Janeway
-
Posts
7,091 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Classifieds
Store
Posts posted by Janeway
-
-
Are VR headsets a good purchase? I know that previously, there wasn’t enough to do with them to make them worth the purchase. How are they now? 14 yr old wants this for Christmas.
-
1
-
-
Just go back to TGTB. I also like BJU press materials. BUT, I was getting fed up with their (TGTB) frequent updates so I was looking to go elsewhere, but nothing brought as much joy as TGTB. What I do now is use the free readers on the ipad and only purchase the workbooks. I know in one level, we skipped a book and used something else, not a big deal as it costs so little. Memoria Press feels like a redundant thudding on my head. It is very rote.
-
1
-
-
14 hours ago, PeterPan said:
If both spelling and handwriting are hard when phonological processing is intact, you may be dealing with a developmental vision problem. I would test for retained reflexes, try again to get OT, and ask the developmental optometrists in your state for who they refer to for OT. You *might* be able to get enough OT to get the visual processing working correctly, but that's sort of downstream. The spelling requires visual *memory* and that kind of visual processing is proceeded by everything else (retained reflex integration, visual reflexes, convergence, etc. etc.). And the discomfort and eye issues would affect the writing.
You can hack around it by working on visual memory, but it will be a splinter skill. Retained reflexes you might be able to figure out how to work on for free/cheap.
I have no issue with the typing or using the dictation btw, fine, definitely do it. Just saying I would also pursue the reflexes, developmental vision, OT stuff, etc.
Who would I go to? I mean, he has been to a neuropsych and had a team eval which included OT. And now he is on waitlists for OT. Should I try to see if I could at least get him in for a new OT eval or go back the other route? The public school is clearly not going to help.
-
1 minute ago, PeterPan said:
Would you share a cabin or do separate cabins? Can you go sooner? You can get some crazy last minute deals for hurricane season. Maybe don't wait. 🙂
S🙂
Date cannot change. It is surrounding a specific anniversary. We won't share cabins. I suggested that, but my sister says they are too small for us to share.
-
1
-
-
2 minutes ago, PeterPan said:
I guess as long as you're not in the room...
Belize, Cozumel, and Costa Maya have terrific ruins and things to go to. In Costa Maya I've done Lake Bacalar, which is totally beautiful, and the fort there. However most people go do the ruins there. We did ruins in Belize which are "unBelizable" as they say. 🤣 Truly unbelievable though. You ride up the river in a boat and hike through the jungle to these ceremonial pyramid ruins they used to sacrifice people from. Some you can climb. Totally epic, totally Indianess Jones. Or whatever that would be. And the food, oh the food!!! So, so good. I don't know how they have running water and toilets, but their food is crazy good.
In Cozumel, I would do something else, not the ruins, but they're there too if you really need to.
So of the "normal" and common cruise ports with serious history stuff, those would be the ones. Well San Juan has history junk. Much less common port, hot, narrow streets, not what I'd recommend for a group, just me. But Belize with a group would be AWESOME. You usually get Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel on an itinerary like that. Every major cruise line does them.
Ok, feeling brave! So be prepared for motion of the ocean and potential itinerary changes. Unless you book everything through the cruise (which I don't particularly recommend), you really need 3rd party travel insurance. You have to assume delays, getting back late, getting a late start, having port changes, etc. Don't get too attached. Just decide you like the price and you're going to have a good time no matter what. We enjoyed our last hurricane season cruise immensely, but we didn't take wifi, didn't look at the weather, and well apparently have a high tolerance for waves and motion.
For your trivia, you could get a transatlantic at that time of year for about the cost of a shorter cruise. You'd fly to some place like Barcelona and sail back. If you have the time (14 days) the prices are good. RCL runs some crazy deals on transatlantics for some of their smaller ships. The Oasis class with more to do won't go down as much, but the ports are not as exotic. And a transatlantic coming out of the Med will stop in ports with history to satisfy you. Good stuff, and you can get some crazy deals.
I should add that if my cousins do not come, it will end up being only 5 of us, if we are all still able then. Sister-in-law has not been well and not sure if she will still be around then. If she is not, it will be just four of us. So not a big group.
-
1
-
-
On 9/9/2023 at 7:55 PM, PeterPan said:
I'm booked on a different cruiseline (MSC, budget, budget) but had thought about jumping to NCL. If you look kind of last minute, prices on NCL, Celebrity, etc. drop and get pretty similar. I didn't move over to NCL, partly because of the itinerary but largely because the NCL ship was OLD. The spa was outdated, not worth changing for. Definitely look at the ship and amenities if they matter to you. I would expect the Viking ship to be much nicer and have a better ratio of staff to passengers, better service, better food, etc., all the things that go with paying more.
I personally would also be miffed if my friends asked me to pay double for something when I would have been happy on a cheaper/different option. Are you sure you want to cruise with them? It's not necessary and to me, if the money is an issue, it will cloud your enjoyment. You could have a LOT of fun with the price difference on some of these cruiselines.
YES, you are absolutely wise to be caring about the time in ports!!! The twist though is you need to look at whether the ships *tender* or actually dock. Sometimes a port has both but smaller ships dock in the port and larger ships tender. Viking could have an advantage there.
You're also going to have some demographic differences I think. I'm not entirely sure about that, but I think so. You might look for some videos on youtube, maybe by Gary Bembridge, and see if he has anything on Viking. He does a lot of upscale cruise reviews, and I find I like the pizzazz and level of activity that comes with larger ships. Just me.
I'll say it again. I would NOT pay $$$$$ more just to appease friends. If you aren't feeling it, go your own way and book what you like. That money might get you massages, stellar excursions, all kinds of things. Now if the extra is nothing to you, fine. But don't be afraid to do your own thing, mercy.
I want to go with them, I am just not in to cruises. And I don't want to go with my cousins. I want it to just be us siblings and spouses. The main reason for the cruise idea is that sister-in-law has mobility issues.
-
1
-
-
22 minutes ago, PeterPan said:
When do you want to go? If you find a travel agent you trust, that's one way to book. You can also connect with the cruise line and have them assign you a personal concierge or cruise consultant. Every line has them, and it's handy to have someone who works there who can handle things for you. Rather than just randomly booking, I would let someone help you like this.
I'm looking at Virgin to see what they have going. There are a LOT of deals for Australia right now. Australia is open but they have been such a pain in the butt with their c-vid policies that it killed tourism. I'm constantly getting free/stupid cheap cruises offers for there which would mean just the cost of a plane ticket. Unfortunately, even that would be $$$$$$ for me.
I like Jan/Feb in the Caribbean. Pulling that up, I'm seeing $175 a day per person. Remember that's very all inclusive, no surprises, including drinks, gratuities, etc. Their 5 night itineraries would be tons of fun and keep the cost down. Puerta Plata is the Dominican Republic and I've been there (Amber Cove, the port associated with that town) many times. LOTS of fun. Cozumel would be amazing fun for your group. People will go to Mr. Sanchos and spend the day on the beach. If you want to get spendy, there are some amazing full day excursions you can do to the mainland where you swim in caves, snorkel with turtles, etc. Bimini is just a great beach day.
Widening the dates, I'm seeing prices as low as $129 per sailor per night, which again is reasonable when you consider what is included. They're also doing an airfare promotion. You need to make sure that when you do this you all book TRAVEL INSURANCE. You can consider whether you want CANCEL FOR ANY REASON insurance or just regular insurance. Cancel for any reason insurance is something you get through a vendor like www.tripinsurancestore.com You can get quotes, compare prices, see what suits you. If your willingness to go is dependent on the group, meaning you would want to cancel if others canceled, then you will want cancel for any reason insurance.
You could also do a Disney cruise and have a ton of fun with your group. It would cost $$$ but that way people could just bring their kids and be done with it. The kids would be occupied and the adults would have an amazing time. I also like Carnival, but the main advantage there is price. If you like extra features, Royal Caribbean, which seems to go yuppy with their ice rinks, escape rooms, on and on. 🤣 I'm so simple, needing just a spa and good food to be happy. But you know, go with what suits the group. But for a special SPLURGE, I'd be looking at Virgin or Disney. For more normal, just go with what calls to you. 🙂
Sorry, I forgot to put links. Just go to Virgin and see. In Jan/Feb, you have reliable weather and will just have fun. Prices are low in October because it's hurricane season. I've cruised then and like it, but you need both the mercy of G*d that your cruise actually goes and the willingness to be flexible on ports. I wouldn't do that for a large group that wants it to go well, kwim? I'd go at a more reliable time. Not spring break, haha. I mean, you do you, but I wouldn't do spring break. But yeah, use the filters, see what turns up that hits reasonable price points for your people.
Well, I think the sex toys might make my cousins too happy. LOL.....
I like calmer stuff. I love the idea of seeing historical places or scientific things. My favorite things to do include observatories and historical sites. Nothing like seeing how people lived long ago, I would love that! BUT, it would be nice if the cruise were only for 40 and up or 50 and up. We will travel in October. Specifically, in three years from now.
-
1
-
-
22 hours ago, PeterPan said:
Ok, then some things to know. We were sort of nervous when we started cruising too, and we just took the plunge and went all the way. Turns out we LOVE it. So it could turn out you like it.
Things to know?
-There's a lot of VARIETY. Almost anything you like is probably happening, meaning it's pretty hard to be bored. You can eat, go to the spa, go to crafts, read, lay out, make friends, go to trivia, watch movies in your cabin, on and on. I've had SO many crazy experiences. I made friends with the ship magician one cruise because I would go down to the library late at night to read. He was there with another magician doing tricks, night after night, and I got sucked in. 😁 But you really do have to be you, do you, do the things you like. I like to eat and do the spa. I'm sort of fringe, so I might go into a show or might not. Mainly food and the spa. I like dive in movies that they show on the big screens. If the spa sucks, I'm so out of luck because I spend a LOT of time there, lol. But I took a friend and she was all about her reading and sat in the adults only area reading. You do you. and you'll be happy.
-Cruising is the most blissful vacation. You send your kids to the kids clubs. They are happy, you don't worry. No cooking, no cleaning, no laundry. My ds wet the bed almost nightly, like completely soaking it even through night pants, etc. I did SO much laundry for so many years. I KISSED THE FEET of the workers who were willing to attend to that while I was cruising so I could have a break. Seriously. Paid stuff, everyone safe, and you get to go talk with adult humans and do your own thing. Bliss. Sheer bliss.
-The staff are adorable. I'm not sure how you could possibly get bored. In addition to the activities, just the people are on board. I make friends with the crew, learning their names and saying hi. People hide ducks. I will do shared tables for meals and make friends, then I have friends around the ship. I make friends in the spa. For a not very social me, I seem to do well with this smile and greet level of social. It's just enough for me and makes it fun without being a heavy commitment.
-You might need to prepare. We practiced dealing with the horn noise. Yes, it's a lot of transition to go somewhere else for a week. My ds wet his pants multiple times the first time we went cruising, just from the stress. It's OK to say it's stressful to try something new!! What you're doing though is you're modeling this and helping your kids learn to do this. My ds now can travel. He can just pack his own suitcase (for real!) and get on a plane and be chilled and do it, no stress at all. So when you do something over and over, you get better at it. If you don't climb that hurdle, you stay where you are. It's worth the effort for yourself, for your kids, but it's ok to say it's going to be stressful and that you might want to take some chamomile and take familiar items to help it go better.
I would prefer a trip that would not allow kids. Everyone wants to make this an adult only trip and my one cousin has said he wants to bring his adult daughter, who is 19 and exactly the same age as my second child. I don’t want to exclude my children but then have others’ kids there. That happened a couple years ago. I was told it was an adult trip, then my cousins showed up with their kids younger than mine. It really bothered me.
That being said, do you have any trips you recommend?
-
36 minutes ago, PeterPan said:
Go if you want and don't if you don't. 🙂 Cruising is great fun and it can be fun to have a large group. I'm not a group person, so the thought of having to delay, wait, do what the group wants, etc. would completely destroy my soul and ruin my vacation. Yuck, yuck, yuck. And if that's what you're feeling, I agree. But if you LIKE hanging with a group and doing group activities and group dinners and this and that, do it! Cruise lines are set up to handle this, with large tables, etc., and it's a blissfully restful way to vacation.
I really want to go with them to be with them. But I don’t like the idea of a cruise or the fact that they seem to last so long.
-
My oldest sister wants all of us siblings and spouses to take a trip in a few years. She has sent me links to many trips and I am unsure what to do.
-
1
-
-
25 minutes ago, Katy said:
Oh if you like the look of wood blinds but not the price, about a year and a half ago I replaced some of ours with Better Homes & Gardens versions from Walmart. They are high quality but relatively inexpensive.
18 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:Ditto @Katy -- It's easy to replace broken slats if you have extras. You might even be able to buy some replacements?
If not -- I wouldn't say we're particularly handy, but measuring for and hanging blinds is a fairly easy DIY thing. I don't think shades would be harder.
I think drapes can look very nice and can definitely add to the looks of a room, but personally I'm not ever likely to have them. BTDT, didn't find them worth the hassle. They're a lot of work to get right (right material/look, get them hung correctly, etc.), and they're dust catchers. I like the minimalist, clean look of just blinds or shades.
-
We do have spare blinds that are the same measurement width wise, just too long for that space, that we could take slats from. But I already tried and could not figure out how to re-string. Maybe I will have my husband watch the video and see if he can do better. Sadly, my dad could have fixed this. But he has been gone for 2 1/2 years now.
-
52 minutes ago, lmrich said:
You might want to talk to your pediatrician about a referral to OT.
In the meantime, look up and do some a activities from here: https://www.theottoolbox.com/handwriting-warm-up-exercises-for/
I got a referral to an OT over a year ago and have been on waitlists ever since. These waitlists can take years. And we already do the exercises. AND I already contacted the public school about maybe allowing services. They would just give a keyboard. That feels like a copout but wondering if there comes a point where I should allow it.
-
51 minutes ago, Servant4Christ said:
Thankyou @Janeway. I think I'm just stressing because I struggled in highschool math but was ignored by most math teachers. I was getting good grades so I clearly didn't need the same kind of help as the students who were failing. I could see and copy the patterns being used to solve problems but had no clue why I was doing it or why it worked. Thus, good grades and no clue. I'm currently looking at a picture of a page in Foerster's Alg 1 that is a prime example, yet I didn't use Foerster's. I used Jacobs Alg 1. I remember because I hated those lizards with everything in me. Lol. I haven't found a similar lesson in Dolciani (yet) to compare explanations, though. I will say, I am thankful for all the research I'm doing, as it's shedding light on areas I truly want to reteach myself.
You can PM me if you wish. Actually..I am about to go out and do yard work. I can try to take some pictures from Dolciani. I would highly recommend pre-algebra. It never hurts to also do pre-algebra. But it definitely hurts to not do it if they are not heavily grounded in the math. I do use Keys to Algebra...all 10 books, for every child, regardless. It seems to focus in on some of the trouble areas and gives extra clarity. I try to get through the first 4 books before starting algebra.
-
1
-
-
48 minutes ago, Servant4Christ said:
Thankyou @Janeway. I think I'm just stressing because I struggled in highschool math but was ignored by most math teachers. I was getting good grades so I clearly didn't need the same kind of help as the students who were failing. I could see and copy the patterns being used to solve problems but had no clue why I was doing it or why it worked. Thus, good grades and no clue. I'm currently looking at a picture of a page in Foerster's Alg 1 that is a prime example, yet I didn't use Foerster's. I used Jacobs Alg 1. I remember because I hated those lizards with everything in me. Lol. I haven't found a similar lesson in Dolciani (yet) to compare explanations, though. I will say, I am thankful for all the research I'm doing, as it's shedding light on areas I truly want to reteach myself.
You can PM me if you wish.
-
My dining room has a little damage on the blinds. I can continue to ignore it. I like the ignoring option! But alas, we have repainted much of the house so it is probably time to do something about those blinds. They are wood blinds. It is just the little ends that are broken in 2 spots (but multiple slats on one of the spots). I would prefer to repair but have not figured out. I am considering ordering new blinds but have found that I would need to measure myself unless I want to pay twice as much. IF I do this, I might go with a roller blind or a roman blind, maybe as a third choice, a cellular blind. This is because my husband does not like wood blinds so we would need to change style. He is fine with us repairing, but if we are going to spend a lot, he would rather go with a different style.
An alternative is to put in drapes. This might be a good alternative. The damages are on the inner portion of the blinds but we can swap the blinds to the other sides so that the damages are on the outside. Then, the drapes would cover the edges. Drapes might look nice. They aren't cheap though as the measurement from the crown molding to the floor is 114 inches. The window might look rather dull right now with no drapes. SO, I will include a picture and was hoping for opinions. Thanks!
-
My 3rd grader is not behind at all in ability to dictate his writing nor is he behind in reading. But spelling is a mess and handwriting is a mess. His handwriting is so bad that he cannot write stories really. He is a lefty and I have been working with him. His grip is fine. And he works super hard and is super sweet and amazing and tries so hard. He also seems to feel bad about his inability to do well.
My question is, should I just have us keep plugging away and not worry, figure he will get there eventually? Or should I add in more writing instruction? Or should I give up on the handwriting and let him type his papers? He is likely getting an ipad for Christmas so I could get him a keyboard with it.
-
21 hours ago, Nm. said:
Thank you. I think I’ve decided on what to do for Algebra. 😅 Anyone know if finishing a grade 6 math is enough to start Jacobs without “prealgebra”?
Depends on the curriculum. If you are talking grade 6 of Abeka or teaching textbooks, I would say no. If you are talking grade 6 of Singapore Math 3rd edition/US edition (or maybe even Horizons math), then I would say yes. But it might also depend on the child. Half my children have been rather good at math and moved straight to algebra. Half have needed pre-algebra first. But if you are coming from TT or some other program like that, no, not likely.
-
1
-
-
On 9/5/2023 at 6:12 AM, Servant4Christ said:
Thank you. Then I guess my next question is: Do you think a student who finishes R&S math through grade 8 will do fine going on to algebra 1 without having taken a pre algebra course?
I would think so. I am sure so actually. I own both and prefer Dolciani, but others prefer Foersters. SO I am splitting the difference. I have had one child use each of Dolciani and Foersters and Jacobs. They are all equal, but a little different in presentation. The explanations are the same pretty much. I have compared many lessons. So, I just let the kids pick the one they like the look of. You could just pick the one you like and use it. No need to own 3 sets of books to let one child pick.
-
2
-
-
Foerster’s algebra is no more of a leap than Dolciani. I have both and they cover the same exact thing.
-
1
-
1
-
-
The modern day speakeasies that I’ve heard of usually involve some sort of secret entrance. You might know that the entrances there, and it might even be advertised, but they try to make it look secretive. It’s kind of their gimmick, and I actually think it’s kind of cool, and would like to visit one eventually.
-
From my experience, the public schools here hate kids with ASD and will avoid doing anything to help them. It is a toxic environment.
-
1
-
-
5 hours ago, Drama Llama said:
I would like to find something to do with my sweet 11 year old niece, who is very feminine, and does not like sports.
We could go somewhere,, or stay home and watch a movie? Maybe run to the art store for canvases and do one of those paint and sip style follow along videos? Other ideas?
Do nails together? And any sort of arts and crafts maybe.
-
I have never used the TM. It might have helped, but I have not used it. If you can get it for very cheap, it might be worth it. But also, in my case, I buy the 1994 edition of SWO. I just like it better.
VR headsets?
in The Chat Board
Posted
Which one would you recommend?