:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: Too funny! :D

"Maria, Maria, Maria..." hehehehe I'd wait til they're in highschool maybe 16,17,18 around there. :)

It's not the registered sex offenders that I worry about so much. They know they're being watched. It's the ones that I don't know about that bother me, but I am always very careful and I never let my kids go out anywhere alone. If I or my husband or some other trusted adult cannot go out with them, they can't go out. Period. It's better safe than sorry. Man, there are alot of sex offenders out there! Scary!

hehehehe It bugs me too. I think for me it's because it puts me in "work mode" mentally and it's usually asked at a time when I'm TRYING to take a break or when I'm in the middle of something else. I think it's the burden of having one more problem to solve, one more question to answer, one more thing to do or think about that makes the question a drag. That and that it's asked every single day. :tongue_smilie:hehe

A big AMEN to that sister! hehehe :)

Thank you ladies. :) I really want to get her into something. She's so creative and loves tinkering on the computer. She also doodles constantly and makes up her own comics all the time. Right now she has a whole notebook full of comics that she's written about Indiana Jones. hehehe She's fascinated with Indiana Jones for some reason. she's never seen the movie though so her comics that she writes are pretty interesting. hehehe :) Thanks for all the replies. Time to start researching. :) Have a great weekend ladies. :)

I thought it would be fun to start a thread to share our favorite recipes that can be made in a pinch, but that doesn't taste like it. I know many days my homeschooling runs late and then I'm faced with the question of the ages... What am I going to cook tonight? I know I'm new here so I hope I'm not starting a thread that has been done already. I just thought it would be helpful. :) Blessings. Jennifer Here is a recipe I use quite a bit when I have no time. It is very simple to make and it tastes really good. The recipe calls for clams, but I've used chicken breast strips too and it's just as good. :) If you use chicken you can throw in some sliced mushrooms too! :) YUM! Linguini in Clam sauce 1 lb. uncooked linguine 1-2 tbs. olive oil 1 tbs. butter 5-6 cloves minced garlic 4 (6 oz.) cans chopped or minced clams 1 heaping tbs. dried oregano 4-5 heaping tbs. dried parsley 1-2tbs. Heavy whipping cream Pecorino Romano - grated *There is no real measurement to the cheese. Add to your taste. You will need at least a good handful or two for a pound of pasta to get the right consistency of creaminess. Bring water to a boil in a large pot, add salt and linguini. Cook until al dente, approximately 7 to 10 minutes. While the water is coming to a boil, in a small saucepan, saute the garlic in the olive oil and butter until it is golden brown. Add clams (or chicken), oregano and parsley and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cream and simmer for about 5-6 minutes more. Drain pasta (but do not rinse-you'll need the starch) You can either add the pasta directly to the sauce and mix it up or put the pasta back in the pot it cooked in and pour the sauce over it and mix it up. Add generous handfuls of romano cheese and stir it up before serving. Serve immediately with a fresh garden salad and garlic bread. Serves 4

That sounds like a really cool book. Like alot of the other posters above, I just discuss it with my daughter as it comes up. I talk to her freely about other countries and their cultures and how different peoples around the world have different religions and belief systems. That book sounds like a very cool way to do it though. :) I think one thing I would do is to make sure that they are strong enough in their Christian faith before introducing it, if they are the type that may get confused or have their faith shaken. Just my humble 2 cents for what it's worth. :)

Ohhhh! I see. Okay I'll just pray and God will know his name. I will pray for you guys too that God will give you comfort. Bless you. Jennifer

Thank you. I haven't read that book. I'll check it out. :) Thank you for the welcome also. Someone PM'd me a diet that is not the gluten/free cassein free diet and I haven't tried that one, so I will try that first for a couple months and if that doesn't help, I'll start talking to my daughter's doctor. I have to see her in June anyway for my daughter's birthday physical. She is a pediatrician, but she's a really good one. She's the one that flagged my son when he was at his physical after his second birthday and told me to have him evaluated. Turned out he has severe Autism. I like the neurologist that I have too. He works at the Dan Marino Center, I don't know if anyone outside of South Florida knows of this place or not, but they treat alot of kids with Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Dan Marino's son has Autism. I will talk to the pediatrican either way when I go in June. I've been going to her since my daughter was born and she's great. I've even been to her house a couple of times so I know I can talk candidly with her and she will give me her best advice. The big thing with the meds, according to the neurologist, is the side effects. That will be the tricky part is finding something that can help her focus, but not exacerbate her ticks, OCD and other issues. Ay, God bless these kids. They're special aren't they? :) hehe Alot of work, and God knows they suffer, but they are so brave and strong and wonderful. I love my kids. Sorry, for that spontaneous burst of appreciation for my kids' struggles, but I cannot help but feel it for them for how much they have to struggle to do things that I can do without even thinking about it. God bless their little hearts! Anyway back on track here, hehe, I will talk with the ped. in June, try the diet for a few months and if that doesn't work I'll make an appointment to see the neurologist and go from there. Thanks everyone for all of your help, support and advice. I will post back here when there is something new to report. :) Thank you. Jennifer

Certainly. May I ask his name? I know God knows his name, but I like being able to pray specifically for someone. :)

According to their website BJU has tests for 2nd grade Science. http://www.bjupress.com/category/Grade+2+Science+for+Homeschool+HS?path=1040

:) You're very welcome! :)

Thank you everyone for all of your support, kind words and advice. I really appreciate it. :)

I like your idea of travel. If I had the money and the time, I'd do that. That would be an amazing experience. Actually I think finding a Spanish teacher might not be that off limits. I teach Spanish to a friend of mine once a week for 10 dollars a class. She comes to my house and we work together for about 45-60 minutes. Maybe you can find someone someone to work with your kids. Just a thought. :)

So do some girls. ;) :D hehe

I'm so sorry to hear your troubles. I have never taken St. John's Wart so I am useless about that. When I get depressed, I force myself to stop and list 5 things that I'm grateful for. That always helps me because it helps me put things into perspective that it's not ALL bad. For me also, I have to get alone with God and do some serious praise and worship on my face. My circumstances may not change one bit, but God changes me and refreshes me and gives me a new strength to go on. When my son was diagnosed with Autism when he was 3 years old I cried almost non stop for 6 weeks. It wasn't that I loved him any less, if anything I loved him even more because I felt more protective toward him, but I was crying over all of the struggles I knew he would have in his life, would he ever marry, be able to throw a baseball, have friends? I cried even in my sleep. I would wake up with tears in my eyes all the time. I just drew close to God and stayed as close to Him as I could. The Bible says in Psalm 22:3 that God "inhabits the praise of his people". And he has proven that to me over and over. Whenever I am sad, the first thing I do is get alone and get out the really good praise and worship cd's and play them loud and just sing my heart out to Him. He comes so close and when He does, He makes me feel so much better. My circumstances are still the same, but I am encouraged because I know He cares for me and that I am not walking alone. I hope this helps you. :grouphug: Jennifer Oh, ps, I live in Florida, and for me, going to the beach is actually huge therapy. When I'm sad, it's one of my favorite places to go. I love to go at night and sit by the shore and watch the water. After 10 mintues I feel so much better. Works for me every time. Also getting out of the house and having a change of scenery might do you good. Sometimes just getting away even for a little while helps. :)God bless you honey. HUGS.

My daughter did BJU science this year for the first time. She really liked the colorful pictures and photographs and we both liked that they had so many experiments. She really enjoys the hands on stuff and we do that for our "fun Fridays" :) We're doing BJU again this year but this year I'm buying the lab kit too. :)

LOOOOL I know exactly how you feel. Every year it seems I have all different curriculum from the year before. Does this ever end?? :D ;) I still have some things left to buy, but I have most of my curriculum already. I'm doing Singapore for math BJU science LLATL Spelling Power Spanish MOH and two visual manna books. Geography through Art and History through Art or some title similar to that. :)

Sure I'll play. My favorite time in history has to be with the explorers. I try to imagine what it must have been like going out into uncharted waters trying to find out what is there. I think they had alot of guts to do that and I've always admired them for that. I always try to imagine what it must have been like when they landed, to see what they saw. What was it like to be a European and to see and Indian for the first time. To see the raw beauty of the land where they landed. I find it all fascinating. I think their behavior with the natives once they landed could have been better, but IMHO it still doesn't diminish the courage that it takes to make a voyage like that into the unknown. :)

Probably not for a family of 4. Organic food costs a fortune especially if you buy the free range meats and all that too. I found a mom and pop health food store that has prices way lower than Whole Foods and I've started going there. I found out from a friend of mine who eats the raw food diet that there are co-ops too that you can join and that will save you money too. I started buying organic oatmeal, rices etc online and save alot more money that way. We eat rice almost everyday in my house so that was a big one for us. Other than that, I guess it comes down to food choices and menu planning. What vegetables are going on your salad, if you make soups or stews or things that can be stretched out to make leftovers and what not. Foods that are in season will always be less expensive and fresher than foods that are having to be imported from somewhere else. Knowing what grows near your area and when will also help save some money. But comparing the prices of different veggies can help you save some green too (sorry for the horrible pun but I just couldn't resist it. ;) ) Ex. Broccolli and carrots in your stir fry instead of so many peppers or more expensive veggies. Then you can buy less of the expensive stuff and save that for your salads or what not. Just a few suggestions. I hope this is helpful. :)

That is cool! Strange as it may seem, I hear that alot from teachers when they are being candid after looking over their shoulders to make sure nobody is around to hear them. hehehe My son's Special Ed. teacher in his public school told me that she thinks it's great that my daughter is homeschooled and that public education is a mess. But I live in South Florida too where our public school system is notoriously bad so maybe that is why I hear it so often. Still, I agree it is great when a teacher validates your choice. :) Way to go mom! :)

I confess that I don't buy everything organic, but I do try to buy as much organic food as I can. I shop around alot. I quit going to Whole Foods for personal reasons and I thought, "oh no, now what am I going to do?" I started googling health food stores in my area and found a couple places other than Whole Foods and I started looking at places online and I am saving alot of money on the same items that I was spending at Whole Foods. It took a little research and looking and it takes a little planning, but I am saving more and the quality of the foods is the same if not better. Especially when it comes to grains, nuts, seeds and stuff like that. I buy it online now and it is ALOT cheaper and actually fresher than what I was buying at Whole Foods. I hope this helps. :)

hehehehe Oh Lord have mercy I could never do school outside. When my son was going to therapy all the time I would try to do school with my daughter while we were waiting. They had a nice play area that was fenced off and had a picnic table. I thought to myself, "perfect! We can do school and then she can play on the playground afterwards. The playground will be the perfect motivator for her to focus." NOT. She would be so distracted by the wind blowing her paper or the pages of her book, or the passing by of a car, or a bird in the trees or a butterfly passing by or heaven forbid a bee or a wasp came near. Nope. Homeschooling outside didn't work too well for us. hehehe We wound up with her playing on the playground the entire time that my son was in therapy and my telling myself, "okay, she can have P.E. now and we can do some book work later on." hehehe ;) :D

Thank you. I will check the links out. :)