November Currently

How did it become November already? I swear I was only exclaiming how it was October only like  week ago! Well...at least a new month means a new Currently from Farley!

I think you can see a theme here....

Yep..my body is finally given up on me and the first cold of the school year is on it's way! I'm actually very surprised I've made it through sick-free this far. I was expecting to get sick during our two week Fall break but I guess not! Hoping for a fast recovery. We shall see!

It was also really hard to choose my favorite Thanksgiving food because I love just about everything Thanksgiving food related. However, pumpkin pie is only something one can get during this season (unless you make it yourself, of course) so pumpkin pie it is!

I'm hoping to get back to some regular blogging. I know I say this every time...but I'm going to try! :)

July Currently

It's July! That means it's time for another Currently! Yay!

Listening...

Rizzoli & Isles's newest episode. Who's watching the show too??

Loving...

Well I don't think this one needs any explaining...

I'm still waking up early but at least I can stay in bed for as long as I want!

Thinking...

The boyfriend and I are leaving for SoCal tomorrow! We are going to hit Disneyland and Universal Studios and come home with empty wallets! @@

Wanting...

No longer a want because I just got myself one! It's been burning hot this week and I've already had one this week!

Needing...

New school, new program, and new grade level means I need to plan, plan, plan!!

I was very fortunate to be able to meet with my new team last week and got an idea of what to expect next year so I have something to work with! Trying to find myself a teacher planner so I can get started with that. I had an Erin Condren planner last school year and have used the Lakeshore ones in the years past. Want to try a different one out this year. Suggestions?

All Star...

This needed some thinking...

I've been told I give good gifts, probably because I'm all about sentimental value so I try to make my gifts have that. Of course, when Pinterest showed up, my gifts started to get way more creative looking!

In other exciting news...my blog has finally reached 200 followers on Bloglovin'! Only took what...3 years?? Must be because I've been doing more blogging recently. Let's hope I can keep it up! :)

April Currently & April Fools

Happy April!

A new month has begun, which means it's time for a...Currently!

I think most of my Currently is pretty self-explanatory, but I do want to share my April Fools' prank! I found this awesome word search from Sweet Rhyme & Pure Reason. A word search with words that you will never be able to find! Classic.

PLC meetings were today. My grade-level's PLC meeting is 15 minutes after our morning recess, so I figured I would have just enough downtime to pull this prank. I told that kiddos that in the spirit of a new month, I had a new word search for them to complete while we wait for the substitute to arrive so I can go to my meeting. I told them that this word search was going to be more challenging that the ones they get to do during Daily Five time, but to work with partners and try their best. Watching the kids try to find a word was pretty hilarious, especially the commentary that came with it. 

"This is really hard!"

"I wish I had glasses so I can see the words!"

"This must be a trick!"

"I found the word fun! But fun isn't on the list!"

You would have to be there, but it was pretty funny to watch. Once the substitute arrived, I asked the class if anyone was able to find a word. No one raised their hand, of course. So right before I left, I was like "well everyone....APRIL FOOLS!!!" The classroom just erupted after that! The kids were especially excited when I told them to take the word search home to use as a trick at home. And then I left for my PLC meeting. :)

If you had school today, did you play any pranks at school today? What were they? Leave a comment and share! I would love to hear your April Fools story! :)

Welcoming the New Year...Currently Style!

Happy new year, everyone! :)

Best way to celebrate on the blog is to participate in the Currently linky!

Listening - Since most of my current tv shows are on break, time to catch up on some of the shows that I don't usually watch. All caught up Major Crimes, now catching up on Rizzoli and Isles!

Loving -  OMG, can't even explain how much I enjoy sleeping in! Working at this new school means waking up at 6am. Being a night person, that is no fun at all!

Thinking - Lots has happened in 2014, ups and downs. Only makes me wonder what 2015 will bring...

Wanting - How ridiculous does that sound coming from a teacher on break?? We have a district visit the Thursday we come back from break. The principal wants everything on display in our rooms to be recent, which means I have lots to change! We get our own security codes to get on campus and I had wanted to go last weekend, but campus was closed that weekend due to construction. It was only supposed to be closed until Tuesday, but now that's been extended to closed until this coming Saturday. 

Needing - Weak Californian here. It's cold!!!

Yes - Living at home will definitely help with that.

Maybe - Living at home is great, but eventually I do want to move out and possibly move in with the boyfriend. I figured a good time to do it would be in the summer so that's something to think about. 

I Wish - I wish I had the creative juices and energy to make all the awesome products that I could possibly make in the near future. 

Alright, that's it for now! Look out for my gingerbread entry tomorrow! :D

It's December...Currently Time!

I had originally started a Thanksgiving post on Thanksgiving, but being on break was way too much fun and relaxing and I never got the post completed. But at least I'm here for the Currently!

Having two meetings (one before and one after school) on the first day back from a break is just so energy draining. I can't think! I'm amazed I even made it through filling out the Currently!

Listening - Castle the TV show!

Loving - First grade just started our Gingerbread unit! We're going to read different versions of the Gingerbread story and then write our own! The kids are also learning a Gingerbread Man dance right now, and if we're lucky with donations, we will also get to decorate our own gingerbread cookies!

Thinking - Don't think this needs any explanation.

Wanting - My boyfriend just started his new job as a corrections officer. He is working night shifts (6pm-6am) so I don't get to talk to him every day anymore since he is at work when I'm asleep and vice versa. It's rough, but we'll figure it out!

Needing - Order Scholastic books for my students and wrote their holiday cards (made via Vistaprint). Just need to wrap them! Feeling so on top of things!

Giving - Too braindead to do anything but a shoutout!

I'm Back! November Currently~

After two months of neglecting the blog, I am back to blogging (I hope)! Thanks to all my loyal followers who didn't drop me from their list despite my disappearance. (Or maybe you just forgot about me. Ha, either way works!)

Only four more minutes (on the West Coast) until it is no longer November 1st so better get this Currently post published asap! More details of my absence to come in later posts!

Long story short, moving to a new school and district and learning a pile of new curriculum means (hence reading tons of Teacher Guides for my different curriculums)....I want more sleep, I need more instructional time, AND I need a vacation too! We get a four-day weekend for Veteran's Day and I can't wait for it to come! :D

More to come in my next post! Stay tuned! :D

August Currently

I'm back!!! I didn't expect to be gone so long from blogging but I will explain why later! But for now, it's time for Farley's Currently!

And that explains why I've been MIA these past two weeks...JURY DUTY. I am the lucky one who gets summoned every year and is part of the group that gets called in too. This time I had the luxury of going through the selection process to be a juror. After around six full days of sitting in the courtroom (spread out among this week and last week) I was FINALLY called to be questioned and was pretty much excused after. Boy was that a fun experience. Feels like the rest of my summer was taken away from me. @@

Now that it's August, the PDs are beginning. I'm a Math Leader this year so I will be attending the summer institute for Math leaders. We are also getting a new math curriculum this year so I'm going to a training for that. Basically something every week until work officially starts. Woohoo!

I've also been working on some projects for the classroom and some major shopping too. That will be saved for another blog post to come! :)

Speaking of shopping...

The Educents Blowout Sale is ending tomorrow! Definitely go check it out. I have the 2nd-3rd curriculum and it's pretty awesome. 

The TpT Back to School sale is coming up! My store will be on sale too. I really hope to one day have the motivation and time to create more products to sell, but check it out anyways!

Finally...

The Staples Teacher Appreciation event is currently happening at my local Staples from Aug 1-3. You get 25% off all your purchases, including sale items. I'm not sure if these dates are nationwide, but definitely call your local store to find out. Staples is still selling their spiral notebooks for 17 cents each so 25% off makes them even cheaper! I most definitely stocked up on them. You don't really want to know how many spirals I currently have in the house and in the car right now....

What are you waiting for?? Start shopping!! :P

April Currently

I love the first day of every month because I get to fill out a Currently from Farley! :)

Listening - Ha, I am ONLY watching this because of our Cinderella unit right now. It happens to be playing on tv so I thought I'd check it out. 

Loving - Everyone in the blogging world has been raving about Go Noodle. And they totally should be because I have to rave about it too! Seriously, if you haven't tried it out yet, you definitely HAVE too! My kids really love it and are all super engaged. The best part is that after the dancing is over, everyone is focused and ready to go! It's free so go check it out! :)

Thinking - First day of April brings some lovely showers. It poured like no other today. 

Wanting - So jealous of all the people who had their breaks already or are on break. We still have two weeks until mine! I can't wait because...

...the boyfriend and I are going to Vegas for Spring Break!!! :D

Needing - Most of the itinerary has been planned. We made a reservation with Gordon Ramsey Steak to try out his beef wellington (all those seasons of Hell's Kitchen makes me want to try one!). We also bought tickets to watch KA. Still more things to book and buy tickets for. Can't wait!

Hours and Last Day - Kid hours are 8:40am - 3:00pm. I know, I look like an overachiever. But really now, it's only because I live by myself and basically have nothing to go home to so I can stay at school as long as I want (or until the custodian kicks me out). 

March Currently

Oh no! It's March! The month with no breaks! How will I survive?? Thank goodness we have Farley's Currently to help start the month off right! :)

Loving...We've had two storms this week so it's nice to see the sun out right now. Not complaining too much about the storm since California really needs the water right now, but I hope this sun stays out today at least!

Thinking...so I'm curious about how other schools are handling report cards. Have your schools/districts aligned your report cards to the Common Core Standards? We are still using our old report cards which are not aligned with the Common Core Standards, yet we are supposed to be teaching Common Core. This is making completing report cards SUPER frustrating for me. I can't even get started on the comments because I just have no idea what to write! Well, I have a week to figure it out....

Wanting...I'm sure everyone can relate. Our spring break is in April this year so March is a month of no breaks. Well we get the last day off for Cesar Chavez Day but that's so far away that it just doesn't count. 

Needing...I think the stress of everything has been getting to me. I just feel sore all over. Definitely need a massage to help loosen the muscles!

???...Can you guess the question? :)

Happy guessing!

It's Currently...February!

Did we really just say good-bye to January? I thought we had some more time. February is one of the busiest months of school in terms of celebrations and events. Our 100th day is next Friday...Valentine's Day is the week after (we also have a field trip that week)...and then we have our school's oratorical festival for Black History month. For the shortest month of the year, there is so much to do!

First day of February also means it's time to link up with Farley's February Currently! :)

Did you figure out which ones are my truths? 

1. I LOVE chocolate....FIB! I'm one of those few people out there who would prefer fruit-flavored candy over chocolate. I do get occasional chocolate cravings though. However, after a bite or two of chocolate, I am done.

That means the other two are truths!

I most definitely cannot handle caffeine at all. Coffee makes me jittery and strong caffeinated tea keeps me up all night if I drink it in the afternoons. Lastly, I did play tennis in high school. Took private group lessons and also played for the high school team for a year. 

Alright, I'm off to enjoy this lovely weather. It's nice and sunny outside (us Californians are so spoiled, I know). Need to get some Vitamin D to help get rid of this cold! :)

January Currently

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!!!

A new year...a new month...which also means, a CURRENTLY! :D

Can you tell that I'm really enjoying my winter break? I'm so thankful I still have the rest of the week off. I've read some blogs where teachers have to go back to work tomorrow. I can't even imagine!!!

I've also decided to do a post on a recap of my entire winter break rather than each week. Winter break isn't over yet, so I guess that post will have to wait! ;)

December Currently

So I most definitely missed the Five for Friday post. I was even looking forward to posting and sharing about my week (Thanksgiving break, hooray!). However, things just got SUPER busy and now I have no energy to take pictures and post. My family moved back for our house this weekend and I helped out so I'm EXHAUSTED. Now, I'm finally back at my own place and trying to relax while also doing lesson planning for the upcoming week. At least I managed to get this Currently completed! :D

I'm sure most of the above are pretty self-explanatory. For the tradition, I always like to give my co-workers a nice treat bag of sorts before Winter Break. It also gives me the opportunity to try out new baking recipes. Not sure what I'm going to make this year...maybe some scones? We shall see. :)

Thanks for visiting!

November Currently

Long and crazy week so I'm just going to post this month's Currently and be over with it for now! :D

yummy pin:

Halloween Puppy Chow

(I know Halloween is over, but it still looks yummy!)

September Currently

Oh my, I've been so busy this weekend I almost forgot that a new month means new Currently! Thank goodness I decided to finally try to catch up on my blog reading and was reminded. Whew! A day late, but didn't have to miss out on the fun! :)

I wish I had time to explain every one of these but unfortunately, I have to go back to planning! However, I will leave you with a freebie, a poster I made for my Reading Workshop introduction. 

Graphics from My Cute Graphics
Fonts from Kevin & Amanda and Leeby's Love Letters

August Currently

Uhoh, it's August! But it's okay because I'm starting the day with Farley's August Currently! :)

Listening - Summer time is the time for reruns on tv! I don't normally watch Bones but anything crime related is good for me! Plus, I enjoy the Bones and Booth relationship. :_

Loving - I am NOT a morning person so I absolutely enjoy being able to "sleep in" (which is only until like 9:30am). Unfortunately, my body seems to know that school is starting soon because I have been naturally waking up at around 8am. Still not early enough for real work, but getting there!

Thinking - My family lives a 45 min drive away from where I live and work. My brother is currently back from college for the next two weeks so of course I am back at the family's home right now. However, I still need to work on my classroom during these next two weeks so have to make the commute. One of my closest friend's wedding is coming up in a month and all her pre-wedding festivities are happening this month too. So basically, I have to somehow figure out how to schedule all my events and commute so that everything gets accomplished.

Wanting - New classroom left behind by a retired teacher. Tons of extra furniture. Cabinets filled with random stuff. I don't think I need to explain any further.

Needing - I mentioned that one of my close friends is getting married at the beginning of September. Well, I'm going to be a bridesmaid! The dress has arrived and if I don't watch myself, the dress will get a little tight. So I gotta watch myself!

B2s Must Haves - Every year I design and order a new tote bag and notebook from Vistaprint based on my classroom theme. You can see them in this post. And who doesn't love flair pens? :)

Don't forget to link up with Farley! Can't wait to read everyone else's responses! :)

Also, there's an awesome deal on Educents right now! 24 teacher created products for grades 2-3! I haven't purchased it yet, but I definitely plan to! Click the picture below to see what is included in the bundle! :)

June Currently!

Is it really June already?! Having the first day of the month on a weekend always throws me off, especially so close to the end of school. I almost forgot to pay my rent today! And I almost forgot about the June Currently! But thanks to Feedly and all my lovely blog subscriptions, I was reminded!

LISTENING - There seems to be a Star Wars craze going on right now. Last week when I went back to the parentals, my mom was watching Star Wars on tv. I'm back again this weekend and guess what my mom's watching? You guessed it, Star Wars.

LOVING - Oh man, this week has been the most STRESSFUL ever! On Tuesday, I had to report for jury duty. Bad lucky already. When I was in the jury assembly room waiting to find out my fate, my group got released for lunch and told to go back in the afternoon for the afternoon session while that other groups after me were released from jury duty. More bad luck. During the afternoon session, I tried to plead my case and get dismissed with a hardship. However, that didn't happen. I was told to fill out the questionnaire and write down my personal hardship and go back on Thursday. Worst bad luck ever. However, my luck changed on Thursday. I got excused from jury duty! Whew, thank goodness for that. I literally stressed out for almost a month (since I received my jury summons) thinking about what I would do if I had to be out for the rest of the school year for jury duty. What a relief!

THINKING - Man, it makes me a tad bit jealous that so many people are already out on summer vacation. But at the same time, I'm sort of excited about these last two weeks of school because we get to do some fun stuff since we're done with the core curriculum. Also somewhat stressful at the same time because I need to clear out the classroom and make sure to send everything home with the kiddos. Good thing I already sent home most of the stuff at Open House!

WANTING - I think we all understand this one. :)

NEEDING - I'm not a super light sleeper, but sunlight definitely gets in the way of my sleep. Even with the blinds closed, a small sliver of sunlight will wake me up. This means when summer rolls around and the sun rises earlier in the day, I also wake up much earlier. This past week I've woken up before my alarm which really doesn't suit me at all (I am NOT a morning person). Anyone has solutions for this? :)

3 VACAY ESSENTIALS - iPhone is needed for everything (pictures, navigation, finding good restaurants to go to). Seeing how I'm going to Asia for three weeks, sunscreen and sunglasses will be an essential too. Since becoming a teacher, my skin has become super sensitive to the sun and my face will burn really easily. I think it's because I spend too much time inside. Ha. :)

Don't forget to link up you're Currently too!

May Currently

I knew today was the first day of May, but with everything else going on...I almost forgot about Farley's Currently! Good thing I checked my Feedly (Google Reader replacement?!) and was reminded by the many blogs posting their Currentlys. So here is mine!

Listening - CSI! I think I watch too many tv shows. 

Loving - The weather has been wonderful lately! We are in the 80s this week. This means it's pretty awesome to be outside. However, hot weather also means muggy and warm classrooms. Only the portable classrooms have AC. The classrooms in the building (like mine) don't so we depend on the many fans we have strategically placed in the classroom. Doesn't really do much but we try our best! 

Thinking - Is is really May?!?! Last full month of school! Also means, a plethora of school events! Music Night, field trip, my birthday party (yes, I sneak that in there), Open House, Science Fair, Volunteer Appreciation Night! Music Night is tomorrow. Woohoo. So much fun! @@ Plus, I have also been summoned for jury duty the day after Memorial Day. Not sure how well that is going to work out...

Wanting - I am leaving for Asia with the family the week following our last week of school. That means I only have two business days after the last day of school to get my classroom all packed up and organized. Eek! I've been trying really hard this year to keep things as organized as possible so I don't have to clean so much at the end. But of course, piles of papers and things are still showing up. Wouldn't life be easier if things just organized and packed themselves?

Needing - What can I say? My shoulders are sore. :)

Summer Bucket List -  I think those three words say it all. I will be in Asia with my mom and bro for three weeks (Singapore for one, Taiwan for two). I also hope to make a weekend trip down to Disneyland with the boyfriend sometime in the summer. Of course, now that I've started to dab into creating lessons and products, I would like to spend some time in the summer really focused on creating things. Not sure how well that will pan out, but let's hope for the best! And of course, relax. Need I explain more? :)

Whew! Good thing I made it! Now...back to my CSI! :)