If we guess will you tell us her name? Hmmmmm...starting with an "L" would be a nice change...:lol: Leah Lael Lila or Lily Lydia Liza Lauren Lenora Lucy:D Laverne?

Hmmmm. I am kind of the opposite. I have worn contacts for many, many years for distance vision. My prescription is -6.0 so it's pretty bad. I wear Accuvue Oasys and I like them a lot. I have been wearing reading glasses for a year or so and do use them for the computer too. I asked my optometrist about the multi-focal contacts and he said really that they do work, but basically neither vision is very good. Meaning that right now I have excellent distance vision and with my reading glasses, I have excellent reading vision. But with the multi-focals you save the hassle of having to put on reading glasses but then neither distance or close-up vision is very good. I am opting to continue with the hassle for now.

I think the main selling point for them is that they are on the cutting edge (no pun intended) of the latest research/techniques/technology. When we were living in CA I had a neuro problem come up quite suddenly and my local HMO referred me to USF. The doctor there was absolute tops in his field for my particular problem. Literally he invented the ways to treat this problem. I can't say his bedside manner was the same as that of my local family doctor, but I didn't care because I was getting top-notch treatment. And I didn't mind at all having the students and associates around to listen to him discuss my case. It was all very interesting to me. Even now, 15 years later, when I mention to docs here in my new state who I saw for this problem they always comment about how lucky I was to be there where I could see this specialist.

Nope. Hyundai now has it's minivan division with Kia (they are sisters) and Hyundai now focuses on higher end sedans. So in three years your option will be a Kia from this line. Or an older Entourage, but they only made them for 3 years so you might have a hard time finding one. Since the Kia is pretty much the exact same thing...well, then...Kia. I have a Hyundai Entourage. It's an 07. I LOVE it. :001_wub: <<yes, you can feel this way about a car! I've had it a year and still think it's new. If you look at the powertrain, it has more power than the Chryslers, which was the only other option in our budget (much less than yours). We bought ours from Carmax and had a great experience. The safety ratings alone are what sold me, but then I drove one. It drives great. And I do like a few more bells and whistles. This is our nice family car that we travel in, so I LOVE my power doors, and backup sensor, and woodgrain trim, and power heated seats, etc. Sometimes it's the little things. But, a Honda or Toyota wasn't an option in my budget ($12k) unless it had over 100k miles. I got an almost brand new Hyundai with only 30k miles for $12,5. I can see your dilemma. I'd go drive the Kia and the Honda and the Sienna before deciding. You might feel a strong pull to one after that.

Fascinating thread! So if you are a newbie Dark Sider like me, what books are associated with this Principle Approach? I am always looking out for books and can't always dig VERY deeply into them at a crowded book fair or dusty used book store. Mostly the books I grab are those I already know I want. I don't subscribe to the ideologies you all mentioned from this Principle Approach and would not want to pick up books that have this message. Where should I go to learn more? It sounds like some are good, but some have *something* about them that's just not right?

I don't have suggestions for physical organizing other than alpha withing a category, but I did just download a free trial version of collectorz.com. So far I love it. To put in more than 100 books I'll have to buy it, but I thought it'd try it first. My big thing is being able to know what I have and what I still need. Ideally I will eventually download this into an iPhone or iTouch because it works in that platform, but I don't have one yet. For now it's on my Mac and I can print out a list to take with me to the used book sale.

Didn't see that coming at all, but now I don't know how I could have missed it. Castle is another great show. But Tuesdays are our fav because we get Glee, Biggest Loser, American Idol and Parenthood. What on earth will I do this summer??:glare:

Thanks so much for organizing all this! :grouphug:

I'm not very knowledgeable about it but did compare some concepts in the 4th grade level that a friend brought over to what we are doing in the 3rd level of Math Mammoth. I'm sure it just has to do with the sequence of topics but it seemed behind MM to me. I wish I could remember a more specific example but I just had that impression. One thing I do remember is the girl who is doing the 4th grade level had never even seen a multiplication table to fill in and was just now working on her x3's. That's in the 4th grade level of MMM, but we're doing that in the first 1/4 of the 3rd grade level in Math Mammoth. You might wonder why I'd think that's behind if my supposedly 4th grade dd is doing 3rd grade MM but we just started it last month and are speeding through to learn some things the MM way and will go as quickly as she is comfortable until we are "caught up" to her grade level. It's just my impression, FWIW. Just seemed slower or behind what I have seen in MM, CLE and others. Also, I think you might be on the verge of killing your kids with Math! :tongue_smilie: :chillpill: I'd say pick 2 at the most and stick with them! :D

She's been on my heart all day too. I'm in with whatever is decided. Like someone just said, the more practical things like meals are almost impossible with virtual friends, but a nice donation would sure mean a lot. My MIL has had many, many expenses that were not necessarily anticipated after the recent passing of my FIL. I continue to pray for her family.

The hard thing for me is explaining to my dd exactly what is inappropriate about her. What does "sexualized" mean, mom? :001_huh: She doesn't know anything about sex yet, and doesn't even truly understand the boy/girl attraction thing, so it's very hard to tell her why I don't like Miley and her behavior. Secret Keeper Girl website has been helpful in this.

Kari, I am so sorry for this loss. I will pray for your family.:grouphug:

My favorite is The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible.

I'm copying GretaLynne and changing a few things. We are LCCers and it was pretty close! Bible - Explorer Bible Study and memory work Math - Math Mammoth and CWP Latin - This is our first shot at Latin, so GSWL and then Latin Prep Classical Studies - Famous Men of the Middle Ages English - EEL and IEW through CC and adding in Megawords Literature - The Hobbit, A Midsummer Night's Dream, King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table (LCC recommendations) Science - probably expanding on the weekly CC topic and will maybe add in some GEMS History - expanding on the CC topic with CHOW & others, and lots of hist fiction Music - piano lessons for fun: Spanish - Discovery Streaming Elementary Spanish Typing - BBC website for now

I wasn't thinking and bought a small bucket of C.rods for use with Miquon. These are the ones I got. I have heard around here that it's bad to have the connectors. I think it's because it makes them longer than they should be and can confuse the child? So since used book fairs are coming up next week locally, do you think I should find some without the connectors if I can? I have about a million other things to spend money on, but this is important. :confused::bigear:

:lurk5:

Thanks for the recipes! I'm gonna be on the lookout for elderly beans! Uh, yeah. Us too. This thread is an eye opener for our prices, our serving sizes, and how picky I have let my family become!:glare:

I picked Lara's because my kids will eat what she shared. Pippen's would be a close second. Unfortunately my family isn't big on oats and beans and soups. I wish I could fix that!!

Cat, Can you share your recipe for Split Pea Soup? I have a ham bone and some ham leftover from Easter in the freezer and I'd love to see if my family would eat Split Pea Soup. I've never made it so I'm clueless!:confused: I do have a crock pot for this.

:lurk5: (No, popcorn is not my submission to the thread! :lol:) I am having a hard time keeping it under $10. Especially for 6 people! This does mean $10 for the whole day, right?

Well, we did CLE for a year and no, my dd didn't "get it". BUT most of this was my fault. Due to life circumstances, I treated math like an independent subject, handed her the workbook and said "go do it". She always did well on the quizes and tests, so I assumed everything was fine. But something must have been nagging at me because after reading some threads I decided to give her a placement test for a more *conceptual* math program (MM) and :001_huh:. She did horribly. Because the problems were not set up the exact way she had learned to do them - procedurally - she couldn't figure anything out. She had NO mental math skills at all. Now, I am not blaming CLE, but I do think this is why a lot of people supplement spiral type traditional programs with more conceptual ones, and vice versa. I just had no idea how to go about adding mental math, IOW I don't have great math teaching skills. I need help. Right now we are doing MM and really, really loving it. I am seeing lightbulbs go off all over the place. But, there are times when I do need to print out some extra worksheets so that I make sure the concept is drilled. We do math for over an hour a day because I'm a lot like forty-two (a LCCer) so I will do the 3 Rs really thoroughly and maybe not so much for history, art, etc. You have received wise advice, stick with CLE if you enjoy the format, but don't just hand it over and expect your child to run with it. Math does need to be taught.

That's great!!:D

:iagree:Excellent post Kathleen! ITA (as usual) with you!:D Recent Time article on Calvinism making a comeback.

Maybe your state is different, but in these here parts you can choose your own realtor to help with rentals. Most rentals are listed in the MLS so the realtor of your choosing would have information on all of them. When this might differ is if they only list on Craigslist or something. Then you do have to do your own scouting but it's still good to have a realtor in your pocket.

Even though you aren't a member of the local HS support group, try contacting them anyway. My local groups are gearing up for book sales and I wouldn't be surprised to see someone selling something like this for charity at an event like that...and would happily buy something from your sweet girl to support her efforts! What a lovely girl you have there!:001_wub: