In our case, the teacher's behavior was so mean-spirited and childish, I would not have been able to send my dd back into the classroom with her if she knew I had complained.

My dd quit ballet after 9 years of dancing. The main teacher was so harsh and unpredictable, it was killing her self esteem. She loved to dance, and I looked all over, but I couldn't find anywhere else within a one hour drive, so she dropped it. I didn't even realize how much the teacher's behavior had effected her until she went to start with a new piano teacher toward the end of her time in ballet, and was so terrified for the first month, that I had to sit in the lessons with her as she physically shook all over. Since quitting, she is so much more confident and self assured. She has really blossomed. It was so hard to quit, but it has been nothing but a positive decision for my dd. So, saying all that, I know there were many girls who were not bothered at all by the teacher. They just weren't as sensitive. Another little girl in my dd's class would have tears streaming down her face throughout the class. Kids are different in what they find upsetting and it doesn't sound like it is bothering your son, OP, so I'm not sure what I'd do. I never wound up complaining even after we left because it was already clear that the studio owner didn't care. This teacher's methods were no secret. If I had complained, it would have been anonymously for sure.

Congrats!!!

Good for her!

I strongly dislike it. Wish it didn't bother me, but it does.

Well, I just completed an application for extended time on the ACT for one of my kids about 2 weeks ago. I filled out their form, wrote a letter explaining why the accommodations were needed and wrote up a one-page "official accommodation plan" listing the accommodations used at home. I have documentation going back to preschool, so I sent about 6" worth of documents supporting that a ld exists and has existed for a long time. I haven't heard anything back from the ACT people yet. I almost didn't send it because of some of the comments I've read that made me think we wouldn't get accommodations, but then I decided to just take a chance and see what happens because extended time will make all the difference for this child. It only took me a morning to put the stuff together. If we get accommodations from ACT, then I will try the college board as well, though I hear they are tougher.

I believe they do the level 4 readings plus AP at the same time.

Thanks for your thoughts. If my dd continues with Lone Pine, I think she would be able to do AP Latin in 10th, because they offer an option to do Latin 4 and AP at the same time. If she transfers to Lukeion, she should be prepared to go into their Latin 3 class, but I would have her take their placement test to be sure. I think Lone Pine spreads out the readings that Lukeion does in Latin 3 over two years. I'm definitely going to get more info about AP results at Lone Pine before making any decisions. We're also considering doing Latin 3 at home, beginning now, since my dd has already covered most of what Lone Pine is covering this year, and then jumping in with either Lukeion or Lone Pine for AP. I'll report back as I get more info about Lone Pine's AP results.

Oh, I totally forgot about oreo truffles. So glad you mentioned these because I need to send a treat with my son to a Christmas party and these would be perfect.

I love the sugar cookie sticks. I may have to try those too.

In the past, I've used mama lucia, but recently I've gotten whatever brand Food Lion has because they are gluten free. Not as good as homemade, but people always eat all of them and then come over and tell me how much they loved them.

I think this is a great thing to focus on ~~ what kids are doing vs. what they are. I like to think that is my primary focus with my kids. I still think it is probably beneficial for my dd to hear me call her pretty. The funny thing is that my parents, though wonderful, never complimented me on my appearance, because they didn't think it was important and they didn't want me to be vain. So, I make sure to compliment my kids because this is something I feel would have benefitted me. And when my kids grow up, they will probably feel like their self esteem was damaged by me emphasizing their appearance, so they will probably never compliment their children. Lol!

I think it's important to build kids up any way you can during the teen years, and for girls especially, that means giving them positive reinforcement about their appearance. Someone recently mentioned a study to me about how most teen girls completely lose their self esteem during high school. The emphasis on looks is such an integral part of our society, I think it's important for young girls to get the message that they do look great. My hope with my own dd is that if she can get through the teen years with her self esteem intact, she'll own it and hold onto it forever. And yes, of course she is beautiful. How could my dd not be beautiful to me? And on the flip side, girls who are especially beautiful may really struggle because of all the attention they will receive over their looks. It seems like such a blessing, and is in many ways, but I think they may wind up feeling like it is the only reason they are valued. So, I do think it can be somewhat of a fine line to walk, but whether a girl is going to be burdened with positive or negative feedback from the world about her looks, she should at least feel as though she is adorable to her own parents. And I don't think comments should or need to be made daily, but as others have said, save them for those moments when they light up the room and you want to genuinely compliment them. This is just my opinion. Not an expert.

If you have the opportunity for your son to take classes from an excellent teacher, I say do it. I am always searching high and low for classes where there is a teacher who will really turn it into something special and it's not easy to find those opportunities.

I like the comment about the SATs being the thing that led to scholarships. I know I've read a comment before on these boards where someone said they felt much of their student's hard work had not really been necessary because everything really came down to the SAT score (not sure if that was you, Tiramisu?). That comment has really given me pause and makes me feel like it's okay if we don't do tons of AP classes and that we might be better to be very selective about the ones we do take. I had also listened to some mp3s from Aiming Higher Consultants this summer. They have some really good ones for high school. She talks about balancing out academics and extracurriculars and she said something to the effect of instead of thinking of doing something to be able to put it on your children's transcript, think of what skills they need to develop and what their interests are and work that way. With that approach, you will probably wind up with kids have learned what they need to learn as well as having strong transcripts. But, too often, we work backwards with what we want to see on the transcript. That really rang true for me and has caused me to make adjustments.

I don't know much about Montessori methods, but I love the connection some posters made to it about your activities with your little one, mathmarm. Sounds intriguing. I don't think I required much of my two when they were that little, but it is an interesting approach and as long as it is done in a spirit of fun and lightness and it isn't putting a strain on your relationship, I think it is fine. Sounds like you are a good mom and are putting a lot of thought into this. Oh, how I wish I had a 2 year old again. Those were such dear, special years to me.

I'm always looking for balance in our days as well, but it is hard. Each of my kids works on school for about 7-8 hours a day. I try to keep weekends free from school, but that doesn't always happen. I am pretty much okay with that workload, but it took me awhile to feel all right about it and it's not something we jumped into overnight. One of the things that makes high school so much more demanding for us is that my kids are taking classes online and locally and that takes away the flexibility to rearrange schedules and shift workloads around. To me, the classes they are taking are worthwhile enough that I'm willing to sacrifice the flexibility, but it has made for longer days. And, really, I often remind myself that if they were at the local high school, they would be leaving early in the morning and returning at 4:30 p.m. and then they'd still have homework to do. That being said, I don't think any of their classes take them anywhere near 10 hours a week. I would say they each take closer to 5, but they are each taking a full load. My dd also practices piano and works on stuff for speech and debate club during regular school hours. I shifted gears with Latin this year, moving my dd from a class that was supposd to take 10 hours per week, to one that takes considerably less. Not sure if that was the right decision, but I did it with her workload in mind. And I agree with what what said upthread about how competitive things have gotten with college admissions AND how expensive they have become. I have one child that I hope will be eligible for significant scholarships, and if she wants to go away to college, she will need them. Otherwise, she'll either be commuting to the local university or taking on massive debt.

Congratulations!

We weren't ever really part of a homeschool group through elementary and middle school. What I did do was set up regular playdates. So, my dd had a standing playdate with her friend every Wednesday and her mom and I hung out during that time. We had a standing playdate to meet up with a few other families at the playground as well. We also participated in a field trip group and Community Bible Study. But, mostly, I set up regular times to meet up with people we liked. Now, in the teen years, I'm relying more on local coops and clubs for regular interaction. One club that has been a huge blessing to us over the years was a strategy games club. If your kids like board games, that is not that hard to set up and run and you might be able to do it at the library. Another group that has been wonderful is the speech and debate club. The kids really get to know each other and there have been many benefits for growth there. I have really enjoyed participating by listening to the kids speeches and being involved in tournaments. Boy scouts has been great for my son and venture crew has been a good fit for my dd. All of these activities have offered parents the opportunity for participation and socializing as well.

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Funny!

Yes. My kids only spent a couple of hours a day on the basics all through elementary and then had hours and hours to play, do crafts, listen to audiobooks, legos. Etc. We spent lots of time outside and experienced many fun field trips. They also had plenty of time to spend with their grandparents. I can't say things are as wonderful homeschooling high school because they are very busy now, but I am so grateful that I was able to give them that time when they were little.

I've been using the one you linked and am happy with it. I clean it in denture cleaner, which I had on hand for my dd's retainer, and it has lasted me a long time.

I've never heard of these before. I will definitely have to try them. Yum!

I recently had this at a bridal shower and it was delicious ~~ sweet potatoes wrapped in bacon http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/bacon-wrapped-sweet-potato-bites These little tomato bacon cups are awfully good ~~ http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/tomato-bacon-cups And I second the meatballs in chili and grape jelly recipe ~~ http://allrecipes.com/recipe/239824/grape-jelly-meatballs/