11 of 2011

11. Favorite movie

Tintin - It was gorgeous and I loved the detail. I also loved how true they were to the characters I grew up with reading about.

10. TV Series

This one was difficuly because I actually watch a lot of TV.  I watch TV when I fold laundry, blog, make dinner, and especially when I am waiting for my hubby to come home. Castle made the top of the list because it includes two of my favorite things, murder and brilliant people. I also love Numbers, Warehouse 13, Grimm, Once Upon a Time, and Iron Chef. (Just to name a few.)

9. Restaurant

Zupas - Amazing! I will pick this over anything else. Best salads and soups I have ever had. My hubby loves their sandwiches too.

8. New thing I tried

Just Dance 1, 2 and 3! I love getting together with friends and family for a dance off. I even managed to beat Hubby and my two sisters (who have a lot more rhythm than me) on a couple of dances. :)

7. Gift I received

Disneyland at Christmastime with my husband on our anniversary. I loved the Haunted Mansion! The Nightmare before Christmas has always held a special place in my heart.

6. Pin

I need this in my home. But the OCD part of me can not stand that it doesn't begin with a capital letter on this poster.

5. Blog post

Are you sparkling? One of my favorite quotes!

4. Accomplishment

Selling a product on Teachers Pay Teachers and Teachers Notebook. I did a happy dance around the house! I promise.

3. Picture

I hate photos of my self. So finding a cute picture is quite difficult. I settled for obnoxious. Here is my handsome husband and I right before we went zip-lining. I won't judge you if you snicker.

2. Memory

Meeting some of my favorite California bloggers over winter break! I promise to post more about this, I have just been crazy busy.

1. Goals

I have too many goals to pick just one so see my previous post here.

You can join the linky party HERE. It is hosted by the two amazing women on front left side of the picture above. Now you can put a face with the awesome blogs these lovely ladies write. The Teeny Tiny Teacher is the cute blonde and Miss Kindergarten is the cute brunette sitting right behind her.

Top Three Blogposts of 2011

Fern Smith is hosting a linky party about the Top Three Posts of 2011. You may recognize her cute face from her showcase in this week's TPT newsletter.

My top three posts are all found on Pinterest, and are posted below for your viewing pleasure. Just in case you missed them.
1. Pinterest Inspired 849

 










I created a simple organizer to appease my OCD tendencies. You can grab your own copy HERE.
2. Notes from a Substitute 727

After subbing a couple of days and seeing some inspiration online, I created my own sub page to leave for teachers I had visited. There are a couple of different patterns. Get your own copy HERE.
3. A Noun is a Person, Place or Thing 305

I shared a simple anchor chart idea and posted links to more great resources about nouns. Read more HERE.
Want to join? All you need to do is go into your blogger dashboard and look at your stats. Find the posts with the highest views and reshare them in a post. Then link back up to Fern's blog. 

Resolutions

I love this time of year. A year ago I married the man of my dreams. We have accomplished a lot this year and had many learning experiences together. As the year closes I can't help but spend time to  reflect and set goals for the future. In case you have not figured it out, I love lists and goals. It must be the OCD in me.

Some ideas I have been pondering:

"The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach." ~ Benjamin Mays


A goal without a plan is just a wish

"Set daily, monthly, and long term goals and dreams. Don't ever be afraid to dream too big. Nothing is impossible. If you believe in yourself, you can achieve it." ~ Nastia Liukin

You must make SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time Bound.

This last week I started thinking about what I wanted to see happen in the new year. Here are some of the ideas that are floating around in my head.

Teaching
1. Read five professional books
   a.) I am open to suggestions here. Anyone interested in another book study this year?

2. Create fun and educational ways for my students to reach their goals
   a.) Touch point numbers with clothespins
   b.) Sight word games
   c.) Handwriting exercises
   d.) Picture cues for common choices

Blogging
1. Blog at least three times a week
2. Create one product/unit every month
3. Create one freebie a week
4. Redesign my blog by the end of the year
5. Connect to other bloggers through comments, linky parties, and giveaways

Personal
1. Exercise at least three times a week (Hubby even promised to run with me.)
2. Try a new recipe each week
3. Save up enough money for a trip to Japan
4. Declutter my home (52 weekly goals)
5. Get outside

Interested in joining the fun? Link up with Tammy from Live Love Laugh Everyday in Kindergarten HERE.

Holly Bloggy Christmas

I was lucky to be included in the Holly Bloggy Christmas Exchange and just had to share some pictures of some of the great things I received.

My partner, Katherine from Third Grade Teacher Files, did an excellent job of wrapping my present. I love polka dots.

I received awesome recipe cards, hot cocoa mix, a cocoa cup, tissues, chocolate, and a very cute ornament. Such a cute gift idea. I also received a plethora of free digital resources. I love digital stockings. ;)

I sent my Holly Bloggy Christmas partner an owl themed present. An owl calendar, recipe book, and weekly meal planner. It was a valiant attempt at being crafty. I am quite proud of myself.

Merry Christmas

Trying to express my love for Christmas is a difficult task. I don't love it for the presents, the cookies, or the glitter. Though they are nice, I'd rather spend time with family, make presents for the people I love, and take time to remember my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas friends! 

Currently December

Farley from Oh' Boy Fourth Grade is  hosting one of her monthly linky parties.  

Here is a peek into my life. 

I am really excited about my 12 Days of Management. I wasn't on the ball enough to do 12 Days of Christmas so I thought I would do 12 Days of Management ideas for the first 12 days of the year 2012. Each day I will share an idea to use for a specific month. The first day will be January, the second February, the third March and so on. I plan on a daily linky party so start thinking of some great ideas to share.

I recently found orgjunkie.com. The Organize Junky encourages people to come up with 52 weekly home organizing tasks.  I have brainstormed a lot of small projects to work on each week. Anyone interested in joining me? Interested in my plan of attack? I am really excited and would love some support. ;)

I finished something!

After a bout of severe guilt and a brief stint of organizing my dropbox I realized I had one product pretty close to being finished. So I made an effort (after all I did promise) and finished Math Mice. It is just two simple worksheets with answer keys, but I am so excited to have finished something! Click on any of the links and get your own copy. If you happened to leave a good rating I might even be inspired to create another product soon. :)

Enjoy!

Dollar Days

I love a good bargain almost as much as I love books. And for those of you that don't know, I LOVE books. I own more books than clothes. Hands down.



I bring this up because Scholastic has Dollar Days every once in a while on some of their Teacher e-books and supplies. Great worksheets, minigames, and ideas. You can shop by grade, subject, or theme. With so many themes to choose from you are bound to find something that works.

Check it out as items are anywhere from 20-90% off. The sale goes from the 6th to 8th.

A Theory

I'm pretty sure ADHD is contagious and that you get it from your kids. I do not have any kids of my own, but I do come in contact with a lot of kids on a regular basis, so I must get it from them. Right?
I have also determined that I have creativity ADHD. I have started a lot of projects. Over 20 to give you an idea. How many have I finished? Two big ones. Yup. A measly two. And I started creating over 7 months ago. Yikes!
Does anyone else have this problem? You see a cute idea, fun clipart, a new book, a cool website and you get all jazzed up. And then a couple of days later you are ready for something new. No one? I don't know how all you amazing ladies do it. I get so bogged down.
I am currently flip flopping between an author's purpose mini-unit and a multiplication game packet. Maybe if I am super productive you will see one before the weekend. Which would you prefer? Looking for something else? I can't promise it would be done anytime soon, but I would start it.
Thanks for listening. Got something to say? Drop me a line.