One of my friends used it a few yrs ago with her oldest. They did both year 1 and year 2. When he got to Calvin College, he took more Latin and did very well. He felt well-prepared for the college course. HTH

:iagree:

Usually, no. When I worked part-time mornings, dd was the supervising party (though the kiddos all had things they were supposed to be doing). But my job was to pay for the braces she desperately needed, so... The olders haven't been asked to babysit a LOT. DD1, though, has had the most babysitting hours and I try to show appreciation in other ways for that. Sometimes her babysitting is an option, and sometimes she'll say yes, sometimes no, and sometimes she'll ask me to take one or the other of the youngers with me but will stay home with the other two.. If we have been away and because of it the older one needed to take time of their job, we paid them for their lost work hours.

Nope. No Wii, no playstation, no DS, no nothing of the sort. We do have few games for the computer, but the kiddos only get 30 minutes a day IF their schoolwork is done.

To add to the list of suggestions: Hoodwinked Princess Bride

Thanks so much everyone! Wow! Every post sounds so delicious!! I will have to think about this one to narrow it down. Thankfully I have a couple days!

We are having dinner on Christmas Eve at my parents' house and I am bringing dessert. I don't want to make fruit pie I don't want to make cookies Dinner is ham (Dad makes the BEST ham!), and we usually have the typical side dishes. In other words, nothing "different" or "unique." What do you suggest for dessert? Thanks so much!

I have a friend who's hubby is terribly allergic, but she LOVES dogs and cats. They don't have any cats, but they have TWO Maltese dogs and the hubby has no trouble at all.

my dd is early advanced and is working on Tarantella by Pieczonka; i think it meets your qualifications

I chose other because each of my kids was different. Here in NY, they must be 16 and pass a written test to get their learner's permit. This allows them to drive under the supervision of a licensed driver age 21 and over. They must have at least 20 hours of driving practice, then take and pass their road test. We were pretty broke when the boys were old enough, and so all the kids so far have had to pay for their learner's permit (now $75, also covers their license after they pass the road test, and good for 8 yrs total). They also have to pay the increase in our car insurance. Ds1 didn't get his license until he was in Bible school in FL. He was 20. And he had to take his road test 4 times. Ds2 got his permit on the first business day after his 16th birthday, and passed his first road test less than 2 months later. Dd1 got her permit on her 16th birthday, but didn't start driving for a couple of months, then passed her second road test 10 months after her birthday. We'll see what happens with the rest!

I usually shop at Target or BJ's for the things I can't get on sale or at Aldi, but that is because Target & BJ's are 15 minutes away, and WalMart is 30+. If I am going to be near WalMart, I do shop there because the prices are so much less. I have a front load washing machine that is 4 years old. I have heard enough stories of people having trouble with their front load machines when they use regular detergent that I am not willing to risk it. Since buying our front load machine I have always bought Tide HE. But it lasts me a really long time. I use less than the "recommended" amount even for our largest/dirtiest loads. For those I use about 2/3 of the way to the "1" line in the measuring cap. For normal loads I use up to halfway, and for small loads, like our cold water wash, I use even less. So I buy detergent just a couple times a year. I also use liquid fabric softener in similarly small amounts. HTH

Mine says this: before God, the Father, is this It is © 2003, Compact Thinline Edition. Interesting...

Here's what I do... put the roast in the crockpot pour a can of apple juice concentrate over the top (the cheap stuff works fine). cook on low 6-8 hrs (if I get it going too late, I put the crockpot on high for a 3 hours, then on low for a couple more) let the meat cool enough to be able to work with it shred it put in a pot to heat through, with bbq sauce, ketchup, and water till it's the desired flavor and consistency HTH

:iagree:

I'm not a Michelle, but I can totally relate to this post. One memorable mistake I've noticed was in a book written by a college English professor... a preposition was missing. My 12yo finds them all the time in books. She says she can't help it.

My dh drives tractor-trailer and has been all over the country. He says the took the worst drivers from NY and NJ and gave them a house and a job in CT. :tongue_smilie:

In addition to the other replies... Applesauce, macaroni & cheese (the boxed kind), ice cream.

There are six of us home for now, and I spend less than $600 per month. I would LOVE to have a larger budget than that. Obviously we don't eat gourmet meals, but we eat food that is nutritious (enough, not over the top). I buy most of our food at Aldi. I truly believe the Lord stretches things for us, too.

My oldest dd wears contacs (and pays for them herself). She's always ordered them through the optometrist's office, and you know how pricey that is. What's the best place online to buy them? I'm looking for a balance in low price and good service. Thanks!

We went through something similar with one of my dd's when she was 10. It was a nightmare really. Her fingertips hurt to the touch,then they hurt all the time. It came and went for awhile. The pedi prescribed some different things and did tons of bloodwork. Some of her immune numbers were slightly high (sorry; I don't remember exactly now), so pedi consulted with a pediatric rheumatologist. Dd's fingers hurt more and more, then her toes. Repeat all the lab work. Start prednisone. It got worse and worse... arms, legs, even her whole body. She'd sit on my lap and cry, and I cried with her. She couldn't cuddle with me cause it hurt too much. We had an appt with the rheumatologist. He was great to dd and to us, but not helpful. He suggested neurology. Pediatric neurology said dd dind't fit in his box and therefore, has a conversion disorder and he recommends psychiatric treatment. Our pedi was wonderful, helpful, spent hour researching, but we were at dead ends. A friend has taken her ds to a doc similar to yours about 2 hrs away, so we did the same with dd. Our pedi said it sounded like a good idea. Dd saw him for... oh... a year? I wish I could remember. Her diet was quite restricted, and she was on a variety of supplements over the time. She was able to stop the prednisone after a couple months; we had to taper it down. By the end of her time with him, everything was much, much better, and her symptoms had disappeared. Not long after we started seeing this "naturopathic chiropractor" (my term), my ds started with episodes of pain in his finger tips. It was a few months after he started allergy injections. Dd had started allergy injections a few months before her symptoms began. So while I cannot prove it, I do believe this whole thing was an unusual reaction to the allergy injections. As soon as I put that all together, we stopped the injections. This stuff built up in her system over the year+ that she received the shots, and didn't go away overnight or in a few days. I believe will likely be the case for your dd as well. It takes time for the damage and the buildup to clear away. The supplements are needed to help with that. In light of the fact that you got no results from "traditional" MDs, I would encourage you to stick with this alternative practitioner for at least a few months. And I pray that your dd gets relief from all this very, very soon.

I agree with the others about finding a teen who's been playing awhile to teach your sons. Except for piano, my oldest's first violin teacher was a college freshman who'd been playing for 10 years or so. He charged $5 or 7 per half hour. My other dd's first flute did not have that much FLUTE experience (5 years now, I think...but had been playing piano for many years already), but she's an awesome flutist and only charged $5 for a half hour lesson. We miss her -- she's gone to conservatory to major in flute performance I wonder if you can find a piano teacher who teaches only beginning to early intermediate students. Our first piano teacher was like that (she told my girls she was getting them ready for "Mrs. D."), and she charged $7 for 20 minutes and $10 for 30. Also, will the teach give 20 minute lessons instead? 30 minutes can be awfully long for a 6yo. My girls started piano at age 8 or 9, and had 20 minute lessons for at least the first year; 30 would've been much too long. HTH

Gilbert Morris series.. all are out of print I believe, but perhaps you can find them online somewhere.. Seven Sleepers series Lost Chronicles of the Seven Sleepers series Bonnets and Bugles series

Is it possible to visit any of them before filling out applications? That would likely shorten the list for him.

I just went to Disney World a few weeks ago with a younger friend for her birthday. We had a blast!! My favorite park is definitely Epcot (we LOVED the food in the World Showcase!); we spent 3 days there. We spent 1 day at Magic Kingdom, and a short day at Hollywood Studios. I liked Hollywood Studios better than I thought I would and wished we had been able to spend more time there. :D

Hi Kim, What helped me the most was having a routine! I made a schedule using Managers of Their Homes, and the very first one was WAAAAYYY too much for us to accomplish! I prayed (some more) and tweaked it and it was great. (This happened each school year for a few years, fwiw.) Mine aren't all that little anymore, and so I don't remember everything I did, but one biggie was this: I began each day spending time with my youngest child(ren), reading them a book, and playing a game with them. Giving them some "mommy time" first kept them happy for awhile. I alternated having an older child entertain with time spent entertaining themselves. Something else that has worked well for me is putting some easier subjects on alternating days. For example, kiddos do their handwriting page one day, and a page or two in their Building Thinking Skills book the next. I combined kids in a subject as much as possible, and work them into independence, such that by 9th grade they are working on their own (but I am available for help, of course). Sometimes the teaching of certain skills had to wait a year or two. The "youngers" (the three I still have at home now) or getting more than the "olders" (the three that are all graduated now) did at these same ages. Imo, it's the nature of the beast. My house isn't the most picked up after 17 years of homeschooling, but I have more time for that now and it's getting there. It is and always has been clean. Kiddos all have chores to help with meals/table setting, dishes, and cleaning. I had no help from dh or anyone with any of the subjects (though if you can do that, it's great). I did all the driving until one of the kiddos was old enough to drive and even his taking himself to work was a huge help! It was TOTALLY CRAZY for 3 or 4 years, but it's settling down now. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hang in there! The time will go fast, and how it is this year is not how it is going to be forever -- or even for the next five years. HTH. :)