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melissel

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Everything posted by melissel

  1. melissel
    DD9 is still having trouble remembering her multiplication facts. We completed RS C, with its incessant drill sheets, in December. Since then we've been working our way through SM 3A (we backtracked a year because RS didn't cover some things that SM already had). I knew when we started SM that she wasn't solid on the multiplication facts, but I thought constant use would eventually cement them. It hasn't :( She's still using her fingers more often than I'd like, and drill pages take her forever to complete. So I'm wondering if this is normal for this stage of the game. I remember that she wasn't solid on her addition facts at one point too, but constant use eventually solved that problem. Will multiplication begin to stick naturally too? Or do I need to stop everything and just spend time on multiplication for awhile? I like to think it will eventually stick on its own, but I don't like the idea that struggling with the multiplication will potentially compromise whatever else she's learning math-wise in the meantime. WWYD here, and how would you do it? TIA!
  2. melissel
    DD9 is pretty much done with WWE. She has no problem with the narrations (she hates doing them, but has no problem coming up with them when forced to!) and handles WWE3 dictations easily. She's very tired of the WWE format, and I don't really blame her. IMO, though, she's not quite ready for WWS. I was thinking that I'd wait a year for WWS (she'd be 11 by then), but I'd like something different to fill the gap in the meantime. I know some people recommend TWSS, but is it worth it to go that route just for a year? I also know some people don't like TWSS, so I'm wondering what others would recommend to mix up our writing instruction for the next 12 months. TIA!
  3. melissel
    :lol::lol::lol::lol: Your kids are brilliant!
  4. melissel
    :lol::lol::lol:
  5. melissel
    I don't disagree AT ALL. But the reaction was completely out of proportion, IMO, and once again, the vast majority of the posters here did not (and do not) agree with what was initially being posted in that thread. Plenty of ugly opinions and controversial topics have been debated here without a need for dramatic temper tantrums and cackling "we will win and you will lose!" posts. It's not as if the 10,000+ members of the WTM board all agreed and the blogger was the sole dissenting voice.
  6. melissel
    I might very well have been wrong too, but the one I linked was the one that's connected in my head with her departure. It might have been everything, all together, too. It doesn't really matter, ultimately.
  7. melissel
    In another thread, a poster said this: I remember feeling that way as a teen too: at loose ends, with no overriding interest or goal, while everyone else seemed to have things to do and places to go--something that formed the backbone of their lives. I still feel that way, for the most part, but for now HSing fills that place. So the post above got me to thinking about my DD9, who is just like me. She's tried things (gymnastics, soccer, art, etc.), and nothing really interests her. She's not sports or physically oriented at all. She loves to read and is a good artist, but isn't interested in pursuing art, really. She just isn't invigorated by anything. Is it even possible to "force" someone to find a hobby? My parents weren't the "outside activities" type, but I am willing and able to facilitate passions. My youngest is thrilled by music and dance and jumps headfirst into anything she tries, so I'm not worried about her (yet!), but I AM concerned about my oldest. WWYD with a kid like this?
  8. melissel
    Um...just how exactly do you start your days over there? :001_huh: :lol:
  9. melissel
    Danestress, this is a very keen insight, and one that is at the heart of something that's been bouncing around the edges of my thoughts. I think I'm going to spin off on this, hmmm...
  10. melissel
    On the surface, my kids are happier when running around to lots of activities. But when they're home, they argue more, don't sleep as well, are more prone to crying jags over small things, etc. It's a weird thing, and something I struggle with, actually.
  11. melissel
    I don't know!!! That's the problem! I suspect the time aspect is related to the infrequency of my dusting, really, which is why I want to start getting it done every week. However, I agree with kewb that it's not so much the time as it is the nooks and crannies. The shelves have books and CDs and DVDs and picture frames on them. The TV stand has speakers and wires that need to be dusted and worked around and moved around. There are SO MANY little tiny surfaces where dust collects, it drives me insane. We recently visited family for a week, and afterward I asked my mom, how is it possible that there was no dust on any surface in those houses? NONE?! How do they manage it? Argh! Anyway, I'm sure if I try to get it done every week, it won't be so bad. But it seems so hopeless because the dust comes back almost immediately. Of course, it's also possible that I'm a bit Type A about it, so it bothers me more than it does others :tongue_smilie: Thanks for all the great advice above. I forgot that I have microfiber cloths, so I'll start there. We also have plenty of mismatched socks to fit over little hands :D I hate to use Pledge-type products, but I do remember them making dusting SO much easier. Hmm...
  12. melissel
    Hey, maybe this could be the new alternative to kilts?! :w00t: OK, no, probably not...
  13. melissel
    http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=264531 Don't click if you don't want to read it. It's ugly. I don't blame the blogger in question for being angry. I was too. But she did seem to have a huge chip on her shoulder, which can be seen if you read more of her blog (particularly some her Secular Thursday posts, which bothered even me, and I'm an atheist). I agree with the disappointment and irritation over the broad brush. There are plenty of posts here that annoy me, from both ends of the political/social spectrum. I just keep on walking, just like I do in real life. Some people just can't, I guess.
  14. melissel
    Here we are, all waiting impatiently for an update, and you just know this will be the day that kid is out sick :toetap05:
  15. melissel
    OK, I'm subbing, because I must know what happens in the morning. Thank goodness tomorrow is a school day! :lurk5:
  16. melissel
    I can confirm that, in a moment of desperation, people pee in strange places. And her husband was the last person out the door, so the OP was not awake to deadbolt it behind him.
  17. melissel
    Well, since it's new, I'd probably have it looked at. Just to make you feel better though, I've had one like that since I was in high school, and it's exactly the same as it's always been. It hasn't grown or changed; various doctors have asked about it, but when I tell them the history, they shrug and say "Sometimes that happens" and let it go. So it's very possible that it's nothing at all :grouphug:
  18. melissel
    I dusted my living room today. I hate dusting. Like, really loathe it. It feels like a never-ending task. 20 minutes after I dusted my TV and stand today, I could see another thin layer of dust on them :banghead: Also, because I dust so infrequently, there was a kind of thin, sticky residue on some things that I had to scrub off :ack2: I don't have a lot of knick-knacks, but I do have a lot of bookshelves and some picture frames with edges that collect dust (even the inside edges of the multi-photo frames, argh!). I feel like no matter how hard I try, I still miss nooks and crannies where dust hangs out. The idea of carefully hand dusting every single inch of my house every week makes me want to go hide under my covers *sigh* There has to be an easier way, right? So what are your methods? How do you make dusting easier? Is there some neat trick that I don't know that makes dusting much less of a chore than I'm imagining? If so, please, PLEASE share :bigear: TIA!
  19. melissel
    I cut back when I was pg both times but didn't quit entirely. This was not the case for me while nursing. My oldest would not sleep and would scream and fuss if I even had chocolate chips in something. It took me the longest time to figure out that the chips in my morning granola bars and mint chip ice cream were still making the baby crazy, even after giving up all caffeine (that I knew of). No coffee, no tea, no chocolate, no mint chip ice cream--it was the longest two years of my life :svengo: It didn't affect my youngest at all, for which I was grateful, because I could not have functioned without coffee after I had her!
  20. melissel
    No. I haven't showered yet/you two aren't ready for the day/today is a school day for us/we need a break after yesterday/I'm still sick. Feel free to use any of those :D
  21. melissel
    Without having read the rest of the thread, I'm going to say going low-carb. I don't know a whole lot about Metformin, but I do know that everything in my life improves when I'm eating low-carb--everything. My head is clearer, my joint pain goes away, my digestion improves, I have so much energy, and weight drops off with almost no effort at all (not that that is the goal for you, but IMO, it indicates a serious improvement in my metabolism). That would be my vote, but I don't know very much about what you've been through and how you've been eating for the last few years.
  22. melissel
    I have tried this. For some reason, it doesn't seem to work. Even after I clean something out, the stuff in it starts to multiply again. Or everything is interconnected, and I find that I can't clean out X drawer until I clean out Y closet, because a bunch of the stuff goes there. And when I start to clean out Y closet, I find that a bunch of that stuff is DH's, and I can't clean it out without him because he'll get mad, and he NEVER wants to make time to declutter. Or I'll clean out the kids' toys, and the next thing I know, my MIL/mother/grandmother/strangers are sending them home with more cr@p. (My mom always says, "Oh, I can't say no to them. Just throw it out when they get it home!" *cue my spinning head here*). Sorry, just a little rant there :glare: I hear you. I just don't know why that tack doesn't seem to work here! There's a shelf in our media bookshelf that's taunting me right now. Maybe I'll tackle it right now before I get too sleepy to do it...
  23. melissel
    I don't think it would be weird (unless you started PMing her every day about it or something). I'd be touched that someone on here was worried about me.
  24. melissel
    :iagree:
  25. melissel
    Ah, you're SO right.
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