Dollar Tree - To You, From Me!

Sunny Days in Second Grade is hosting an AWESOME giveaway!

I am seriously hoping I pull off the win in this one! :)


Check it out for yourself!
Sunny Days in Second Grade: Dollar Tree - To You, From Me!: I have developed a bit of an addiction to Dollar Tree. I can quickly think of six locations within driving distance, which restaurants are ...

My latest...CRAFT!

I found this really simple tutorial on how to create crafty, homemade bags! I thought I would give it a try and I'm so glad I did!



The bags are so simple to create and a BLAST to decorate!



Here are two of the three I've made so far!



This one is for my sister-in-law, she'll be a sophomore at Tech!



I hope she likes it!







And this one if for baby Iris that will be joining the Roberts family in ONE month! I'm so excited!







I wrote scripture on the back of hers and I hope they like the way it turned out!

Fern Smith's Giveaway!

There's a lot I can do with 25 dollars to Walgreens....hopefully I will win and YOU will get to see what I can do! :)


Check it out!
Fern Smith's Classroom Ideas!: $25 Gift Card Giveaway for 200+ Followers!: "This isn't just a $25 Gift Card to WALGREENS, it can be school supplies for your own children, supplies for school, cases of Diet Coke, cand..."

Twitter

Outside my classroom door, I'm creating a tree out of butcher paper and I could NOT be more excited! :) To accompany this precious tree, I'll be adding these...

I am going to put the kids names on them once I get my class list, and the kids will be adding their work to the birdie clips!

I love displaying my students' work and they love it too!
How do you display your kids' work?

Castles and Crayons Giveaway

I'm really really excited about this giveaway...I LOVE the mini-units Kelli is giving away! I've got my fingers, toes, arms, legs, and eyes crossed that I pull out the win! :)

Check it out!


Castles and Crayons: 300 Follower Giveaway: "WHAT?!? I CANNOT believe that there are 300+ followers in less than 3 weeks! That is some serious blog love and I could not be more blessed ..."

Awesome Giveaway!

Mrs. Saylor has 300+ followers now and she's giving away $30 to Doodle Bugs Paper! It's such a cute site and if I win, I know EXACTLY what I want! :)

Check it out!!
http://saylorslog.blogspot.com/2011/07/300-followers-give-away-time.html

An Awesome Giveaway...

at First Grade Honey Bunch!
She's giving away a cute tote bag among many other adorable things! This is precious! You should check it out!!!

http://firstgradehoneybunch.blogspot.com/2011/07/my-beary-first-giveaway.html

Hello, My Name is LaRae and I am ADDICTED

....to headbands!

So, when teaching, I love to hold my hair together with a precious headband. And I also love scarves...both of these are kinda my trademark.

Fabulous in First is having a wonderful giveaway and proceeds go to a great cause! What an awesome way to spend money! You get a headband and proceeds go to the Tri-County Police Wives Club and the families of fallen officers!

Check out this awesome giveaway! I think I'll buy one, even if I don't win because this is awesome!Fabulous in First: Oh my goodness! Giveaway: "Oh ladies...Do I have such a fun summer giveaway for you!   This teacher friend of yours has been working out like a champ this summer and ..."

Get To Know You

is having a linky party with ideas for team building and 'get to know you' activities and I LOVE it!

In the beginning of this last year, I had my kids create a 'Me Bag,' which I enjoyed because some students would bring little things in that made them feel special; however, I also had those students that would just draw pictures and then shove them in the bag to get it over with.

Upon seeing her idea with the memory trays, I fell in love and I will most definitely be doing that with my students this upcoming year! What an awesome idea!!

Check it out and link up!
http://yearn4learning.blogspot.com/2011/07/team-building-classmate-memory-trays.html

Banners

Just like the banners you see on my blog background, it is my goal to have one for different holidays/seasons that we celebrate or discuss in the classroom. :) It will be AWESOME!

I have the magazine advertisement cards ripped out and ready to be painted and written on! I will be posting pictures once they are complete!

Here's an example of one that I'm basing my idea off of...





Except my pennants will be either rectangles or triangles...not these fancy shapes!
I'm pretty excited about it!

Giveaway at....The First Grade Splash

What an awesome giveaway! I hope I win! :)


Check it out for yourself!!The First Grade Splash: Hooray for 25! :-) My first give-away? I think...: "Tonight, I logged on to find out that I had reached 25 followers ! This may not seem like a big deal to some of you, but it was REALLY exci..."

I Can't Decide...

 

There are so many awesome classroom management/reward systems out there! I have found two that I LOVE and now I can't choose which one to use!

Therefore, I have decided to take a poll! Do you think it would be better for my first graders to have a lollipop tree or a gumball machine?

Lollipop Tree--my students can quickly be rewarded and may select a lollipop. If the lollipop selected has a dot on the end of the stick, that child receives a small reward (a sticker, eat lunch with a friend, etc.).

Gumball Machine--my students can earn cards informing them that I've caught them doing something good, they can turn these cards in for coins to operate the gumball machine.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

Summer...

I only have four more weeks left and I have so much to do around the house (and my classroom!). This year, I will be more adamant about taking pictures of my classroom and posting them. I need corrective feedback when it comes to arranging my room. I've moved into a room with windows, which excites me to NO end; however, that really limits wall space.

It's all a game of give and take, hopefully I'm playing the game right!

Target Treasures Giveaway!

http://mytargettreasures.blogspot.com/2011/07/target-giftcard-giveaway.html

Target Treasures is having an AWESOME giveaway! Who doesn't love those Target finds? AND who would say 'no' to receiving a $20 Target card..??

That's what I thought!
Check it out!

Awesome Giveaway at....Kinder Kraziness

What an awesome giveaway for teachers! I hope I win! :)


Kinder Kraziness: Yay! 300 followers! You know what that means!: "I am SO excited to reach 300 followers! As promised, I am having a giveaway! The winner will have a choice: I am an Uppercase Living Demons..."

Grace

This summer, I've been interning for the youth group at our church. It's been a BLAST!

These last two weeks, we have been discussing the life of Jonah and how he ran from the Lord. It's funny because I realize that I do the same thing. No, I don't hop in a boat and flee the country anytime the Lord calls me to do something; however, I do have other boats that I hop in that lead me to sin rather than run toward the Lord. Last Sunday, we asked our girls to identify some of the boats that they use to run from the Lord and it was really powerful.

This week, we discussed God's grace toward Jonah. Chapter two is Jonah's song to the Lord, his praise, and prayer.

Verse 6: To the roots of the mountains I sank down;
the earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you, LORD my God,
brought my life up from the pit.

7 “When my life was ebbing away,
I remembered you, LORD,
and my prayer rose to you,
to your holy temple.

8 “Those who cling to worthless idols
turn away from God’s love for them.
9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise,
will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.
I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the LORD.’”

The verse that hits me the most is verse 8: Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God's love for them. Who would be willing to turn from the Lord for some silly idol? I now realize that it's because of God's grace that we are able to turn from the idols and trust in the Creator of the Universe. It's because of His grace that we are given life and life to the fullest. It's because of His grace that I have another day to live and glorify Him.

I have been reading this book written by Jenna Lucado, called "Redefining Beautiful." The whole book is written so that young girls will realize what is holding them back from understanding that God sees them as 'beautiful.' It's such a powerful book and it made me realize that there are certain idols that we hold on to: vanity, fitness, etc. We convince ourselves that we are doing these things for all the right reasons...'oh, I workout all the time to remain healthy' or something to that nature. I am guilty of it. I know I am beautiful, the Lord sees me as truly beautiful and I am not willing to turn away from God's love over some silly idol, such as TV or sodas or fitness.

What are your idols? TV, the computer, fitness, vanity, your friends, yourself?

Once you have identified them, it's much easier to (step-by-step) hand them over to the Lord.

Amazon Card and TpT Store Giveaway!

Sunny Days in Second Grade is having a SWEET giveaway that any teacher would love to receive!


Pick me, pick me, pick me!!! :o)


Check it out for yourself!
Sunny Days in Second Grade: 200 Follower Contest!

Another Awesome Giveaway!!

I am so thankful that my profession is such a 'sharing' one! People are so willing to give and share. I am so appreciative of it as a new teacher!


Check out this awesome giveaway!

Dishing It Out: 50 Follower Giveaway!!!!!!!!!

Life Isn't Always Frogs & Cupcakes: Ok, Here it is...100 Follower Giveaway!

This is an awesome giveaway!

What a blessing that so many other teachers are so generous! If you are a teacher, you should definitely check this out!

Life Isn't Always Frogs & Cupcakes: Ok, Here it is...100 Follower Giveaway!: "So, I have surpassed 100 followers--WHOA! In fact, I'm getting close to 150! Thanks SOOO much to all of you for your encouragement, support ..."

Kinderglynn's Giveaway Galore!

Welcome to Kinderglynn: A Giveaway Galore (are you sure you have room for ...: "Ok, are you sure you have enough room on your computer for all these fantastic things? Anna from Crazy for First Grade , Melissa from Mrs. F..."

I'm praying I win this giveaway! What an awesome jump I would have into first grade!

You should enter too! =)

Only the Beginning...

As this school year comes to a close, I am eagerly looking forward to the 2011-2012 school year. It will be my first year to teach first grade. I have student taught in first, but having my own classroom filled to the brim with precious first graders excites me!

With all of the excitement, I am continually constructing a list that is on-going and on-growing! Of the things that I must do to get ready for the coming adventures in first grade, I have rated my utmost priority as this.... ORGANIZATION! As this year ends, I have realized that I have sat at my actual desk ONE time in this entire year. It isn't because I don't like it, rather it is because there's no way for me to actually sit there. It has become a dumping ground for all things that I do not need right away, for all things that students return, and for all things that students give me.

Since this realization, I now uphold 'organization' of utmost importance. I have learned that first graders FLOURISH under organization; it calms them, eases their minds--as well as mine!

Do you have any suggestions as to where I should even start? I am ever so willing to listen to the pros! :)

Cap10K

Well, Courtney and I made it! We survived the 10k...which is very impressive for myself because I could only run 3.5 miles before the race! :)

A picture of us before the race...


During the race...we MIGHT be in there, we aren't really sure. There were 35000 people running the race.



After the race! :)



We are champions!


I will honestly tell you that I enjoyed the race! It was awesome and I want to do it again! I feel as though, because I have accomplished this, I can do ANYTHING! We finished in 1 hour and 9 minutes. Next year, I will beat that. I am determined.

On another note, as Courtney and I entered our last mile of the race, Courtney asked me to be a bridesmaid! I was so tired and so excited at the same time. It was awesome and I cannot wait for October.

My next athletic endeavor will be a triathlon. Does anyone want to teach me how to swim properly?? I can keep my head above water, but swimming correctly isn't something I learned as a child. :/

Spring Break

During this week, I've been doing a lot of this...

And this...


Have I mentioned that I am NOT a runner?! I've signed up for the Cap10k that is in 2 WEEKS! Can I even run 3 miles without stopping? No. Will I still give it my all? Yes; however, I chose Homer to represent myself because that's how I probably look while running. Exhausted. Tired. Ready to give in. I guess I'm going through sporting phases. I gave running a try and apparently my body can handle 3.1 miles and then poops out on me. :) We'll see how the Cap10k goes!

I'm ready to move on to another athletic thing...like cycling! Tyler and I now both have mountain bikes. We've been trail riding, which is AWESOME and if you've never gone you MUST GO! It's incredible and exhilarating! My next physical goal will be to trail ride around Austin.

Life as we know it...

is good!

I am LOVING life.
I am LOVING this warm weather.
I am LOVING realizing that God is truly righteous and His standard for righteousness is one that I will never meet on my own; however, because Christ became sin, I can meet those righteous standards! It's incredible and awe-inspiring. I do not know how I could possibly know that and not feel humbled.

Habakkuk 2:4...the righteous will live by faith. How amazing is the Love of Christ, that He would tie His name, fame, and character to my sin that held Him to the cross! Praise God. I can trade in my filthy rags for His royal robe!

Life is busy...

And it's overwhelming, but God is good!

One of our friends took an awful spill over the Christmas break. At one point, we really did not feel as though he would make it through; however, relying fully on the Lord and knowing that He is the ULTIMATE healer, gave us a peace.

Through continued prayer, God has healed Paul in miraculous ways! He's not fully recovered yet, though we know he will be soon! It makes me so happy to hear just how good God is! :o)

I can't believe in such a short amount of time a life can be so close to being gone and then in the Lord's timing, that same life can be restored back to the glory of the Lord! How cool to think about that!