Team Lewy Body Fundraiser...An Excellent reason to blog!

     I have been absolutely horrible about blogging...and not just for a few days or weeks! I can't believe its been almost 3 months!!  In my defense, I started teaching at a new school, which is fabulous, but there is so much to keep up with when learning new ways to do things.  Not to mention a new grade so lots of time spent finding new products!! Rebuilding my resources is so much fun but time consuming! I tend to be a little obsessive about things too so...you can imagine how many hours I've spent so far reading and researching 3rd grade ideas! Ha
     Well, I saw this fundraiser for Team Lewy Body and thought, "now that's an excellent reason to blog!"  I've never heard of this combination of symptoms from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's so I know they will need all the help they can get to find a cure! They make it super easy too, you get an awesome pack of resources valued at over $163 for a donation of at least $25.  How cool is that?  I love how generous teachers can be for a good cause so I'm passing this along to help! Check it out and do your part today, it's only good through October14 so don't hesitate!

                                                           Just Reed
Happy October!

~~Sandy

Bloglovin has taken over and I have a new (sort of) name...

So apparently, if you want your blog on Bloglovin you have to write a post and paste the code in it to claim your blog as your own!  I'm really trying hard to keep up with all of the technological changes but sure didn't see this one coming! Oh don't get me wrong , I did notice quite a few of my favorite blogs had the button with the choice to follow them this way but sure didn't realize that it would be mandatory! That's okay though, I've taken care of moving all of my blogs over and it was rather easy!  Don't delay though, if you haven't done it, today is the last day!  Nothing like waiting until the last minute huh?! ;)
So here is my Bloglovin link...

 Follow me on Bloglovin

Sorry for the short, boring post! I have been trying hard to make some decisions concerning next year and once I do I'll know what to do! It looks like I'll be changing grades no matter what and I'm a little sad about that cause I sure have loved 2nd grade.  I'm pretty flexible though so I plan on making the best of whatever ends up happening! Trying to think of possible new names for my blog and store and will probably just go to Spots and Dots until something strikes me in a way I can't ignore!

Have a happy 4th and be safe!
Sandy

June Currently....on time ;)

I love reading everyone's currently posts! Now that I'm out of school for the summer I can actually stay on top of things and read at the beginning of the month instead of the end.  I can't believe how popular this monthly venture is now, over 300 blog entries already and it's only the 3rd of the month!  WOW!  So here's mine...

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I love the Today show and listening to my youngest daughter sleeping in.  Since we had such a busy week, she should sleep until 10 which gives me a very quiet, enjoyable morning with my coffee and T.V.!!

I had so much fun visiting Boston for the first time this past week.  It's sad that my oldest graduated and this was the 1st time I'd been there! :(  I was simply unable to afford it before now with finishing college myself, starting a new career, and moving to a new town!  I will definitely be going back however because she will be living there! 

Here she is with her diploma from Wellesley College...

She looks exhausted, graduating is exhausting! Especially when you have family to show around,a room to pack up and of course senior partying to do!  Her diploma is written entirely in Latin which we are assuming is an Ivy league thing!! ;)  Mine certainly isn't!  I am so proud of her and can't wait to see what the future holds for her!

 

Of course we had to visit Cheers!  I used to love that show and watched every episode!!  As you can see, my youngest isn't happy but that is pretty usual for her!  We have a growing collection of pictures that show her with unhappy faces that I plan to put together in a photo book when she is 18 and graduating herself!  She gets so mad that we laugh at the pictures but continues to look like that so I figure it is well deserved!  My mini-vacation to Massachusetts was AWESOME!!!

I do believe that in order to recuperate and re-organize, I will simply stay home and in my PJ's all day!  After running around from 6am to midnight for almost a week I am exhausted...pooped...plum worn out!!  Good thing there is nothing I absolutely have to do today!

My goal for this summer...to make at least 10 new products for my TPT store!  I have been offered a 3rd grade position for next year so I will need some new things for my classroom!  I'm not completely sure what will happen as I have applied other places also but I know that I need my TPT as a supplement!  I have to start looking into new curriculum and plan to make things to reflect whatever new position I end up with!

Let's get physical!  Ha!  I just completed (almost) the 30-day squat challenge and my lower half feels much stronger!  Let me just tell you how glad I was that I had done this prior to walking all over Wellesley and Boston!  I was sore but I know it would've been so much worse!  So my next challenge is to work my way up to running a 5K!  I desperately need the cardio and hopefully it will firm up some other areas!!  I love how this app slowly walks you through it 3 days a week for 30 minutes a day!

Having just returned from vacay I can say with experience that my 3 essentials were a GPS,flip-flops and sunscreen!  I have no idea what we would've done without the GPS telling us where we needed to go.  Boston is a big, bustling city and this slow town girl isn't used to driving in all of that!  I got lost with the GPS so...just imagine what could've happened without it! Ha!  If you will be visiting a place that is new to you, I strongly recommend you have one!!  Flip-flops...the most comfortable walking shoes ever!!  Whether you are walking the beach (where I live) or the city, you can't go wrong with a good pair of flops!  Same with sunscreen, city or beach its HOT out there!  Stay covered so that you can enjoy yourself!  A sunburn is no good and if you get one the first day...the rest of your vacay will be a bust!!

Well that's it for my Currently!  I can't wait to see what everyone else is up to this month!

Beachy Blessings,

Sandy

Help Oklahoma Blog Hop

Teachers Help Teachers

 

I know it's been forever but I really felt this was worth sucking it up and sitting down to blog for!! My hubby is from Oklahoma so this tragedy hit close to home.  Some of his family was in the middle school right next door to the elementary school where so much damage was done.  By the grace of God, they all made it through safely!  I really want to do whatever I can to help so I am going to donate 100% of whatever I make over the holiday weekend to this cause.  The teachers involved were so brave! Please go to my store and see if there is anything there you might like to have, everything will be 10% off until Tuesday.  The more we sell, the more help Oklahoma will get!
Check out the Blog Hop to see who else is involved and help out while getting some awesome new resources!
Happy Memorial Day Weekend! Thanks so much to all the Armed Forces who have given so much for our country!
Blessings,
Sandy

Magical Product Swap (a little late) and the flu (ugh)...

So I had the honor of participating in the Magical Product Swap again and it was (again) so much fun!!  The only thing that held me back was that the very week I needed to use the product in my class so that I could blog about it, I got the flu!  Just let me tell you that I would not wish it on my worst enemy (even though I don't have one)!  It was awful!  So I'm a little late with my post but am hoping that I will be forgiven.
I was partnered up with Jeannie at The 2nd Grade Surprise.  She has a super cute blog and TPT store!  If you don't follow her, you definitely should!  I chose her Let's Build a Snowman Writing Pack and my kiddos loved it!  I started our writing lesson with one of my all time favorite read aloud books for the winter season...

My kids loved this story so much,they actually clapped when I was finished reading!  They do this for the stories they really enjoy and although it took me off guard at the beginning of the year, I now take it as a compliment!  This story is the perfect springboard for the writing activity because 2nd graders are little and they can relate to the character (text to self connections) and it is all about how to make a snowman.  We live in Florida so the majority of my kiddos have never even seen snow!!  

The packet includes the graphic organizer that uses transition words which 2nd graders always need reminding to use!  Here are some of my kiddos working on their writing before putting together their own cute snowmen...

             They did really well with their writing and they also really enjoyed it! Here is a finished product...I will be putting these up as a board but I just didn't have the energy so I will post that picture next week when it is complete!

I have really enjoyed being a part of The Magical Product Swap and meeting new teachers that are so wonderfully talented!  Check out all the other swaps here...

and be sure to check out Jeannie's blog here...
 

I really hope I am forgiven for being so late and hey you guys...take your Airborne, vitamin C, or whatever helps you stay healthy! Being sick is so not fun!

Have a great week! =)

Sandy

Native Americans (freebie), cranberry relish, and fudge...

Yep, I did it all...first, my kiddos finished up their first research project on the I-Pads! They had to work in a group and make a poster to share with the rest of the class about one of six regions/tribes of Native Americans.  Each student had a square with specific information they had to find and illustrate.  The group of six then put their poster together and presented to the class.  This was an awesome way to jigsaw what can be a lot of information.  The kiddos loved being able to use the I-Pads to research and it really kept everyone engaged and talking about the topic.  In case you are interested, this is what we did...
Native American Poster Project


In the course of our studies on Native Americans, we came across a really simple recipe for Cranberry Relish that we decided to make for our Friendship Feast! All you need are these...

put them in a small food chopper...you get this....add sugar to taste...

and you end up with these...for your own fridge or as a gift!

This was a real hit! Not only with my class but with my family as well! I also now have a garnish for those turkey sandwiches I'll be eating for the next week or so! ;)

Speaking of turkeys...my daughter is obsessed with the mustaches...have you seen this new trend?  I know what to shop for this year! 

I also got a head start on making my peanut butter fudge this year! Yep...the first batch is already gone and peanut butter is on the shopping list so that I can make more!  I'll also be trying this fabulous looking fudge this year thanks to Pinterest!  It has definitely motivated me to try new things!  I think that's a good thing! 

So with visions of vacation dancing in my head, I'm off to enjoy a fire and a cocktail before going back to work tomorrow. Counting down the days til winter break! Enjoy =)
Sandy

October Currently....a little late!

     I know it's a little late but since it is October 13th I thought I'd link up with Farley's October Currently anyway!  Wow, every time I check it out there are more people involved! This blogging world is growing and growing! =)  So, here's mine...

First thing this morning I heard on the news about Jessica Ridgeway being found....so sad that our children can't even walk up their own streets and stay safe,sending positive thoughts and blessings to her family, I can't even imagine what they are going through! :(

I am loving that we are actually feeling a little bit of Fall weather here in Florida!  Yep that means that our mornings are starting out in the high 60's! Can you believe we get excited about that? ;)

Man do I have a lot of work to do this weekend! Our grading period is over and they all have to be entered by Monday! I'm sure you know that even though we have an inservice day, it will be spent mostly in training!  I also have a video (hate those) to make of myself and a lesson plan to write for my reading endorsement class!  It's almost over though,I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Yay =)

My favorite book this year is called Substitute Creature by Chris Gall

OMGosh...this is so cute!  I don't really have any behavior problems but boy oh boy some of my teacher friends do! This book had my kiddos so enthralled, I highly recommend, especially if you have any "creatures" who like to misbehave!!

So that's it for me....go link up with Farley here and join in the fun!

Farley's Currently

I gotta go get ready for a busy day of softball, grading and cleaning!

Happy Fall Ya'll! =)

Sandy