new year's eve

thanks to Lauren from Busy Bee Lauren for finding this little gem

Pretty into these two & this little song
and even though this video has been flying around the last couple of days
I figured there is no reason not to share it again

Happy New Year's Eve!

2011 review - classroom edition

ended my fourth year of teaching with crazy mixed emotions

left my safety-zone of teaching elementary

started my fifth year

and quickly figured out the pro's & con's of teaching middle school

here's looking back at 2011 - in my classrooms

2011 also brought me to one of my biggest grown-up decisions to date -

it was time to get my masters degree

and with that being said I choose an art integration program

because clearly it was a good fit for me

some of my favorite elementary art projects of 2011:    here   here  &  here

middle school art projects:    here   here   &   here

I'm really looking forward to finishing my year in middle school

but with every new year will bring the start of "job conversations"

will I have one - yes - but where & what?

and when will I know?

but for now I'll keep documenting my journey in the classroom

the ups & the downs

and all the in-betweens

2011 in review - "us" edition

this year was pretty great - here are a few reasons why:

lots of mini-road trips: I loved making these trips our own married-life traditions
 apple hill, daffodil hill, solvang
our home got a major mid-century makeover
started an annual camping trip
we celebrated 3 years of marriage
I turned 27 & the husband 30
and thankfully we have some pretty awesome friends that keep all of our
celebrations so much fun
and I can do this review for one other reason - I started blogging again this year
I've enjoyed this process so much
and when working on this review I have realized how much this blog has grown in 2011
so thanks for all those awesome people who decide to drop by and read what's been going on with me!
up next: 2011 in review - classroom edition

love handmade gifts

especially when they are sweet

and cake and cute

and the best part - I was given everything I need to start making my own cake pops

unfortunately things in the kitchen haven't been going too well for me

and I've heard these can be pretty challenging 

so we'll see when I take them on

I guess I should finish eating my christmas gift basket first!

so I might have pushed a lady out of the way for this one

but I'm pretty sure it was worth it

especially for $2.99

Mod Decorator Casserole from '58 - you are mine.

life lately

so the holidays are pretty magical

and exhausting!

so today I am taking total advantage of winter break

my biggest goals include staying in my p.j's as long as possible

do a little pleasure reading

and begin checking out all the photos I've been taking lately

starting with my instagrams -

holidays+driving=me

yesterday - san francisco

today - petaluma

tomorrow - not leaving home!

merry christmas!

on the fourth day of winter break...

my vacation brought to me:

two whole years since we've adopted our little fur baby - luna

she makes us pretty happy everyday

 today also brought me to a place where I can check off many things from my list

I finished the last of my homework for my second masters class

finished holiday shopping

and little wrapping elves came to help me with all this -

 oh wait, no, it was just me & the husband

on the hard-wood floors getting stuff done

so now my tree looks really full & happy for the next day and a half 

until everything gets transported

once again, by my helper elves

and finally, today brought me MORE pink pyrex

I was thrifting for a reason - presents - I promise

but the problem with holiday thrifting is it is pretty darn impossible to leave behind

those two perfect pink gooseberry fridgies you found

at two different thrift stores

just because you are christmas shopping

so I didn't - and realized that pink pyrex is just loving me right now

but it is time to move onto another color, because my little pink shelf

is now at maximum capacity!

and for tomorrow - well, it will be one of my favorite days of winter break so far

off to the city to get meg!

on the third day of winter break...

my vacation brought to me:

a day of designing with a friend

(observing her designing more like it!)

 christmas shopping with the husband

 and yet another pinterest project

hopefully I will have the final piece to share tomorrow

but this is what I was going for

oh, and I finally started water-marking my images

so easy to do, yet somehow it never got done

so now my cute husband can be even happier with me!

'tis the season for giving

especially when you are my husband who is pretty darn thoughtful

I think of myself as a person who cares about others

but I must admit that this guys pretty much always outdoes me

he's the one who will always buy the homeless newspaper

or give our leftovers to the guy on the corner

and when it comes to the holidays

he is no different

one day he decided he wanted to buy some toys for needy kids

and that folks is what we did

after a very careful selection process at Target

here is part of the stash he picked out

as he dropped off the toys he got back into the car and said

"that felt pretty good"

and yes, my heart melted just a bit

on the second day of winter break...

my vacation brought to me:

starting a new book

a day of no driving

time to walk around my town

and the best news I've had all week

my lil' sis will be home for christmas eve

and I actually get to spend the day with her on Friday in the city

win win situation.
and while in the holiday spirit
go check out the adorable glasses I thrifted a few weeks ago
over at The Thrift Collective

on the first day of winter break...

my vacation brought to me:

sleeping in

coffee with kelly

holiday shopping

picnic lunches in the park with the husband

thrifting & pink pyrex

and my only homemade meal I will be making for the week

between mis-reading which spices I needed versus what I had

and realizing too late that my canned soup I needed for the casserole

 had expired a few months back

all in all, it fed us for the night

but put me in a bit of a mood

so to recover from that...let's look at all the pink pyrex that now lives together in my kitchen

I must admit I'm not that into pink

except for when we are talking pyrex

all my pieces have been thrifted for bargains

and I feel pretty lucky about that!

it's the most wonderful time of the year

so this weekend I've learned a few things

#1 How to download and use photoshop actions that are like instagram filters!

if curious - you have to go to Amy's blog for yourself, she has so many great freebies

#2 Just because you see something on Pinterest does not mean you can re-create it!

learned the hard way with one pin

but one I found to be quite successful - as seen with the adorable santa's above!

#3 I am a ridiculously happy person when I know I am on vacation!

just another reason why

this helps make the amount of exhaustion all worth it

and having the next two weeks off isn't bad either

double standard

so here's the thing - I typically don't talk about my clothing

yes, I like to think that I'm changing the perception of teachers

and how we dress 

every day I choose NOT to wear a jean jumper with a holiday beaded necklace

but there is just one thing that is always on my mind...

modesty.

and the double standard in the teaching profession

working in my first classrooms at the mere age of 21

how I've dressed has always been a priority

obviously when young you want parents to take you seriously

not to mention your students and other teachers

Seems reasonable enough - right?  Well, here is where the double standard comes in.  I watch every square inch of my skin that is "exposed" to my students.  I wouldn't dare show bare shoulders in the classroom, let alone cleavage.  However, I have found in my many schools that this is where the biggest double standard lies.  For me, a centimeter of cleavage could send the rumor mill running, and I've known many young teachers to be "talked to" over such an offense.  But apparently, if I was older and top-heavy, I could easily show three inches of cleavage without batting an eye.

so - here's my thought

we as educators should always be examples of dressing for the occasion

when the occasion is school - we should dress accordingly

with that being said, I'll keep my constant supply of 

tights, tank tops, slips, leggings, & sweaters

ready for daily use

and continue to become even further out of touch

with what a "regular" 27 year old would find

to be too short...

one final thought on my "proper teacher dress"

there once was a day when a teacher would never be confused with the janitor

I cannot say that to be true nowadays

enough said.

image: me & my lil' sis at our aunt's wedding this past september

alm's park - cincinnati, ohio