Fun and Family! Happy New Year Linky

Happy, Happy New Year! Here's to fresh starts and new beginnings.

Click here to get a freebie print from C.R.A.F.T. to ring in the new year.

 

This week, I am linking up with Blog Hoppin' to share new hopes and resolutions for the 2014 year.

Today's link up is all about Fun and Family.

 

 I have some exciting news! I got engaged to my best friend. He did it right. He picked out the ring with a little help from a dear friend, made it a complete surprise, and had friends there to take pictures of the moment. Ladies and gentlemen, I have caught myself a real keeper.

 

 I love my ring. It is so sparkly and classic.

Just look at that view! What a way to end a mountain bike ride!

 

With that said, now that we have all of the initial planning out of the way, I will start showing my face around here more often. Pinkie promise!

 

This year will involve lots of preparation and craftiness but more importantly, it will mean lots of time with family and friends. Nothing brings more people together than a wedding.

 

Here's a sneak peek at one of our shots from our engagement photo shoot. Our photographer, Penny Shaut, did an amazing job.

 

Cheers to family traditions, old friends, and new beginnings! Happy New Year!

Mean for a Monday

So I had one of those days that really makes you go, that's just too mean to do to a person on a Monday.  I will be fair the content of this post is not educational so if you are looking for center ideas or how to get through until Christmas, you might want to skip this one.

Any hoo! It started with the freezing cold and not enough coffee. Then ended with finding out that there is a lice outbreak in the building and my room is one of the rooms that is possibly housing this epidemic.

Gasp! Shudder!

 I got itchy all over instantly! I think spent more time casually staring at kids heads and scratching off all of my skin then teaching today.

 Not quite but at least I can get a laugh out of lice.

 

After I got home, and striped off, bagged all of my belongings, and showered with scalding hot water. Then, I had to tackle round 2 of things are mean for a Monday.

 

My dear, sweet lab has been limited to her outside time and walks since the weather has been freezing and below zero. Well, I think she must have just had enough and decided that today was the day that she was going to dig a hole to China via the bottom of her kennel (Insert mad dog mom face here).
 

  Here's a bad pic of the mess.

 To Pet Smart we go.......but, I informed Miley to not even think about asking for a toy or a treat. Do you know that one of these kennel trays costs $38.00?!

 

Here's to keeping my fingers crossed that today was not a sign of things to come. Hope your week is going fabulous and wherever you are, you are warm, toasty and lice free.

Cyber Monday and Tuesday!

Hi all! I wanted to spread the word and make sure you know all about Cyber Monday and Tuesday on Teachers Pay Teachers! Lots of teacher authors are putting their items on sale, including myself. You also get an additional discount by typing in the code "cyber" during checkout. Happy Shopping!

This cutie of a button was designed by Dragonflies in First!

Veterans Day

First of all I would like to say Thank You, Thank You, Thank You to all of the men and women that serve this great country. You are appreciated beyond words!

 

For those of you that were able to get some R and R today... congrats and I am so jealous! For those of us who were back to the daily grind, I hope you had as much fun today as we did. One of our first grade teachers has a wonderful husband that is an airman for the Air Force. Today, he was a fabulous guest speaker for our classrooms.

 

He taught us about the 5 different branches of the military, how to salute, and even let us try on some of his training gear. It was too much fun! The kids loved it. I can't wait to start our thank you cards tomorrow. We are going to have to do an extra special thank you to Sergeant Diaz for coming in.

My Truth "Monday"

Let me start by saying that I know that it is Tuesday but I just stumbled upon this fun linky called My Truth Monday hosted by Sunny Days in Second Grade and I just couldn't help but link up. This week's my truth is all about why you decided to become a teacher. Here's my truth....

 

Swing by and check out all of the other bloggers sharing their truths. :)

Noodle Dying Tips for Wednesday and a Very Hungry Inspired Necklace

Anyone who has ever been on my little blog or in my classroom knows that I have a small obsession love for Eric Carle. Basically, I think that he is the cat's pajamas. Anyhoo....as I was looking through my blog posts, I realized that the beginning of the year came and went with such a blur that I never talked about the Very Hungry Caterpillar necklaces we made on the first day.

Aren't they the cutest?! All we needed to make these were some hole punched construction paper, ribbon, and noodles; however, if you are working with little ones, I highly recommend that you attach a bead to the end of each ribbon.

 

 

I was talking with a colleague this week about how I dye noodles and I thought maybe this is advice the world needs. Then again maybe not, but let's roll with it! :)

All you need is:

-Dry noodles or rice (I used a whole box to make my necklaces and had plenty extra.)

-1 to 2 tablespoons Rubbing Alcohol (Start with 1 tablespoon, and if the noodles look like they are not getting enough liquid to coat the sides, add a little more.)

- Food Coloring of choice (Do not use the gel coloring, it does not fully dry.)

-Gallon sized plastic bag

-Cookie sheet or tray

-Newspapers

Add the first 3 ingredients to the gallon sized bag, seal, and shake like a polaroid picture.

If you have already mixed thoroughly and found that your noodles are not bright enough, just add more dye and mix again.

Lay out the noodles on a cookie sheet lined with newspaper. I like to shuffle the noodles around 30 minutes after laying them out. I usually let them set out over night to make sure they are fully dry.

Helpful Hints on Hump Day! Easy Editable Signs for All Occasions

I'm linking up with Teresa from Fun in K/1 for my first installment of Helpful Hints on Hump Day!

At the beginning of the school year,  I wanted to make one of those cute picture frames that the kiddos could take their picture with on the first day. With all of the business of a new year, I never seemed to find the time to get one made. Sigh.....so I thought how could I get the same idea quick and with less prep. On a rush decision, I had all of my kiddos take a picture holding a blank page of white construction paper.

They looked a little like this. (I added this picture to Powerpoint to edit it.)

Then I realized the greatness of this plan. I can type anything in a text box and center it over the white paper.

I can change the font and the color of the text.

I can use it for multiple occasions and add pictures.

So easy to edit and change.
 

 I'm will be making a banner with all of the kids pictures and on the white paper, will be a letter to spell out "Welcome to Our Class!" This will be great for conferences.
 

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check out all of the helpful hints from the other teachers linking up with Fun in K/1.