The Best Part of the Olympics...

I am so glad other people agreed with me about the Olympics coverage.  I just hate finding things out before they happen, especially when they could show it live.  They just don't want to because of primetime ratings.

Anyways, I'm sure you all have seen this, but OMG, I am in ♥ with this video.  I cannot get enough and probably watch it at least once a day.

Seriously, obsessed.  Have you seen this?  Do you love it as much as I do?  I also really like to read the comments and find out who's who.  I recognized so many more swimmers this year because of this video (ahem, Nathan Adrian, Brendan Hansen, Rebecca Soni...)

In school related new, I got into my classroom today....Hallelujah!  My mom came and helped and we got a lot done.  BUT, I forgot my camera.  I'll take some pics when I get in tomorrow to show the bomb that has exploded progress in Room 313.  When I started, it looked like this.

Well, I'm off to bed, but I'll be sure to update tomorrow with a hopefully neater classroom :)

Stick a Fork in Me...I'm Done

Whew.  I can't believe it's essentially been 3 weeks since my last post.

I am done folks, D-O-N-E with grad school.

I took my last two classes during the last 3 weeks and I am 100% finished!

Our last day of school was Friday June 1.  Teachers came in on Monday June 4 for a workday.  I'll be totally honest...it doesn't count as work when the kids aren't there!  I was checked out and officially on summer break by 11:00.

Here's what I left my room looking like:

Those boxes on the tables are heeeeaaavvy.  SO heavy!

I was a liiiitle nervous because I found out during my check out meeting that my room would be used during the summer session so I went back and covered the cubbies with the green paper and taped my community supplies closed. 

Well, I had to go back to get something a couple of weeks ago and I found out one of the best teachers we have is in my room for summer clinic and she has the room set up so cute!  

If you're really noticeable, you can tell I switched rooms.  I mentioned it before, but my previous room was yellow, and this one is a pretty teal.  I am excited that my entire cabinet (at the front) is totally set up and organized.

On Friday, my kids helped SO much.  I think they thought I was kidding when I told them if they came on the half days they'd be put to work.  No joking here.

Have you seen the new blog Endless Pinabilities?  

Such a good idea!  Plus I'm a contributor, which is crazy considering I've been slack updating this blog!

One other thing on my totally random post, I have started to tackle my summer bucket list.  I started organizing my flash drive the other night.  Here's what it looks like so far (I'm not done yet):

So, I am slowly but surely accomplishing some things.  How's your summer going so far?  Have you accomplished a lot?

June Currently

Hey y'all!  I am so super excited because I am now officially on summer break!!!  Whoop whoop!

I kicked it off with a nice lunch with two coworkers.  One, my associate teacher, is leaving our school.  She is going to teach 6th grade Science ALL BOYS!  Kudos to her.  She would totally stay at my school, there just aren't any openings.  The other is my new teamie!  Remember how I've mentioned there's a girl that doesn't exactly show up for work all the time (as in, she's probably missed close to 20 days this year)?  Well, they moved her out of 3rd grade and into a non-testing grade (2nd) so I get to have the 2nd grade teacher as my new teamie...YAY!  We went to Panera (yum!).  For all of you sweet tea lovers out there, and thanks to the linky I know there are tons of you, Panera has really good sweet tea!  Just a little FYI :)

I tell ya, I am so tired!  I'm trying to get this posted so I can maybe go nap upstairs with Gizmo, who by the way, STILL has not come downstairs and I've been home over an hour.  Great guard dog I tell ya.

So, I am obviously linking up with Farley and her June Currently.  Have you seen her new blog design?  CA-UUUUTE!

 Seriously, how cute?! Okay, so here's what I'm up to:

 
A little elaboration:

Gizmo will NOT stop escaping from the kitchen.  I think we may have to crate him.  Seriously, here's just one picture of all of the junk crap household items he has managed to escape from:

HA, honestly, looking at this makes me laugh because we now have large Rubbermaid bins, our large cooler, and Matt's heavy toolbox among our current barricades.  Seriously, our living room looks like we are white trash.  It's embarrassing.  Plus, putting these barricades up nightly and taking them down is ridonculous.  He of course escaped at 4:45 this morning when a huge storm came rolling through. Even though it was a workday, I ended up just getting up with him. Ugh...okay, I'll stop talking about this because it really deserves a post all its own.

Have you seen the commercials for the Hey Batter Batter Blast at Sonic?  I got it today to celebrate school ending & before I can't eat it since I'll be returning to my diet tomorrow.  It was good, but not enough cookie dough and brownie batter.  I guess there never is. 

I would LOVE to go back to NYC.  I went with the hubby's family back in 2007 and it was amazing! 

We went to Atlanta last weekend.  Here are some pics from our trip since I totally spaced and never shared!

At the Braves Game.  The men behind us would NOT stop talking!

At the Georgia Aquarium

At the Gwinnet Braves game.  My college roomies!

At the Ferndale Museum of Natural History

Tristen got married!

There was a photo booth complete with props!  LOVED it!  They actually used this as their guest book!

Finally, I want to go to an amusement park.  I went to Carowinds last year so who knows, maybe we'll go again this year!

I don't think I even have to say it, but head on over to Farley's and link up!

And thanks so much to those of you who have linked up with my first linky!  I cannot believe all the entries!  I promise I'm slowly but surely getting to commenting on all of them!  Still haven't linked up?  Join the fun!

Steve Spurrier's Ladies Clinic & Gift Exchange

I am a total slacker!  I have big plans to post.  And then I just don't.
I have a good reason (somewhat). 

This past Friday night my parents came over and had dinner here.  My mom was spending the night so we could go to Steve Spurrier's Ladies Clinic!  I won't post too many pictures but here's a few:

Waiting to get in.  In this picture from L to R is me, my mom, my sister, and my friend Ashley who teaches with me.

I was pretty embarrassing for them.  See that big ol' grin?  I was literally giddy with excitement.  What you don't see in this picture is that in front of me is a looooong line of people waiting to get their picture with the Lattimore goodies.  They were all cracking up at me because it was slightly ridiculous! I ♥♥♥ Marcus Lattimore!  If people hadn't seen me with that medal, I may have taken it!  (totally kidding of course...but seriously, my obsession runs deep).

I totally started the trend of putting the pads on!  Those gloves are seriously SO sticky!  There is NO excuse for dropped passes.  You can also see I don't hesitate to go in full on freak mode. Which would be why...

I had to ask some random stranger to take this picture (and many others!) for me.  My family and Ashley totally left me.  They claim it wasn't because of my behavior, but I don't blame them ;)

I hate the way I look in this picture, but I could not get over how tall Devin Taylor is!  I'm 5' 8" and I just read today that he is 6' 7"!  Seriously though, I look like I've just been enlightened about something great or like this.

So last year, they had a whole autograph session with the players where you got to meet them, take pictures, and get autographs.  I was so pissed bummed they didn't have it this year.  However, this is where my stalking and nosiness came in handy.  I noticed there were a lot of people in a hallway and cameras flashing so we went over and there were like 6 players!  SCORE!  Otherwise, I wouldn't have hardly any pictures with players.  We were also super close to getting Bruce Ellington's (Bruuuuuuuuuce) autograph, but the coaches made him leave.  Big bummer. 

I told my family it's a good thing I didn't go to USC because I probably would've failed out trying to meet all of these players around campus :)
Then on Sunday I had to take care of everything I neglected during the rest of the weekend.

You know, crap like laundry, getting groceries, and working on school stuff.

Monday I couldn't post because I went to see my mom in the hospital after her surgery.  She's doing great now.  And yesterday I had class.

So there are my excuses.

Did you participate in the Pinterest Gift Exchange?  I did and here's what I got from my super sweet partner who was Leisa Clayton.  She does not have a blog, but she totally should.  She is SO creative!  Here are the goodies she sent me:

This adorable picture frame that even included a picture of the Giz!  It's currently sitting on my window ledge at work.  It makes me super happy :)

This super cute tote bag that she made herself!  Amazing.  See now why I said she needs a blog?!

These great, homemade bookmarks!  My dog bookmark I have right now is SO worn (its over 4 years old!).  Seriously, how cute.  I cannot get enough!

These great writing helpers.  The president one will be great come November!

Okay, I don't know why this picture won't rotate, but I love these bookmarks to give my kiddos and the tabbed clips too! 

She was so sweet and I just love everything so thanks again to Leisa and please let me know if you ever start a blog!

So did you participate?  Make sure to head over and link up!

 totally forgot to take a picture of the gift I made, but head over to The Resource(ful) Room and check it out.

Spring Break & New Goodies!

Today starts my glorious week off!  I am SO excited!

I have BIG plans. 

Unfortunately...I've done nothing yet. 

Aside from sleep in of course.  Thank goodness the pup let me sleep!  We are constantly trying new things to help him (and us) at night.  Yesterday, after Easter dinner with my family, we stopped off at Petsmart and got him these:

This is supposed to help him relax.  We had some pills we gave him before, but they didn't have melatonin in them (we've read online that melatonin is supposed to help dogs relax).

 Gizmo has been peeing a lot in our upstairs hallway.  I'm not sure if I've mentioned that before.  Well, two nights in a row he peed in our bedroom.  We're hoping this helps, but when I woke up this morning I saw that he had peed (again!) in the hallway.  In a way, the hallway is better because we're going to have to get that carpet replaced when we replace what he tore up.

A Thundershirt.  Yep.  Giz feels all safe and secure now (hopefully).  In fact, he still wearing it now and is sleeping in my lap as I type this. 

Hey, does that mean I can use it as an excuse for why I haven't really done anything around the house today?!

You may have noticed (or maybe not), but I updated my blog button to coordinate with my header.  I realized I better do it quick before picnik shuts down since that's what I used to help create my header.  I'm excited!  I think it turned out pretty good!

I also have started My Fitness Pal again.  If you are looking to lose weight, I strongly recommend it.  It helped me lose about 10 pounds last summer.  I kind of stopped once school started, but I realized I need to go back to it.  I think it's pretty similar to Weight Watchers, but best of all...it's FREE!  I started it back up last Monday and lost about 3 pounds (even though it says 5, that's based on my weight from when I first signed up last summer).  I won't lie...Monday was HARD!   I was starving pretty much all day!  I could've eaten a lot more though because I got this message when I completed my food diary:

One of my favorite things to eat is an ice cream bar that is only 45 calories!  I've seen these on Pinterest, but I've known about them for a long time.  I remember my sister telling me about them back when I was in college.  Wanna know how to make it? 

Here's what you need:  Graham Crackers & Cool Whip.

Lay out your graham crackers.  You could use a full sheet if you wanted.

Put about a tablespoon of cool whip onto half of the crackers.  It does not have to be pretty!

Take the other half and gently press on top of the cool whip.  Place in freezer for several hours or until frozen.

After it has set, wrap individually in plastic wrap.

They are really yummy and a nice sweet treat (for very few calories).

I also made a shopping list for the hubby and I to use.  I was inspired by the one featured over at IHeart Organizing. 

Here's ours:

Grocery List

Much thanks to Kristen over at Ladybug's Teacher Files for the tutorial about the font!

Also, I got tagged again by Run!  Miss Nelson's Got The Camera.

I've been tagged before, so I'll just answer her questions :)

1.  Which do you prefer teaching:  Reading or Math?  Hmm, that's a toughie.  In the intervention program I teach, I chose to teach Reading over Math.  I guess overall it would be reading.

2.  Where's your favorite place to find clip art?  Okay, I am a total clip art newbie.  I like any place that has cheap (or preferably free) clip art!  Some of my favorite places are:  The 3AM Teacher, Scrap Ems, & I also have some Thistlegirl clip art.  I have lots saved on my flash drive though that I'm not sure where it came from...

3.  Do you count spelling tests as a reading or writing grade?  We actually do not do spelling tests this year (gasp...I know).  But when I did, I counted it as writing.

4.  What is your favorite website for your students?  My students have access to VMath Online & Ticket to Read through the intervention program I teach.  I love it!

5.  Do you have a Point and Shoot camera or a DSLR?  I have a point and shoot.  This is the camera I have.  It was on sale at Target around Christmastime for only $99. 

6.  Do you arrive to school early or stay late?  I am no early bird, but I actually get to school early.  Teacher's don't have to be there until 7:00, but I get to work around 6:30 (more like 6:40 recently).

7.  Coke or Pepsi?  Cherry Coke Zero or Diet Dr. Pepper!

8.  Michael's or Hobby Lobby?  Ugh, there are NO Hobby Lobby's here!  I wish there were though!

9.  What is your favorite read aloud?  Probably The Lorax!  I love the message behind it :)

10.  Winter Break or Spring Break?  I'm obviously loving Spring Break now, but I love that Winter Break is 2 whole weeks (except next year...they shortened our break by two days...boo!)

5

Okay, I'm off to go lay out!  

April Currently

It's that time again!  Farley has her April Currently up!

This weekend has been glorious!  I've gotten lots of sleep and yesterday I went with my mom and sister to the Flowertown Festival.  There's one booth we go to every year that has the best necklaces for cheap.  I'll post a picture of the new ones I bought but here's the first one I ever bought from them:

They come with earrings all for like $16.  I always get tons of compliments on them so I am obsessed to say the least.

I also saw The Hunger Games again today.  It was just as good the second time!  I also found this video with some behind the scenes action for all of you fans out there! 

One hand.

That's how many days until Spring Break.  I am SO excited! 

I found out a couple of weeks ago that the program I teach will not be around next year as we know it.  It's good and bad:  Good because 3rd grade will take the PASS Writing next year and I have NO time to formally teach writing now.  Bad because it means a huge increase in class size.  I currently only have 9 kiddos (I know, I know), and next year I could have up to 20.  It's nothing compared to when I started as a first year teacher:  I had 25 fifth graders in a very high needs school.  Can I blame that stress for my weight gain?!  Hahaha

I have lots of things I've been doing with my kiddos, but I always forget to take pictures!  Here is one activity we did where we learned about things that cause heat:  the sun, rubbing, burning, & electricity.  After we discussed it and made a bubble map, I gave my kiddos this and they had to sort it based on whether or not it produced heat or not.  Overall, they did really good on it and ALL of my IEP kids got a 100!

Heat

Sorry, I don't have pictures of any of the completed ones, but they basically just cut these out, folded a piece of construction paper in half, and labeled it as Produces Heat & Doesn't Produce Heat.  Maybe this can help some of you, if you teach about heat!

I'm off to watch the OC and cook dinner.  Only 5 more days!

Cycles & The Hunger Games

I have been off the radar for over a week. 

I go through cycles.  Here's kiiiinda what it looks like for me.

If you're wondering, I'm currently somewhere between the right side and the top.  I feel totally caught up with stuff for my job, but have some lots work to do for grad school.  Luckily, the college is on Spring Break this week.  Holla!

So, let's move on.

The Hunger Games.

Did you see it?  I LOVED it!  I'm going back to see it on Sunday with my sister and my niece.  I can't wait!  I will say the book is better (isn't it always?!).  I just felt like some parts weren't quite as developed as I would have liked.  Like when Katniss found out Peeta was with the Careers and at the end after they announced there could only be one victor.  I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it yet, it just didn't totally match up with the book. 

Overall though,  I loved it.  Minus the fact that I didn't get to finish my Coke Icee.  They always show a bajillion previews.  It was during the last preview I realized I kinda had to go to the bathroom.  Luckily, the movie was a great distraction.

I'm enjoying reading other books, but I really miss Peeta, Katniss, & Gale.  I'm having withdrawals. 

Oh yeah, remember how I talked about the craziness that my dog had become?  Well, it appears I spoke too soon about all being well.  I'll explain more later, but I'll leave you with this picture...

Rollin'

Have you seen this commercial?



It has refreshed my liking of that song.  Yes, I listen to rap.  Honestly, I listen to anything that is catchy. 

So when I left for work yesterday, I knew exactly the song I was going to jam out to for my inaugural ride into work. 

Can't you tell this is the perfect "Riding Dirty" car?!

Unfortunately, it was kiiiiind of a fail.

You see, the CD player has a place for you to plug in your iPod mp3 player.  So, I plugged it in, chose my song, and off I went.  Only, it didn't sound quite right.  Why can't I hear that guy?

It took me until the 3rd song to realize that I didn't have the cord plugged in all the way.  DOH! 

For the record, the only part I like of that song is the chorus...it's so darn catchy!

Much thanks to Classy Confessions for rating my blog as a Top 10!

If you haven't visited her, head on over!  She's a new blogger AND just started an interim job so show her some love :) 

I promise I will do a later post with my nominees for a top 10 :)

Also, Lorraine from Fabulous 4th Grade Froggies is having a linky for 3rd, 4th, 5th grade bloggers.  If that applies to you, head on over and link up!  I know I'm going to be making sure I follow all of theirs :)

Here are some Pinterest finds I'm loving:

Source: technicolorkitcheninenglish.blogspot.com via Bonnie on Pinterest

I made this tonight for dinner.  Absolutely delicious.  We've had it several times and serve it over brown rice.  Yum-Oh!

Source: eisforexplore.blogspot.com via Bonnie on Pinterest

We did this on Monday and my kiddos really enjoyed it!  Then we went outside on a pollen hunt (killer on my allergies, but they really seemed to get it).

Speaking of which, we have officially hit spring and pollen here.  How about where you live?  I'm excited it's warm because that means dresses!  Today I wore my new dress from JCP.  It's supposed to be warm tomorrow as well so I'm off to decide on what to wear!