Long Distance Friendship

This afternoon, after a long day of work, I was able to get around to checking my mailbox.  I don't check my mailbox daily because I don't get mail here at my apartment regularly.  Anyway, I went downstairs, opened my mailbox and there was a key inside.  The key means one thing: check the big mailbox below because you have a package!  YES!! I love mail, I love presents, and when it's both, I feel like I hit the jackpot!!!

One of my closest, oldest friends lives in Florida.  Allyson had texted me last week letting me know that my birthday present was on it's way.  I knew that the box that arrived today was a present from her.  I came inside, and opened it right away.  Underneath styrofoam peanuts was a mug wrapped in tissue paper.  After I was able to unravel the tissue paper, it revealed the sweetest, most thoughtful gift!  A mug with New York and Florida, with a dotted line between where we live.  On the inside, of the mug it says "miss you."  

The hardest thing about having a long distance friendship is that you can't meet up for coffee, ice cream, drinks, dinner, or anything.  We rely on texting and Facebook, mainly because we're both teachers and have completely crazy schedules.  Over the past few years we've been taking turns on who gets to visit in the summer time so we can actually catch up on everything.  

I'm pretty lucky to have Allyson as my friend.  She's honest, hard working, creative, a good listener, a level-headed advice giver, and was a good side kick when I needed her most.  There are some friends you'd do anything for, and Allyson is one of those friends.   I can't wait for our visit this summer!!

Allyson purchased the mug above from the Etsy Shop: Tenth Avenue Mugworks.

Preparing for Valentine's Day

Today I met with my Social Action Club during lunch and after school. This is my second year being the advisor for this club and I absolutely adore it! I inherited the advisor position from a retired colleague and I love the work that we do. The mission for Social Action Club is to work on projects that help needy people and animals, as well as the environment. We help at the school, local, and global community level and educate/create awareness about these topics, as well. Most of our club is made up of kids in grades 5-6 because the kids in grades 7-8 play modified sports and can't commit to being in two places at once. :-)

At our meeting today, we discussed selling Valentine's Day cards to students in our school and we needed to decide on a few organizations that we could possibly send our proceeds to. As I explained my agenda to the kids, I could barely get those words out fast enough before they unanimously decided that all proceeds would go straight to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. My heart melted.

Last year, we found many fun valentines on the computer, printed a ton of them, cut them out, and taped heart-shaped lollipops to each. We tried to find cards that were appropriate for middle school kids... not too babyish, not too boyfriend/girlfriend-ish, but just right, to suit the needs of kids in grades 5-8. This was a hard task, as Valentine's Day in middle school can be quite interesting and scary to witness. "Love, Teach" blogged about this experience and nailed it PERFECTLY. Read about it here: My 2014 Valentine's Day Lesson Plan. Amanda and I both follow her blog. Once you land on her page, browse around and don't forget to bookmark it! You will laugh over and over and over again, even if you're not a teacher!

We sold over 200 cards last year and we hope to do the same, if not more, this year. We plan on using some of the same cards because they were a hit! We obtained most from www.crapivemade.com. (Isn't the URL great?! Yikes... I didn't notice that last year!) She has these listed as free printables, so make sure to check them out!

Here are a few pictures from last year. I'll post new pictures as we get closer to the 14th! 

And I thought these were too cute when I was researching today. We didn't make them, but she does list the printable and directions if you're interested!

A stressed out, multitasking culture

"Technology has made it easier than ever to fracture attention into smaller and smaller bits." - TIME magazine 

I recently read an article in TIME magazine and wanted to share some of the author's research and experience here because I find the impact of the digital revolution astounding. 

Are you guilty of:

-answering a colleagues question or email from the stands at your child's soccer game?

-paying bills while watching tv?

-ordering groceries while stuck in traffic?

-being hyper connected...having a personal phone, work phone, laptop and iPad, and rarely let an hour pass without looking at a screen? 

-having that heart-stopping feeling of fright when you leave the house without your phone?   

Isn’t it amazing how quickly we’ve become attached to our devices?  They’ve become more than an accessory...they’ve become part of our clothes! Leaving the house without your phone feels like you're naked!

The author states, "In a time when no one seems to have enough time, our devices allow us to be in many places at once- but at the cost of being unable to fully inhabit the place where we actually want to be."

I have a hard time becoming "more aware of the present moment and less caught up in what happened earlier or what's to come." It fascinates me that the world moves this fast, when only a few years ago, things just weren't this way. 

I've noticed a big shift in myself with being "too connected." I often check my phone when I arrive at a stop light, or when I'm watching tv or making dinner, and I always check my emails- work or personal- throughout the entire day.

I notice the impact of the digital revolution on my sixth grade students too. Most of my students have iPhones and utilize apps, like Instagram. I often wonder: Are they developmentally and socially ready for the constant and immediate connection? Do they fully understand their digital footprint? Their technological abilities are very high, but their judgement and maturity is worrisome. 

The TIME magazine article is about "The Mindful Revolution: The Art of Being Mindful." I was immediately drawn to it because a colleague at my school is a trained mindfulness expert. She conducted a session at one of our faculty meetings and teaches a class once a week after school to any interested staff in the district. I've always thought of attending, but haven't yet. After reading the article, I'm eager to give it a shot! I'll keep you updated!

The mindfulness philosophy "intends to help practitioners quiet a busy mind and help become more aware of the present moment." Have you heard about mindfulness? Do you practice it?  Leave a comment and fill me in! Please share your thoughts on the digital revolution, too!

Love between Siblings

Today, I'm not going to write too much, because this video basically speaks for itself.  I saw this video on Kelle Hampton's Blog and it was too touching not to share it with you, too.  This brother and sister team are quite an example of what sibling love is all about.  

I know that I love my sister so much, that I'm not really sure what I'd do without her.  I'm pretty lucky to have a sister in the first place, but to also have her be a treasured friend is a true gift.  

May we all have a brother or a sister like the bond that these two share.  Enjoy!  

The Sunday Blues

Dawn and I have been discussing this common problem since we have started teaching. The Sunday Blues. It's the pit in your stomach that you get on Sunday. It usually kicks in at around 4pm and doesn't go away until you make it into school on Monday morning.

When I had just started teaching, I thought that this condition was just amongst myself and my closest friends. The more that I spoke to colleagues, I learned that this wasn't just a condition: it was an epidemic. I think the Sunday Blues are worse when you're a new teacher...but I also have felt mine intensify now that the Commin Core is in full swing. Teachers are being asked to teach more rigorous concepts with the lack of materials and support staff that are needed to address the neediest students. We are trying to keep up with the evolving curriculum and the needs of our students, and it takes a toll on our well being, especially our mental health. 

The worst part about all of the new standards isn't the fact that they are more rigorous. The problem is that teachers want to do their job well. I have never met a teacher who said they are okay with teaching crappy lessons and 20 year old content. For the most part, elementary teachers care about their students and how each and every decision we make can impact every child's life and future.

So if you ever hear a teacher say they have the Sunday blues, maybe now you can understand just a little bit better about what we're talking about.

I will let you in on a little secret: the only thing that cures the Sunday Blues is seeing the faces of your students on Monday  morning. After all, they're the reason we get out of bed so early! 

Being a guest at my own wedding

I watched the Bachelor Wedding on TV tonight. I follow each season of the Bachelor, but really don't watch it closely until it dwindles down to the last few girls remaining. I remember watching Sean & Catherine and thought they were cute together!

I'm a sucker for weddings and I love watching them on TV just as much as I love seeing them in person. Any celebrity wedding that's televised is awesome! I don't enjoy watching the wedding shows on TLC as much (like Four Weddings) because they're annoying and they don't story tell the event. However, Platinum Weddings on TLC was amazing! Does anyone remember that show?!

Televised weddings are great because you get a birds eye view of everything: the story behind the couple, choosing the dress, how the girls are getting ready, how the guys are getting ready, the guests gathering, the ceremony, and every detail on decorations. 

On our honeymoon, I told my husband more than a few times that I wished I was a guest at my own wedding. I surely lived the event, but I wanted to see every single thing... The setup, the reactions on peoples faces, guests gathering before the ceremony, etc. I felt like I planned every detail for over a year and saw it executed, but missed parts of it happen. Yes, that's what your photographer and videographer are there for... but I'm sure you understand what I really mean.

I really enjoyed watching Sean and Catherine's wedding special. Here were my top 3 favorite moments... Please feel free to leave me a comment about your favorite moment as you watched!

1. The Ceremony: Watching Catherine walk down the aisle. I LOVED the music! I wonder what the connection was behind the song? We added music to our ceremony and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was so special to me. Other fun moments: Watching him cry and her taking deep breaths. As she got closer, she said "I'm shaking." Everything takes over and you just remind yourself to breathe! It was obvious that she was going through the motions, like handing her flowers off and quickly kissing her parents. It becomes so surreal that you just keep moving so that you don't stall and breakdown!

2. Holding hands during their vows. I noticed Sean holding her hands so tightly and rubbing his thumbs across her hands as she spoke. We held hands throughout the entire ceremony and had moments like this too. You're so overcome with emotion and shaking, but you have your best friend to hold onto throughout the surreal moments!

3. Him hysterically crying as they walked out. How friggin precious! There are no words to describe the feeling of being announced as husband and wife. I was hootin' and hollerin' as I walked out and my husband was still a ball of nerves! As if I haven't said it enough... the feeling was absolutely surreal! 

The gorgeous flowers and different seating was so beautiful! I wish we were able to see the reception! Boo!!

My favorite words spoken by Catherine: "Before I met you, before I saw you, I knew you were coming." Swoon!! 

Favorite Photo Gifts

I'm in the process of making new photo gifts and I can't wait to share them with you. I went to Michael's and Home Depot last night and I plan to unveil 3 new photo projects this week that you can try (DIY) or buy for yourself! 

If you've read my blog posts, you already know that I have an obsession with photos. I love giving and receiving gifts that involve snapshots of memories. 

Since I'm adding 3 new ideas to my repertoire this weekend, here are my top 3 photo gifts that I've either received or given to friends and family:

1. Photo bracelet - I ordered these on Etsy and gave them to my mom and sister a few years ago. The description on Etsy stated, "A "photo bracelet" is the perfect way to keep your loved one's with you!" There are definitely certain days where you just want to feel your loved ones close to you, and in my eyes, this was the perfect gift for that! Each bracelet has Swarovski crystals between square silver photo frames. I chose the special photos and they were designed and shipped to me within a few weeks. My mom and sister wear them often. My sister even wore hers on my wedding day! The pictures are of just the both of us! I ordered one for myself too! :-)

2. Photo cube ornament - For my birthday this year, my sister gave me an ornament with 2 wedding photos on it, along with our names and wedding date. She knows the way to my heart and clearly knows that I eat this stuff up! My heart melted when I opened it, especially because it was our first wedding ornament AND first wedding photo gift. It was so special!

3. Fleece photo blanket - My brother and his girlfriend made us a photo blanket with our engagement pictures last Christmas. I'll never forget opening it on Christmas Day. It was a complete surprise and it was one of the most thoughtful gifts we had received. We keep it on our couch and it's so much fun to catch a glimpse of the photos as we walk by. 

Be sure to stop in again soon to hear about my new photo gift ideas! These will be used as decorations in your house. :-)