Happy New Year!!

I am really enjoying my new year' eve this year!!  By 7:00 we had both of our babies in bed!!  LOVE IT!!

Tonight I am linking up with Farley over at Oh' Boy 4th Grade for her awesome monthly linky!!

Listening - I have quite a few episodes backed up on my DVR, so I am trying to catch up on Revenge.  We have quite a few other shows on DVR too, but my husband said he's about to go to sleep too!  Welcome 2015, everyone in my house may be asleep by 8:30!!

Loving - I have been LOVING Christmas break!  It has been so nice to sleep in, eat all day, and wear my sweats all day!!  I LOVE IT!!

Thinking - I really need to clean my house!  We came home from my parent's house and just dumped almost everything.  We were able to clean up some things, and pack up all of Christmas, but now we have all of the new toys to find homes for, and old toys to find new homes.  :)

Wanting - I think almost everyone agrees that we would like one more week.  Despite my want, I know we will be back at it on Monday!

Needing - I am in need of some new recipes.  We are making one of our 2015 goals to only eat out once a month.  I need some new recipes to be able to make this a success.  We eat a lot of meals in the crock pot because both my husband and I teach.  If it doesn't come out of the crock pot, or can't be ready in five minutes we don't tend to cook on school nights.

Yes - My biggest goal for 2015 is to be present!!

Maybe - I have a goal weight that I would love to get down to.  I haven't been that weight in a very long time.  I know that it isn't about weight, but about how you feel.  I wouldn't mind not being down at that weight if I was eating better.

Wish - I didn't make a huge amount in 2014, but I made more than I ever thought I would.  Actually, December has been my best month ever!! I would love to triple my 2014 earnings in 2015.  I am trying to plan out my year, and what I would like to see done.  I would love to be able to attend the TPT conference in Vegas this summer, collaborate with even more bloggers this year, and help more teachers in their classrooms!  I would also LOVE to be able to stay home with my babies!!

Happy 2015!!  I can't wait to hear what your goals are, and what are you up to as we begin this new journey together!

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Cassandra

I can't believe how quickly time is flying by!!  I know that I say this, All. Of. The. Time!!

In high school you can't wait to graduate, and be on your own experiencing college.

In college you can't wait to be done with school, and living the dream.

Once you find the person you want to spend forever with, you can't wait until your wedding day.

Once you get married you can't wait to have babies.

Then you have babies, and you can't wait until they are sleeping, crawling, walking, sleeping, taking, sleeping, starting school, sleeping, etc.

I feel like we are always waiting for the next thing.

I am linking up with the Primary Powers to share my big goal for 2015!

In my 14 of 2014 I shared that my word for 2015 is going to be PRESENT.  I want to be present in my life.  I want to be involved in what is going on with my kids.  I want to be involved with what is going on with my husband.  I want to be present with my parents.  I want to be present at my sister's wedding.

I also want to be PRESENT with my passion.  I LOVE teaching.  I LOVE kids, and working with the.  I LOVE the ah ha moment, as most of us do, or else why would we go into this crazy career?!

I have goals I want to reach this year, I may not reach them all, but I am going to work hard trying!  I want to be present, and to be that is my number one goal of the year.  I already miss too much in my kids' lives by being a working parent.  I don't want to miss more because I was too focused on myself.

I know that these next 17 years are going to fly by and then I'll be an empty nester.  (Fingers crossed, right!?)  I look forward to the days when I can sleep in past 5:30, binge watch Netflix all day (or night), and not have a messy house to clean up every half hour.  I also know that I already miss my carefree days of college, and look back at my first four years of marriage and wonder what we did with our time. I don't want to look back on these years with my kids and wish I would have done things differently.

I will be PRESENT on my blog, and I will be PRESENT on TPT.  You will NOT see me every night, and you will NOT see a new product every day.  You will see great things though, as I will only put my best out there.

Thank you for being PRESENT with me!  I hope that you have an amazing 2015!!  I look forward to many, many, many PRESENTLY AMAZING things in 2015!

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Cassandra

I am amazed at how quickly time is going now!  Oh my!  Since I had my babies it just seems to go quicker and quicker!

I love this idea of reflecting on 14 things from 2014, and I am excited to be linking up.

My favorite quotes have always been bible verses!  I love them, and think they speak directly to us!  There are SOOO many great ones!

Source

Right now I am really loving my skinny jeans, and tall boots!!  Since boots aren't really an article of clothing, I will go with my skinny jeans.  Want to know a secret!?  I got these on sale at Old Navy!!  I love a good sale at Old Navy, and I actually will never buy anything from there unless it is on sale.

I love so many movies it's hard for me to pick just one!!  I am a sucker for all things Nicholas Sparks, so all of his movies I watch!  Of course I read the book first, but his movies are so good!  I also love dance movies!  My hubby and I might have watched almost any dance movie you can think of, and on our two day mini vac a we even found a new one to watch thanks to Red Box!

I was excited to carry on our tradition of watching a movie while we were at teacher's conference!  I was sad that my bestie wasn't there with me this year, but hoping she'll be there next year!

My favorite TV series this year would have to be Biggest Loser!  I love this show, and I love watching the transformation this people take!

I love to eat!!  I can't believe I have to pick ONE restaurant!!  Food is so yummy, and we enjoy a night out every now and then.  My favorite restaurant to go to with just my hubby would be The Melting Pot!  We have some fun memories there with our friends Ben and Allison who now live across the country!  It is SOOO yummy!

I didn't try very many new things this year, as I tend to stick to what I like.  I did go out and meet some new people this year, which is HUGE for me!!  In case you missed my 12 15 days of Christmas, you may want to go back and check it out, so you can "meet" some of the awesome people I met this summer!!  These ladies are inspirational to me, and I can't wait until Vegas next year when I can attend the TPT conference with them!

These ladies are amazing!!

Sarah, Nicole, Marcy, Angie, Dixie

Kristen, Ashley

The amazing Jennifer, from The Blessed Teacher

This summer my work bestie Bridget went with me to Vegas!  She was amazing, and awesome to room with!  I'm truly hoping we'll be able to go together again this year!  While we were in Vegas I bought Bridget her first Alex and Ani bracelet, which said Beyond Blessed!  I loved it, and knew it was exactly what she needed!

Since then, she has bought me, not one, but two bracelets!!  She bought me the H for my birthday, and then for Christmas she got me the friend bracelet!  This girl is truly special to me in my life, and even when she can't, she goes above and beyond.  I don't know what I would do without the gift of her friendship in my life!  It would really make my school day that much harder.

I pin, A LOT!!  I used to pin a lot more than I do now, but I still have A TON of boards!  I have finally separated my accounts too, so now I have a teacher account, and a personal account.

My favorite teaching pin is from Angie Olson!  I love her interactive notebooks, and hers are truly amazing!

My favorite food pin was this amazing buffalo chicken.   We love all things buffalo chicken, and this one was delicious!

My favorite blog post wasn't just one post, but a series.  I love meeting amazing people in this teaching world, and I love sharing what I know.  I LOVE how open these ladies are to sharing with me, and I wouldn't be where I am today with out each of them!!

My favorite accomplishment was finally asking my husband if it was okay if I joined TPT as a premium seller.  I was very nervous because I wasn't selling a lot, and $60 when you are only making $5 a month seemed like a long shot.  I am so excited I joined though, because it gave me the drive I needed to help improve my store.  Now don't get me wrong, I am hardly making the millions, thousands, or even hundreds now, but my small accomplishments are going to drive me into 2015 to make next year even better!  Not only for me, and my students, but also for each of you!  I have big ideas for 2015 and can't wait to start sharing them with you!

I love my family photos!  I have an AMAZING photographer!  She has been taking our family photos since my baby girl was born.  I am so blessed to have her in my life, not only as our photographer, but also as my friend!

This was one of my favorites that she got of our little man this year!!

I have so many amazing memories from this year!  My children bless me with adventures every day, both inside my home, and inside my classroom!

April - my baby girl turning one, and my best friend flying in to surprise me

May - watching my 8th grade girls graduate and move on to high school!

June - going on a family vacation to Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, the Bay Area, and Orange County

July - going to Vegas for the SDE conference and meeting AMAZING people

August - celebrating my baby boy turning THREE

December - my baby girl breaking her arm

I have many goals for 2015.  I always set goals for myself, and some years I am much better about keeping track of them!  I set personal goals, and professional goals!

Personal goals - READ, eat healthier, be financially smart, pay off student loan

Professional goals - attend SDE in July, attend TPT conference in July, help students reach mastery of multiplication and division facts, be planned by Fridays (for next week), email newsletter Sunday nights, don't bring grading home

BE PRESENT

I know those are two little words, but I feel like the be must be there.  I want to be present when I am with my kids.  I know that I often feel myself getting distracted by my forever long to do list.  I also know how quickly time is going!  I can't believe i am going to have a 2 and a 4 year old in the year 2015!!  Where has time gone!?!  I will have two children in school!  I will be taking both of my babies to school with me!!  WHAT?!

I need to be present with my husband too.  So often he gets the leftovers, whatever I have left to give at the end of the day, and it is often not very much.  I need to make sure that when I am spending time with him, I am spending time with him.  Thankfully he is a teacher as well, so he understands the crazy world of teaching we live in, but at the same time, I know he needs the same support I do.

If you've made it this far, then thank you!!  I pray that you have a very blessed 2015 as well!!  2015 is going to be a great year! My babies are growing up, I turn 30, and Vegas in July will be AMAZING!!  I hope to see you there!!

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Cassandra

I hope that you have all enjoyed getting to know a new fantastic friend of mine every day for the past fourteen days!  As you can see I have some AMAZING friends in my life!!  I have been so blessed by this TPT/blogging/IG journey!!  These women all inspire me, and help me be a better teacher!!

I know there are amazing teachers out there who I didn't introduce you to, and there are many amazing teachers who don't blog.  My best friend doesn't blog, or sell on TPT, despite my constant telling her she should.  There are many of us who don't feel we have the time, talent or effort to do it. As long as we are reaching our students, helping them on, and CONNECTING with them, then that is what matters most.

This morning I wanted to share some of my traditions with you to conclude my 15 days of Christmas series!!

For as long as I can remember my sister and I always got up early on Christmas morning!  Even in high school, we would wake up super early.  We always had to run down the hall to tell our parents we were awake before we could go downstairs to see what Santa had brought.  Yes, even in high school and college we continued this tradition!  Now that I have babies things have changed a little bit, but not a ton!  We are still up super early, and get to go out to see what Santa has brought.  You better believe Santa is still delivering presents to me too!!

In my classroom I love celebrating Christmas!!  We have so may fun things that we do!!  For the past few years I have made a Christmas tree out of students handprints.  I have them cut their hands out of green paper, and then I put them together to form a tree.  I also have them decorate a stocking, and we hang those by the tree.  My favorite part of our decorating is our presents for Jesus.  They have to decorate a present, and then inside, write something they would give Jesus.  They always turn out so well, and the students take pride in creating the perfect gift.  It makes an awesome display, and then we take our pictures in front of it.  I then quickly print the pictures at Costco and send them home to their parents!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!  Hopefully like me, you only have three more days left, until you can relax before Christmas is here!  Enjoy those few days left with your students, and help them to know that they are loved.  Who knows, for some of them, what they see in your classroom may be the only Christmas present/gift/tradition they have.  For others, they need that extra hug, or extra RAK.

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Cassandra

Happy Monday!!  I'm sure you are as excited as I am that we have started our last week of teaching in December!!  I hope that you are even more excited to meet a fantastic blogger today!!

Angie is amazing, and really needs no introduction!!  If you use interactive notebooks, then you probably know who she is!!  I LOVE her notebooks, but even more important than that, I love Angie!!  She is such a caring person, has an amazing heart, and we share the same faith!!  Her daughter is adorable, and she has a heart for teaching!!  I really don't know how many more awesome things I could say about her!!  I am so glad that I was able to meet Angie over the blogging world, and then spend a little time with her in Vegas!!

A couple of years ago we had a Mexican theme and everybody brought a dish to share such as enchiladas, taco salads, taco pizza, chimichangas, etc.  One year we had a Christmas Around the World where each family brought a dish from another country.  A few years ago we even had an ugly Christmas sweater contest.  Our Christmas celebrations get to be very large in my family.  Aunts, uncles, grandmas, grandpas, sisters, nieces, and more bring our family celebrations to around 30 people.  We all buy gifts for the young children and then the adults usually make one gift and we play a game to choose the wrapped gift.  The game includes stealing and trading of gifts…it gets pretty crazy!

{Don't you want to be in Angie's family just for these fun traditions!!  I can't wait to see what they do this year!!}

In my classroom the Elf on a Shelf gets introduced on the Monday after Thanksgiving break.  I attach him to the outside of our classroom window and let the class notice him.  Then we bring him in, read the book, and prepare ourselves for all of the mischief that Buddy will bring to our classroom.  We have a lot of fun with him!  Another classroom tradition that we have is Grinch Day.  My students are encouraged to dress up as the Grinch or as a Who and we spend the entire day doing Grinch activities…not to mention talking about how Christmas isn’t about the presents but instead about a time for loving our family and friends.  We have so much fun in 2^nd grade!

Now you can see why I can't wait for Vegas 2015!!  This lady is amazing!!  Tomorrow I have one more set of Christmas traditions to share with you!!

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Cassandra

I hope that you have enjoyed my 12 days of Christmas!!  I am so excited to share that I had a few more bloggers want to join in the fun, so I have extended it to 15 days of Christmas!!

Today I am so excited to introduce you to a friend that I met this summer in Veags!!  Ashely at Schroeder Shenanigans in Second is amazing!  She is just as sweet in person as she is on her blog!  I was able to meet up with her and some other amazing ladies for dinner in Vegas.  It was great to be able to spend some time with them.  I also hope to spend more time with them this summer in Vegas '15!!

My most favorite holiday tradition in my family is having a POLAR EXPRESS party complete with the movie, the CASSETTE(I know, right?!)read aloud of the book, PJS, hot cocoa, and cookies! 

I hope that you all enjoyed getting to know Ashley a little bit more!  If you aren't following her yet, make sure you check out her blog!  She is amazing, shares great ideas, and works so hard for each of us!!

Can't wait to see you tomorrow so you can meet another one of my AMAZING friends!!

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Cassandra

Welcome to day 12 of the 12 days of Christmas!!  I hope that you have been enjoying the journey so far!

I am so excited to introduce you to an amazing friend I met in Vegas this summer!  Marcy from Saddle up for Second Grade is one of the bloggers I was able to spend some time with while we were all in Vegas!  She is such a sweetheart, and has an amazing heart!  I have been able to collaborate with her a little since we've both been home as well, and have gotten to know Marcy a little bit better!  I wish that we lived closer!!

 

Marcy shared her favorite holiday tradition, and it sounds like an exciting one!  I miss the years when I was able to be with all of my extended family!

Marcy has some fantastic ways to celebrate Christmas in her classroom as well.  I can't wait to see her post pictures on her IG and her blog to share about what these look like as they are coming to life this month!

I love, love, love Christmas time, especially in the classroom. I do a HUGE Christmas Around the World unit each year. We make crafts and learn about different countries and their traditions. Italy is my favorite country to teach about. I also enjoy doing elf on the shelf. Last year was my first year to do it in the classroom and I can't wait for the little guy to make his grand appearance again this year. 

I love Marcy's heart, and how she wants to help people!  I hope that you've enjoyed getting to know her a little better.  I can't wait until Vegas next year when I am able to spend some more time with Marcy!

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Cassandra

Good morning everyone!!  I hope that you are all having a great week!  I can't believe we have survived two weeks of teaching in December!  I am so excited that there is only one more week before two weeks off!!  I know I am ready for them!!

Doodle Bugs Teaching took December off, but I'm still bringing you my Five for Friday!!

I have been LOVING featuring a different friend everyday!!  This has been so much fun, and I hope that you have enjoyed getting to know my friends this week!!  I have so many awesome blogging/TPT/IG friends and I can't wait to meet up with them again this summer in Vegas!!  Who is going to be joining us there!?

This week I had the joy of going to not one, but TWO different advent services.  My students sang at our advent service Wednesday night, and then my son sang in the advent service Thursday night!  It is always fun to watch my baby praising Jesus!  I'm so thankful that next year we'll get to go to two services, since my daughter will also be in preschool!

Christmas is a magical time of year!  I love all of the festivities that go along with Christmas, but I'm beginning to feel like my room threw up Christmas!!  I feel like it is everywhere!!  Yes those are snowflakes you see, snow globe stories, elf stories, elves, and a fireplace in the corner.  You can't seem the pile of Christmas books we've read, the Christmas tree out of hands we've made, the candy cane stories in the hall, and the glitter all over my room.

This week I've been amazed by all of you!!  TPT has been something that I enjoy doing, and something that has not been a huge income for me.  Trust me, my husband keeps asking me if I'll ever make more than I spend.  :)  I have been blown away this month, and I still get excited every time I get an email that says you have bought my product!  THANK YOU!!  I am so glad that I took a chance in March and decided to become a premium seller!  I'm even more excited that you all like what I have, and are willing to use it in your classrooms!!  I am so grateful for each of you and your support!!  THANK YOU!!  I don't think that I'll ever make a million dollars on this site, or ever make enough that I would quit teaching, but it's nice to know that other people believe in what I do as well, and that it is helping you in your classrooms!

I am LOVING this song that I stumbled upon!  I saw it on Facebook, but couldn't find the link!  My husband found it for me, and it is my new favorite Christmas song!!  You have to go watch it on YouTube though, it won't let it play on here!!  I'm sorry!

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Cassandra