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!

I am Bloglovin' are You?

The dreaded switch over is fast approaching Google Reader will be no more! Don't fret, bloglovin' is here to fill the void!

Join this fun blog hop to discover a few new blogs to follow!

If you are in need of tutorials to get you started with bloglovin' just click HERE

Tori has created some great tutorials to help you out.

Don't want to jump on the bloglovin' bandwagon?

That's OKAY!  You can use Feedly (I have been using Feedly on my phone for months and I LOVE it!

Check Feedly out HERE

Feedly is Google's replacement for Google Reader, I like them both.  So bloglovin' or feedly... just make sure you do it SOON!

Story Bots...Ta Da!

I LOVE Story Bots!  My kinder kiddos LOVE Story Bots!  My four year old has begged for Story Bots all Summer, and now comes up to me and says crazy things like, "Mom, did you know that birds, bears, and bread sticks all start with Bb!" I love it!!!

You can check out their website and apps HERE (sadly ios only!  I am an android girl at this house, I know gasp! I LOVE my Samsung phone!  I just can't make the switch to mac. CAN NOT DO IT!) So I have NOT used their apps but I do use their you tube page OFTEN!

 They have the Alphabet Songs that my kiddos and I LOVE.  They also have Classic Songs that are cute.   Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/user/storybots

If you haven't already discovered Story Bots I hope you love them as much as we do!  If you have tell me your favorite thing about Story Bots!

Happy Summer!

Throwback Thursday: the e-beam

I am throwing back to last fall when I told all my bloggy buddies (YOU) about one of my FAVORITE techie gadgets, the E-BEAM!  In my new room I have a Promethean board and so no e-beam will be needed but I have to say I loved my e-beam (hubsters is trying to get a grant for one in his choir room next year) and I highly recommend them!  It was nice having all the benefits of an interactive whiteboard while still having the use of my actual whiteboard!  Best of both worlds....

Flashback commencing NOW:

Despite the fact that it was the first day of Kindergarten today, and I am beyond exhausted... anyone else ALWAYS up the night before the first day??? I can NEVER sleep!  I also made the mistake of wearing heels... ReAlLy?!?!  What was I thinking... that was a rookie mistake and I am NOT a rookie!

I HAVE to link up for Technology Tip Tuesday at Blog Hoppin'

You see I have this secret techie weapon... it is called The E-Beam

You see I wanted an interactive whiteboard... BADLY... but the money was NOT in the technology budget.  My principal was able to get her hands on a bunch of these last year for a FRACTION of the cost of a SMART or Promethean Board.  FRACTION.  We are talking less than $500 people.  It works with either ActiveInspire or SMART software and it is AWESOME.   You see because it is just this teeny tiny little gizmo at the top of my whiteboard I still have my whiteboard.  That is right, I still have my whiteboard!  I don't know about you but there are times when I just need to take out and EXPO and write... with those other pricey boards, you can't expo on that surface... no way!  I feel like I have the best of both worlds... love.

See it there at the top of my board.  Tiny.  It interacts with my projector and works with the pen (or you can even get a tablet) and it turns your whiteboard into an interactive surface.  

So write a grant, start a Donor's Choose project, or bug your administrator about your tech budget.  If you order enough I am sure you will get a discount, we did.  Interactive Boards for everyone!  I really don't know how I ever taught without it.  Happy Teaching.

Okay now I have to go put my feet up, beg hubsters to rub them, pull out the foot spa... something.  I really cannot believe what wearing heels all day did to my poor feet, so sad.  Tomorrow I may try and teach in slippers, I am sure no one will notice.  

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Summer!

Just a few reasons I love SuMmEr:

Waking up to my kids squeals and giggles and not my alarm.

Playing at the splash pad.

Road trips...

...to look at houses, for our BIG move!

Hiking with our friends.

Reading with my 4 year old!

Being tourists in our own (soon to be old) town.

Making cookies in the morning!

NAPS!

Potty Training (okay it is NOT my favorite but I needed a few solid summer days to get it DONE!) she has done FABULOUS and I am pleased to say she may just be trained!  Whew!

(Yes, yes, maybe I am having her go potty in the back of my van, maybe, after 3 days of being stuck at home potty training we NEEDED to get out and go hike and play and maybe, just maybe, we brought our potty with us!) 

Running through the sprinklers.

 Spending time with cousins, looking for lizards!

Ordering items for OUR (mine and HUBBY's) new classrooms!  

I am decorating his bulletin boards whether he likes it or NOT!

letting the girls dress themselves, and nobody CARES!

Picnics at the park.

 Hanging out with this face ALL DAY and her pure joy when I tell her, "Mommy doesn't have to go to school today!"

I LOVE SUMMER!

Despite the fact that I am also trying to do this:

and selling a house is not my favorite thing!   I put off getting it listed until summer because I knew myself well enough to know my house would NOT be ready to show to ANYONE during the last couple weeks of school!  Please tell me your house turns into a disaster zone during the final weeks of school as well.  

Ready or not next year brings BIG and EXCITING changes for our family!  I am so excited!  I am so nervous, eek!  I have to make new friends and colleagues (I have taught at the same school and lived in the same house for 8 years, it will be hard to start over). But, I can't wait, this transitional phase is HARD because hubsters and I just want to get up there and start getting settled.  I am trying to remind myself to be patient and enjoy our last summer in BEAUTIFUL St. George. 

Hopefully soon I will be able to head north again and spend a few hours in my new classroom, I can't wait to start posting a few pictures of my space as I slowly transform it!

Yesterday I bought a whole bunch of tissue poms... they will look fabulous in my new space!

Happy Summer!