Withdrawal and New Beginings

My husband and I are in the process of moving from one state to another. Between that and family vacations please know that my internet access will be limited. My smart phone is not the most reliable and some of the places we are staying do not have internet access. Gasp! I have been going through severe withdrawals. I am trying to cope. Seriously.

I also wanted to thank Erin from Creating and Designing for finishing my new blog design. I love it! She did a great job. Check out her site to see more of her great work. There are still a couple of things I need to tweak here and there, but it will have to wait until the end of July. Life is really busy right now.

Speaking of busy, a while ago I started a linky party and promised a giveaway. I wanted to announce that Karla from Life in Special Education won the wrap from Wrap to Love Your Body! It wasn't hard to pick a winner when only four people attended. :( I will chalk it off as a learning experience. My next linky party will be better.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are enjoying your summer. As my brother in laws love to say "YOLO!"

Source: Uploaded by user via Madison on Pinterest

Summer Reading

I love to read! This is well known. Want some examples? When family comes to visit they bring 3-4 books for me.  I generally finish them all before they leave. And when I pick up a book my husband often kisses me and expects that I will be unavailable for several hours. (I know. He is incredibly patient.) I do not let myself read during the school year because I am unable to put down a book when I start to read it.

Source: imgfave.com via Madison on Pinterest

Summer means the start of reading. It means late nights and lazy mornings reading in bed. It also means the search for new material. I am a miser. I hate spending money on books if I don't know if they are worth it. That means I wait for a friend to read the book or I check it out from the library. Sometimes I will even pick up a book in the store and find a comfortable place to sit. I think they hide all the comfy chairs on purpose. But I am stubborn enough that I will sit there until my bum is black and blue.

This is all fine and dandy, but I have a problem. I have a terrible memory. I can never remember what is next on my to-read list when I need to. So I end up with a terribly long to-read list and very few books to show for it. So tragic!

This last week I found a solution. Goodreads has an app. I know, who knew? But I found it, downloaded it, and fell in love. Don't tell my husband. He is still trying to prove me wrong for hating smart phones for so long. But seriously, can you blame me? They are so stinking expensive. And you have to pay for data. Remember how I hate to spend money? I should just get over it since teachers make such obscene amounts of money each year. Right?

Anyways, the app is free and worth checking out. For one thing you can just scan the barcode of any book and it automatically finds it for you. And it keeps careful track of all the books you read, your rating, and what books you still need to read. A-mazing! I have been playing with it all week. Which means that I have actually been updating my goodreads account which has been sadly abandoned for the last year. I have been checking books off my list like crazy. And I have been adding books to my "read" and "to read" and "reading" shelves like a mad woman. There are books in my living room, office, bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom. Just in case.

If you are interested in knowing more about what I'm reading check me out on Goodreads here.

Have your own goodreads account? Leave a link and we can be book friends. :)

I'm addicted

Hello my name is Mrs. L and I am addicted to linky parties. No really! Every time one pops up it makes me want to drop everything and respond. But usually I pin the tab and hope that one day I will have the time and energy to write a post. Sometimes it takes me a long time. So bear with me. (Hubby is working on developing a new app and so I have more time to blog than normal. I could not be happier. :D )

Jennifer at Herding Kats in Kindergarten posted this linky party ages ago. I really really wanted to go to her party! (And I am not a typical party animal.) If you have ever read her blog you'd know why. She is fun, down to earth, and a kindred spirit. I think if we ever did meet in real life I might just have to be her new best friend. (I don't think she has much of a choice in the matter.)

So on to this summer's plans. Are you ready? It's going to be epic!

1. Find out if I am having a boy or a girl! 

(No I am not having twins. Whew!)

Which will lead to freaking out of my mind and reading as many books about babies and parenting that I can get my hands on. What do you think? Boy or Girl? I was blessed with light morning sickness, a recent interest in all things sweet, and some amazing hormone swings. (One time I might have to tell you about that laughing/crying cycle. It was a lot of fun. Let me just tell you that.)

2. Move from Utah to sunny California
I still need to get my hands on some boxes, but I feel like I am making great progress at decluttering. (If you too are struggling with clutter or moving, please see my previous post about freecycle. The best way to get rid of stuff you don't want instead of throwing it away.) I still have a week or so to throw everything together and make it work. I'm starting to feel the pressure.

3. Finish my blog redesign
Erin from Creating and Designing has been so patient with me. I am one of the most indecisive people ever. But I hope to have it all done soon. Keep your eyes peeled. (Well not really, because one that sounds like it hurts and two it might take a while and you will need to blink.)

4. Travel back to Japan
I will be abandoning you for two weeks. I know I am terrible. But I am going back to visit the places I lived four years ago. I can't believe it has been so long. I will try and make it up to you when I get back. (If you are jealous, just imagine all the google reading and blog stalking I will have to do when I get back. >.< And I promise to try to take some good pictures so you can live vicariously through me.)

5. Catch up on all my reading!

I made a goal to read 100 books this year. Right now I am at 11. I know. Kind of failing. But don't worry I have a plan. I even have a small list of some of the books I will be reading. I'll explain it all soon. (Like in the next two days if I can manage the time.)

6. Finish 1/2 my Teaching Blog Traffic School Lessons

I started the Teaching Blog Traffic School over Spring Break. I loved it, but I still have a lot of lessons and homework to get through. My goal is to be more than halfway done before the end of the summer.

7. Start and establish my mommy blog

I am going to a be a mom. I know. I still can't believe it myself. It's going to be an incredible journey and I would love if you joined me on the bumpy ride. (More details to follow soon!)

8. Establish my products

I plan to create at least two products and update two of my older ones (Tacky the Penguin and Management Mania 1)

9. Spend quality time with family

Calling, writing, visiting, and attending a reunion. I have over 50 cousins which makes it hard to make sure I reach everyone. I also need a new family photo because the last one I have is from my wedding.

10. Sleep

I know the baby is going to be keeping me up and zapping all my strength so I am taking this summer to pamper myself. Resting and lounging whenever I get the chance and storing up energy for this winter. 

What are your plans for this summer? You know you want to stop and check out the party.

Currently June / Freecycle

I can't believe it. Time flies so quickly! Soon the summer will be over and I will look back and wonder what I did with all my time. I've been out of touch because hubby got us a great deal on a resort in Vegas for a Baby Moon. He is my favorite! So patient with me and my blogging. :) But we only used the internet to find places to go. I know. There was no blog stalking, pinterest, or creating being done. Good thing I have more time in the summer to catch up. :D

I saw Farley's newest Currently and couldn't wait to join. She is one of my favorite bloggers to follow. If you do not know her you should definitely check her out. She's spunky, hilarious, and she makes you think.

For those of you who haven't heard of freecycle it might become your new best friend. You know the old saying, "One man's trash is another man's treasure?" Well freecycle is based exactly on that idea. You post stuff you don't want any more and other local people will come and pick it up for free. And the part that most teachers will love, you can also post requests for all kinds of random things. Because let's face it, teachers are hoarders and can think of a use for anything. Right? Take a second and look at what people in your area are offering. You can find cheap art supplies, containers for organizing, and books. Click on the picture below to learn more. I've been using this like crazy to get rid of my excess teaching, office, and household supplies. It has also helped me get some moving boxes for free.

32 Third Graders and One Class Bunny

Yesterday I ran to the library and there tucked in between two huge biographies I found 32 Third Graders and One Class Bunny: Life Lessons from Teaching by Phillip Done. This book has been on my To Read list for a while. So I took the plunge and checked it out. I read it on and off last night while I assisted my husband in changing our headlights. Both of which conveniently decided to burn out in the same month. It was a learning experience. Imagine what should have taken us half an hour ended up taking up four. I now know how to remove the front bumper and detach a headlight to remove a broken bulb. Sorry back to the book.



The book was perfect. Full of light hearted humor and real life situations I loved every second I read. I giggled a lot and then had to try to explain to my husband why I was giggling. I identified with the stories/dilemas and found myself wishing that I had read this book before I started teaching.

My two favorite parts were:

When Phillip identifies that there are six types of classrooms in the world.  The six types include the Shock, the Chi, the Natural, the Pile, the Hospital, and the Model Home. The Shock covers every available surface, the Chi has a zen/feng shui feel, the Natural has a down to earth/groovy feel, the Pile has piles on every surface, the Hospital has a clean/organized and slightly sterile feel, and the Model Home feels just like a model home with fake trees, lamps, and color coding. I like to think that I am a mixture between the Shock and Pile models. What kind of classroom do you have?

When he describes the night his brother and sister-in-law try to name their baby. Teachers naturally do not want to name their children something that reminds them of one of their terrors. I feel I will run into the same problem in November. I have already ruled out Michael, David, Luke, and Matthew. (No I do not know that I am having a boy. I've just had more boy students than girls.) Do you have any names that you absolutely will not use?


I whole heartedly recommend this book. A quick, fun, and inspiring read you will be grateful you checked it out. Have you read it? What did you think? What was your favorite part?