Top 50 Kindergarten Blogs!

Congratulations!

I, along with 49 other Kindergarten blogs, made the top 50 list for Kindergarten blogging! Hooray! Go and check out their compiled list: there are some FANTASTIC bloggers!

Thank you so much for this recognition! I still can't believe it!

CaliforniaTeachingCredential.org

Stomach Bug

Yesterday, one of my Kinders got sick... Let's just say a little bit got on my feet...

Today, I am home with a stomach bug.

5 of my students are also home with a stomach bug.

Welcome to teaching 5 and 6 year olds.

I'm Alive, I Promise!

We are gearing up for the end of school: official countdown, 8 DAYS. I can't even believe my Kinders will be moving to 1st grade!!!

We have been busy preparing for a religious ceremony that my students' will do readings at (it is their first official time to read in front of the school) and they are SO CUTE! We are also singing a song at the end called "If I Were a Butterfly". It's super sweet :)

We wrapped up our units about Mexico, the Farm, and Insects. As soon as I get around to downloading and posting pictures, I'll share. Pinky promise.

One of the stressful things about the end of the year is all of the "fun" events: Field Day, picnics, special programs. They are fun, but boy are they stressful to arrange and organize! We have four of those days left, so we officially have four "school" days and four "fun" days.

We read out of our "textbook" today: we have weekly stories that practice the letter sound that is spotlighted. They ALL did such a great job. My aide even looked at me and said, "Congratulations Mrs. Johnson: you taught them to read!" Haha it was sweet and they all are amazing to me! I will miss them next year but I'm looking forward to my new batch of kiddos!

When do y'all get out for the summer? Any fun end-of-the-year activities planned? Do tell.

The Great Outdoors

Yes, spring time is here in Texas (well, in all actuality, it's probably already summer with the 90+ temps we've been having) and that means it is time to tackle the front yard landscaping! Hooray! This is Nate & I's first rodeo with landscaping, for our own home that is. We trekked out to Lowe's to stock up on gardening supplies (again, since this is our first time, we had to start from scratch: let's just say Lowe's was probably pretty happy with us when we left). Everything from soil to shovels to hoes to spades to weed cloth... and we still aren't done... we need mulch AND the plants/flowers!

Tomorrow, we will be traveling to the CUTEST garden store ever, and lucky us, it's in our own town: no one hour trip! We have decided on three main areas in our yard: there is a small flower bed under each entry window (either side of the front door) and then our guest bedroom juts out a little bit from the rest of the house and it has its own little flower bed. The two on either side of the doorway get partial sun, while the bed in front of the guest bedroom windows gets full sun.

Our plan:
-Along the house, we would like to get medium height greenery. slim and structured
-At the base of each bed (and in front of the aforementioned greenery) we would like Mexican Grass... it basically looks like hair, but gives such a soft textured appearance: gorgeous!
-Interspersed between the medium height greenery and low Mexican Grass, various floral arrangements... not sure what types of flowers we'd like. Depends on their sun needs, I suppose. 

I will take before, during, and after pictures and update you all soon soon soon! Have a fabulous weekend: TEN MORE SCHOOL DAYS!

Eye Candy- Master Bedroom

Only 15 more school days left (but who's counting?) and I am already itching at the home projects I hope to complete this summer. We have two major outdoor projects - groan, only because of the Texas heat - involving front year landscaping and backyard patio building. However, since Nate will still be working, and those jobs are definitely two-person, I hope to tackle some indoor decor jobs on my own (keeping in mind that I still need to do classroom things too)!

A huge perk of Pinterest (I promise they're not paying me, it's just THAT good of a website) is that it helps me remember some projects/color schemes I want to create for our home. Yes, we haven't even been in our current home for a year, but when I decorated, I went for brown... brown... brown... It's such a classic and warm color, but I feel trapped in a brown bubble. That's why I'm eager to select a few new color schemes - on a budget - to redecorate some rooms.

These new additions will come primarily in accessories. I am ::crossing fingers:: that I won't need to repaint. That is the worst. So today, I will show you the inspiration photo for our master bedroom. Right now, our bedroom walls are a subtle light blue with brown accents. The combo is gorgeous, but I feel that there is too much brown. So here's the inspiration, coming from this blog Decorista Daydreams:

The best part? NO PAINTING THE WALLS, wahoo! It pretty much matches our existing paint color. They added a white chair rail, maybe some low board and batten? It's hard to tell. Our nightstands are a dark wood (brown), and I do not want to change those out. We have beige lanterns (same color as these above, but they are paper lanterns in a rectangular shape). The main job: a new comforter/sham/sheet set. That would make a WORLD of difference. Also, those gold poufs are fun! 

A major expense we have is that we are needing a new bed. We are still sleeping in the full (yes, full) bed my parents gave to us for our apartment. Our bedroom can definitely handle a king, so that's another hunt. Our main go-to source is www.overstock.com, mainly because all shipping is $2.50 (I believe) regardless if you buy a t-shirt or a bedframe. A-mazing.

Lastly, our current bedroom has wall-to-wall carpet. This was the new addition to our 1950 home, and they decided to carpet this room. Needless to say, with two puppies, the carpet is a disaster. Not because they "potty" on it constantly, oh no (they are both house-trained). Our bedroom has a door to the backyard, and in the wee hours of the morning when our pups insist on using the backyard for potty reasons, we sleepily forget to check their paws for wetness/mud from the morning dew. Lame. So our wish is to pull up ALL of the carpet and install laminate flooring. Another major expense.

I will keep you posted with continued progress, so for now, enjoy the eye candy :)

Happy Mother's Day

Thanks to the people who linked up to my first link party! Lots of ideas all over blog-land were shared about various Mother's Day crafts your kiddos made for their mama's! I know lots of mommy's are waking up to precious gifts created by their Kinders :) I will upload pictures later today showing the final product my kiddos created with their hand print.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! I am not a mother yet, but I feel like one to my 18 precious 5 and 6 year olds in my classroom! It's good practice :)