It's That Time Again....

BACK TO SCHOOL!

This summer was so amazing, and I admit, it was definitely hard for me to come back to reality.

It was especially hard for me to come back to reality because as soon as I came into my classroom the week before school began to get organized, I ran into a MAJOR problem!

Remember that new furniture I was getting? Well, I was mistakenly shipped the wrong furniture! The tables and chairs were WAY too small for my second and third graders! I had to call the company and request all new tables and chairs four days (FOUR DAYS!) before the year started. Fortunately, all the wonderful people at my school helped me scrounge up some temporary tables and chairs for the kiddos. It obviously didn't look as sleek and uniform I wanted it to in the classroom on the first day, but fortunately the new tables arrived this afternoon and will be ready for Day 2!

Even with the furniture fiasco, I have enjoyed creating a new set-up in my old room. I scored some extra bookshelves and created a cozy, leveled library.

I was lucky enough to get a whole set of blocks donated, so in the old library area, I now have an extra-large block building area. It can also be used for project displays that we share with families throughout the year.

I am loving my new teacher area! Last year, it was tucked behind a huge bookshelf and I found it difficult to conference with kids and still have my "teacher eyes" on the rest of the room. I snagged an old display table that our librarian was giving away and set it up against the back wall for my assistant and me to use as our desk. The best part is, since it is very long, we can conference with students there as well.

I am constantly trying to think of ways for my students to keep track of their things and be efficient. I decided to take the bins I ordered for books last year and create bins for each kid to keep their notebooks, folders and sketchbooks. Something else I am trying is giving each student a small pouch with a couple of pencils, an eraser, a pencil sharpener and a flair pen in their bin. Perhaps it will alleviate the "I don't have a pencil!" issue, but I fear that might never happen....

I separated regularly used materials (like markers, colored pencils, and crayons) into individual buckets from the dollar store. Each table has a specific colored tray that holds the buckets. When kids want to draw in their sketchbooks, or need those materials for work at their tables, they can grab the tray and bring it over!

Each student also has a mailbox with a home folder for notices, homework, etc. I positioned these right next to the cubby area so they can grab their folder on their way to pack up!

Check back in soon to see the new and improved furniture, and some more about first week activities!

HAPPY SCHOOL YEAR!!!

Driving Down to the Beach

Driving Down to the Beach by hkl710 featuring flip flop sandals

Twists and Turns

Oh my goodness, these past few weeks have been CA-RAY-ZAY.

My husband and I had some tough decisions to make about where to live. There was a chance we had to move to New Jersey for his job, where I would have an hour-plus commute, but then we were fortunate enough to stay put...or so we thought...

 I unpacked all of our stuff that I thought was headed to NJ.

Then, our current landlord calls...we can't stay where we are, as she had us believe, as new tenants had already signed a lease. What to do? (And can I dumpster dive to get all of our boxes back?)

We scrambled and finally found an apartment across town. It is actually a bit bigger than our old place, and shaves 15 minutes off of my morning commute to school! And to my delight, it has a washer/dryer!

So, we got movers and headed across the city. Check out my moving day outfit on Polyvore!

It has been an extremely frustrating and stressful few weeks, but we are glad to be in our new place. Plus, now we have all of these wonderful wedding gifts to fill up the cabinets :) I have spent the last few days since we moved making our new place somewhere that is organized and cozy.

I decided to introduce a "command-center" of sorts right by the front door. Each bin has a label. One for bills/notices, one for cards/letters, and one for magazines/catalogs. I also hung up this mosaic mirror right above it for those last-minute lip-gloss checks before heading out the door!

In the bathroom, I decided to use those old jam/pasta sauce jars as containers for make-up brushes, Q-tips, etc. Since I didn't take the time to peel off the labels appropriately (check out how to do it successfully here), I opted to use some sparkly duct-tape to cover up what remained of the offending labels. I think it looks cute!

I finally invested in a "grown-up" nightstand. For years, I was using the same make-shift nightstand that got me through college: plastic storage containers stacked on top of each other. Obviously, a married lady in her late 20's should try some real furniture!

We are unpacking the last of the boxes, and still have pictures to hang. But at least we are settled in enough to start to relax and not worry about move out dates, moving trucks, etc. at my happy place, the Outer Banks :)

Tutoring

Tutoring by hkl710 featuring an elephant necklace

City Teacher....Married Teacher!

  

That's right, folks! We got hitched! 

I can't believe how quickly the weekend passed, but it was without a doubt the most amazing time of my life :)

We got married in my home state of Maryland, overlooking Baltimore's Inner Harbor. It was beautiful!

Our gorgeous floral chuppah (a traditional Jewish wedding canopy)

An early evening view from the hotel pool of the iconic Domino Sugar sign

 The ceremony was wonderful, and the party was a blast! Everyone loved the food, especially our delicious (and beautiful!) wedding cake made by one of my closest girlfriends.

 

 

To close out the weekend, our new joined families spent the day at Camden Yards taking in a baseball game! It was the perfect, casual way to wrap up the festivities.

It's the O's, hon! Gotta love that bird :)

On Monday morning, my husband and I (ahhh!) flew to gorgeous Turks and Caicos and enjoyed a week of sun, sand, and snorkeling. 

The crystal clear waters of the Caribbean!

Diving for conch on our snorkeling trip!

Husband and Wife! On a boat!

Although it was a bit sad to leave paradise, the hubs and I are very excited to start our "normal" life together at home! We still had some celebrating to do, as our birthdays were this past week (him on the 9th, me on the 10th). No gifts, just dinner with friends, and it was totally great!

Honeymoon Prep!

Our wedding is only a few days away, and I am getting so excited! I am especially excited for our honeymoon, and have already begun the packing prep! 

As much as I love to travel, I hate traveling. There is nothing more annoying to me than waiting in airport security lines, or feeling frustrated about my carry-on sized bag not fitting into the overhead compartment and thus needing to be checked (I am in constant fear that my bag won't make it--as I experienced last summer when I traveled to Ireland with a girlfriend and didn't get my bag for 3 days. Suffice it to say, I smelled and I was livid!) I utterly loathe cramped airplane seats with zero leg room. So what's a gal who wants to go on a fabulous honeymoon in Turks and Caicos to do?

Try and pack my carry-on tote like a pro!

To avoid the stinks in case my bag doesn't make it to the destination at the same time that I do, I put some essentials (including an extra pair of underwear--and for the sake of this trip, a bikini) in my carry-on to keep me fresh and clean-clean ( and make sure I can still splash around on the beach!):

For the plane ride, I want to be as comfortable as possible, so I packed a few items in this cute pouch I got as a holiday gift from one of my students:

  (From top left)

 - I stash ibuprofen in this adorable tin that my mom brought me back from France a few years ago.

- To avoid dry skin, I use this little tub of lotion.

- The sterile smell of the airplane bathroom soap makes me sick! I prefer to use this sweet smelling hand sanitizer!

- On planes, I have been told, it is uber-important to remain hydrated. It is also uber-important not to get sick on your way to your honeymoon! Emergen-C to the rescue! 

- Band aids (for blisters, shaving nicks, etc.)

- My favorite solid perfume from L'Occitane. The green tea scent is fresh and calming. Perfect for the plane and a night out! 

- Lip balm in a fruity acai-berry flavor. Very appropriate for a trip to the tropics! 

- Tide stick. Because I am accident prone, and for some reason I love drinking plain Bloody Mary mix on planes. You do the math.

**Not pictured--gum. Especially after the Bloody Mary mix :)

Fortunately, the trip to T&C is not very long, just a little over 3.5 hours (and a direct flight--yay!) Still, I need things to keep me from getting antsy and staying relaxed on the plane. I downloaded a few books from the library onto my Nook, including The Husband's Secret and Margot. In case I don't feel like straining my eyes and taking a little rest, I also downloaded the audio-book of A Secret Kept and have plenty of music on my phone. I always travel with my neck pillow and an eye mask, as well as ear plugs to drown out the engine sounds and keep my ears from popping (that is, of course, if I don't have headphones in!) Planes can get chilly, so I always bring a scarf that can double as a blanket. This one is very light-weight, so it will be a good wrap to have on hand for cooler evenings on the island!

One of my coworkers got me this notebook  to keep a journal of our honeymoon as a shower gift. I can't wait to fill the pages with our wonderful adventures on the island! It will be so special to revisit the entries as we grow old together!

I am looking forward to sharing some photos from our trip to paradise, and hopefully some shots from the wedding day, soon :)

School's Out!

Oh my goodness! This year is OVER?!?!

Wasn't it just the first day...like...yesterday?

This year came with A LOT of change and new responsibilities. I moved from NYC to Philly and started teaching in a new school with a different structure (mixed aged classes). I rejoined the world of car owners after a 5 year lapse (ugh--car payments...although I did the math and it turns out my monthly car payments are only slightly higher than the monthly subway passes I had to buy in NYC). Oh yeah--I have also been planning my wedding that is going to happen in JUST TWO AND A HALF WEEKS!?! WHAAAAT??!?

But back to the whole teaching thing-- I feel really good about this year. I made great friends at work and wonderful connections with my students and other students in the school. By the end of the year, I was bombarded with lovely cards and wonderful colorful pictures to take home with me. I also got a few "extra" goodies from families:

I am SO EXCITED about this beach bag!!! I can't wait to tote it on my honeymoon in Turks and Caicos!

I received this cute card from a student's family (along with some delicious chocolates). I love funky greeting cards! 

 I always like my students to reflect after any unit/project/trip. I had my students complete this end of the year survey on the last morning of school:

It was great hearing about some of the things they most enjoyed about this year, and I felt pretty good about myself as a teacher, too:

Can I add "superior awsomeness" to my resume? I'm gonna miss this group!

Of course, nothing screams end of the year like lots and lots of treats!!! I made brownies for the class, and a student brought in these super colorful sprinkley cupcakes! YUM!

Obviously, by the time dismissal rolled around, we all kind of looked like this after all that sugary goodness:

Am I the worst person ever for sugaring up kids and then sending them home to their parents? I mean, they were already super hyper! Last day of school, ya'll! 

So, the room got packed up today. It looks sad and empty...

 

...but I know I'll have a whole lotta fun reorganizing it in late August. Especially because I am teaching a new mixed age (2nd/3rd grade) and am getting all new furniture! WOOT WOOT!

Lastly, I just want to thank everyone who kept reading my blog this year! I wasn't sure if I could keep it up, and sometimes there were longer breaks between posts, but I appreciate all of you who visited again and again! I might have a few fun Summer posts, so don't disappear! 

XO, and HAPPY SUMMER!!!!