Actually, my husband is more likely to be the one to serve the plates, especially since he's usually cutting whatever meat or whatever we're having. He's also a better cook than I am though and does the cooking on his days off, with me just helping with the sides and table setting and stuff like that.

Well, see, I wouldn't really punish for a temper tantrum. If I told my kid she couldn't do something, and that upset her, and she expressed being upset by stomping her feet, leaving a room, or slamming a door, that's fine. I mean, it's not like she's going "well F you!" or hitting somebody or breaking something of mine or doing something REALLY bad. She's just expressing anger/frustration/disappointment in a way that lets off some steam. To me, that's okay, and I wouldn't punish for it. I wouldn't pay it any mind at all. I'd ignore it and leave her alone to have her space and get over it. If she had a tantrum that kept disrupting other people, like if she KEPT slamming the door a bunch of times in a row or wanted to stay right in the room where other people were hanging out doing things throwing a fit, I'd tell her she needed to go off on her own until she was calm enough to rejoin everyone else. That kind of thing. I'm not saying that what you are doing is "torturing" a kid. I'm just saying that I wouldn't do it.

My husband was not at ALL involved with choosing curriculum. Without actually coming out and saying so, we both seem to have agreed that it was my jurisdiction, being as I was the one taking the time to research it and I was the one who was going to be teaching it. If I want his opinion on something, he'll give it. If I want his help with something, he'll provide it. Otherwise, he pretty much stays out of "school stuff," which is fine with me! :D

Personally, I do think a door (privacy) is a pretty fundamental right. I also think that slamming a door is a pretty mild and harmless way of expressing frustration/anger, and it wouldn't bother me all that much. I wouldn't remove a kid's door. But that's just me.

I don't see why you couldn't just pick it up with a 6th grader. Some of the crafts and projects listed on the OM site for OM6 are: Projects, Crafts, & Activities Write a research paper on Ancient Egypt Draw a freehand map of the world Interview a person from the Stone Age Compose an adventure for Robin Hood Make a miniature Renaissance fresco Make up math problems using the Mayan number system Research carnivorous plants Dissect flowers Right now my daughter and I are only in our third week of OM5 but so far, we've: Made a wooden sailboat Made our own compass (with a cork and magnetized needle) Made a multi-media mural of a forest Went outside to view the night sky and then wrote a poem about it Did a couple of creative writing assignments for social studies (one of them was writing a short story about what monsters and hazards awaited the early explorers who tried to sail around the world) Periodically checked the length of the shadow our shadow stick made at different times of the day (we'll now chart it once a week for 6 weeks). This week we'll be burying a variety of items to dig up later and see which decomposed and which didn't. ...I love how even in the "middle school" grades, they manage to incorporate plenty of fun, hands-on things to keep it interesting. I am sure OM6 will do that, too!

I did a summer poetry workshop with a small group of 8-11 year olds and it worked out well. I used the book "Teaching Poetry: Yes You Can!" by Jacqueline Sweeney to put together my "lessons." But that book is meant for "grades 4-8." Teaching 4 to 14 year olds all at once? That's a HUGE, HUGE age difference. I wouldn't begin to know what to do that would be appropriate for all of them.

Personally, I absolutely LOVE Oak Meadow. If you click on the link in my signature line, to go to my livejournal site, and check out the links on the sidebar to the left, you will see my Oak Meadow Review, some daily schedule samples (from OMK, OM4, and OM5), and you can also look at my recent entries from the past couple of weeks to see what OM has been like for us in practice- descriptions, pics, etc. I love it. I did it with my daughter for 4th grade last year, and this year I'm doing OM5 with her and OMK with my son. I am committed to using OM at least through 8th grade (I already have OMK-OM8 as I bought it all used from one person for a great price), and at that point I'll start researching OM's high school materials. But personally I love their early childhood philosophy, I love how they make things so hands on and creative rather than dry and textbookish... we really enjoy it over here.

So which curriculum are you using? Is it Oak Meadow by any chance? :D

My husband "usually" works from 1 PM to 8 PM Tuesday through Thursday, and from 1 PM to 9 PM Saturday and Sunday, in the fall, winter and spring. In the summer, he extends his day by 1 hour (so til 9 PM Tues-Thurs, and til 10 PM Fri-Sat). These are only his hours if he's not busy, though. If he has a customer (he's a tattoo artist, by the way) he stays until the work is done. Sometimes, especially in the summer, there can be some very late nights. I look forward to Sundays and Mondays when he's off and we can all have dinner together! ETA: This was just ONE of the many reasons I decided to homeschool- now at least the kids get to spend all morning and early afternoon with him, as opposed to him coming home at or after bedtime!

On a day by day basis, it varies. But on my livejournal, on the sidebar to the right, I have links up to my daughter's "book log" for the year from 3rd grade, 4th grade, and her 5th grade one is "in progress" (as is my son's K log, which, of course, is read alouds only at this point), if you're interested in taking a peek.

Well, I spend all day every day (pretty much) with my daughter. I can see that she is learning, thriving and happy. When I bring her, and her portfolio, to our evaluator each year, he makes positive comments about her portfolio and seems very happy with them. When I submit her portfolio to the school district, they "acknowledge that an appropriate education is being received." When I gave her a standardized test last year ("for fun") after over a year of relaxed homeschooling, using a hands on curriculum with very little "busy work," on which we spent an average of three hours a day, she scored right where she was "supposed" to. I know that a good education can be received in MANY other ways than seatwork, worksheets, textbooks, quizzes and so on. I know that in the public schools around here, all THEY focus on is standardized testing. And what they are doing isn't working, if you go by the last few years' results (as seen in the local newspaper) of said testing. I'm doing things much differently- but I am confident what I am doing is much more effective and much more relevant. So, really, no. I hardly ever think about or worry about whether I'm "doing enough."

You should write them an anonymous letter that says something like: Dear Met Life, The other day, my husband, my 14 year old daughter and I, all went to a bar to have a few drinks and to spend some quality time together. At least, we tried to. But the bartender wouldn't serve her. I mean, he refused. Can you believe it? It was quite aggravating, seeing as she is an adult and all. Who the heck was HE to refuse to serve her?! You can imagine how annoyed she got when we stopped at the convenience store afterward so she could buy a pack of cigarettes. They ID'd her and told her there was no way they were going to sell them to her. The nerve of them, refusing to sell cigarettes to a consenting adult! We were aggravated, but, still, we went ahead with our plans to sign our daughter up for the Army. It's her lifelong dream. But can you believe they said she is still too young?! Who do they think they are?! I just want to say how grateful I am that YOU, Met Life, understand that my 14 year old is now an adult and should be treated as such! Who needs fluoride treatments, anyway?! Sincerely, So and so's mom.

"Oh my gosh!!! This is so awkward! I appreciate your generosity more than I can say!! But I already booked our holiday at (such and such) because we have close friends staying there, too, and we wanted to go together! The children already know about it and have been planning things to do with their friends; they are super excited to go! Much as I would LOVE to go to (place boss's wife booked), I just can't disappoint my children and our friends! I hope you understand!" With all that said, I would like to go work for those people. What does your husband do, anyway?! LOL.

I got one about a year and a half ago for going 16 miles over the speed limit. They knocked it down to something else though and didn't put points on my license, although they did still charge me a hefty fine.

No. I do pick out books to suggest we read together, and she almost always enjoys that and goes along with it. But books she reads on her own, she gets to choose them. Nobody ever told me what I had to read, and I'm glad of it. I grew up loving books and seeing reading as a great pleasure, something I did because I enjoyed it and wanted to, not because somebody made me! Of course, I'd read whatever I could get my hands on and whenever my mom or another relative handed me a book they'd bought for me, I'd pretty much always read it even if I hadn't selected it myself. But I'd never been taken to the library and told "you have to choose this book or this category," and I don't think I'd do that with my kids either.

Really? Are you THAT perfect, or THAT holier than thou? You never drive one mile over the speed limit? And if not, because you don't, people who think it's not a big deal to drive a few miles over (which most people do and which most cops, most of the time, DO accept, by the way), you get this preachy and passionate about it? Seriously? Someone driving, say, 65 in a 55 is as bad as drunk driving? Okay. I'm not going to war with you over it or anything. Drive as slow as you want to! Flash, don't flash, whatever.

If you say so! I didn't. <shrug> Just because I said it was a friendly thing to do, didn't mean I was saying not doing it was unfriendly. I couldn't care less if you don't do it!

I want to clarify something. If I saw someone FLYING by at RIDICULOUS speeds that made me think "Wow, that guy's an idiot, I hope he gets pulled over and gets a ticket!"... I wouldn't flash THAT guy. The one I consider making the roads unsafe. But the typical travelers are those who routinely drive, what, 10 miles or so over the speed limit? Nearly everybody does it. I do it. And usually even if a cop does drive up on you, he won't pull you over for it. Yet, if you see him "hiding" at the side of the road, you know he's specifically looking to "catch" speeders, and then I think a friendly warning: "Hey, you might want to slow down just in case" is just, well, the friendly thing to do.

Really? That isn't universal in the U.S.? It was a common thing to do when I lived in NY, and it's common (not as common as NY but still common) here in PA, too. You can't necessarily tell if people are speeding, but if there's a group of cars coming up or that appear to be moving quick you just flash your lights a few times to warn them to slow down, there's a cop parked somewhere ahead.

Really? That's crazy. I would NEVER use a bathroom that didn't have a stall door for privacy. Not as a teen, not as an adult. And I wouldn't expect my children to, either, once they've reached an age where they understand a degree of modesty (as opposed to say a toddler, who I'd likely be standing in front of anyway).

It's common courtesy! :D

I loved these! :D Oh, and Classical Country Mama, sometimes I look around, throw my hands up in disgust at whatever clutter or mess everyone left, and go "That's it. We're cleaning. RIGHT NOW." And I start cleaning and then my husband goes... "Is somebody coming over today?" And I have to shriek at him "ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY I ONLY CLEAN WHEN WE'RE HAVING COMPANY?! SHUT UP AND MOP!" (Okay not really, but you know what I mean). LOL

LMAO some of these replies REALLY made me laugh out loud! You guys are great! :)

At 8 my daughter liked: American Girl Junie B. Jones Magic Treehouse Choose Your Own Adventure Books A to Z Mysteries Pippi Longstocking

I'm going to drop off something I promised to give you (or something like that), and it would be terribly rude of you not to invite me in, wouldn't it? :D So! What would you spend the next 30 minutes until I get there doing? Would you be able to just sit back and kick up your feet because either A) your house is very neat or B) your house isn't very neat but you couldn't care less? Would you be thoroughly embarrassed because there's no possible way you can get your house presentable in 30 minutes and you're just going to have to keep me standing on your door step, rude or not? (But what if I really have to pee?! Are you going to send me to the corner gas station after I came all that way?!) Or do you have a specific short list of things you think you can run around like a lunatic doing (perhaps if the kids pitch in and help!) and things would at least be tidy enough that you wouldn't be embarrassed when I come in? What, specifically, would you spend that time doing? Feel free to play along. Obviously I'm NOT really coming to your house LOL. ---- I would first let out a sigh of relief that I'd cleaned my kitchen last night and that the downstairs bathroom is reasonably clean, too. I would then start issuing orders to the kids and having them help me: 1) Put away the clean, folded laundry that has been sitting on the love seat in the computer room for about three days now. 2) Clean the toys off of the living room floor. 3) Vacuum the living room floor (and the steps). 4) Dust and clean the glass (oh man there are SO many fingerprints all over the mirror right now!) in the living room. 5) Sweep the floor in the computer room. 6) Gulp down a quick breakfast. 7) Take a quick shower. I could easily get it done in half an hour, I think, especially with the kids' help, and I'd be perfectly fine with letting you in my house... as long as you didn't have any strange desire to go upstairs. The upstairs hallways and stairs could really need a vacuuming, and none of the bedrooms are particularly neat at the moment. (They end up being SO low on my priority list, and if you read my "How many days a week are you committed to being out of the house" thread yesterday, perhaps you'd know why!!!) And the upstairs bathroom could use a cleaning! (I am not sure if I could get to that within the 30 minute time period, especially if I'm taking a shower, but there's no reason you can't just use the downstairs bathroom if you've gotta go)! :P Next?