Oh, Dearest Mother, Sweetest Virgin of Altagracia, our Patroness. You are our Advocate and to you we recommend our needs. You are our Teacher and like disciples we come to learn from the example of your holy life. You are our Mother, and like children, we come to offer you all of the love of our hearts. Receive, dearest Mother, our offerings and listen attentively to our supplications. Amen.



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Subject Topic: Introduce Yourself (2006) (Topic Closed Topic Closed) Post ReplyPost New Topic
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dsauclair
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Posted: May 11 2006 at 9:52pm | IP Logged  

Hello everyone! My name is Diane and I came to the No VA area from the Philippines 15 years ago to pursue graduate studies. Then I met my husband and my life took a different turn! We have been married for 10 years and we have 2 girls, ages 4 and 2.5.

Although we always knew that we will homeschool, we were greatly encouraged by Elizabeth Foss' articles in the Arlington Herald. I now count this board, the many reference books cited by the writers, and the numerous blogs written by the wonderful members here as my support group! I have learned so much about homeschooling in action. But more importantly for me (though some of you may find it unusual), reading the messages here have given me more confidence in functioning within the American culture so I can learn alongside my children.   I am just proud to be in the company of such wonderful homeschoolers!

Can't wait to get started!

-Diane
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hometoteach
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Posted: May 12 2006 at 11:46am | IP Logged  

Yikes, trying again. I hope this isn't a repeat. I'm not used to this board format, bear with me please!

My name is Andie, mom of five, ages 11, 9, 7, 2 and the baby just turned 1 last week. We've been homeschooling since 2000, after the oldest spent a year in the parish school for Kindergarten.

We don't have much support for homeschooling in real life, no homeschooling groups locally and no other Catholic homeschoolers for miles and miles (and miles...) so I'm especially happy to have found this forum. I *think* I came across it in a message by Melissa Wiley on the LatinClassicalEd yahoo group or LatinCentered.com.

Anyhow, happy to be here now and can't wait to start reading!

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StephanieA
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Posted: May 12 2006 at 3:02pm | IP Logged  

My name is Stephanie Ansberry and we live in southeast Missouri. We have been homeschooling for 13 years. We are a family of Catholic classical CM unschoolers:) My oldest began college after Christmas break and by the grace of God we will meet the youngest in January. We have 8 children: Adam (18), Stephen (16), Peter (14), Marie (11), Elizabeth (8), Brigid (5) Frances (2), and baby Ansberry.
I use an electic mix in grade school and high school.
We seem to be somewhat of fickle family. Several years ago, our children were heavily involved in competitive swimming, but for several reasons, we pulled out when the oldest began practicing 5 hours a day and his level meets were 1/2 half across the country. Then we sunk our efforts into music, and the cacaphony in our house is deafening at times. We finally converted our CM nature study sunroom into a music room. Now the kids want to bring in the animals, insects, snakes, plants, etc. into the basement :O
My homeschooling goals have always been to raise Godly children in the faith and to develop lasting relationships with them. From year to year I vassilate between how I actually do this.
I recognize so many names from a previous CM list.
Blessings,
Stephanie
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Kristi
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Posted: May 12 2006 at 4:15pm | IP Logged  

Hello! My name is Kristi. After lurking around here for the past year I figured I should probably introduce myself. I live in Minnesota and I am married to Charlie ('99) and mama to Charlie ('00), Joe ('02), John Paul ('04) and Thomas ('06). We are just finishing up our first year of homeschooling.

I was lucky enough to discover Elizabeth's book right after my oldest turned four and it really made me excited about this homeschooling adventure! I have reread it several times and I'm sure many more to come. I pretty much pieced together our kindergarten year and plan on more of that approach for first grade. My older two boys seem to be history fans and one of our favorite resources for kindergarten (after the Little House series) was Elizabeth's list of American History picture books. Thank you!! Looking forward to RC history next year. Hopefully I will be brave enough to post now that I'm "official".

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Danda
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Posted: May 15 2006 at 5:41pm | IP Logged  

Hi I'm Annette.
Dawn introduced me in the History forum because I accidently quoted her and pm'd her.
I'm much better at online chatting than I am at this forum stuff but I've read some great stuff here so I thought I'd join.
I've been homeschooling for 3 years. I have an 11 yod, 8 yod, and 5 yos. When I first read a posting with those acronyms I thought hmmmm what interesting names.....then I caught on. I haven't figured out ds or dd( dear son?, dear daughter?.....dumb son, dumb daughter.....delightful.....dreadful)
We model our curriculum after MODG but now I'm substituting more and more which is how and why I found this forum. I have a posting in the History category under All Ye Lands....looking for help if you care to check it out.
Let's see what else.....I live in MA. I love sports.
And that's it.
So hello to everyone and chat with you soon!
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aussieannie
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Posted: May 21 2006 at 4:20am | IP Logged  

I would like to introduce myself, my name is Anne and I am from Australia and I am very pleased to find a forum that has ALL the things I am looking for, Catholic Homeschooling for Mothers!

I live on the Redcliffe Peninsula on Moreton Bay in the sunny, warm state of Queensland (the northern end of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane).

I have been schooling for just over 6 years and I knew I would be schooling my children before they were born! I have five blessings to date - three boys, Jack aged 11, Joseph aged 3, Michael aged 18months and two girls Grace aged 9 and Angela aged 6.

I am passionate about my schooling and the belief in good religious/nourishing reading books for children as I am with natural health & herbs, organic produce & homebirthing.

In my spare time I enjoy doing my artwork ( see me at www.users.bigpond.com/jackgracie ) my oldest son and I belong to a gregorian chant schola (see www.scholacantorumbrisbane.com) but most importantly what nourishes my soul is my faith and family.

I feel very connected to you all as we have for the last 5 years had EWTN in our house, 24hours a day via a big satelite dish in our back yard. People walking by think we're in league with ASIO (Australian Secret Intelligence Organization) when they see that big dish!

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Mama Moon
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Posted: May 23 2006 at 3:17pm | IP Logged  

Hi everyone,

I already jumped in without realsing I could introduce myself here. Sorry for that. I am a homeschooling montessorian mother to two girls 5 and 7. My dh works for an NGO here and we shall be in Eritrea for at least 2 more years.
Home is Italy - which seems a long way away. But that's okay now I have found your forum!

Blessings
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mom2mpr
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Posted: May 24 2006 at 11:18am | IP Logged  

Hello, I am trying to introduce myself and finding I have a lot to learn here! I am posting a "reply" for my introduction and not starting a "new topic." Was it the right thing to do? I am slightly overwhelmed with all the new things to learn ,I thought this would be easier. ohhh, that was cool, an Emoticon-can't wait to see how it turns out for real. Please be patient for a few months as I figure this out.
Anyhow, I have been lurking here for a few years, I finally joined and am looking forward to taking part in this forum. It is amazing how some topics have come at the right times for me and helped me so much. So I feel this is a place for me.
I am homeschooling my ds who is 8 1/2 and 3 year old dd. Ds has always been home and seems to be thriving on it.       
We'll see how dd does. She is VERY different. We moved from VA to OH last January, yes, a VERY hard transition.
My dc were so bummed to be inside so much.
I look forward to learning with you all and getting to know you better.
Anne


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Alice R
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Posted: May 28 2006 at 1:11pm | IP Logged  

Hi Ladies!

I'm Alice (another Alice!!!!) but I'm registered here as Alice R so that is what I'll be using.

I've been lurking around here for so long that I can't even remember when I started. I "know" Elizabeth from the Five in a Row Boards and I recognize a few of you from there too.

I've been married for almost 14 years and have four children boy 7, boy 5, girl 4 and baby girl. I live in NJ. We just moved here from Long Island, NY.

I've been really interested in Charlotte Mason in the past year or so

Uh, that is about it...
Blessings,
Alice

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shartlesville
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Posted: June 22 2006 at 11:52am | IP Logged  

Hi Everyone,

I am new to the group. My name is Krisann, dh is Cris. We are currently in Roswell, New Mexico. We have 7 living children.

Johnathan David is 20, married to Nikki and in the Army. They are stationed at Ft Riley, Kansas.

Alisha Elizabeth Ann is 18, married to James, and mother of my grandson Auston (who is 3 weeks older than his uncle Jack). They live here in New Mexico but about 3 hours away from us.

Lillyann Olivia Louise ^i^

Emily Faye Elvia is 14 and desperately seeking employment unfortunately no one here will hire until 16 even though they can hire at 14.   

Kiraleigh Raquel Kathleen (or Kate now) is 13 and loves all things animal, her room looks like a stuffed zoo.   

Julia Sierra Jordan is 12 and loves everything SpongeBob.

Cristobal Emmanuel Samuel Angel is 3 and gets into everything. There is no safe place to hide anything.   

Patrick Henry Joseph Antonio Kruz, otherwise known as Jack, is 8.5 months and just starting to get into things, .


We have homeschooled since Johnathan was in 2nd grade. We unschool now more than anything but every now and then I start to panic and we pull out the *gasp* textbooks.

It is great to *meet* everyone. If anyone knows any homeschoolers in Roswell, NM, please let me know!

YsiC,
Krisann
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SuzanneT
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Posted: June 22 2006 at 7:50pm | IP Logged  

Hi All,
I just joined this forum after seeing it mentioned on the CCM forum. I have to say I'm a little overwhelmed(in a good way ) by the number of topics. And I was worried I'd have nothing to read this summer! Our family is in its 11th year of homeschooling, can this be true?! It's gone by so fast...My oldest, 16yos, will be a junior at a local high school, where he has been since his freshman year (basketball called ) Next, almost 15 yod, who has decided to stay home for high school (soccer called ). The deciding factor for her-HEAT (Home Educated Athletic Teams), our own little "school" allowed to compete with other area high schools. And my baby, 11 yod, who has decided to live with us forever, but she might move next door We live in sunny south Florida where there are still alot of "blue roofs" from last year's hurricanes. Looking forward to learning from everyone.
Blessings,
Suzanne
P.S. I just love these little smiley things!
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cybertreks
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Posted: June 25 2006 at 6:53am | IP Logged  

Oops. I introduced myself on my first thread, but saw that I was s'posed to do it here. So here's the main scoop: I live in SC, with 4 children and dh. Two have graduated high school ... those two I homeschooled until 8th and 7th grade, then they went to public school. My younger two entered public school in their 6th and 4th grades, but last year we moved them to Catholic school instead. This year, I'll be homeschooling the 14-almost-15 year old, while the 12-almost-13 year old continues at Catholic school. So while I have loads of past elementary experience with homeschooling, this is a new thing in a way, and especially so since it is high school.

I'm a Catholic convert since Easter, 2005, along with my dh. Our children did not convert with us, but my youngest went to the priest last week to request confirmation. My 14 and 18 year olds are going to mass with us more frequently now after a lot of earlier balking at it. I'm not sure where their spiritual journeys will take them! My oldest, my only dd, is finding her way at college, but is home for the summer.

I love travelling and oil painting. I love my puppy although some days he's a pain. I love reading but rarely have as much time for that as I'd like. I love spending time on the computer, but have to watch myself because I don't want to miss the real life I have in front of me.

---Beth, wife of Bill, mom to Chelsea, Grayson, Mackenzie, & Clark (yes, I'm aware that my children's names sound like a law firm! )
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sugarblue
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Posted: June 26 2006 at 10:22pm | IP Logged  

Hello from downunder, you wonderful people! What a sweet, encouraging forum you have here! I'm happy to have been sent here by a HS friend and see that we have a lot to enthuse about - living books, blessings called children, family, rich traditions, CM, helpful habits, scrapbooking, journalling and doing it all in the wonderful presence of our loving, holy God. I dearly love you Catholics altho' our family is at home with AOG/Hillsong. I hope I can meet with you in joint passion for the families entrusted to our care. Rosalind
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mellyrose
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Posted: June 26 2006 at 10:55pm | IP Logged  

Hi!

I'm Melanie - we live in Mesa AZ - I have 2 boys - Colin (5.5) and Nate (4). We're starting our "official" homeschooling journey in August with Kindergarten for Colin.

We already do quite a bit of nature study and reading - the boys favorite hangouts are the Desert Botanical Garden and the Phoenix Zoo.

I'm looking forward to learning lots in this forum!

Melanie
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christinalinz
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Posted: June 27 2006 at 10:35pm | IP Logged  

Hi, Everyone. I am Christina, from North Carolina. We moved from Michigan last year, where we were near-by neighbors of Bridget's. We are now pretty close to JoAnna, and are members of her TORCH group.

My husband is Robert, and we have four children: Max (7), Kathy (5), Andrew (3), and Anne Marie (6 months).

I was an avid reader (but not frequent poster) of the CCM list until two years ago when I gave it up for Lent, and realized I was spending way too much time online. I'm back because I'm feeling a little isolated here in NC - we had such a large and active homeschool group at our parish in MI. MamaTigerLily from VA told me it would be thus in the South where there are fewer Catholics and larger families. So I'm trying to restrain myself from reading every thread...it is so very addictive! I love the new format by the way - being able to focus on the most relevant issues at the time.

Since I've been away, I've been using CHC but avoiding doing too much workbook work ds threatens to run away when we do! (Good thing we didn't try Seton, huh Bridget?) We like to do a sort-of "Just-in-time" learning - CM style, units based on liturgical season, nature seasons, or whatever topic the children find particularly interesting, be it hermit crabs or Andre the Giant (a segue from David and Goliath - no kidding -there is a bio on Andre at the library) I guess that's our version of rabbit trails. We are pretty loosely structured and unschoolish in our approach, the luxury of having young children and more leisure.

Now that Max is training to be an altar boy and we are attending an Indult Tridentine Mass, we are beginning to focus on Latin, and so I am looking for information on that forum. Also, as a former children's librarian, I am interested in the literature and picture-book forums.

Thank you to all of the moderators and organizers for all the wonderful work you do!

Christina
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KellyJ
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Posted: June 29 2006 at 9:50am | IP Logged  

Hello everyone!

My name is Kelly. I live in the Mid-Atlantic area with my husband and three sons. We are about to begin our fifth year of homeschooling.

I enjoy reading and learning wholesome new things. I particularly enjoy spiritual writings, though there are many good books out there, and I don't mean just the homeschooling sort.

This board seems like a warm, welcoming, supportive place for homeschooling moms. I look forward to learning from and along side you. Thank you to all who make this board such a lovely place.
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KerryK
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Posted: June 30 2006 at 10:36am | IP Logged  

Hi everyone,
I've been lurking around here for about a weeek and thought it was time to take the plunge !
My name is Kerry, I'm 37, and have two amazing dc: ds is 9, and dd is 5. I also have 7 angels in heaven (due to miscarriage). As you can tell, I would desperately love to have more children, but I guess I'm not sure if that is in God's plan for me.

I'm in a unique position here, because I don't actually homeschool (yet), but have recently been feeling the call to do so more and more. What makes it all tricky for me is that I currently teach at the Catholic school my children attend, and we are very active members of the parish. My dh is currently studying to become a deacon, and we are pretty involved...from youth ministry to music ministry, etc. Last year one of our more involved families pulled out of the school to homeschool, and everyone was very offended. I know that ultimately God is calling me to do what I think is right for my own family, but sometimes thinking about the reactions of others makes me feel intimidated, if that makes sense.

This will be a summer of prayer and discernment for me, for sure!

It's wonderful to be able to read all of your inspiring posts!

Kerry
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SuzanneG
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Posted: July 03 2006 at 11:56am | IP Logged  

My name is Suzanne, and my husband and I live in near Seattle, Washington with our 4 girls, ages 5.5 and under. I have been learning about Charlotte Mason for the past few years, and read Elizabeth's book about 6 months ago. I love hearing about what all of you do with your children 4 REAL LEARNING!
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DonaJean
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Posted: July 07 2006 at 12:35pm | IP Logged  

I guess the Lord has different ways of leading us...I happened upon this forum by googling "All ye lands review" and ended up in the World history topic.   I have been lurking for a little while and decided to take the plunge. Just what I need another forum to keep me on the computer! LOL

I will be 50 tomorrow. CAN'T BELIEVE THAT. We moved to eastern Washington state two years ago. This is where I grew up and I am so thankful to God for being able to move back. Hubby was a career Navy man so for many years it was move around...San Diego, Louisiana, Virginia Beach, and for about 7 years after retirement in NC.   

We have four girls Katie (27), Erin (23), Kelly (16) and Victoria (11). Unfortunately the older two consider VA Beach their home and did not want to move to Washington when we did. They share a house (well actually Erin just purchsed a house) together with another childhood friend of Erin's.

I started homeschooling in 92 when Katie was in 8th and Erin was in 4th and didn't know what I was doing...didn't even know about Seton or any Catholic homeschooling curriculum. My older two were literally my guinea pigs. They did go back to public school for a few years in Virginia Beach but when we moved to NC they both wanted me to homeschool again. So they both finished High School with me.

My 16yo is going to be attending the local community college this fall..they have a program for dual enrollment. Tutition is free (fits in with our budget)so she wants to have an Associate degree along with the High School diploma.

I have used CHC, SL, MODG, Sonlight just about everything. I don't really know what to label our learning. I do know I am enjoying this board and want to find out more. Guess I am like some of you and really get excited about all the MANY choices I now have, which can be overwhelming to someone who wants to do it all!!

I did straight MODG 5 last year with my 11yo. I want to change it up some this year. I also found the Mater Amabilis site that piqued my interest a lot.

I am off to spend some time on different topics. World History is on my mind right now.

Everything looks great...pray for discernment for me!!

Dona
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MaryMary
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Posted: July 09 2006 at 12:17am | IP Logged  

Hi Everyone!

My name is Mary, I live in Ontario, Canada, and I have been married to the love of my life for the last 7 years. We have three children, a 6yo girl, a 4yo girl and a 15 mo old boy. Prior to having children, I taught in a lovely Catholic school(as good as it gets!) in Michigan. Now, having officially begun to homeschool, I am a classroom teacher in recovery ! I discovered this forum after encountering the writings of Elizabeth Foss (my guru...Can Catholics have gurus? O.K. then, my mentor...even though she doesn't know me.. ). After I read Real Learning, I was drunk with delight. My only regret after reading it was that I wish I had read it SOONER. To think I thought I was the ONLY one in the whole wide world who loved the likes of St. John Bosco and Maria Montessori, unit studies and hands-on learning and every math manipulative known to mankind. I thought I was alone in my desire to inhale poetry, take big gulps of nature, dissect art, artists, and composers, to say nothing of LIVING and LOVING the books and stories that decorate many walls in our home. And then we have our Faith, the Church that I love, the God I adore...the foundation of our homeschool, the center of our lives. How to integrate it all? How do I make this homeschool work? To whom do I turn for some practical advice? Alas, at Real Learning Forums I have found over 600 friends who are like-minded and here to share! SOOOOOO nice to meet you!!!   
I am so grateful for all of you!!! And though I have been lurking here for months, I only just registered on the forums because lately I have found myself excitedly quoting many of you when conversing with my husband. I speak of you all as if I have known you for a lifetime. And I knew it was time to join, so that you could get to know me, too. Although I really am in Little League compared to many of you, I hope to contribute what I can. I LOVE my Faith, and living the Litugical year, and arts, crafts, and recipes that help me to do that. Being a holy and patient wife and mother is something I strive for daily, but it is such a struggle (especially as I have inherited some HOT blooded Italian genes!) I look forward to conversing with many of you in the future!!!        &nb sp;  
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