January 2013 Currently

Tomorrow begins a BRAND. NEW. YEAR. Many people will be making resolutions, while others could care less. I'm one of those "make resolutions" people - as you will see tomorrow ;)

Anyways... Farley has put up her currently - the first of the new year - a day early, so I thought I would join in!

listening: the fireworks are going CRAZY where we live. They're legal here, so they'll be going off for daaaays. The Goonies are also on - my fav!

loving: my family comprised of Cody & Socks. These two make my life veeery interesting!

thinking: I've got so many crafts that I've got to make a "craft corner" which is going to consist of shelving, bins, a table, and all kinds of things. Just a place to do me :)

wanting: a nice, cold milkshake - self explanatory :)

needing: our house is a WRECK. There are boxes upon boxes all over the place from when Cody's things got here, so I technically "can't" clean... hehehe

OLW: grateful. I'm going to be grateful for EVERYTHING this year. Those that are in my lives, the opportunities I'm blessed with, the activities I get to participate in. EVERY. SINGLE. THING.

Go link up with Farley, too!

Happy New Year's Eve, y'all!

Welcome Winter TPT Sale!

Hi all! Quick post between having dinner made and cleaning up!

Casey from Second Grade Math Maniac is hosting another fantastic linky for a TPT sale. Participating in this sale are a BUNCH of other teachers, myself included!

At my store, you can receive 20% off of EVERY. SINGLE. THING. Please click here to head to my store.

Below is the blog hop for this linky, which Casey was ever so kind to set it up for us.

Happy shopping!!

Secret Santa Gift Swap Reveal!

I thought this was SUCH a fun swap with a great idea. Kelly from Messy.Dirty.Hair, Janna from Perception is Everything, and Tabithia from My Cliffnotes decided to host a giving season swap and it was actually a SECRET SANTA swap! We were NOT allowed to tell our partners who we were, but rather, they are coming around to our blogs to see if they can figure out who their partner was.

I played secret santa to Ricci from A Beautiful Mess. Ricci, I hope you enjoyed everything I got for you, Ricci. I had a LOT of fun choosing things out (boyfriend helped!) and I'm glad you were the one I was santa to. To see what I got her, click here!

Here's what I got! My secret santa KILLED it. Love every single thing she got for me.

Dunkin Donuts french vanilla coffee - PERFECT. Oh, hi Socks.

Apple Cinnamon Spiced Berry candle - I needed more candles! Burnt through my others already!

Cute little tumbler with floating snowflakes in it - LOVE. Hi, again, Socks.

WHAT. Something for ME? From Socks. My secret santa got something for Socks - whaaaat! How perfect.

   

As you can tell, he can't decide which ball he likes better but has been constantly playing with both.

The prettiest, most perfect scarf ever. I love how lightweight and how pretty it is!!

Secret Santa, THANK YOU!!! I'm still not sure who sent things to me, though! I'm going to go through the blog swap and see :)

Have a good day, y'all!

Advent Calendar Swap Reveal!

It's time! It's time for the Advent Calendar Swap Reveal! Sarah from Notes from a Newlywed and I hosted an advent calendar swap. We had quite a few people participate, so I cannot wait to see what you all came up with!

I was partnered up with the fantastic Sue from  SOS Supply. This woman is hands-down one of the most CREATIVE women I've ever met. She's so sweet and kind and caring, and made the most beautiful advent calendar. It's currently hanging on the wall, and I keep having to try to get boyfriend to NOT eat all the chocolate. :) 

This is the package it arrived in. It was a little beat up, but hey, character! :)

How freakin' beautiful is that?! This will be an advent calendar I'll use for years and years and years. It's so beautifully made, the colors are gorgeous, and I just love it.

I have NO idea what this is, but I'm not allowed to open until the 25th AND it says do not squeeze me - whaaat?!

I got mini-ornaments, too! Way too cute.

I also got a gorgeous card. How pretty is that?!

Hands down the best swap I've ever participated in - I loved it.

Sue, thank you SO much for everything. You are an amazing woman and I am so happy to have been paired up with you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

If you participated, go on ahead and link up below :)



Happy holidays, y'all!

Silence for Sandy Hook Elementary

Strength and Courage & Blog Friend Package Swap #2 - Ornaments!

First, I wanted to start this blog post out by saying my thoughts & prayers go out to each and every person involved with the shooting in Connecticut today. I can honestly say that the teachers and staff members that had to protect their students are my heroes. The amount of courage it took by the staff members and students at the school was astounding. The strength of each person to go through such a situation is also astounding. I hope that each family finds the peace that they deserve & all my love goes to each and every person.

To those that responded, the emergency services, thank you. Your strength and courage also astounds me. It warms my heart to know that there are such great people out there willing to drop EVERYTHING to help others at a moments notice. Prayers and love go to each and every one of you, too.

On another note, Autumn over at "Mrs." in the Making set up this great swap. Each time she does these swaps, there's a new theme. Welp, this time around it was an ornament swap! How cool, right?!

I was partnered with Lindsay from Life as Lindsay. She was one sweet gal and sent me SO much more than I could have ever asked for.

First, I got this gorgeous Joy ornament. There were two ornaments, the other said "Cheers!" but it broke on the way to me... so it really said "heers!" - therefore, I couldn't put it up. But I'm in LOVE with the Joy ornament!

She also sent cute socks. Cannot wait to wear them around the house.

And she also sent a set of lipgloss by ELF. I love ELF products. They are perfect!

And as if I wasn't already spoiled enough, she also sent another package. BUT, I chose to keep it wrapped and will open it on Christmas. I cannot wait to see what is inside! :)

Lindsay, thank you SO much for everything. I love everything you got me and cannot wait to be surprised come Christmas for the last item you sent!!

Have a good night, y'all.

12 in '12 Linky Party

Hadar from Miss Kindergarten and Kristin from A Teeny Tiny Teacher hosted a linky last year called 11 in '11. This year, they've decided to host a 12 in '12 linky! I decided it would be a good time to reflect on some fun things that happened in 2012, as 2013 is only 22 days away. WHAT. Yep, I said it. Anyways, on to the 12 in '12!

12. Favorite movie you watched:
I'd have to sayyy... Hunger Games or Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part II. These movies BLEW. ME. AWAY. I absolutely loved them!

 

11. Favorite TV series:
I have sooo many favorite shows but a NEW show to me was Walking Dead. I know, I know, I hadn't seen it before this year and now I'm totally caught up - love me some Glenn & Daryl!

  

10. Favorite restaurant:
I only tried three new restaurants this year... promise I'll try more next year... but I have to say that Pit to Plate was my favorite. AMAZING barbecue and awesome cornbread!

9. Favorite new thing you tried:
Blogging. Hands down. I have met some of the most amazing people throughout this journey and I couldn't be happier.

8. Favorite gift you got:
Well, my momma gave me a wooden desk before I moved. I have been in search of a wooden desk for FOREVER. It's going to be the star student desk in my classroom once I get one! It looks kind of like the one below, but mine is BRIGHT red and shiny.

7. Favorite thing you pinned:
Ohhh.. gee, this is a tough one. I'm addicted to Pinterest so I have SOOO many pins, but I'm going to go ahead and say this one is my favorite..

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How does that NOT make you giggle and smile?!

6. Favorite blog post:
Ah gee, another hard one... I'm going to have to sayy... this post about graduation. You'll see why on number 5 :)

5. Best accomplishment:
My BEST accomplishment in 2012 was graduating from college. I could not be happier, nor prouder, of myself and all that I have done in my 22 years of life. I was so involved in college and had an amazing time, earned an amazing education, and have started my "true life" in this world. I am so happy to be able to say that I am a college graduate and I would not have wanted it any other way. PS. I graduated in education - heck yes! :)

4. Favorite picture:
I'm in love with boyfriend. Everyone should know that by now... but he took me to Busch Gardens and I captured this photo of him when we were on the safari ride. The color has been changed (filter), but I love how serious he looks even though he was truly enjoying himself!

3. Favorite memory:
Bahamas with my mother for my graduation present. I wasn't in the best mood the entire time and was somewhat crabby, but I absolutely loved it and am so happy I got to spend time with my momma before we moved away. It was a blast and I couldn't have asked for a better graduation present - spending time with momma :)

2. Goal for 2013:
Get a job. I've graduated, moved, and now I'm settled in. Time to get a job. Another goal is to get into shape. I have NEVER truly ran in my life, worked out in my life, or anything of that nature. It's about time I get into the shape I want to be instead of lazying it up on the couch!

1. One Little Word:
Happy. For 2013, my focus will be on the word "happy." Whether it be making myself happy or making others happy or anything, HAPPY is my focus word.

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What about your 12s?! Go link up!

Have a good night, y'all :)

FREEBIE & Giving is Receiving - Christmas Magic

Hello alll! I know, I know, it's been FOREVER since I've really, truly written a post with content. It's very difficult to have a teaching blog when I'm not truly teaching! LOL


First, I want to talk to you all about something serious, something that's near and dear to my heart. My fantastic friend Laura, from Love to Teach :), is sponsoring a family this Christmas to go shopping for. This family is going through a very rough time. The mother is a single mother that has been diagnosed with breast cancer and has a 16 year old son. Her son, Walter, has Autism. Even though he's 16, he has the mental capacity of a 6 year old. This means that he enjoys and LOOOOOVE toys like any other child would. The family does receive food stamps, as she's a single mother, but this is NOT enough to feed the growing boy ;) I mean, what 16 year old doesn't like to eat?? Boyfriend who is 22 could eat all day if he wanted to!

Anyways, Laura is accepting any and all donations to give this family the most amazing Christmas they've ever had. She would like to put things under the tree for not only Walter, but for Cathy (the mother) as well. What a better way to do something for others this holiday season than to donate to this family that is in need of support and love?

If you have any other questions, please click the picture below to be taken to Laura's blog post about this family. If you know that you ABSOLUTELY want to give to this family, follow the directions on the picture below (paypal). Laura is one of the sweetest girls I know and I absolutely LOVE that she is willing to help others by putting them before herself. I could not ask for a better role model in the teaching world, as she's an amazing person and is doing an amazing thing by helping others this holiday season!

Next, I made a freebie (one that was intended for sell) but I loved it so much that I wanted to make it a freebie! So, it's called Contraction Concentration. Students simply play this game like they would concentration. There are 3 different sets of cards. Each set is labeled with a 1, 2, or 3 in the upper left hand corner to keep them straight (see below for what I mean). As for the cards, there are cards with contractions and cards with their spelled out matches. For example, one card says "they're" while another (the match) says "they are."

  

To play, lay out ALL cards (total of 72, 24 per set) or even just ONE (24 cards) or TWO (48 cards) sets. This is totally up to you as the teacher what you would like for students to do. These cards should be laid out upside down, as it's a matching memory game! This is where your choice of how many sets to use is up to you because 72 cards may be TOO many to remember for younger kiddos or just perfect for older kiddos. Your choice!

Then, students begin making matches based upon the words. If a student makes a match, they get to go again. If not, the next student gets to go. This repeats until all cards have been matched. The student with the most matches at the end, wins!

If you would like to download the Contraction Concentration, please click the picture below to be taken to my TPT Store. I'd LOVE to have your feedback - even if it's just a thanks! This lets me know that you all appreciate and value my work AND could use this in your classroom with your fantastic students - all things I would LOVE to hear!

I totally promise to be back soon with more teacher-related things once we're COMPLETELY settled down. We're officially moved in to our new house and loving every minute of it. There's things everywhere, but we could not be happier. Once the house is decorated and put together, I'll put up pictures of it for everyone to see.

For now, here's the outside of it and our Christmas decorations we've got up in the house :)

  

Have a good day, y'all!