Honestly, for my older children, probably not as often as they should. But for my dd4, at least twice a week b/c she still wets the bed.

I am using it with dd11 this year & we love it. We are learning so much. It does have a strong missions focus, which is one thing I enjoy about it. I can't help you in regards to how to make it secular, but I just wanted to say that it's a great program. Hopefully someone else can chime in to help.

:grouphug: I hope tomorrow is a better day!

:iagree: That is ridiculous, not to mention bad for the baby.

Thanks, all. Great ideas!

:iagree: It really gets under my skin when people have negative things to say about homeschooling. I didn't put negative things about public schools or private schools when my friends posted FB pics of their children's first day of school. I just posted things like, "I hope they have a great day." I just don't get why people think they have a right to judge our decision to homeschool. Don't give these "friends" of yours another thought. Enjoy homeschooling!:)

:grouphug: Praying!

:bigear: I'm thinking it's an age thing, b/c my dd11 started this in 5th grade last year & is still having some trouble focusing during read-alouds. I'd love to hear some input & ideas.

There are some great ideas in this thread. Thanks! I bought the Stack a States app for our iPad & now my ds9 is obsessed with it. Thanks!:D Also, we have the placemats of the USA, so I'm going to use those for study/quiz time during dinner. You ladies rock!

:iagree: I have had some major "scores" at our local Goodwill stores.

My ds9 loved Little Britches. It gets our vote.

For homeschooling: http://www.amblesideonline.org/ http://www.oldfashionededucation.com/ http://www.homeschoolshare.com/ For groceries/menus: http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/40dollarmenu.htm http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/70dollarmenu.htm :grouphug:

When hubby and I were in China to adopt dd4, we were at The Great Wall when we saw a Chinese man wearing a Mississippi State Bulldogs sweatshirt. My dad, uncle, aunt, & grandfather all graduated from MSU and we're HUGE MSU Bulldogs football fans. The man spoke very broken English, and he understood that I was an MSU fan, so we had our picture taken together. It was so cool!:D

Thanks. I'll look into that. My next question was going to be about teaching ideas.:)

Do your dc know the 50 US states & their capitals? This is on my mind today b/c my dd11 and ds9 could not answer these type questions when we played Brain Quest "America" last night. On a positive note, however, they ROCKED the American history questions. (Thank you, Sonlight Core D+ E!)

:iagree: We used FIAR when my middle two children were 6 & 8 and we have wonderful memories of that time.

Take a look at Before Five in a Row.

:lurk5: I'm currently using the older Core 5 (F) with dd11, but I'm wondering if I want to use the new edition with ds9 in a couple of years.

Check out Linda's Low Carb website. She has tons of great recipes.

We are making fall cookies and crafts, and then tonight we're going to have a movie night & watch Home Alone.

:) Wonderful!

We stay inside with the AC!;) I live in south Alabama & you won't see me outside again until October!:D

Congrats to your daughter on riding a roller coaster! She is braver than I am.:) With her reading, just keep modeling to her when you read aloud. Make sure she's sitting by you & reading along with you so she can see the commas, periods, etc. and know why you stop, pause, change your tone, etc. Be patient and keep it fun and light-hearted. Also, keep the reading sessions short, just like you're already doing. One more thing: audio books might be good for her to listen to & hear fluent readers while she follows along in the book.

Thanks for the great ideas.:) Toys R Us still has that catalog. I am on the mailing list & should receive the new one soon. We have a couple of Melissa & Doug toys & we love them. I also found a game called Monster Toss when I researched ideas online yesterday & I'm definitely going to buy it for her.

:) Have fun!