Getting ready for the first day of school!

After a wonderfully relaxing, fun summer... I'm gearing myself up for yet another school year!  This will be my 12th year at my school site, and my 14th year in the district.  I can't believe how fast time flies!

My first official day back at work was yesterday, so I tried REALLY HARD to prioritize everything that needed to be done so I can make sure I'm ready to go by Tuesday.  I was so happy to walk into my classroom to find that the HUGE Office Depot order I submitted before going on summer break had been delivered!  *YAY*

It feels like Christmas!  I could just marvel at these goodies all day.  I heart school supplies!

After sorting through my "goodie boxes", I decided to tackle my desks.  They were arranged in rows, but I always like to have them in groups of 4, so I got to work arranging them the way I like.  From there, I tackled the clutter and the piles and after a few hours, my room was presentable again!

Check out my progress here:

After I got my room ready, I decided to sit down and get some planning done.  I got all my first week plans typed up, Back to School Powerpoint and parent hand-outs made, and first week copies all printed and waiting in my copy basket.

I always like to have my first day plans printed out in detail, so I can make sure I don't forget anything!  You can take a peek at my own first week plans here:

First Day Plans

Christmas in JULY! I'm having a SALE!

It may be smack-dab in the middle of July, but I'm feeling like Santa for the next few days!  No, it's not because of the extra pounds I've gained from enjoying my summer break a little *too much (haha), it's because I've got a whole BUNCH of products I'm putting on sale over the next few days and you get a chance to grab them for a great price before the new school year starts!

I'm linking up with the lovely ladies over at BLOG HOPPIN for this amazing sale.  Since I'm joining the party a little late, I'm offering 20% off my entire store today through Saturday, the 26th!  Be sure to stock up!  There are lots of other great products out there from some of my favorite sellers.  It's time to stock up!

Vegas Recap!

I've been back from Vegas a little over a week now... and let me tell you - it was everything I imagined it would be an SO much more!  It was so amazing to be a part of the FIRST ever TpT Conference.  I learned so much that I can't wait to put into practice.  Along with that, I met so many great people and had a fabulous time exploring the city with my wonderful husband, Matt.

I thought I'd share a few of my favorite moments.  

Such a peaceful view on our short 50 minute, morning flight to Vegas! 

My first day in a nutshell!  Palazzo (FAB-U-LOUS!), TpT Swag,
happy hubby in our fancy suite, and me with my official looking conference badge!  

My new friend!  We met at breakfast and hung out all day together!  She is one cool chick!
Miss you bunches, Rena from Denver (aka The Special Ed Thread!)  

The fabulous HAPPY HOUR after the conference!  Cocktails, appetizers, tons of TpT'ers,
and lots of fun little surprises (like a photo booth that we never got around to!)  

My view for the morning Kick-off Keynote Speaker!  So exciting.  Got to
hear fromPaul, the founder!  What a humble, generous, lovable guy!  

My first session with TpT Superstar and TOP SELLING member, Deanna Jump!
So neat to learn from the best.  She's so adorable and has the cutest southern accent to boot.  Love her!

Taking a break from dancing all night with my hubby.  We may be in our 30's (and 40's), but
we still like to get down!  LOL!  Especially in VEGAS!  So much fun. 

Heading to VEGAS!!!

Let's hear it for SUMMERTIME!  After a super busy school year, I have savored every moment of these last two weeks at home with my three little ones.  Waking up without an alarm clock, enjoying an extra cup of coffee, soaking up the sunshine... it's been magical.  I've even managed to be somewhat productive!  I haven't worked on any new TpT products yet, but I was able to attend a two-day math training on an amazing program to help students learn their math facts (it's called "FactsWise"  I highly recommend it!)  I also re-decorated our master bedroom, joined a gym, discovered Zumba (seriously LOVE IT!), and hosted two big summer gatherings at our house!  We spent this last weekend with one of my best friends at a nearby lake and had the best time boating, tubing, and swimming.  It was absolutely perfect.

Now, I'm in packing mode for my upcoming trip to VEGAS for the first-ever TpT Conference!  Here's a little sneak peek of what fun I'll be having this Friday (along with over 700 other teachers!)  Wow!  So excited to meet some of my favorite SUPERSTAR TpT Sellers!  I'm seriously excited.  (Can you tell?)

I am seriously bursting with excitement!  I can't wait to meet other like-minded teachers, learn how to step-up my products and sales, and most of all... be INSPIRED!  Of course, this will also be a mini-vacation for my hubby and I (we will be kid free for an entire weekend!  Woo-hoo!)  Aside from the conference, I'm looking forward to exploring the casinos, trying some fabulous restaurants, shopping Vegas style, enjoying an adult beverage or two, and going out on the town!

To celebrate my trip to Vegas, I'm linking up with Mercedes over at Surfing to Success for a special VEGAS SALE Linky!  Be sure to check it out!  My store, along with many others, will be 20% off from July 9-12th!

I'll be posting updates on my Facebook page throughout the conference, so be sure to "Like" my page if you haven't already!  You'll find the link here:  Making Lemonade in Second Grade

Okay, enough chit-chat!  I'm off to pack!  Vegas, HERE I COME!!! 

I'm still here!

Hi there!  Not sure if you noticed, but I've been taking a little break from my blog for the past five months. It's been a crazy time for my family!  Aside from teaching full time, I also have three small kids (ages 3-9), and we've been super busy with extracurricular activities, and just LIFE in general... but we're all doing well now and gearing up for summer break in just a few short weeks!  I can't tell you how excited I am to have seven weeks off at home with my kids!  

Another thing I'm SUPER excited about is the upcoming TpT CONFERENCE in Las Vegas!  My mom is taking all three kiddos for the weekend so my hubby and I can make a mini-vacation out of it!  I'm so excited!  I can't wait to meet my favorite TpT Authors all in one spot and come back with tons of tips and ideas to take my little TpT store up a notch!  I'll be posting more about that soon!

Before I go... I'd like to share a little photo of my middle daughter, Maddie.  We celebrated her graduation from preschool this week!  It was truly the most adorable, FUN graduation I've ever been to.  My baby girl was even asked to sing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" as a special solo during the ceremony, and she did an amazing job!  Brought tears to my eyes.  So proud of her!  Hard to believe she'll be starting Kindergarten soon!

It's DECEMBER!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!  I just put away the last of our Thanksgiving decorations and it's time to bring out the Christmas boxes!  To help get into the holiday spirit, I've linked up once again with Farley at Oh Boy 4th Grade for her December Linky Party!

Here goes...

I'll post more details later, but that's it for tonight!  Back to work tomorrow after a week off!  :)

Feeling Thankful...

It's been a while since I've posted anything on here... so since I'm off this week, I thought I'd take advantage of my kid-free house (for a few hours at least) to catch up on my lil' blog!

My school is off for the entire week, so we spent last Friday doing some fun writing activities from my new Thanksgiving Unit!  

We started by brainstorming our favorite
Thanksgiving foods.  Then, students used the
list to help them write about their favorite food
and describe how it looks, smells, and tastes.

This was an autumn scene we did as a directed drawing art project.  Thanks to a great art video from "Art with Joy", I thought they turned out amazingly well!  We also wrote an autumn cinquain to go with our pictures.  

Before I go, I'd like to leave you with a few things I'm most thankful for this year!

#1)  My family:  I am so very thankful for my wonderful, amazing husband Matt and our four awesome kids.  They keep us laughing all the time, and there is never a dull moment in our house.  It's not always easy being a mom and a teacher, but life is pretty great and I'm thankful for all the little moments that make our family life so incredibly special.  We are blessed!

#2)  Amazing friends:  I am so fortunate to have some of the greatest friends.  We don't get to see each other as often as I'd like, but we can always pick right up where we left off, and for that I'm very thankful.  I'm also very fortunate to work with some amazing people who have become great friends too.  

#3)  My job:  I am so grateful to have a job that I love.  Walking into my cozy little classroom each day and seeing my students bright little smiling faces makes me so incredibly happy.  I couldn't imagine doing anything else!

#4)  TpT:  I didn't quite know what to expect when I began my TpT adventure.  At first, I found it hard to believe that anyone would actually be able to find my products and want to buy them.  Now, 7 months later, I've sold 647 units and am actually making a steady amount of supplemental income for my family!  Creating and brainstorming ideas for my TpT products has been such a fabulous way for me to express my creativity! It's become my favorite new hobby.  I love it, and I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be able to share my teaching ideas and products with educators from all over the world.  

#5)  A whole week off for Thanksgiving Break:  After my kids went off to school this morning, I sat and enjoyed the peace and quiet while I savored my morning coffee.  It was blissful!  Then, I headed over to my son's school for his 3rd grade class' Fall Feast!  As a teacher, I never get to help out with school or class events, so I was thrilled to be there today.  My son was pretty excited too.  It was a great day!  

  

My lil guy and his Pueblo Indian model!  Each table group
was a different Indian tribe!

Fall Feasting!  Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!  

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!