There is no glaring issue - like nails or hair.... it just seems, well, odd! He is growing but he has certainly slowed down this past year. He is my most sensitive child as well. And he doesn't have the same energy level as the older two boys and strongly prefers the indoors. Not in a terribly sickly way but outside is always "too cold" "too hot" "too wet" "too something" ;) He doesn't have much of a chart to go by as we don't generally do well-baby visits. That said, I am charting now and he has gone to the doctor a few times so there is "some" record and I have jotted down a few measurements over the years (there is a wall at my mom's where she marks them everytime we visit too). There is probably enough to reconstruct a basic line. I'll put that on my to-do list. That will give me a better idea of the "rate". And I should be able to see if he is slow and steady or if there has been a major shift in the rate. Thank you for that idea. This past year has been quite an eye opener for me. Mostly because his two year old sister caught up with him yk? They get mistaken for twins all the time but are 2 years apart eek! To the pp, I have wondered about an allergy. We do have Celiac's in the family. I do better when I don't eat gluten (my face clears up and I stop itching) but I do not have the disease. It has crossed my mind more than once that this might be an area of concern. Definitely will ask the doctor if his height does end up being an issue. I really really appreciate all the responses. I am relieved to see that he seems fairly average according to several of your responses. That makes it less of a pressing issue. I will schedule him a check-up but I'll probably wait until Spring to do it. I do not have a good established Ped in the area. We had been seeing a doc about 30 minutes away and are not happy with the care. Several misdiagnoses that ended up in the ER. Ick. We moved the beginning of October so it is time to find someone new who is closer. Get old records transfered... that sorta "fun" thing. Lastly, YES, to the pp who spoke about kids being thought of as older. I get this all the time! People are stunned when I say my two older are only 8 and 6. I even had one woman who seemed more incredulous than most and had the gall to ask my oldest boy when his birthday was. I was just a bit peeved. Thanks again for the responses. :001_smile:

We are a tall family. My original height (I've lost some due to kyphosis/lordosis) was 5'9''. My husband is 6'2''. (I have a brother who is 6'4'' and dh's brother is 6'6'') Our kids in general are big.... DD - age 11 - 5'4''-5'5'' DS - age 8 - 4'10 (wearing a 7 man's shoe already!!!!) DS - age 6 - not sure of height but is very tall for his age and wears a size 8/10 in clothes DD - age 2 - wears a size 3 or 4 depending, is 41 inches tall. Now my 4 year old is almost the exact same size as my two year old. He is growing but way slower than any of my other kiddos ever have. I've never had a kid wear the same winter jacket for more than one season - that is what struck me with DS3 this year. Heck, I'm use to the others outgrowing a coat before the season is over. What is normal? Sorry if this seems a nutty question to ask. I've looked at the growth charts and my kids tend to be at the top (or off of) and then there is DS3. He appears to be at the bottom. Which seems odd to me given the rest of us. That said, there are a few smaller people in both my dh's and my families. Perhaps he just got the recessive genes? I would love to hear how big your 4 year olds are. :bigear: Maybe my viewpoint is skewed b/c I have jolly green giants for kids generally ;) I know I can make an appointment for a doc and yada yada. But it is flu/sick season and I'd rather wait unless it seems like there is truly cause for concern. So anyhow the DS3 stats: Age 4, will be 5 in April 41 inches About 36 pounds

A Reason For Spelling has dictation and activities: http://www.areasonfor.com/article.php?id=18 I am a secular homeschooler that tweaks this for one of my kids. He really enjoys the format. The other kiddos use other programs.

Wonderful news! Enjoy your babymoon :001_smile:

It is more difficult to gauge periods based on hair. More telling is breast development. Most girls start around a year after they begin to get breasts. :)

If you don't mind the religious content, my kiddo is enjoying CLE's Learning to Read program. I'm actually a secular homeschooler and I just change stuff on the fly or sometimes let it go as is. For a 5 year old, I might spread the lessons over 2 days depending on the child.

http://www.hellmansoft.com/

I'm also in NC and have BC/BS for just my husband/I. I have no maternity coverage. The kids are on another plan and are very low-cost. For just my husband and I, our rate is almost a $1,000 a month. We do have fairly good coverage but not the best. Our rate is high because we have known heath issues. Good luck finding a good plan. It is difficult at best.

I get more done with them - for sure. Our modified version will be used next year as well. Here are my modifications Boxes can be done in any order 4 fun activities can be taken when they feel like they need a break I set up each box for a week's worth of work (much easier on me but I don't think this would work for preschoolers) Each box has a subject and there are sticky tabs on the pages: day 1, day 2.... They take the tabs off as they complete the day. There are elective boxes that have 3-5 different books and they just look for the book with the correct day on them. This allows them to work forward in the week (on their own) if they choose (but only after they have finished all the correct day's work unless I approve) I have a crate that the kiddos drop books into that they need help with (rather than the help sign) No clocking in or out. Kids know that when all 12 boxes are done, they are done (unless they are using 1 of the 4 activities) ETA: My kids are in the 6th, 3rd, and 1st grades.

I love the look of the Beco. Never tried one though. Did love my Sutemi and my good friend loves her Ergo. For a sling sling - I loved these: http://www.lucky-baby.com/p_home.asp I preferred fleece for a stretchier fit on a newborn. But it is warm to hot in the summer so take that into consideration. I had a pretty cotton one for summer / dressier occasions. I had a mei tai but could never get it to fit comfortably for me. You are supposed to be able to wear an itty-bitty babe on your back (that was appealing) but I never could get the positioning down correctly - even with help. There are quite a few online tutorials though so perhaps you will be more successful.

$0 - I don't have one. My husband's is covered by his firm.

To the original question, what do I consider "rights"? Freedom - meaning personal freedom freedom of speech freedom of religion freedom to marry whom I chose not restricted by gender, or race Basic access to - Education Food Water Shelter Healthcare

Staying Healthy is done by the Weekly Reader folks. A lesson a week with get you through *easily* by the end of the year. The 2nd grade book is red. You can also find lessons online for the food pyramid and such if you feel like you need more: http://www.mypyramid.gov/

Just in case you ache already... I have fibromyalgia. Stretching and very low key exercise are key to keeping my aches within an acceptable range. Even so, I ache all the time. Major exercise leaves me almost completely debilitated. One of the first signs I had of fibromyalgia was a sudden exercise intolerance in my early 20's. I went from being a super athletic to struggling with the pain in a low-level step class. More than likely, it is not something of the sort. But if you can't seem to work past the initial pains, you might need to consider other reasons. Oh, and tylenol/ibuprofen/aleve do very little for my fibro pain - also another sign. Good luck!

I had mine pulled a few months ago. I was 5 weeks pregnant (yes, the copper IUD failed for me). It was exactly where it was supposed to be. The strings still in about the same spot. Putting it in was uncomfortable. I didn't even feel her take it out. Easy-peasy. I would have thought that being pregnant would have made it more painful as things tend to get much more sensitive to me. Good luck! :)

When my daughter was that age, we had good luck at Sears.

I have a large white 5 shelf baker's rack type of thing that I bought from Sam's Club. I then bought heavy duty hooks from Lowe's Home Improvement. The Cast Iron Hangs from the hooks.

Five and pregnant with six. We were very very done with 5 but our copper IUD failed so we are adjusting to the idea of six :001_smile: Nothing like having zero baby stuff for your sixth baby. Talk about difficult to explain :lol:

Another tidbit about NC - the annual testing. You can do the Cat-C or the PASS test. Both are around $25 and can be administered by you. So EOG testing isn't costly or difficult. They do ask (but it isn't required) for you to turn in your attendance logs and EOG test scores.

Wow, that is a beautiful gift. What a wonderful husband you have.

It is unimaginable - the terror. Shed a few tears for you. I'm pregnant now and that makes me.... well, you just never know. I'm so glad everything turned out well.

Ok, looking at the schedule.... Learning to Read is scheduled from Week 1 through Week 18 ending on day 90. You are skipping all that (yeah!). Language Arts starts in Week 7 on day 31 (corresponding to the beginning of LTR book 105). They do one lesson per day, a day for review, and a day of testing... According to the schedule, they do not schedule any Reading lessons for Weeks 19 or 20! The Language Arts does book 104 during this two weeks. So.... this means that the I Wonder book is meant to begin with Language Arts Book 105. So I Wonder 101 goes with LA 105, I Wonder 102 goes with LA 106 and so forth. :)

I have a 1st grader who is using all three of those. I ordered the first 3 books of each to "get my feet wet". Here are my thoughts: 1. You need the teacher manual's for Learning to Read and the Math. Especially for learning to read. It has the stories that go with the letter cards + lots of extra activities. The math also has the story problems, dictation, money jar amounts and daily activities listed (not just what is in the workbook). 2. The Language Arts will not start until With the Learning to Read Book 5!!!! I so wish I had known that. It looks good but it assumes that your child can read/do all the sight words/phonics presented up to that point. 3. It starts easy-easy. Like Kindergarten easy but the climb is fairly steep. My kiddo has still done 2ish lessons a day and is now in books 103 for each but looking ahead just a few more books makes me realize how quickly they add things in. The reading level by the end of 1st grade is advanced I think. 4. There is a schedule that shows you how to incorporate the Learning to Read, 1st grade Reader, Language Arts and Math in the Teacher's Handbook. That is really valuable for me b/c I'd have been worried about fitting all the reading lessons into a year otherwise. Here is what I think you will want to have on hand bare minimum "to test it out": 1. Learning to Read - Book 101 Teacher Guide Word Flash Cards Picture Flash Cards (The Phrase Flash cards and readers do not start until book 102. The sound slider is completely optional) 2. Language Arts - Nothing unless you just want to see it. I think the examples online are probably sufficient 3. Math Book 101 Teacher Guide Addition & Subtraction Cards (these are really pretty neat with the coded system) (The counting book doesn't start until book 103. The calendar book and counting chart are completely optional. Counting book too really. You will need a clock of some sort starting in book 103 but it doesn't have to be theirs). Hope this helps! Good luck :)

most of the women on my father's side have had their gallbladders out by their early 20's - myself included and most of the men by 30. The pain is incredible so I wouldn't put it off. When I had the "final" attack, I had just had a baby via natural childbirth. The pain was way WAY worse. There will likely be a learning curve afterwards as to what she can eat and what she cannot. I had to avoid high fat foods afterwards or I was running the bathroom. After 2-3 years, I was mostly ok although I do have food that will always upset me and that wasn't the case pre-surgery. (((hugs))) to your dd. Gallbladder issues are not easy to deal with. The pain of minor attacks may feel severe but if you get a stone stuck in a duct like I did, it is excruciating. I couldn't talk or walk. I had emergency surgery to have my gallbladder removed but the stone was still stuck in a duct so I woke up in just as much pain. After waiting 24!!!! more agonizing hours to see if it would pass on its own, they ended up with me back in emergency surgery as I was rapidly turning quite yellow. I was given morphine and was still in a good deal of pain. I wouldn't wish it on anyone and always caution those who feel like they might can put it off.

This one is my absolute favorite for homemade cinnamon rolls - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cinnamon-Rolls-III/Detail.aspx