Back to School Blogger Exchange

I hooked up with Adventures of Ms. Smith and Covered in Glitter and Glue for a little back to school cheer secret Santa style. Each participant was matched up with a fellow teacher.  Such a fun idea! 

I was matched with the lovely Jessica from Joy in the Journey! I was super excited to be matched with her because I already follow her blog and TpT store and I am always impressed with her stuff. (If you don't already, start following her, too! :) )

Jessica is great! I wasn't surprised at all when I received a  super fun package from her. She def did her homework. She sent me a tone of supplies (including a folder with a dolphin....how'd she know dolphins are my favorite????) I also LOVE the the thumbs up post-its.

She also sent me this adorable cupcake cookbook: 

So perfect for a sweet tooth like me! 

Thank you, thank you, thank you,  Jessica!!! And a big thank you to Adventures of Ms. Smith and Covered in Glitter and Glue  for setting up this fun Back to School Exchange! 

August Currently

Can it really already by August????? Nooo!!!! 

But August does mean it is time for a new currently! I L-O-V-E the lined paper layout Farley came up with.

Listening....

Catching up on my shows after I have been gone for the week. 

Loving...

After having a busy July, its nice to have a morning of catching up on my shows, prepping some school stuff and relaxing. I love feeling productive but still staying in my jammies. :) 

Thinking...

I got engaged last week!!!! So, so excited!

I spent the last few days in my hometown. Of course my mom, grandma and I have wasted no time and have started  planning. So much to do....

Wanting...

Dang! Weddings are expensive. I need some mula to throw this wedding. $$$$$ hahaha

Needing...

With July being so busy, I am feeling a little bit behind with school stuff. 19 days and counting until the first day....I can do this, right??? 

Back to School Must Haves....

Speaking of back to school, my must haves include 

Astrobrights Paper 

Binders

I'm trying to get organized!

Caffeine 

In any form...diet coke, chai tea, coffee!!! 

I am off to check out the other currently.  Go link up too! 

Favorite Pins Friday

This was the first full week of my summer vacation that I have been in town.  I thought it would be my week to catch up on housework and organizing....turns out it was actually my week to catch up on all things pintrest and Target. So much pinning going on in my house this week. (Also, a little to much shopping!)

I am linking up with First Grade Parade to share my favorite pins of the week. Such a fun linky idea, by the way!

First up...

(Source)
Siracha, Honey, Lime Chicken Skewers
These are so yummy! I made them last night with some grilled veggies and rice. Perfect summer meal! 

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(Source) 

Adorable Baby Shower gift idea! 

Now I just need some of my friends to start popin' out babies! :) 

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(Source) 

Paint Pens instead of Name Plates 

Love this idea from Timeouts and Tootsie Rolls! I too, despise name plates....they always seem to be more trouble than their worth.

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(Source) 

Direct...but still sweet. 

Love this! I will definitely be hanging up this signage in my classroom!

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I also really love this: 

Leader Vs. Boss 

I couldn't find the original source but I think that it is brilliant! Such a tricky concept to learn how to be a true leader. I plan on using this as a lesson starter the first week of school. Just gotta pretty it up a bit! :)

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And finally...

I can relate, Sista! 

If you don't already follow me on Pintrest click HERE and follow along! Leave the link to your pintrest in the comment section and I'll follow you too. You can never have enough boards to follow! 

Have a great weekend! :) 

Summer Days & Monday Made It

Hope your summer has been going well. Mine has been excellent! :) After teaching summer school for the first month of summer, I took a physical and mental break from all things teacher and spent a week doing a whole lotta nothing. 

I spent my relaxing time in this beautiful place with my beautiful family. 

My grandparents, mom and uncles have been coming to Clear Lake, CA since they were babies and now the fourth generation of our family is enjoying this special place. We spent a week in cabins lakeside with 25 of our closest family members. Lots of time floating, boating, talking and laughing. 

And with my family, lots of wine drinking is also a given......Of course we also had to find a lakeside winery to visit. (Pretty sure this is one of the ONLY wineries you can boat to!). 

We just docked our boat down on the lake and walked up to amazing wine and a great view! Gotta love that! :) 

We also did a whole lotta eating too. Take a look at what my uncle whipped up: 

These were amazing grilled chicken sandwiches with Saracha sauce and avocados with a side of grilled corn on the cob and grilled nectarines for dessert. He even grilled lemons and limes to squeeze over the top. Delish! Obviously we don't mess around when it comes to food! :) 

Speaking of food.....Time for my Monday Made It! I'm linking up with Tara from Fourth Grade Frolics for her adorable linky! :) 

Today, I want to share my favorite salads. Now, I am NOT creative or even skilled when it comes to cooking, but I can slice and dice and I do know what flavors I like. And I L-O-V-E this salad. 

It is a standby in my kitchen. I made it last week to share at the lake. I also love to make a big version and keep it in the fridge for a quick work lunch. Being as I am not a fancy-smancy cook, I don't really have a recipe but still wanted to share. I hope my directions make sense! :) 

Quinoa & Veggie Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing 

Here's what you'll need: 

    1 cup uncooked quinoa 

    1 can black beans (rinsed and drained) 

    1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn 

    1-2 limes (depending on how tangy you like your dressing) 

    Olive oil 

    1 bunch of cilantro

    Salt 

    A generous helping of a variety of veggies (I have used red peppers, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onions and what ever else I have laying in the fridge that day.) 

Here's what you'll do: 

Cook the quinoa according for the directions on the package and let cool in fridge. 

Rinse and drain the black beans. Defrost corn if using frozen. 

Slice and dice the veggies. I used 1/4 of a red pepper, a couple tablespoons of red onion, a handful of cherry tomatoes tomatoes, 1/2 a cucumber and chopped the cilantro for the dressing. You can add or sub any vegetables you have on hand.  

Mix the dressing using olive oil, salt and lime. I do all of this to taste. Then I throw in the cilantro at the last minute. 

Toss the salad. Combine the quinoa, beans, corn and veggies in a large bowl. Add the dressing.

Enjoy! 

***PS sorry for the poor quality photos. I am definetly NOT a food blogger. Hahaha***

Now that I am back from my teacher break, I am eager to get busy and start dreaming about my classroom. I am off to Target and Michael's to get the creative teacher side of me revved up again. I'll be stopping by some of the other Monday Made It posts for some inspiration too. 

Have a great day! :) 

Blog Lovin'

So apparently I have been living under a rock (or just spending all of my time locked in my summer school classroom) and didn't know much about Blog Lovin'. I had heard it mentioned here and there but had not yet investigated or jumped on the Blog Lovin' bandwagon.

That is until this morning! I just signed up with Blog Lovin' and am already seeing such value in this feature. So nice to have all my favs at my finger tips. I am also loving the app! This is perfect for summer travel. I will be hanging at the lake next week and thanks to the app, I will now be able to access my favorite blogs with my ipad and won't have to lug around my laptop to do some blog reading in the evenings.

To follow my blog on Blog Lovin',  click below.

I'm linking up with Laura Candler's Corkboard Connections  as she hosts a blog hunt! Such a fun idea and a great way to find new blogs. Don't forget to follow your new blog finds with Blog Lovin'!

Let the blog hunt begin! :) 

Click on this cute little bear to link up too! 

Made it Monday (And a FREEBIE!)

I'm finally linking up with Tara from Fourth Grade Frolics for my first Made it Monday of the summer.

Is it just me or is the summer flying by???? I have a feeling that teaching summer school has something to do with my feelings! But now summer school is now officially over. I t was a fast and furious three weeks! I really had a sweet, sweet class though, and we were busy every hour of the day.

Now that it is over, I am finally getting a chance to pretty-up some of my activities from our quick three weeks. Although I have about 3 million products in the works, I only finished one in time for this linky and its FREE!!! :) 

Clickity-Clack on the image and download a way! 

I hope you can enjoy using it in the fall! 

Until then enjoy your summer, teacher friends! 

PS Don't forget to link up with Tara, too!  

June Currently

I've been a little MIA lately but summer is (finally!) here so I am BACK! :) I'm linking up with the ever popular Farley for the June Currently. 

Explanations: 

Listening to Arrest & Development...and have been since Monday. :) 

Loving that I am officially on summer break. Our last day was Friday and I have been living it up (and sleeping a lot) since the final bell rang.  :) 

BUT...

I'm thinking about Summer School which starts in just a week. EEEK!!!! 

This should help with my want: more funds. Who am I kidding, I always want more funds but with all of the quick trips and mini vacays I have planned the extra funds are really a necessity. Work hard, play hard, right??? (And don't feel too bad for me because summer school is only 3 weeks.)

Bringing me to my 3 vacay essentials.....

1) Us Weekly --A guilty pleasure of mine which I enjoy so much more if read by a lake, pool, beach or other body of water. 

2) A floatie for said lake, pool, beach or other body of water. This one is my fav. It's from Target and super cheap, too! 

3) AC  If I'm inside I want to be cool....too bad my summer school classroom does not have AC. Seriously! No, AC. I do live in the SF Bay Area so it doesn't get hotter than 80 degrees but still....a little cool air would be nice! 

Hope you are all enjoying your first days of summer or your last days of school! 

Currently

Happy Cinco de Mayo, all! 

Well, I'm a little late to the fiesta but here's my May Currently:

Anyone else feeling that end of the year crunch?!?!?

 I am so ready for summer but I have about a million and one activities I want to throw in over the next few weeks. (Were outta school in 25 days....)  Not to mention the fact that I still need to plan the end of the year field trip and figure out the end of the year party stuff. So I sit here with my coffee cup (ready for a refill) and my laptop planning away....

Good thing I will be relaxing next weekend in one of my favorite places, Chico, California. 

I will be here: 

SOURCE 

And Here: 

(See more gorgeous shots of the market from Wayward Spark  HERE) 

And no trip to Chico would be complete with out a stop here: 

SOURCE

I'm excited!! Can you tell?!?!? :) Our annual May Chico trip always makes it feel like summer is truly here! So nice to take a break from the foggy Bay Area weather and head to my college home for a littlle R&R and summer sun! 

What do you have up your sleeves these last weeks of school???

Linky Love

I've been wanting to blog all weekend but things have been crazy busy. Now that it's Sunday I am catching up on all things school (report cards, benchmark tests and lesson plans), but before I really get started with all that I think a little blog time is order. I think I have my priorities in the right place, right? :)

Time to link up with a couple of my favorite linky parties.....

First up, I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five on Friday.

1) Girl Scout Cookies

Five boxes might be a little excessive for my little household of two but they are just so yummy!!!

2) College Week = New Sweatshirts  

We are celebrating college week at the end of March. I loved Chico State!! And I think that college week justifies a shopping spree on my alma mater's website. I picked up a new sweatshirt, a t-shirt and cute little onesie for my friend's sweet new baby. 

3) Colonial America Unit 
I am loving our Colonial America Unit and have used this book a lot! It's a good one!

 

4) Planet Rap 

Our art teacher takes over one unit in Science or Social Studies each year and teaches it through art integration. She is amazing! This year she is teaching our space unit. Here is one of the resources she is using. The kids LOVE it. :) 

5) Task Card Scavenger Hunt
Time to start the major test prepping! I've been trying to spice things up a bit since it can be sooo boring. One way I've done this is by creating test prep task cards and taping them to the walls and windows around the classroom. Then the kiddos wonder around the room and answer the questions on there answer sheets. It is nice to get them up and moving!


I'm also linking up with Latoya from Flying into First Grade.

This week's topic: 2 Truths and a Lie 

2 Truths and a Lie 

1) I have three sisters (Jo, Jennifer and Megan). 

2) My favorite ice cream is Thrifty's Chocolate Brownie. 

3) My car has 150,000 miles on it. 

Well, there are my 3 random "facts". 

Can you guess which one is a lie?????

I hope you all are having a fabulous weekend! Enjoy your Sunday! :) 

Let's Get Acquainted!

I'm linking up with Latoya from Flying into First Grade for her fun little get-to-know-you linky. Your're supposed to use your initials and share three things about yourself....although you've probably already seen this particular linky all over blogland.

J 
Jolly Ranchers
My all time fave candy!

And
Jerky 
As in beef or turkey.

I dunno why but I love this stuff.


L
Hmmm...lattes and would be to easy......same with laughter.....
Let's go with
LOVE ACTUALLY my favorite movie. If you haven't seen it, do so ASAP

T 
Tulips have been my favorite flowers wince I was a little girl....

I've always wanted tulips at my wedding....but I've also always wanted to get married in July ....on a beach.... not sure the tulips are a realistic part of my fantasy wedding. :)

Now its your turn!  Link up HERE.

Have a great hump day...we're half way to the weekend. :)

Fun Friday

I was ready with a fun Friday post when I came across this fun little linky from Teaching in Fourth. We all need a little extra fun on Fridays so I am linking up with Kelly and you should, too! :) Check out the fun graphic she created for the party and the end of this post.

                              

Since it's Friday I thought I'd share some of the activities we do in my room when we need a little extra fun. This week we had assessments, a fire drill, earthquake drill and vision screening. Which made for some long days and a couple of awkward periods when we had 10 minutes before being pulled for vision screenings or 15 minutes before lunch after a morning FULL of testing. These are the times I need to pull some fun tricks out of my teacher hat. Here are a few we had fun with this week:

                                                      

                                                     Read Aloud with a Twist 

My kids love a good read aloud but sometimes they have a hard time staying focused. Whenever we are going to do an extra long read aloud I pass out a teeny tiny piece of play-doh for each student. They quietly play with the clay and listen. It is amazing how it improves their concentration!

Responsive Classroom Games 

I love the games that are part of the Morning Meetings in Responsive Classrooms. These are great games for the morning but are also fun during those awkward in between team. My kids LOVE "Just Like Me". Click here to find the link to that and a couple of other Games. 

Word Games 

My kids LOVE word games. They're great because not only are they fun, they help students look at words in a new way. These are my kids current favorites: 

<Click on the images to get your own copies> 

And now to the linky! 

Here are the links:
Super cute Disney Princess aprons 
 Covered in Glitter and Glue Go check her out!

I hope you all have a wonderful & restful weekend! 

Now go link up with Kelly!