first step

first step [2008-06-14]
Brooke: I want to commend you on going to church and the strides you are making to show a good example. But that may not be quite enough. It sounds as if your husband has an inkling that he needs to make some changes . However, I do still think that the suggestion for martial counseling with your pastor is important. From some of you have said it does sound like there are a few more seriuos issues than him simply taking you for granted. You make it sound as if he is controlling all the fiances and your behavior and actions through that. Now I understand being frugal but you stated he can spend what he wants but you afraid to even ask for 20 dollars to joint a Momgood now. But remember, again you are to be viewed in terms of good or bad or imply you deserve certain treatment do to past mistakes. In the end you shoudl provide for your future. I think every woman does need a saftey plan for financial security. Working part-time would provide you money to buy some things for yourself and also to join group. You need social support. Right now you are essentially isolated other than your husband and family. What about joinign a MOPS group through church? I am not sure, but dont' think there is a charge. You need a group of supportive peole other than your husband. Keep going to church - maybe your husband might get into the men's minsitry. This could serve two-fold. He could see and model from Chrisian men how they interact aand also how they treat their wives. It would also give him a social outlet. The two of you going out without kids is also good. remember so a combinatin of things. One thing (such as date night or occasional church service) isn't going to work. Pray together. Have yourchurch family pray for you. I undersatnd divorce is not an option. I salute your committment to your marriage but your husband has to be as committed. It cannot just be about YOU making changes. So pray for his change of heart and try to actively involve him. YOu must communicate with him. Not yell, no walk on egg shells. If you are afraid to talke to him why? Has he been abusive/ Were you abused in the past by someone? AGain if this the case you need immediate intervention. Bottom line God asks men to love their wives but he did not say control their wives or belittle their wives. Women should suport and love their husbands as head of household but not be afraid of them or cower to them....

That is a good first step on his part though... [2008-04-01]
it shows he was paying attention and realized he needs to pay attention to your needs...keep going to church...that has always helpd me through hard times...

Career Step from what I hear is another great online school as well... [2007-05-07]
I also agree with the other poster about babies sleeping so much the first few months that you could definitely get some studying done then, too, but remember to take care of yourself as well and try to fit in some rest. As you know, having a baby can really take a toll on the ole' body! I also found working around a baby's schedule was much easier than working around a preschooler which I am currently doing at the moment, thank God for preschool and naps! LOL! On another note, I went to a community college to become medical Transcriptionist (have been doing this for about 15 years now), this was before they had such great online schools, but I have heard Career Step is right up there with the others you mentioned. Just research to find a good fit. Good luck!

Here's a good school I have found [2008-09-16]
I looked around for a school as well. When I enroll in an MT school it will be with career step. It is endorsed by the ADHI as well as several big MT companies. Those companies will even waive the 2 years experience if you attend Career Step. As soon as I save up the money I will be enrolling.

Really possible? [2008-08-18]
I am not an MT (yet) but before I make the final step enrolling in M-Tec I wanted to ask a serious, point blank question. Can a new person, after completing M-Tecs course, make 20k a year at any point after getting a job (while working no more than 40 a week as well). Is this an at all reasonable expectation? I am looking long term career choice if I commit to the training but I have heard from working MT's in my state that they were working 80+ hours for about $500.00. If this is the reality then I will have to consider another option and that would be OK, just not optimal. I THANK you for any help you can give.

AMEN Eileen!! That's why I work like I do also (sm) [2008-08-04]
However, in the 17 years I I've always gotten up, had a shower and gotten dressed ... transcribing in my PJs would just lead to depression I think ... I made showering and dressing a priority when I first had babies too ... especially after I read that new moms who didn't take time to do that small step had more problems with PPD. I try to get some sunshine every single day too, even if it However, I need to find more time to exercise but I It's so easy to let yourself go but I've always scheduled manicures, etc. at least monthly and try not to make transcribing my life (some weeks it's harder than others).

I totally agree... [2008-07-22]
This is what I would do: In the morning either before or after your sleep time, go ahead and get a shower and get dressed even if that is in sweats or comfortable clothes. Wear these same clothes to cook dinner and into your shift. I think the problem is that you're working 3rd shift and I think that is the cause of the PJ situation. I read a book that my 8-year-old wrote around Motherpajamas. I had not really looked at it that way, but I guess she does see me in lounge clothes moreso than everyday clothes. I also work full-time at home, but not third shift. You may also want to consider getting involved in something even if it is a painting class or something you like to do. I know this costs money, but your sanity will be saved in the long run. I am fortunate enough to have gotten involved with some of the parents from my kids Even though it is not over and beyond socializing, it is something, i.e., coffee for an hour on a weekday. It is very, very easy to get homebound in this profession. I cringe at the thought of going out on a Friday night with all of the traffic. I am only 37, this is not right. So, I am also letting you know that you are not alone. Hang in there, and like the other poster says get a haircut. Plan a dinner out if possible with your teens and make it a point to step outside a few times during the evening just to gulp some fresh air. I water the flowers. Is there something that needs done outside that you could do this? Hugs to you...

internship or not? [2008-06-23]
....I am a newbie, and as most of you already know, it is incredibly hard to find work as a newbie. I just wanted to get some opinions on internships with companies. I have also been offered a paid position with a medical transcription company that will monitor my work until I am able to go at it on my own. Is an internship more beneficial or should I just take the paid job? I know some may think this is a stupid question, but I want to make the right decision, as this will be a huge step toward the career I have been wanting for a very long time.

God knows when I need Him! [2008-04-01]
He definitely planted the seed in my heart that said to go to church... many times I've resisted arguing because I don't want to be angry all day, but according to what we learned Sunday, we can't control our spouse's actions, we can only control our own. Therefore, I should be the kind of person I want him to be and by my example he will be led to do the same. So, I'm going to do everything in my power to make him feel like I want him to make me feel, and do for him what I'd like him to do for me. This is a step toward progress... and I would never even consider separation or divorce, that's not in our vocabulary. Too many people throw other people away when they're unhappy instead of working on it. Now if he was a wife beater, or hurt my kids... I'd get out ASAP ha. Thankfully that is not the case.

God knows when I need Him! [2008-04-01]
He definitely planted the seed in my heart that said to go to church... many times I've resisted arguing because I don't want to be angry all day, but according to what we learned Sunday, we can't control our spouse's actions, we can only control our own. Therefore, I should be the kind of person I want him to be and by my example he will be led to do the same. So, I'm going to do everything in my power to make him feel like I want him to make me feel, and do for him what I'd like him to do for me. This is a step toward progress... and I would never even consider separation or divorce, that's not in our vocabulary. Too many people throw other people away when they're unhappy instead of working on it. Now if he was a wife beater, or hurt my kids... I'd get out ASAP ha. Thankfully that is not the case. Thank you for your encouragement!

I went to a business college sm [2008-02-11]
that had just added transcribing to their cirriculum. I was 1 of 4 first students. They really had no idea what they were doing. I got my first job doing dialysis patient's cause a friend was giving up the job and knew I was looking. The doc was desperate and didn't even test me. There is no way I would have gotten the job if I had to test. the job I have now if for an ENT and once again didn't test, one of the docs is my step-uncle. When I look at just the questions on the word help board I know there is sooooo much I still don't know. I am looking into taking some classes online. Good Luck to you!

Discouraged [2007-12-31]
I was told I would make $40K a year by the school I took my course from, but I never made over $30K, and I worked for a hospital where the pay is much more generous than MedQuist. Of course, we were rarely allowed to work overtime, so I guess that needs to be figured into the equasion. This truly is a dying profession, regardless of what the Bureau of Labor Statistics says. I would intead take medical coding and deny Medquist the fee they get from Career Step by taking the course offered directly by AHIMA.ORG, the official website of the American Health Information Management Association.

It takes awhile to make good money in this career. [2007-12-05]
Iyears now, and I am just finally starting to pick up my speed substantially and make some more money. I am nowhere near $40,000 though, and I don It can be done, but don Does Career Step help you with job placement once you graduate? That is key to getting a good job, as many employers will not hire you without 2 years of experience unless your school hooks you up. Good luck if this is the career you choose. I'm glad I chose it, but it is a very challenging career imo.

ages [2007-08-31]
Hey All, My sister and I are are 14 years apart. My husband and I are blessed with 4 children....7 if they had all made it to birth. I home homeschooled our kids for 21 years. Then at 60 I graduated from Career Step and am now looking for an MT job at home. Actually, Spheris has offered me a job but I have to wait for an opening with dialup. Out here in the sticks of northwest Arkansas we only have dialup access. I do not know how moms with little children can focus on transcribing. Good for you all who are doing it! Blessings, Donna

Career Step from what I hear is another great online school as well... [2007-05-07]
I also agree with the other poster about babies sleeping so much the first few months that you could definitely get some studying done then, too, but remember to take care of yourself as well and try to fit in some rest. As you know, having a baby can really take a toll on the ole' body! I also found working around a baby's schedule was much easier than working around a preschooler which I am currently doing at the moment, thank God for preschool and naps! LOL! On another note, I went to a community college to become medical Transcriptionist (have been doing this for about 15 years now), this was before they had such great online schools, but I have heard Career Step is right up there with the others you mentioned. Just research to find a good fit. Good luck!

I agree (sm) [2007-03-11]
I was a nurse before I started this MT thing. I took the Everett Community College/Career Step course mainly because I could receive federal financial aid and still have the CS on my resume, whatever that's good for. Anyway, I agree that MT and nursing are two completely different worlds. You have an advantage with your background. I believe you can totally work part time at MT. I hope you do well. As a CS/EvCC grad, I would have probably rather went with either Andrews or M-Tec (probably the latter for its different tiers). Oh well. I was able to land a job before graduation. I have three daughters. It is difficult to expect the kiddos to play like angels before they are climbing up the walls while I work. It's frustrating. You may have to work early or late while baby is sleeping. Good luck.

You could start out PT [2007-02-13]
But you have to consider that it is going to take you a lot longer to get where you need to be and take you longer to get used to your dictators since they tend to rotate coverage on the weekends. Also, you may have a harder time finding a job beinga newbieand asking for PT. It seems like most of the companies are looking for FT only. I was fortunate enough to find a PT job when I first started, but I don As far as the training goes, I can tell you that Thompson Education Direct (formerly Harcourt) and PCDI have the exact same materials/same programs. I donis the way to go.

sorry [2007-02-12]
OMG I'm getting aggravated. I just typed this long response and it didn't seem to work. I wanted to apologize for asking the same question that has been posted below. I wanted to add a few things. I went to aamt.org and clicked on all the school's website, but it's hard to tell what's what. My original thought was to go with Career Step but now after reading other posts, I'm not so sure. med Tec seems like it would take forever. I'm only going to be able to train in the evenings after work (with a 4 month old and little help) and on the weekends (when DH is home), so I need something that I can actually get done. Price is an issue to a degree, but I'd pay more to get a good program that will allow me to work from home immediately. I also wondered what y'all thought about an associate degree from Kaplan Univ. online. I already have an Associate in GS and an LVN cert. I don't want to waste time on a degree I don't need. I also found an employer willing to train. Is that a good idea? If I quit working for them, would I be able to find work elsewhere as an MT? Thanks again so much for any help!

60 independent ideas for preschoolers [2006-10-30]
This is from the cathswap yahoo group, Gwen one of the mods wrote it:HTH :) For what it's worth, I've compiled my list of 60 activities for my preschooler to do independently while I'm doing lessons with Heather and/or Jared. (If you're not homeschooling but still have a preschooler at home, this may help you get some just for you time...) Rachel will be encouraged to participate with our lessons as she wants to or is capable (like listening to stories during Language Arts or History; she can certainly do art but I'm not going to force it and hopefully these activities will keep her occupied and out of trouble. Feel free to pass this on to anyone else whom you think may find this helpful. Preschooler Ideas for Younger PAVCS Siblings - 3 and up Since I'm using all the provided curriculum boxes for the kids (from K12), I decided to take the biggest box --the one that the art clay, plaster of Paris, etc. came in, and designate it my three year old's school box. This way her school box is just like her siblings'. This box will ONLY be used at school time, and will only be used at the table. You can take any box and decorate it and make it the special box...brought out only at certain times and each time having something different in it. Inside will be her own pencil box that will have a set of markers, (crayola washable, naturally) a pair of Fiskars kid scissors, a box of crayons, a pencil, a pen, and a glue stick. Each day I will put some papers in there for her to either color, cut up, paste things on, or practice writing (simple mazes and such for her to follow, etc.) Each week I'll put one or two interesting books that she will enjoy looking at. There will also be one or two special activities that will change from day to day, made up of (mostly) educational toys and stuff that I currently have on hand but has been put away for a while.... Each day there'll be something different to do, either loose in the box or in a zipper top Ziploc bag (the kind with the slider zipper is easier for the kids to manipulate than the traditional ones). The idea of this box is for her to entertain herself with little or no guidance from me while I work with her older siblings. She will more than likely be participating with us during some lessons (she likes to play Chicka Chicka Boom Boom with the phonics tiles, LOL) . Here are some ideas for the activities. Some will be in a zippered bag, some won't. I have 60 activities, so that I'll have enough for 2 per day per month. At the end of the month I'll start over again. The key to the success of these is to keep them a surprise and limit access to them so that the novelty does NOT wear off. Some seemingly obvious things, like legos and matchbox cars are missing from this list because they play with them almost every day. I got the ideas for many of these activities from various websites with preschoolers in mind. I do not have these in any particular order. Obviously they need to be mixed up so there aren't a whole slew of similar activities piggy backing day in and day out......Also, I'm not going to insult your intelligence by reminding you about choking hazards, which some of these activities may contain...use your common sense based upon your child, and you'll be fine!... 1. sock match...several pairs of colorful infant socks that she's outgrown in the bag to match up or just play with. If I know her she'll have them on her hands and feet for half an hour. 2. dominoes...to build with and do who knows what with... 3. Discovery Toys Tinyville Magnets (these are magnets in shapes like people, vehicles, animals, buildings, cloud, stars, moon, etc...) and the magnetic white board 4. Play Doh, with geometric shaped cookie cutters 5. Play Doh with farm animal cookie cutters 6. Paint in a bag...put two colors of paint in a doubled Ziploc bag, seal it with clear tape, and let her squish them to mix the colors. There will be a couple of different color combinations 7. More magnets --from a magnet kit...lots of different plane figures and a magnetic base to build upon 8. Blues Clues Cards there are nine sets of four cards, three clues that go with one card. Got these at a dollar store that was going out of business...got them for 50 cents! :-) 9. Mixies cards (11 sets of three different cards that form a picture...these came from somebody's birthday party favor bag) 10. Puzzle Pairs (Discovery Toys two piece puzzles of things that go together, like a sock and foot, sink and soap, etc) 11. Memory...for Rachel I'll probably only give her 24 cards at a time as opposed to the full set of 72; this way I can get 3 activities from one memory game and she won't be overwhelmed! 12. Animal Lotto..she can match up all the animals on the boards... 13. Spirit jigsaw puzzle...I printed out a horse picture colored to look like Spirit and am gluing it to felt, then cutting it out in simple shapes for her to put together. I will probably put a couple more like this in there too. 14. Pattern blocks (mine are from K12; easily obtained from curriculum suppliers for a few bucks) 15. Wooden Geometric Solids...these will keep her occupied for at least a half hour; as with above, easily obtained from suppliers, often for under $10 for a nice set of 12 hardwood blocks 16. Math linking cubes- these are the multi link cubes, not unifix cubes. The multi link cubes are connectable all the way around, unlike unifix cubes that only connect one way. 17. Lincoln Logs 18. dry rice with a funnel, measuring cup, measuring spoon, and containers 19. Lacing beads with shoe laces (the long heavy duty ones from Glenn's old workboots work really well) 20. Giant pegboard and rubber bands 21.Rubber stamps with farm animals 22. Rubber stamps with numbers 23. Discovery Toys Playful Patterns 24. Discover Toys AB Seas alphabet fishing game 25. Discovery Toys Itsy Bitsy Spider Game 26 Discovery Toys Bright Builders (being a former consultant has its advantages!) 27. Stickers! Lots of STICKERS. Draw shapes on a piece of paper and give lots of tiny stickers to fill in the shapes with. You could also write the child's name on there to put stickers on each letter...so the name shows up in stickers. the smaller the sticker the better as it takes more time to fill them in. 28. Animal cards...you know those clubs where you get wildlife cards? Well I picked up half a set at a yardsale and the kids love looking at the pictures...that should keep her busy for 20 minutes 29. Mr and Mrs Potato Head Not sure if it's educational, but it should keep her busy for a half hour, hopefully. LOL 30. Bucket of Goop (three parts cornstarch to one part water) in a small empty oxyclean bucket with a scoop, funnel, graduated cylinder from K12, and another container to pour the goop into. Messy and fun but easy to clean up. 31. Watercolor paints I miss those old Paint with water books where all you had to do was have a paintbrush and water. The new ones come with a set of watercolors attached, but in this case, I'd really like the books with the pictures already colored and you just swipe it with a wet brush to paint. Maybe lacking in creativity, but hey. After painting one picture Rachel will probably have the paint set ruined by not rinsing out the brush...my idea here is for her do to something WITHOUT guidance from me...oh well... 32. Lacing cards. Using the shoe laces from the lacing beads. I'll cut out shapes from light weight cardboard and cover with contact paper before punching holes in it. Someone else suggested using old bleach bottles but I'm afraid that cutting them up will ruin my scissors. LOL 33. Felt shapes and felt board...using cookie cutters and other things as patterns, I'll make some little people and geometric shapes for her to play with. I'll cover a piece of sturdy cardboard with felt. Bananas for the Monkeys Original Author Unknown: Cut five monkey shapes out of brown felt and fifteen banana shapes out of yellow felt. Number the monkeys from 1 to 5 and place them on flannel board. Have the children identify the number on each monkey and place that many bananas in front of it. 34. Puppets in a Bag --yarn, facial features already cut out, a brown lunch sack, and some glue...a puppet kit! 35. Glue, Yarn, and shapes...sorry, no creative name for this. I'll draw some shapes on construction paper and give her a small (the tiny size) bottle of Elmer's glue to squeeze onto the lines I drew (helps build small motor coordination) and then she can put the yarn on the shapes. Other times, do this with her name, or a house, or something similar. I buy the tiny bottles once, then get the more economical bigger bottles to refill with later as needed. I don't even buy Elmer's half the time. 36. Collage in a bag...rip out some magazine pages with interesting pictures for her to cut out and paste on a piece of paper...maybe following a certain theme...like one time have it all healthy foods...another time, families and kids, animals, flowers, etc. 37. Bean Sort - Since she's pretty much beyond sticking a bean up her nose and requiring Glenn to remove it with needle nose pliers, I figure this is now a safe activity for her to do with only moderate supervision. (yes that's what happened and I got rid of our Don't Spill The Beans Game after Heather and I were traumatized by this. Rachel, interestingly, didn't care too much one way or the other. Heather was much more mortified by the sight of her daddy heading toward Rachel's nose with those pliers...I didn't look. :) ) Lots of different beans in a bucket for her to measure, pour, sort, and throw on the floor for me to vacuum up. 38. Eyedropper, small container of water, and a mini ice cube tray or Styrofoam egg carton. If you're feeling adventurous, use colored water to make it interesting. Demonstrate how to use the eyedropper both to fill and empty the cups... Would also work well with mini muffin tins, I suppose... 39. Colored Pasta - color your own pasta, using wheels or any other pasta that has large openings (easy to lace.) Use small amount of rubbing alcohol and several drops of food coloring in an airtight container or Ziploc. Leave the pasta in for a few minutes ; shaking it up or stirring a few times. Take it out to dry in a single layer. . then provide laces to string them up. You could provide some color or shape patterns on cards to duplicate. 40. Penny Count (source: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Aegean/3446/keeplittleones.html) I will make a more compact version on a single sheet of paper, and use circles the same size as the counting tokens (bingo chips) that came from PAVCS...match the colors and number amounts! But I thought the whole idea was pretty neat: Make a poster board showing cells of numbers. Example: Draw a square, write 1 in it. Draw or tape down 1 penny in the square. Do the same with each square...up to ten or twenty...your choice. I'd start with 10 first and then draw two more squares at a time up to twenty as child gets better at this skill. 2) Give your child a basket or plastic container of pennies and have him match up pennies that you have put down with the picture in each square. (Ex. In the 2 cell, he would put below your example 1, 2 pennies in a one-to-one correspondence. Check him when he is done by having him count each cell with you. Repetition is what teaches counting! 3) Eventually test your child by showing him only a number 3 printed on a index card and have him lay down 3 pennies and say 3. You might even write the word three along with the number 3 back in step one so that the child is learning a sight vocabulary word along with the printed 3. You would only do this if your child already knows the alphabet though. Then you could hold up a card that says three and see if he can lay the correct pennies down when seeing the word too. 41. Super ball or small car and a paper towel or Christmas paper tube. If you feel creative you could make a marble run of sorts with a couple tubes (see www.familyfun.com) I probably won't...she'll be happy enough with this. Why get more complicated than you need to? I could also let her color it with markers if she wanted. 42. Magnet and paperclips, washers, a nail, etc. 43. A large (big enough to climb in) box. 'Nuff said. 44. A giant piece of paper (or PAVCS posterboard) to color on...whatever desired...just give the paper and markers and you're set. 45. Lots of colored pom poms and tweezers to sort them out...look for tweezers that will be easy for little hands to manipulate, like the ones that come with the game Bed Bugs...heck, look for the Bed Bugs game. LOL 46. Treasure Hunt: large pot or box filled with corn meal, oat meal, rice, etc, with small treasures hidden inside...individually wrapped candy, coins, Barbie shoes, game pieces, etc. Make a picture checklist with all the items to find! 47. Colored Straws and scissors: nothing more to say. LOL straws are good for scissor practice because one snip and you have instant results. Provide Elmer's glue and paper and it's time to make a mosaic! 48. Discovery Toys Busy Bugs This can be duplicated with any manipulative, but I just got the game off ebay for $10. Might be able to find something similar in a homeschool catalog... kind of like the penny poster above, just using something different to play with and put the problems on index cards instead of the poster. You could use stuff around the house like coins, counters, buttons, pasta...make up index cards with patterns to duplicate/put simple problems on there: show items with number and number word under it, or do a simple problem like 2+2= etc...... This activity will be accompanied by a couple bug books and hopefully a neat bug video from the library! 49. Sticks, chunks of moss, rocks, leaves...with small rubber animals or dinosaurs...add some sand in a 9x13 baking pan...don't worry about sand on the floor...that's what vacuum cleaners are for!!!!! On a nice day do all your school work outside...heck, let the older kid SKIP schoolwork to do this outside... :-) 50. Magnetic Treasure Hunt: like the treasure hunt (#46) above, only this time use metal items and a magnet to attract them! Be sure your magnet isn't too strong or your kid will get several treasures at once! 51. Memory 2 see activity 11 53 Memory 3 see activity 11 54. Checkers and a small purse/canvas bag.... Checkers are cool cause they stack. If you can get more than two dozen, that's even better. Dollar stores often have checker games. 55. Chess pieces. Get a cheap chess/checkers game or two at the dollar store. Rachel likes to play with the pieces like they're alive. :-) 56. Magnetic Marbles I picked these up at a dollar store. Amazing the things you find at these places! I know that they'll be interesting for at least fifteen to twenty minutes...maybe more. 57. Popsicle sticks and Elmer's glue. Bob the builder at your service! Real cool if you have colored sticks...or just color them with markers when done. This is great for eye hand coordination and small motor building. You could put the glue in a small plastic cup or on a paper plate and have child apply it with a cotton swab to avoid excessive glue.... 58. Rubber Stamps with letters 59. Viewmaster and reels --I'm trying to collect educational rather than twaddle reels (cartoon characters = twaddle). I want to find reels of animals and places that are real. 60. Farm Animals and Barn. Our barn was being abused (read: animals left all over the house) plus we really don't have shelf space for the barn to be out all the time. So I'll bring it out from time to time...maybe when nothing else is working and Rachel is being a real pill. I had one other activity but I forgot what it was. :-P I thought of it after I shut the computer down for the night and made a note to add it here when I got up in the morning. HA! Hopefully we won't need two of these every day, making them last even longer. Having them all ready in their bags will be handy too... Other suggested ideas: set up a play store with empty food boxes; book and tapes; educational videos, painting with water and a paintbrush, cleaning windows, kitchen chair tunnels, puppet theater, One thing I am going to try not to worry about is THE MESS with some of these activities. Messes happen. Elmer's, crayola markers, and watercolors wash off. Sand and rice vacuums up. (You'll note I didn't put finger paints or tempera paint activities here...#1, that's not recommended without supervision...because tempera stains...and #2...well, tempera stains. LOL I've chosen things that will have a moderate clean up factor, if any. I may even let Rachel use the vacuum hose to clean up any spills...the other two will probably fight her for the privilege. LOL And when they're old enough to actually handle the vacuum, it's no longer fun for them and they don't want to do it!

Andrews School or M-TEC are the best... [2006-09-18]
Career Step is cheaper, but you don't have instructors to help you, and you get books written by the person who is selling the course and not real reference books. Your work is graded by an automatic grader that compares your typed report to one done by an MT who may or may not have done it correctly. If there's a difference, it's up to you to figure out which is correct. I went to CS, but if I had it to do over again, I would go to Andrews or M-TEC. They are worth the extra money.

So happy for you! Do you have any grandparents nearby? sm [2006-07-16]
I am the grandmother of identical twin girls. Although it was my daughter's first pregnancy, she was terrified. MOM, what are we going to do!!!!? Two of this, two of that. How are we going to afford this? and on, and on and on. I have 4 kids of my own, the youngest just graduating from elementary school. The oldest is the mother of the twins who are now 2-1/2. When those girls were born, everyone's life changed in a heart beat. Everyone got together and got stuff and decided to help out. The acquaintance network turned into the twins network. They have 3 grammies, maternal (me), paternal and step-paternal. We do the grammie shuffle and take turns babysitting. We are all only mid-forties and that helps. :) We all get along and will call and say Grammie one to grammie two, are you ready for home invasion? :) We had friends from all over donating clothes, etc., and still do. We're not too proud for yard sales eitheras they don't always have to match each other. There is no way they need to because they are so totally different and yet so exactly the same. It is the strangest most wonderful experience that we have all ever had in our lives. I still cannot get over it to this day. Sometimes I just sit and watch them for a while and I can't even put it into words. My son and his wife just had a baby boy and it's just too easy with just one, but my daughter (twin's mom) was holding him the other day and asked, What do you think mom, should I do one more? I said, What if you have twins again? and she said, oh well, I've done it before, I can do it again. The good thing is, the twins have kept each other occupied since day one. As long as they are together, they don't need too much. I used to type for hours with the 2 sitting in the playpen passing toys back and forth. Consider yourself doubly blessed and good luck to you. I'd be happy to give you more input if you feel like sharing your email address.