I am so thrilled to have found this site, Homeschool Buyers Co-op. It is similar to the “deals” sites like Groupon, Living Social, etc that I love to buy from, but this website, however, is ALL homeschool curriculum.
The Homeschool Buyer Co-op is a free homeschooling organization for both new and veteran homeschoolers.  Co-op membership is free and confidential, and entitles homeschooling families to GroupBuy discounts on high-quality curriculum.  On the site you’ll find lots of free information, such as databases of free curriculum, field trips, and educational contests and scholarships. Click here for more information.
I have purchased some really great deals and I am excited to buy more. Plus there is free items too. I got a free membership until August 31st to Mathhelp.com. I  purchased Learning Assessments for my children that would have cost me around $80 for 50% off at A Self Portrait. I will probably purchase my Monarch membership from Alpha and Omega through them too so I can get the Smart points.

That is just the tip of the iceberg here are some other benefits of joining:

• Free homeschool ID cards
• Homeschool classifieds
• Smart points (earned by purchasing and used for purchasing more)

I visit the site everyday, just to see what else is new!

Ligia

This weekend was my local homeschool convention sponsored by California Home Educators Association (CHEA). They hold two conferences one in Northern California and the other in Southern California. Although  it would be awesome to go to the Southern convention, I attend the one here in Northern California.

I must say that I look forward to this convention every year. The funny thing is that by this time in the year, I have pretty much already purchased 90% of my curriculum for next year. SO, I don’t really go to buy my curriculum.

So why go to a convention? Well after much thinking, I realized there are at least three reasons why I go:

1. I will admit, part of my reason is that its my mini getaway. I book a hotel room, I get to eat out, and I spend time doing what I want to do. This year, however, I  took my daughter with me. She was old enough to attend the Teen Convention. It turned out to be a nice mother-daughter weekend.

2. To get inspired. I walk into these conventions and I see hundreds and hundreds of fellow homeschool moms. I feel that once again “I can do this!”. I get to chatting with one or two and we “bond” through our homeschool journeys. I also get inspired by the speakers and workshops. I carefully download my convention’s schedule and pick in advance the classes/workshops that I think I need the most. This year my eyes were set on high school. My daughter will not be in high school for another year but I need to start planning NOW. (more on that topic later). The workshops I couldn’t attend, I purchased the CDs to listen to  in my car. This way I am inspired year round. I ended up purchasing 12 CDs.

3. Curriculum ideas. Yes, I do have most of my curriculum purchased, but that doesn’t mean that I will not see something new and exciting. I do enjoy walking around and asking vendors questions. This year I visited College Plus and Sonlight.

So what did I pickup this year:

I purchased my Mom’s Planner, A few high school books, my son’s cursive book, grammar workbook, and a Spanish planner by My Father’s World.
Ligia