check if your library has audio downloads. Pegasus

These are great: DK Workbooks - Learn Science! Hands-on/Minds-on Activities Perfect for what you are looking for. I bought mine through Amazon. They have 3 levels: Primary for K-Grade2, Elementary for Grades 3-4, and Intermediate for Grades 5-6. Pegasus

Pets or meat? :D Pegasus

"Just keep hoping." I still feel pretty bad about putting my foot in my mouth when we first moved here and I met our neighbors. She had 3 very active little boys and commented on expecting another one in several months. My thoughtless response was "Wow, really?" Still, I guess it was much worse when a friend told me she was expecting her first child and that it would be a girl. I asked if they had a name picked out and she said "Yes, Tallulah." and I burst out laughing. I honestly thought she was joking. Oops. :001_huh: Pegasus

Labs and lab mixes are awesome dogs but very high energy. They need training and exercise or they can be very destructive. That understood, I always think 2 (puppies or kittens) are the way to go. They really do enjoy having a buddy. Pegasus

The all time camping favorite here is doughboys. Spear Lil' Smokie sausages, wrap in cresent roll dough, and toast over coals until brown. Makes a very easy, yummy, breakfast. You can also wrap the cresent roll dough around 1/2" dowels (pre-soaked in water so they don't scorch or catch fire!) to toast the dough. When you pull it off the stick, you put jelly or syrup or sorghum in the hole. Pegasus Oh, in case you were more interested in dinner ideas, we like grilled chicken breast, marinated in Italian dressing and served with roast corn. Soak the ears of corn in water for a couple hours and toss right on the grill in their husk. 1/4 turn every 5 minutes so 20 minutes in all. Yum!