School Lunch Toddler Edition: October

October is one of my favorite months...definitely my favorite month in the fall. With a new month comes a new lunch menu. Prepacking their meals has been a major time saver throughout the week and I am determined to get better at it for myself. My lunch packing was hit or miss, but truly helpful when I was consistent. All that aside, I've gone through the last couple of months and pulled a few favorites and added a couple of new things.

Helpful tips:

Cook as many grilled ham and cheese sandwiches as you'll need for the month. Freeze them and thaw at the beginning of each week. Heat in the morning and wrap in foil or place in a thermos. Done!

Stock up on applesauce pouches/cups/fruit cups when they are on sale. They last for a long time and are great, easy ways to add some fruit to their meals.

Hard boil the number of eggs you'll need for the week at the beginning of the week. I go ahead and peel mine for the kiddos. This will save everyone some time in the long run.

Linking up for Mommy Moments

We've "Landed"

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I'm way behind in posting an update on our land. In September we closed on our new property...28.4 acres of land just waiting to welcome us. Signing on the property was both anxiety and joy filled. We've been praying for a while about what our next steps would be in moving. We didn't know where we'd find land that would meet our needs, but as always, the Lord exceeded our expectations. We have the where so now we're waiting on the when.

The day we signed the papers

While we wait, I drive by it every chance I get. Sometimes I'll just pull in and dream.  I'm already in love with what will be our view.

A couple weeks ago we took the four wheeler out so that I could see the property in its entirety.

Our land currently has 4 structures on site. There are 3 sheds, and I use that term pretty loosely, and an old, dilapidated house. I have plans to salvage some of the wood from the house and/or shed to make some DIY décor.

This time of limbo is a bit difficult. We're trying to finish up some things around our home so that we can prepare to put it up for sale. It's our hope to have it ready to go after the first of the year...we'll see. There's not necessarily any hurry other than I'm ready to get settled.

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Linking up with Annie!

Back to Class

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Well our Teacher Work week was not as productive as I had hoped simply because of obligations that required us to be in other places besides our classrooms (e.g. in-services, trainings, etc.) I am glad to say however that I had a pretty successful Open House. 14 of my 16 students showed up and most of those came with their supplies. This allowed for me to get everything put away prior to Monday morning.

Thanks to Reagan at Tunstall's Teaching Tidbits, I came up with a new system for my families. For the most part, the parents complied with my instructions and the sorting and structure worked fairly well. Of course you'll always have those who choose to do their own thing and well, I worked around that.

I altered a couple of her stations, but overall kept the same idea. I believe I'll learn from this experience, tweak the system and use it again next year.

Here was my setup:

Station 1: Student Folder
Parents picked up their child's folder, filled out the remaining forms, and compiled all of their signature pages into the folder. (Most parents did this...some had to be redirected despite my GIANT sign.)

Station 2: Supply Drop Off
This worked pretty well. It was an easy way for me to get the new students involved while their parents filled out paperwork. The students seemed to enjoy sorting their supplies and for me it was a big help. A couple of parents wanted to simply put all of the supplies on the counter or their child's desk...::sigh:: However, once redirected, this was corrected.

Station 3: Backpacks
Students found their backpack hook. It was here that they left their backpacks and placed their binders.

Station 4: Meet the Teacher
At this station the parents asked any questions they had, handed in their folders and were offered a little treat.

Overall this was a successful evening. Like I said, I have a few tweaks to make but ultimately I'd say it was a positive experience for everyone.

I'm always trying to make improvements. As a parent/guardian, are there any particular things you like to see at your school's Open House? Any ideas for making a "meet the teacher" night more successful?

50 Shades of Gray...Paint

The other day my husband and I were enjoying a rare quiet moment while G napped across the hall. We were discussing some of the "half done" and "need to do" projects in the house. To my surprise, he suggested that we repaint our bedroom. Our bedroom is currently painted in Dutch Boy's Coal Blue. He picked out the color and I've enjoyed it over the last 6 years.

 

We discussed different colors for both the walls and trim. We both really liked the idea of gray walls with white trim. Easy enough right? Wrong. There are oodles of shades to choose from! Some grays have a green or brown undertone while some seem to have a hint of blue. While I was out this week I picked up a few samples. I've starred some of my favorites...now to see what the hubby chooses. I'm sure we'll find a nice compromise.

 

 

I've also been scoping out Pinterest and I have pinned a few ideas to my Fixer Upper board. We've settled on a gray and navy color combo. I love the idea of a plain navy comforter.

 

 

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I'm still sifting through fabrics for curtains. I look forward to making our room into a sanctuary. It will be nice to have things fresh and new. For so long it has been a catch all and with limited storage space we've not had any true organization. It's time for change.

 

I know we're crazy for adding yet another project to our never ending list of home improvements and renovations, but we look at it this way...everything we do now will only increase our home's value and make it that much more pleasant to live in while we're here.

 

Any renovations or improvements on your to-do list?

 



Mid-Summer Reality Check

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It's true. I spend many days of my "summer vacation" planning for the upcoming school year. While some of this does include adding to my Teaching board on Pinterest, it also includes many other school related activities. For instance, I work on various classroom projects, organization, school open house materials, etc. This year I decided to tackle a project that I've been contemplating for the last couple of school years...a personalized planner. I've purchased several different types of planners over the years and none of them have had exactly what I want. This year, I decided to invest a little time into making one of my own. I was inspired by several types of planners on TeachersPayTeachers but didn't really want to put out additional money for them, especially since I would have to pay for the paper and ink. I thought surely I could come up with my own, design a layout that works specifically for my needs, and then have the ability to revise it as needed.

 

Thanks to free clip art from MyCuteGraphics, I was able to get a design I liked, and aside from what I have invested in time, paper and ink, I have a wonderful, inexpensive planner that I am super pleased with.

 

 

 

My planner includes a place for lesson plans, monthly calendars, parent contacts, and grading. I've already begun putting together some lesson plans.

 

 

 

 

It's crazy to think that the summer is half way over. I really thought I would have accomplished more by this point. We have countless home projects that need to be tended to. Maybe July will be more productive in that area. Despite not having accomplished many things on my "to-do" list, I am glad to say that I've made many memories with my daughter. She is growing up so fast and the school year will begin again very soon, and truth be told, a teacher's work is never really done...

 

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Five on Friday: All Good Things

I hope you'll join me and some other very lovely ladies for this week's Five on Friday.

 

 

[one]

This Friday marks the beginning of Spring Break!!!

 

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[two]

I celebrated my last birthday in my 20s. You can see the recap here. I can't thank everyone enough for the outpouring of love on my special day. (Major props go to my hubby. He always does an amazing job.)

The ice cream cake!!! I look forward to this every year!

Just a few of the sweet gifts I was given...

[three]
We took some family pictures on Sunday. We also had G's one year pictures taken. Shay always does an amazing job. If you are close to the Richmond area, look her up! (more pics coming soon!)

 

 

 

[four]

This past week I also managed to complete my first 5k in ages. I had such a good time finishing with one of my dearest friends. You can find the highlights here.

 

 

[five]

We're coming down to crunch time. G's first birthday is right around the corner. We have family coming in this week to celebrate (I can't wait!). I'm busy making decorations, planning food, checking my list and anxiously awaiting the day. Where did the time go?

 

36 week ultrasound

Admitted...6cm and going strong at 37 1/2 weeks

Our gorgeous miracle

Our precious family...finally home

 





Five on Friday!

This is not a week I would personally want to relive...so I am glad to say that it's time for Five on Friday!

I've been doing a bit of reinventing, reorganizing, readjusting, etc. around here lately. With the intention of living a more purposeful life, I've been simplifying, de-cluttering, and embracing things within my control. I thought I'd share some of the things I've been utilizing to make these ambitions become reality.

[one]

I've been diligently working on ways to get into better health. This has not been easy since I've been struck down with sickness over the last couple of weeks. (I'm currently working through a sinus infection-blah.) It's as if my body is retaliating against my healthy choices. I will not be defeated! This week I ran across a blog that gave me great inspiration. I'd like to introduce you to Amy at Simply Amy! She and I have battled the life long haul of weight loss and good health. A lot of her story resonated with me and I felt instantly connected to her blog. I love the recipes she posts, her advice, and the positive outlook that she shares.

[two]

A few months after my daughter's birth, I attempted to get back on the weight loss wagon. I had only a couple baby-weight pounds left to go and really wanted to rid myself of them. The new routine and demands in my life threw me for a loop and I put myself pretty low on the priority list. At the start, I began using MyFitnessPal. It is an app that allows me to account for all of my nutrition, track exercise, set goals, etc. I love the Nutrition monitoring, especially since I have to be very aware of my sodium intake at this point.

[three]

Another resource that I've been using for a few years now is Spark People. I used to use it for the same purpose as MyFitnessPal but I now primarily use it to stay connected to the people I've met along my journey and it also has a wonderful recipe library.

[four]

My need for organization does not stop in the home. I've also been trying to keep a handle on my classroom. I've developed a pretty good system that allows me to stay ahead on lesson plans and copies. I've known for a while that I've needed to get together sufficient emergency sub plans. Honestly, after making my maternity plans last Spring, I was over sub plans. However, the reality is, an emergency could happen at any time and I need to have things in place for my students as well. I created a Sub Tub that now houses emergency lesson plans, procedures, and anything else necessary should I have an unexpected absence. I thought I had a picture...oops! I'll try to post one soon :)

[five]

Finally I wanted to share an update on my Plan.

1. Set goal-lose 10% body weight

2. Make a plan-eat more cleanly, focus on portion control, lean on my accountability partner, exercise 15-30 minutes 5 days a week.

3. Get to Work-as of today I am gaining a firm grasp on portion control and cleaner eating. I'm making more low sodium choices and putting more thought into my food choices. I'm working developing a plan for incorporating exercise into my week. I'm hoping to jump into this very soon (the knee is still on the mend and this sinus infection impacts my overall functionality.)

I hope to take Amy's idea of posting monthly on my weight loss accomplishments, no matter how big or small.

Happy Friday!

*I provided favorable recommendations for several products in this post...all of which were done without compensation.*