I'm ALIVE! & Looking...

I don't even think attempting to catch up is possible.  I have been so busy getting moved, starting a new school year, helping hubby start his FIRST school year (as a teacher at least), helping my kids get settled in in a new area, with new friends to meet, and a new church to attend.  Add to that my mother in law moving in and construction in the basement to get her space set up and ready.... which should FINALLY be done in the next 2 weeks!!!  Whew.  I am still not all unpacked (because well we closed the first week of school on our house of course)  I have just been in survival mode, it was all the energy I had to teach, keep the laundry done, dishes clean, and food in the fridge.  

Why has this change been SO HARD for me???  Oy!  Anywho...  I am loving my new school, I am LOVING my cute classes, and I am loving our new home!  My little kids are loving their new preschool and my BIG girl is beyond happy with her fabulous first grade teacher... all is well!  Since backing up and telling you all that my kinders and I have been up to this year is just NOT happening here is a peek at what we did TODAY.

We read this Book:

Have you read it?  It is MARVELOUS!  In my new district we teach Journeys, which is great (it is taking some getting used to switching from Treasures to Journeys, but they are both good programs) sorry, tangent.  Anyway in Journeys this week we are learning about our 5 senses, perfect intro to science and the scientific method!  So we read this fantastic book to enhance our 5 senses study and THEN...

We put on some of THESE:

Do you see what this cute face has on?  They are just 3D glasses, sans lenses, perfect "lookers" once they were all wearing a pair of "lookers" we went out "looking".  The kids had so much fun looking and then writing about what they could see.  I honestly believe that class should take place outside more often than it does!  How do you introduce senses and science?  I would love to hear your ides (that is is any of you are still out there what with my prolonged sabbatical and all.)

On an unrelated note my student teacher starts tomorrow, I have not decided as of yet if that means I will have more time or less time on my hands... but from what I can tell she is beyond fantastic and I am very excited to get to know her better!

one week and counting!

I have been MIA, this move is killing me!  We are STILL waiting for our new house to close (it was supposed to close July 26th) and living in Grandma's basement without WiFi is BRU.TAL.  Being 200+ miles from my friends is HARD.  Staring at a new school and a new district with different ideas is unsettling.  BUT I can do this and I really am excited for a new school year.

Since I can't move into a house yet... which sooooo I wish I could, I have been getting my classroom ready.  School starts one week from TODAY (which with my luck will also be the day we finally close on this house).  So here is a sneak peak of what I have been up to,   sorry about the crappy cell phone pics, who knows where my camera got packed!

WARNING: crappy cell phone picture overload, proceed at own risk.

Running Records {Free}

Hello Friends,

I have been so busy with moving, changing schools, etc. this summer I have hardly had a moment to blog.  I feel bad, so to make amends I am offering a FREEBIE.

These are my Running Record Sheets, I love them!  Feel free to snag your own copies! Just click on the image below to head over to my TpT shop!
(You can choose a single sided or double sided version.)

Okay, now that I feel better I am off to finish packing!  It is moving day tomorrow and I have LOTS to do before that big truck arrives!

Happy Summer!

Planning and prayer through a mini disaster...

As you may know because I may have mentioned we are moving.  

I am realizing that once we move in exactly 10 days life will be hectic (haha, as if it isn't now!) and summer will be O.V.ER. much, much, much too quickly!  

We move our stuff into storage (250 miles away) July 15, drive back to St. George to party with some friends and close on July 22nd. 

(Please pray everything goes well for CLOSING we just had a home inspection today and discovered our water heater has been leaking for WEEKS and are now in the middle of major water heater repairs as well as tearing out sheetrock that is more than a little moldy, precisely what I needed today! This was NOT in the budget!!!)  

Then we are to turn around and drive those 250 miles once again to make the FINAL move and close on our new house on July 26th.  

We have meetings at both of our schools Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of the next week, then a full week of New Teacher Induction (how I loathe that I have to go to a full week of new teacher induction meetings after teaching for 10 years), then we have a week before school starts!  Panic.  

Everything is depending on the fact that this house SELLS, it has to sell!!!  

In an attempt to make me feel better so much more stressed out, everyone keeps telling me their moving horror stories, how their house took 6 months to close, how they went through 4 buyers before they finally sold, how their moving truck got in an accident on the freeway and all their belongings were scattered across I-15... fabulous.  How do your horror stories help me relax???  How?

So how do I deal with my stress?  I plan.

Yep, while work men tore out my water heater and dealt with the NASTY mold I sat inside and worked on my planning pages.

(While my kids had a lunch of Popsicles, Goldfish crackers, and Hawaiian Punch.  Please don't judge too harshly.)

It got my mind off of how much this is going to cost me, on top of how much everything else is costing me, uugh.  On top of the fact that I am so far away I can't unpack my classroom, or decorate, or run copies, or, or, or!  And once I get up there I have to do all of that and unpack a house, and get 3 kids settled, and have both hubby, daughter, and I ready for a new school year.  Moving may just cause my mental break down if it doesn't bankrupt us.

I had to remind myself that this will all be worth it, that I KNOW this is where the Lord wants us to go, that there is a plan I do not yet fully understand.

So to help me deal, once my plan pages were done I moved onto this (as I tossed my kids some fruit snacks):

I am now curriculum mapped for everything but math (due to the fact that my math curriculum is 250 miles away).  It is amazing how a little planning can calm a girl down (that and a silent prayer or two).

Now I just have to figure out how we are going to live without hot water until Monday!  Good thing the kids got baths last night!

Jamberry Nails Online Party!

Okay ladies I know this is not school related, but it is summer so I am going to share with you one of my FAVORITE products ever!!!  Great for a little summer style or even some back to school fashion!

Jamberry Nails!

Have you tried them???  Have you heard of them???  They are A.MAZ.ING!  

I am having an ONLINE PARTY and I would love for you to check them out! 

If you are like me you LOVE to have your nails painted but you teach kindergarten (or some other equally as nail thrashing of a grade level), you are a mommy, you have a house to keep clean, and your pretty mani looks chipped and awful by the end of the first day.  (I HATE THIS) 

Also, if you are like me you make the salary of well a teacher... haha.  Over spring break I splurged and had my mani done with shellac, it was fab. it lasted for weeks, it cost me almost $100 dollars to do my fingers and toes!  Going and getting your nails done adds up... FAST!  That is why I LOVE this product.  It stays pretty and in tact on your fingernails for up to 2 weeks (4 weeks on your toes) and it really is pretty easy to apply, check out the video below for application instructions:

It really is EASY!  I used my blow dryer and it took me maybe 20 minutes to apply all of my nails and this was my FIRST time.  I am sure it will be faster the next attempt!

Also, delivery is FAST I ordered my nail wraps Monday and they were in my mailbox Thursday!  

I love them!  LOVE.  So do my girls, they have jamberry juniors for kiddos under 8, and they are adorable!

Want to see more?  Check out the pictures below:

Aren't they fun!  I love how easy it is to get cute nail designs!

If you want to join my party just click HERE to place an order, they are buy 3 get one FREE!!!

Just link to my party upon check out (Mindy Sumens)

I promise you will love them as much as I do!