Being as my husband is a tattoo artist/body piercer, I'm going to add my vote to the few who suggested that instead of some mall shop. :)

Hi, I heard back from my representative and she said: "I'm not aware of any other program that is like the Fresh Air Fund program. There are many camps that offer trips for disadvantaged kids all over the US (Salvation Army camp, etc.) and they need volunteers but I haven't ever heard of one that uses the host family structure. That doesn't mean it doesn't exist anywhere, though. I googled "host family" to see if anything popped up, but all were programs to host international exchange students or foreign visitors through Lions or Rotary. If I become aware of anything, I'll let you know."

The Mary Poppins books, the Little House On The Prairie books, the Indian in the Cupboard books, the Chronicles of Narnia....

Yes it can be used with only the CD's and some notebook and/or scrap paper if that is how you want to do it. I just use the book for 1) reading the brief written lesson after watching the CD lecture to further cement it in our minds; 2) easily being able to flip back a couple of pages if you want to remind yourself of something covered in a previous lesson without having to leave the CD lesson you're on to try to find it in another CD lesson. We don't write in the book because I want to be able to have the option of reusing for my younger child and/or eventually reselling. We write the problems on notebook paper and/or use scrap paper in some instances.

I don't like fish either! Unless it's tuna fish smothered in mayo or some sort of battered fish smothered in tartar sauce, I just can't bring myself to eat fish, and I've tried several different kinds, several different times, in the hopes of bringing myself to like it. I do, however, like other types of seafood- scallops, baked clams, lobster tail, crab legs, shrimp prepared in all different ways. Yum. But fish? Not so much.

Ew. No way would I ever eat liver. It looks nasty, smells nasty, and probably tastes nasty.... which I'll never know, because no way would I ever eat it lol. I'm a little confused on the "we should" too. Maybe if it was a matter of that or starvation lol.

:iagree: I wouldn't "schedule" it, especially not at that age. We'd go with the flow. We'd read what we could and as long as we were enjoying it and on no particular time frame and then move on to the next one. If there were days s/he just didn't feel like reading, we'd skip it. If there were days where s/he only tolerated a few pages or a chapter, that's what we'd read. If there were days s/he was begging me to read more, I'd read more. We'd just roll with it. :)

Here in PA, for the elementary school level, we're supposed to track hours OR days. I don't bother actually "counting" either because I KNOW we way more than surpass them, considering I feel like my children learn something or participate in something I can consider educational pretty much every single day. So what I do is submit a statement that says something like: We believe that life and learning are inextricable and, as such, I attest that we have more than met the required 180 days or 900 hours of instruction requirement.

My husband's mother totally forgot his birthday. No phone call, no card etc. It was on April 12th. She still hasn't realized she forgot it, and he doesn't want to make her feel bad by reminding her.

:lol:

I don't think you're being selfish at all. BUT, I would not force him to go. I would worry that by doing so I would be making it worse and that it would take him even longer to get over it for good than if I just followed his cues now. So, I would continue to do what you're doing, following his lead, giving him the choice, not letting him see that you are upset or disappointed if he doesn't do it, and just keeping it casual and so on. You may have to get your "me time" in other ways for now like before he wakes up in the morning, when he goes to bed at night, or if there's a close relative in the picture he'd be willing to stay with now and then so you could get out. Hang in there, it'll get better eventually. Four is still very young! :grouphug:

Week 19 With 10 y/o DD: Harriet Tubman, Call To Freedom On my own: Free-Range Kids, How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry) by Lenore Skenazy On her own: Snowbound, The Tragic Story of the Donner Party Week 18 With 10 y/o DD: The Safe Zone, A Kid's Guide To Personal Safety On my own: Lover Unleashed (latest in the Black Dagger Brotherhood/vampire series) by J.R. Ward On her own: Which Way Freedom? Week 17 With 10 y/o DD: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (audiobook) On my own: Unwind by Neal Shusterman On her own: Which Way Freedom? Week 16 With 10 y/o DD: By The Shores of Silver Lake On my own: N/A On her own: The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg Week 15 With 10 y/o DD: The Prisoner of Pineapple Place On my own: N/A On her own: read some of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief Week 14 With 10 y/o DD: The People in Pineapple Place On my own: N/A On her own: finished Caddy Woodlawn and read some of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief Week 13 With 10 y/o DD: Surviving The Applewhites On my own: N/A On her own: started Caddy Woodlawn and read some of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief Week 12 With 10 y/o DD: The Midwife's Apprentice On my own: N/A On her own: Started Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and read an autobiography about Milton Hershey Week 11 With 10 y/o DD: All-Of-A-Kind Family On my own: finished Patience, Princess Catherine On her own: Valley Of The Moon, The Diary Of Maria Rosalia De Milagros, Sonoma Valley, Alta California, 1846" (A Dear America book) Week 10 With 10 y/o DD: Treasure Island On my own: reading Patience, Princess Catherine On her own: reading Mystery Stories For Girls Week 9 With 10 y/o DD: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory On my own: At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks On her own: N/A Week 8 With 10 y/o DD: Sounder On my own: finished Zipporah, Wife of Moses On her own: Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist; & Iggie's House by Judy Blume Week 7 With 10 y/o DD: Tuck Everlasting On my own: N/A On her own: read some of Mystery Stories For Girls Week 6 With 10 y/o DD: The Girl With The Silver Eyes On my own: Doomed Queen Anne On her own: Thunder Rolling In The Mountains (plus a Nancy Drew Files book) Week 5 With 10 y/o DD: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets On my own: Beware, Princess Elizabeth On her own: finished Streams to the River, River to the Sea (plus a Nancy Drew Files book) Week 4 With 10 y/o DD: The Gawgon and The Boy On my own: Mary, Bloody Mary On her own: started Streams to the River, River to the Sea (plus read a Nancy Drew Files book) Week 3 With 10 y/o DD: Ida B and Her Plans To Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster and (Possibly) Save the World On my own: The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood On her own: Wright On Time series book 3 (plus a Nancy Drew Files book) Week 2 With 10 y/o DD: Skellig On my own: The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory On her own: Wright On Time series book 2 Week 1 With 10 y/o DD: The Phantom Tollbooth On my own: Flowers for Algernon On her own: Wright On Time series book 1 (plus two Nancy Drew Files books)

I'm going to give this a bump for the people who maybe didn't get on over the weekend. :)

Just as an FYI: We've always used a hot glue gun and hot glued the badges on my daughter's Brownies and Juniors vests and we've never had a problem. Much easier than sewing! :D Congratulations to your daughter on moving up. Mine becomes a Cadet next year!

2 more no's Female age 38 Male age 37

Sometimes my 5 y/o likes me to "put sweet dreams in his head" so he doesn't have nightmares. That just consists of gently rubbing his head while he's laying in bed and telling him what dreams I'm putting in his head- hugs, kisses, the playground, his favorite toys, pretty flowers, and so on and so forth.

My husband gave me a computer game I wanted, is currently doing the food shopping all by himself without my having to go, is going to make me dinner tonight, and has agreed to mow the lawn and clean the turtle tank today hehe. He also left me a message on Facebook that said: "Happy Mother's Day! Thanks for all you have done for my children and myself. You are a great mother. Enjoy your day. Love you very much." :) My teen bought me a card, my 10 y/o daughter made me one, and they were both quite willing to help do some straightening up around the house today. My 5 y/o son made me a card and also gave me a gift which consisted of a toy Tinkerbell cell phone (which used to be his sisters and which he "wrapped" in one of his old baby blankets before giving to me) LOL. :001_wub:

Awesome! Glad you are proceeding with it- and yep I am sure they will appreciate the shorter trip lol. And some may be glad to know that home isn't too far away at all if they tend to feel homesick. I am sure you will have fun with him/her! :) Thank you for looking at it and your comment. :)

My five year old little boy gave me a present for Mother's Day. Never mind that it was wrapped in one of his old baby blankets instead of wrapping paper. Never mind that it was a mere toy (a toy Tinkerbell cell phone to be exact). Never mind that it used to be his sister's. He was quite proud to give me something, and it's the thought that counts, right? :lol: (His Daddy on the other hand gave me a new computer game that I wanted, is currently doing the food shopping- all by himself! I didn't have to go!- And is going to make me dinner tonight). :)

You could just look ahead a week or two at a time, make a list of how you want to break the schedule up into a daily one (to use as a loose guideline at least until you've gotten more of a feel for things) and of what supplies you need for that particular week.

I guess I'm saving mine, there's nothing there that I particularly want.

No. Thank goodness. I was lucky in that I determined right away which curriculum I wanted to go with, bought it used for a great price (grades K-8 all in one lot!), and love it enough to stick with it.

Thank you for looking. :) I just emailed my contact and asked her if she knew of any similar programs in other parts of the country. I will update when I hear back from her. Yeah... it would be nice to be able to have more options, but it would definitely be more expensive to start bringing airfare into the equation, and they wouldn't be able to be as easily supervised as they are on a chaperoned bus, and all the other things you mentioned, too! I'll let you guys know if I find out about similar programs in other areas, though. :)

Thank you for looking at my post :) They use a specific range because the kids are transported via bus and I guess they want to keep them within a certain, reasonable driving distance of home. I'm not sure if other areas have similar types of programs (this particular one is ONLY for kids who live in New York City).

Ha Ha, I know! I'd have hated for her to create a family that only mourned for, like, an hour or something!