I feel so much for the girls who are out here right now. It's freezing! I don't understand why cookie sales aren't later in the year, like March. It would make more sense to sell them in the spring after people forget about their New Year's resolutions. :laugh:

I don't put car seats in baggage. They are emergency equipment, and I'm certainly not trusting a baggage handler to treat them well. My personal options would be to invest in these: -a mifold, boostapak, or bubble bum for the 6yo. The advantage with the Bubble Bum or Boostapak is that they make decent boosters at restaurants for a younger child, but a Mifold is slim enough to fit in my purse. Graco is debuting their version of a folding booster this year but it's probably not on the market yet. -a Safe Ride Vest for the 4yo (or both the 4 and 6yos). They're expensive, (about $150) but portable. -I'd bring the 7mo's car seat. If it's a convertible, check how the tether stores on the seat. Some connect and make a carrying strap (a Britax I could throw on my back in airports like a backpack). Rented seats, you almost never get the user manual and don't know if there have been any recalls or fixes. It would make me more uncomfortable to use a seat that I didn't know if I was using properly than ones I trusted.

Thanks! I hadn't heard of them until I realized we had a few of the Marilyn Burns books on our shelves. :lol: The preview of their American Revolution book on Amazon looks pretty good!

No, because a student doesn't really have enough background, imo, to figure out their own path of study in this area. I've had success with creating my own units. We did a modified Ancients study in 1st where I gathered resources for 4-8 weeks' worth of study about a culture, blocking them into the various subjects to create a nearly full unit study (even math, where we learned how different cultures learned to count and what systems they used). It was easier on my son than bouncing around and it gave us a chance to get really into chapter books and build upon previous knowledge. I would do more of an interest-led study in upper middle school or high school, when a student can use more resources and has a better idea how the world fits together.

We will be visiting Salem next year as part of our studies, but many original documents are available online. We plan on using Reading Like A Historian to do a before/after study when we revisit the issue in middle school. RLAH is free, uses primary sources & gathered data, and changes history to be more like a detective story - looking for clues and evidence before making up their minds. I have issues with history curricula that treat the past as interpreted stories only. Even SOTW. My 7yo caught on to the bias in book 2 when he read about the Islamic Invasion before our break and The Age Of The Crusades after the break. "Mama, the Christians invaded, too. But when the Muslims did it it was a bad thing and this is not." So, um, yes, we will be relying on the book less as we get to the age of "discovery" and bring in more resources like Letters of Note, Reading Like A Historian, Mysteries In History (not to be confused with MoH), How To Teach What Really Happened, and as many field trips as we can manage.

I am in awe of your ds. :ohmy: That is a fantastic mom brag!

As long as you plan on each excursion costing you, you're fine. I think ours were between $30 and $100 per person, based on what was offered, and there were different tours available within each port (for example, a more costly tour got you longer hours, maybe a side trip, or more access to the site. The cheaper tour would get you the basics: 2-4hours, lunch on your own, and only what the general public sees/does. Dh and I based our excursions on access. Some things were farther away from the port and needed a bus ride, therefore we took the tour offered through the ship rather than haggle in the parking lot. Or we decided to because it streamlined the process - like access to a world heritage site. Rather than wait in line we were given a sticker and allowed to go through immediately. The one fee I balked at was when we were getting ready to get on the ship. Drinks were not included, except water, bulk coffee, and a sort of Tang. Dh pushed me into getting the "drink package", which included alcoholic beverages, coffee drinks, juice, and smoothies. (About $200 for the two of us) I thought it was a rip off, and it probably was, but it made the trip more enjoyable.

Moving Beyond The Page has a Hobbit study. It was well loved here. I think all of it could be done independently if you specified which of the worksheets he needs to use and laid out a box of supplies (I copied the map onto parchment, did one of the things on cardstock, and laid out air drying clay). Honestly, though, I would either move my kid to something where I could check on work (like Mobymax) or set up a binder and day by day schedule for dh to check.

1/11- $0. We went skating, came home, and ate leftovers for dinner. Chinese food tonight. 1/12 - $106 on groceries. We were going to go on Saturday, but we're expecting a storm and then a freeze, so today was best. DS7 is learning how to comparison shop, looking at ingredients, size, and price. This week we managed to replace a few more of our staples with store brand ones, all having the same ingredients as the name brand. The one aisle we didn't go down was the frozen food aisle. DS is slowly branching out with his eating habits. I finally got him to eat toaster waffles - not the healthiest thing, but a breakfast he can make with minimal help (unlike many of his others). This is a HUGE deal here, both the independence and the willingness to try a new food. The aisle was shut down so he is back to regular breakfasts this week. I'll make up some blueberry muffins tomorrow (thanks to a 'buy 1, get 1 free' deal on them) and that should tide him over for two days along with yogurt. I washed the cars at home to get the road salt off of them, and tonight we'll do family movie night with a borrowed flick. DH wanted to run to Target to get more organizational things for the house, which is a minimum $200 every time we go, but after brainstorming needs we rearranged and found other containers we already have that work just fine.

Usborne internet linked books. They are so easy to plan from. We also like the series that Fizz, Bubble, Flash is from (Geology Rocks, Gizmos & Gadgets). They are organized experiments in chemistry, earth science, and physics. You can pull from any of them to match up with what you choose to study with the Usborne encyclopedia.

Salzburg is beautiful. Watch the Sound Of Music before you go and go poke around the city to find the various sites (or take a tour). There's a castle there that is worth going to see, along with Mozart's birth house museum and some lovely gardens across the river. And if you're feeling childish, check out the playground. :D You can't miss it. The slide is about 3 stories tall. But there is a series of metal squares on the ground that if you step on them, the bells ring underneath.

One thing that often comes up is that the curriculum will change from year to year and not progress the same way as the child. Saxon math comes to mind. Nancy Larson wrote K-3, and then it uses a slightly different format as it goes into 5/4, 6/5...etc. It's not the same and doesn't have the same feel. Parents can like one set but not the other. We reassess needs periodically and see what is happening. If curriculum is a tool, then my planning and the WTM are the backbone and soul. I can choose any tool I need that strengthens the bones of a program and not feel dependent on them to do the entire job.

Evening, Scrap! We had a full day of school today and I'm tired, even with all the tea and coffee in my system. Dh emailed to ask if I had plans for dinner and since I previously had no idea if he would be home for it or not, um...no. Frozen pizza it is. I am always distracted. Between dh slowly getting better and feeling like I'm needed in 5 places at once, it's a wonder I function as well as I do. :laugh: My notebook and reminders on my phone are invaluable.

Normal. Let me tell you about ds: -he wouldn't draw shapes, except circles. -wouldn't take the time to draw a figure. According to lore, this is an intelligence marker. It's not. It's a fine motor skill/patience marker. -he didn't recognize his own name and couldn't name any letters. Now, that's not all. -he learned to read in 3 months at age 4, not long after the above. Really reading. The only kid I know who did 100 Easy Lessons in 100 days. -he proved to be exceptional at math by age 6, after not really doing anything with math until kindergarten. -he turned out to be linguistically gifted, studying 4 languages at a time and keeping them all straight, with grammar, prononciation, and vocabulary. -he has an ear for music and can identify composers easily when listening to pieces. Those things you listed are poor markers for the average child, but great ones for the people pleasing child. They are things that a child does to please another person, but are not often skills that a child develops because they are interested in such a thing. I think better markers would be looking at how a child approaches a task, how they gain knowledge, and what skills they are developing.

No major changes, but this is the time of year I look longingly at worksheets and packages with nice tidy lesson plans.

It must make you extremely uncomfortable, then, that Jesus is nearly always portrayed as a white man.

I do 2 minute tasks, but I also think Flylady has some wisdom in her weekly 10 minute task list. Throughout the week you continue with your few minutes here and there, but on the weekend you set aside time for a small list of tasks: changing sheets, cleaning mirrors, things like that. And if you don't finish in 10 minutes, it's okay to stop and move to the next item on the list. Over time it ends up staying pretty well picked up and the bigger things are never really neglected.

No. I don't want the extra laundry. :lol: My oldest spent his last two years of school wearing uniforms for different activities and it was just overwhelming. We do a basic routine that seems to signify it is a school day. We are working if everyone is up by 7 and chores (including getting dressed) are done by 8. It sets the tone from breakfast on. If we're all hanging out in our pjs and making a nice leisurely breakfast, tv on, then it's the weekend.

You mean like The Wiz? Or Hamlet? Or Macbeth, done by Orson Wells?

I dropped $7 at the grocery store last night. $.75 on a can of tomatoes, and the rest on stocking stuffers and Easter basket toys. Playdoh was marked down to a quarter and the little minifigure type toys were about the same price, so for about $6 I scored enough Beyblade, Lego, etc. and squishy dough to put some in his basket and hold off on some until next Christmas. I'm doing pretty bad at this no spend thing this year. :lol: I keep justifying spending money. However, it is making me look more seriously at our money habits, so there is that. Today is projected no spend. We are going skating with our punch cards. I cooked up the protein last night that dh had taken out to make on Tuesday. It was wayyyy too much! Half went into dinner and the other half is going in Chinese food tonight. There are plenty of leftovers in the fridge for tomorrow, too, and then on Saturday I'll grocery shop again.

To do: fold laundry clear ice from gutter paths and mailbox feed the squirrels birds school take ds to skating practice parent-child conference set up playdate tweak schedule for next week, print, and put together supplies

I would scrap it. You paid money for something bad. Is it worth throwing your daughter's time and effort at it as well? You could try Mystery Science - they have units on animals, food chains, and animal needs. They have free sign ups right now for the rest of the year. Or Winter Promise's Animals And Their Worlds BFSU A unit or two from Moving Beyond The Page Evan Moor Daily Science I wouldn't keep doing something bad. You're relying on being able to know when the information is false in a product that is shoddily made. ETA - Mr. Q's Life Science is free, too, and might be a good option.

I'm so sorry about your mom, Scrap. :grouphug: I know you have been expecting it, but that doesn't make it easier. To your questions: It is warm and sunny here. The squirrels were having a fine old time out in the trees and enjoying the weather. The 7yo burned off some energy by shoveling the rest of the ice off the driveway and riding his scooter. We did start back to school this week, but it is slow going. Currently the 7yo is playing legos in the living room. He has been very, uh, dramatic lately, much helped by his choice of reading material. So far he has threatened to run away from home, told me that "school is like prison" and generally moaned and groaned over anything he has been told to do (right down to brushing his teeth). I gave up today. The work is still sitting there. I'm just not fighting a child who doesn't want to be engaged. That sounds pessimistic of me. Perhaps his attitude is catching. :laugh: But I figure it's not worth it. We'll continue to "start" at 8am and go from there each day with a loop schedule. And he just announced he's ready to do school. :huh: I'm going to go make hay while the sun shines!

Fat is a symptom. Eating bad food is unhealthy. Not exercising is unhealthy. Stress is unhealthy. Lack of sleep is unhealthy. Fat is the product of that. You don't address the result, you address the habits if you do so at all, and YOU DON'T COMMENT ON AN ADULT'S HEALTH. Calling someone out for being fat is extremely rude. (notice the verb- being. Not "doing", which is an action). It is one way to tear apart a relationship because you are rejecting a person as a whole. Yes, there needs to be an adversity to fat shaming by moms. Moms can be concerned about what their children are doing, but they have to know that a good parent knows when to back the heck off and understand that their own kid has reached adulthood.

It could be that two names had a glitch in the database, with your address showing as the address for both individuals.