Can you save the hen? Well, you can try. Over the last 8 years or so we have had a yearly average of about 40-60 chickens and guinea fowl. We have therefore had a range of poultry experiences. We have saved a good number of injured hens, but lost our fair share as well. We also live in the woods. You're already doing the right thing: you've separated the bird from the flock. You've got her safe from predators for now, so I wouldn't worry. I would suggest, though, keeping her where the others can see/hear her easily during the day so that it will be easier for them to accept her back if/when she's ready. Blue Kote spray. It's a wound dressing (antiseptic/germicidal). It will help treat her wounds and disguise the redness of her skin (which encourages the other hens to pick/peck) when she's ready to go back. When that time comes, remember that chickens have a pecking order and somebody will always be "low bird on the totem pole" and there will be a reshuffling (birds will challenge one another) to sort that out any time you introduce a new bird/reintroduce an old one. We often introduce at night, when visibility is low and the birds are sleepy, as the chickens seem to wake up in the morning and figure "well, she was here last night, so I guess it's all good." Chickens can be terribly aggressive to one another, so it's good you found out now... but you've done exactly the right thing in separating her. If she's still eating/drinking and moving around easily, she's likely to make it. Good luck!

ds17 - a steelpan drum dd14 - a monofin They always appreciate gift cards to places like the movie theaters, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, etc. These are places they like to go with friends... I like to give them "experiences" or gift cards to places like zip line parks/ tree-line obstacle courses, rock climbing gyms, etc. It's always gone over well...

http://www.nacep.org/ a link about concurrent enrollment programs from the national accrediting body Aha! Here's the list of colleges that offer this opportunity! http://nacep.org/docs/accreditation/NACEPAccreditedPrograms.pdf In my son's case, the university that offers these classes at his high school is ranked really well by US News and World Report (and there are a few similar schools on the list). It does look like a number of these are community colleges, though.

In my ds's case, he's taking Calc I on the university campus this semester and Calc II next semester. Last year he took two of the other college's classes at his high school: Marine Science and US History. They were year-long classes. The English course will be the same this year. I understand that each class of this type earns him the credit equivalent of a similar semester-long class on the university campus. A brief online search shows that the U of Pittsburg, U of Minnesota, and U of Central Arkansas(?) have this arrangement with a number of high schools. I bet other universities in the US run these programs at high schools as well. I believe they are often described as "concurrent enrollment courses" or "early college programs" by the universities. Ds also took a couple of year-long engineering courses through Project Lead the Way and has credits/a transcript from a third local university. ... and now I have to get all of these transcripts to the colleges he's applying to next month! Ack! Edited to add: He took *three* concurrent courses last year: Marine Science, US History, and American Studies (a multi-disciplinary course in writing/literature/US cultures). Not that the number of courses he took last year matters to anyone but him... Editing only for accuracy's sake. Anyway, along with the three year-long concurrent courses, he also took honors Chemistry, honors Calculus I, honors Spanish II, and gym.

The classes taken at the university are typical university, semester-length classes.

I don't know what your student should do, but here are some examples of other experiences. My ds attends a brick-n-mortar public STEM high school that is on the campus of a university. By senior year, many of the kids there take classes at the university. Each class they take at the university replaces one they would have taken at the high school (often math and science), so there's a one to one correspondence. They don't have many AP classes at his high school, but they do have university classes (from another university) taught AT the high school (the teachers are certified by the university, teaching university syllabi, and the students get credit/transcripts from the university). Right now, as a senior, my ds is taking one math class at the university, one college English class at the high school (as described above), honors physics, honors Spanish, honors international relations, gym, and art. He has friends taking their math, English, and science classes at the university and language, international relations, gym, and art at the high school. Many of these kids are applying to schools of engineering/college right now (so that tells you about age and type of pool). Hope this helps.

I hate the way my dh does laundry too! :willy_nilly: Early this morning he put a small load into the washer: several dish towels and several dog towels (towels used to clean up the wet mess from the one dog who can't hold it). Hours later I emptied the washer, ready to be grateful that he started a load, and just about had a heart attack! Not very gracious of me, but I texted him bad words... Heh... :rolleyes:

In reality, though you know your dd''s path isn't that incredibly unique, *she* is one-of-a-kind! :) If it helps, I think of it as the person saying "this is a unique situation for me because I've never run into it before." The world is big... there are a lot of things that are unique in one person's eyes that are common/normal in another's.

I agree with dmmetler: lots and lots of travel and professional associations. When my oldest was 12 he was quite interested in paleontology. He joined a professional organization (mostly scientists and older people, with a few college-aged people thrown in) and they were very welcoming. We had to drive several hours each way for their once-monthly meeting at a large museum. He was also involved in a knowledge bowl for pre-high school aged kids that was organized by a university -- again, quite a drive. Most of my kids have been involved in music, which has also included a ton of driving. So... driving. Yeah... And google for those associations (assume they'll be happy to have your kids unless they tell you directly otherwise). Good luck!

This last is a good point, but I think it is a common misunderstanding among high school students -- not just with music. Perhaps it's a touch of the big fish, small pond syndrome? Teachers contribute to this, too, somehow not realizing how many other bigger fish are out there.

Here's a crazy question --- If you're already on a Disneyworld vacation, staying on property, and a hurricane hits, what happens? I mean, obviously the parks close. Some hotels get evacuated... but what about some of the people who work there? They have to go to work because there are thousands of guests on-site who need food and whatever else, even though the parks are closed. How do the people who work there get back and forth? What about their families?

Funny: we've had the exact opposite experience. We live in a small town now, but find very few people here who share our life experience... very few people we feel friendly with... and it's a small town where everyone knows everyone else (because they and their families have lived here "forever")... but because we are outsiders, it's not exactly a homey welcome. And we feel like we are judged quite a bit. When we lived in a huge city, we were very friendly with many others in our building... young moms helped each other... we met daily with each other at the park across the street... hugely diverse (and everyone in that neighborhood seemed to get along well and enjoy the diversity)... helped with sick babies... shared info about the local kindergartens/school choice... walked our strollers together around town... I definitely felt there was a lot more friendship. I think the difference is the *particular* neighborhood within the larger city or the sense of acceptance in a *particular* small town. And there's a lot of luck involved, too.

I would move to a bigger city to give *myself* more opportunities, if there were opportunities there I wanted... So, of course I would do it for my kids, too. I have several family members who moved to a new *country* in order to give their kids more opportunities, so moving to a new *city* would seem an easy choice to make. I have moved from the surburbs to the country "to give my kids more opportunities" (larger house, larger yard/property to run on freely, hands-on with their own livestock, etc.). I have been very glad I've done it. I have often thought of moving back to the city (or at least the suburbs near the city) to give my kids certain opportunities (being closer to the music school where my dd attends weekly and "the right" high school for my younger ds in a few years, less driving, etc.). We may do it in a few years... ETA: We moved from a city of 8 million to suburbs of 70,000 to a small town of 5,000... Each place has had its pros and cons. The key is picking the place that has the right pros for that stage of your/your kids life.

I definitely don't want something "too young," but I don't want to overshoot either... He's 10. That's about the right target for Murderous Maths, right? (Well, it is for him, anyway. Loves them. Obsessed.)

If you go to Carnegie Hall, check out the availability of student tickets ($10): https://www.carnegiehall.org/Students/ All your child needs is ID and I believe they can usually get two tickets. (Alice Tully Hall and Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center have similar deals for some concerts: http://studentdiscounts.lincolncenter.org/)

If you like Italian, Carmine's is the bomb! http://www.carminesnyc.com/ (nice dinner option!) You need to experience a true NYC Jewish-style delicatessen: Katz's! (fabulous sandwich!) https://www.katzsdelicatessen.com/ And don't forget the cheesecake! S&S is the real deal. http://sscheesecake.com/index.html They're in the Bronx (if you head up that way for the Bronx Zoo on a weekday and BTW Wednesdays you can get into the zoo for a buck a person, just be sure to be there at opening...) http://www.notfortourists.com/LD.aspx/New-York/Shopping/S-S-Cheesecake And here's "ethnic" -- The "new" big thing in the city is Boba/Asian Bubble Tea. Here's a link to a great place, Shiny Tea: https://www.yelp.com/biz/shiny-tea-new-york If they don't have this near you, you must try it! Lots of great "walk in" pizza places in NYC. One of my favorites on the upper west side: http://francescospizzanyc.com/about-francescos https://www.katzsdelicatessen.com/

What other schools is your ds considering? My ds is a high school senior, filling out college apps right now, with his heart set on aerospace engineering (aeronautical). ERAU has taken his hold of his soul... lol (This is partly my fault: I took him to their "show" at the Marriott in Times Square and boy did they put on a show! He's also been on campus and is in love.) Right now we are trying to convince him that he might end up somewhere else... who knows. He's got 15 schools on his list right now: U of Va U of FL U of Alabama Huntsville our local state school UCONN Manhattan College (mechanical engineering) Fordham University (engineering physics) Virginia Tech WPI RPI U Maryland College Park U of Notre Dame Georgia Tech U Michigan Ann Arbor and... Embry-Riddle! We need to shave that down... if it was up to ds, he'd shave it down to ONE. Heh.

I have a bunch... and the holes have been dug... but I am currently making anti-mole "chicken wire" cages in which to plant them because we apparently live in the middle of a mole civilization and they have DEVASTATED my gardens this year. :(

A lot of kids at selective universities in the US do summer internships. Would that count as resume-worthy work experience in NZ/Australia?

Ruth, You've probably looked at their website, but if you use Harvard's recommended high school courses list as your measuring stick (try to package ds's last two years to look like this...), it might give you some place to start. https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/preparing-college/choosing-courses Also, Harvard has a badminton club and lots of chamber music opportunities (and SEVEN orchestras!) if your ds would like to continue with these interests in college... (Not partial to Harvard, but you mentioned it, so...)

Off topic, but... Actually, there *is* a National Youth Orchestra here in the USA. Link: http://www.carnegiehall.org/nyousa/ It's pretty recent, though, so no "lost points" for not knowing about it. In the last couple of years it has earned a huge reputation and I know kids who have used it on their college apps. It's a definite application sparkle.

Recently bought a set of 10 Murderous Maths books for ds(10) (thank you forums!). He loves them and re-reads them constantly. What other books like these would he enjoy?

Can I plant lilies and tulips together at this time of year? (northeast)

Hey, thanks! This will give her some idea about the style... now where to find the dress...

Four kids have started with Suzuki 30-45 minute private lessons (with a weekly 45 min-1 hour group class). This was 34 weeks a year and the cost averaged to about $1500/year per kid. After a couple of years this price also included a weekly orchestra rehearsal and later, for an additional $400, a weekly quartet coaching. Dd(14) took private piano lessons from a traditional teacher for about 8 weeks... for $15 per 30 minute lesson... back when she was 8/9... but it was the wrong teacher fit and it ended up badly. It didn't work for her. Dd didn't touch the piano (not even a finger) for 2 years. Finally she started messing around on it again, slowly... and used a "teach yourself" curriculum for a few months. She didn't have the motivation and drive to continue with it. It was enough of a start to help her get comfortable with the piano and now she pretty much just improvises around, mostly by ear. She does apply sightreading and music theory skills she's learned in her ear training/music theory classes. Her technique is likely *non-existent* but she can play for fun and can accompany her little sister. At some point in the future she will likely take a "keyboarding skills" class. The rate you find will be consistent with the COL in your area and the education/experience of the teacher. Be sure to ask around because it can be a challenge to figure out which teacher will be the right fit without actually trying them out. If you can, ask the potential teacher if you and your child can sit in on (watch) one of their lessons before you commit. The right teacher fit makes all the difference! Good luck!