January Currently...Hello 2014!!

Happy New Year!!

But seriously...2014?!! 

Unreal.

I'm linking up with Oh Boy 4th Grade ...

Listening

Hubs and SonShine have this awesome tradition of going "Exploring".  They get up early, go get some yummy breakfast, and then go drive around in the country.  They love finding deer and turkeys and cool rocks and anything nature-tastic!  Sometimes I go too, but it's really their special time together.  So, I usually stay home and have some "Me Time"...which is FAB!!

Loving

We hosted our annual NYE party with our friends from church.  It is always a blast...tons of good friends, delicious food, and guaranteed hilarity!!  After everyone cleared out, Hubs and SonShine went upstairs to "unwind" by playing a little Lego Marvel on the PS3.  So, I bit the bullet and cleaned the entire kitchen.  Not fun at 1 am, but it was glorious to wake up to a clean kitchen this morning!!

Thinking

My mind this morning is filled with reflection on the year behind and expectations of the year to come.  I'm so very, very grateful for an incredible 2013 and looking forward to new memories in 2014!

Wanting

A nap...like for realz.  Suuuuuper tired this morning!!

I'd settle for a Starbucks, but that means I'd have to get out of bed.

Needing

I always like to leave up the Christmas decorations as long as possible.  I absolutely love it when the house is decorated for Christmas.  It's my favorite time of the year!  I've been known to leave the decorations up until the end of January!  But, we put our decorations up in mid November this year, so I'm feeling ready to box 'em up until next year!

Memory/Tradition

Each year since I was a baby, I have received or bought a Memory Ornament for our family Christmas tree.  When I got married, my mom gave them all to me for my own tree.  It's a tradition that my husband and I have continued.  This year, we bought a cute little singing Santa who is holding a map to commemorate all of my husband and son's "Boys Trips" this year.  

You can click the picture above to follow me on Instagram!  

I wish you many blessings and all the best life has to offer in 2014!!

May Currently!

I am BEYOND excited that it's May!!

I have less than 3 weeks of school left until SUMMER!!

I'm linking up with Farley for Currently in May...

HBO has been playing "Meet the Fockers" and I think I must have "watched" it 5 times already this week!  I like to have something going in the background while I work on the computer.  I love those movies!!  

I've got 2 hellish weeks of final projects and papers and then I'm D-O-N-E with grad school.  :)  I'm so excited to be nearing the finish line!!

As many of you know, this is  my first year in kindergarten and all of these end-of-year assessments are making me feel like a crazy person!!  In the intermediate grades, the big rush is in February getting ready for state assessments in late March and early April.  I always loved being able to slow down and have fun in the 4th quarter!  Whew...I was unprepared for the realities of wrapping up a kindergarten year.  I feel like all I have time to do is assess - especially since I teach 1/2 day kindergarten.  The kids are loving all of the fun craftivities, games, and learning stations...but I'm maxed out!!  ;)

This is just part of the mountain of assessments that appeared on my desk this week.  

Between end of semester grad school craziness and end of the school year chaos -- I'm looking forward to wrapping things up and getting summer vacation kicked-off!!  I can't wait to spend time with my family when I'm not thinking about the 6,492 other things I "need" to be doing!!  

I've got to buckle down and finish these grad school projects.  I need to clear my plate!!

This summer I'm looking forward to a family vacation...we haven't had one in 3 years!  I want to learn Yoga, get a mani/pedi, and spend some time with my girlfriends!!  

What are you up to?  

Go link up with Farley so I can find out!! 

Are you looking for fun FREE Mother's Day activity?
Check out my "Sweet Love" Mother's Day card pack...
includes cards for moms & "mother figures"!!

April Currently

I hope your Easter was filled with family, friends, love and laughter!!

(And yummy food, tasty treats, bunnies, eggs, and jellybeans!!)

Wow...April already!?!  

Listening

When I was a little girl,
I remember thinking that there must be something very wrong with adults.

It seemed like the adults in my life were always watching the news.

Always.  

And if they weren't watching it...they were reading it.  

And getting their fingers covered in black newspaper ink.

(Remember when newspapers did that?!)

So now...whenever I watch the news, I feel very "adult-like".

But, now I wonder if my little boy thinks there must be something very wrong with ME!

Loving

I'm a Jesus-girl.

I love Him!!

I love Easter and the HOPE it brings to my heart.

I love being reminded that death has been defeated.

I love knowing with absolute certainty that sin will never have the final word.

And, I love the words of my pastor when asked if he
really 
believes in the resurrection...

"I not only believe it...I'm counting on it!!"  

He is RISEN indeed!!

Thinking & Wanting

So, my dear sweet friend from my small-group at church invited me to Yoga.

I almost said no.

{Big Sigh}

Then, I said yes...reluctantly.

So, now that I've committed, I have to follow through.

Someone please tell me this will be a good thing!!

I really want to get back to feeling like the best version of myself.  

Life is too short and precious to spend even one more day
just wishing change would come.

Time to act.

{gulp}

Needing

Whew...having a house for sale is no fun at all.

Advice

I'm such a newbie!!

In other words, I'm completely under-qualified to offer advice.

But, I know I struggle with balance.

I love blogging & creating for TPT!!

But, I have so, so, so many other things going on in my life.

Bigger, more important, essential things.

Things that deserve a place of honor in my life.

prayer

Bible study

being a good wife & mother

taking care of my own wellness

meals

family

teaching

fellowship

graduate studies

"me time"

So friends, be kind to yourselves.

Blessings are found in balance.

I'm linking up!

March Currently & "Featured" on TPT

I just popped over to the "official" Teachers Pay Teachers Pinterest Board 

and guess what I saw? (!!!)

SO EXCITING!!
Click the picture to pop over and check out the 10 Featured FREEBIES for March!!

I'm loving LOVE loving my new
Sight Word Snapshots Sentence-Writing Fluency mini-books!!
Have you checked them out yet?
The first one in the series is FREE.  :)

And, here's a brand new FREEBIE to celebrate!!  

Are you still celebrating Dr. Seuss and Read Across America?  

Last week, we had 2 snow days and Kindergarten Round-Up.

So, I postponed our celebration until this week.  

I created this beginning blends game for my literacy stations this week.

It turned out SO cute and I think my kids will go crazy for it!!  

What a fun way to practice a tricky skill!!  :) 

Click the picture to go grab your copy!

Anyhoo -- I love the month of March!!  My mind automatically shifts to thoughts of SPRING (even though we have 2 feet of snow on the ground.)  I'm ready for the sun to start shining around here!!

Listening:  We are trying VERY hard to be a more disciplined family.  So, we now create Family Plans...and stick to them...Every Single Week.  We're hoping to correct some of our bad habits before they are too deeply ingrained in Son-Shine.  However, we give ourselves an hour of "Free Choice Time" on Saturday when we can indulge a little.  This morning, Son-Shine is video-gaming it up during his hour!  So, I'm listening to the "piu-piu-zhoom" sound effects as I work on my Currently!

Loving:  I'm seriously having so much fun blogging and creating things for TPT.  My creative side has been squashed down for so many years and it's good to finally set it free!  :)

Thinking:  I absolutely love teaching and everything about being a teacher.  I'm living my childhood dream and I truly am so grateful for my life!  However, I sure do love Spring Break!!  Just 11 more school days!!

Wanting:  We have been so, so, so busy.  We get home in the evening, cook dinner, do the "Mom & Dad Show", do our own separate 'end of the day' routine, then fall into bed and crash out barely even aware of the other's presence!  So, I'm missing my hubs...like a lot  We bicker less and are just generally happier people when we get to date each other!  I'm already working on a plan for next weekend.  You've just gotta prioritize your marriage sometimes, peeps.

Needing:  My classroom is a wreck.  It's shameful.  And, I want to start sharing classroom pictures with you all, but I've got to "get the house cleaned before company comes over!"  All those days when I was sick and subs were running my room REALLY took a toll.  I've got to get in there and clean, organize, and purge.  I replaced a teacher who retired and I was SO VERY LUCKY that she left a bunch of stuff for me.  But, now that I've got almost a year of kindy under my belt, I'm feeling better able to decide what to keep and how to organize it.

Like:  I found Honeycrisp Apples (our FAV) at the grocery store and I paid an arm & a leg for them because I just HAD to have them.

Love:  I'm loving Anthropologie right now...I have a wish list a mile long.  Sigh.

Hate:  Assessments.  'nuff said.


I'm linking up with Freebielicious, Sharing Kindergarten, and Oh' Boy, Fourth Grade!

My first Currently!!

I'm pretty pumped to participate in my very first Currently!!

Listening:  I lovelovelove Project Runway!!  I'm having so much fun watching the new "teams twist" this season.  Though I do feel really bad for the people who can't win (because they are on the team that keeps losing) even though their designs are fab!  So far the teams have been pretty nicey-nice, but I can't wait until the gloves start coming off and the designers start throwing down!!

Loving:  I am feeling bone-deep grateful that my sweet little Son-shine boy is finally feeling better after an epic double-header battle with Rotavirus and the Flu.  It's times like this that I am reminded of the miraculous blessing of  the restorative nature of our human bodies and the healing gifts of doctors!  Praising the Creator and King!!

Bonus Love:  WOWZA...also so insanely grateful that I teach in a school that encourages me to put my family first.  I was able to stay home from work all week long to take care of my sick little guy without having to worry about school.  I did spend the ENTIRE day up at school on Sunday getting sub plans ready, but I knew I had the prayers and support of my principal, staff, and parents behind me.  That's worth it's weight in gold, ya'll!!

Thinking:  The flip-side to all that love is the massive amount of work that I now need to catch-up on.  Tomorrow is a teacher professional day, so I only have 2 days with my kinders before parent-teacher conferences next week!  I've been stalking Pinterest and kinder-blogs this week looking for some great independent work, because WHOA do I have a lot of one-on-one assessing to do in 2 days!!

Wanting:  Pei Wei Honey-Seared Tofu is my FAVE!!  I'm vegan-ish...not necessarily with a vengeance.  I've just never cared much for meat, so I gave it up 4 years ago.  A friend and co-worker challenged me to give up dairy/eggs for a month.  So, I did.  And, when the month was up...I just kept going!  However, in restaurants, I go with the flow and order what's available without getting too hung-up on the specifics. I feel like I have a much better palette (I used to be a super-picky eater) since I gave up dairy.  (And friends, I used to put extra cheese on my mac-and-cheese and then sprinkle some parm on top!!)  My hubs and Son-shine still eat meat, eggs, and dairy.  Our family meals are varied...sometimes we all eat veg and sometimes we have 2 different dinners.  Somehow, it works for us!

Needing:  Yeah...I need to clean.  And do laundry.  And dishes.  ...later.  ;)

Pet Peeves:  My little brother was a nail-biter.  My hubby is a nail-biter.  Drives me BONKERS!!

I'm linking up with Oh' Boy, Fourth Grade!

By the way, I'm already working on my next post...which will be actual kindergarten content!!  :)  And...it's going to have a FREEBIE!!  Aaaannnd, I'm posting my first official kindergarten product on TPT...there may be a sale involved!

Thanks to those of you who hopped over to my meager little blog and showed me some love...it means the world to me!