Custom Classroom, Part 1

After visiting a local classroom supply store, I came out disappointed.  They've recently changed locations and I feel like some of the items I've bought previously are no longer available.  This wasn't really my biggest problem, though.  My problem was theme.  The elusive classroom theme.  For those of you reading this that aren't teachers, this won't make any sense to you.  For those of you that are, you're shaking your fist in solidarity.

You see, teachers want a classroom that looks great and most of us want a theme.  The problem for me is, there's no commercially produced theme that I love.  Robin is doing monsters in her classroom now (she started last year) and it's perfect - for her.  There was a time that I taught in a block of classrooms named "Water House" and at that point the underwater/ocean theme was perfect.  I got rid of all that stuff in June, though, because I don't plan on ever doing the underwater/ocean thing again.  I've seen awesome surfing inspired classrooms, and another of my best friends has always had turtles because personally, turtles are her thing.  I think, for me, it all boils down to it being a place that I want to look at every day, but more importantly a place where the kids want to be because it's an extension of the teacher who loves them.  Hence, Polka Dots.

I started with Polka Dots 2 years ago.  It's versatile, it's adorable, and it's not necessarily feminine or masculine.  The crux of my color scheme is pink, green, and black, but I try to incorporate lots of brightly colored (not primary, though) dots.  That's not to say I don't have other decorative elements in my classroom, such as the super-cute cookie jar and cookies that I found last year at Target of all places, but at it's heart my classroom is Polka Dots.  Last year we started the year with a Mission Statement (I'll do a post on that in mid/late August) and my class chose the name "The Polka Dot Party."  They got it from the window display I had with the same words.  It was even on our class shirts.  This year, I'm thinking the window will say "Polka Dot Paradise" or "We're Dotty for Learning."  I haven't quite gotten there, yet.  Here's the "special chair."  I recovered a basic rolling chair from Staples two years ago with sturdy polka dot canvas-type fabric.  It's since been recovered (the white background was a no-no, even though I used Scotch Guard).  I can't wait to get back into my classroom so I can start sharing pictures of what it looks like now!

The next problem I ran into (after the classroom supply store) was that they didn't have anything I liked to display birthdays.  I usually do a display around the calendar that has a cupcake for each month with each child's name on a candle for the corresponding cupcake.  Since I only have 2 bulletin boards and a lot more I'm wanting to display, I don't want to use a whole board for the birthdays anymore.  But they still needed to be special.  I used to be a big fan of the posters where everyone had their birthday just written, but again, not anymore.  I saw some ideas on Pinterest, but nothing I was in love with, either.  Jen made this great poster for her classroom.

She's going to take their pictures at the beginning of the year and then add them to the chart under the month that corresponds to their birthday.  I like the idea of pictures, but wasn't sure the size of the poster was what I was personally looking for.  So I decided to become the purveyor of a custom classroom.  Robin and I took a trip to Hobby Lobby (LOVE) and I let myself get inspired.  What follows are the two projects I undertook while watching the Olympics last night.  I'm going to throw in a GO TEAM USA!  and another shout of "I LOVE RYAN LOCHTE!"  OK.  I'm calm now.

Custom Classroom Project #1: Birthday Display
You will need:
1 piece of 12" x 12" scrapbook paper (mine has cupcakes on it)
1 piece of 8.5" x 11" scrapbook paper in a coordinating solid color
1 piece of poster board, I used white
Scrapbook letter stickers
a glue stick

My ingredients:

 Ignore my foot, I didn't get a chance to crop this one.  Also ignore the blue and green poster board.  Those are for another project.
This was a really simple and easy project and I'm happy with how it turned out.  I layered the papers on the poster board in the same order you see them above.  I glued them all together and put the letter stickers on.  This is the final product.

I love it!  I'm going to get it laminated for year-to-year durability.  At the beginning of the year I am going to take a picture of each student holding a cupcake, most likely this one.  I'll write the day of the month on the cupcake they hold.  Then, at the beginning of each month, I'll put their cute picture up on this.  I plan on changing it at the same time I change my calendar.  It shouldn't take long at all.  I know it'll take longer than having one poster with them all displayed, but in this case my wall real estate was more valuable than a few minutes a month.  At the end of each month the kids will get to take home their picture, too, so it's a bonus birthday treat for them.

Custom Classroom Project #2: Homework Display Poster
You will need:
1 piece of poster board
5 pieces of 8.5" x 11" scrapbook paper
1 piece of 12" x 12" scrapbook paper
letter stickers
printer
font you love
scissors
glue stick
Scotch tape
time and patience :)

My ingredients:

Let me preface this project by showing you what I've used for 3 years for my homework.  I like to put all my homework for the week up on Monday morning.  The kids copy it into their planners.  With so many kids involved in after-school activities and parents working late, it's nice for them to be able to look at the week ahead and plan accordingly.

I use fine-point dry erase markers and write their homework in the squares.  In the notes section I put a key letting the students know which subject each color marker represents.  They have separate squares in their planners for each subject's homework, and with my having special needs students, this just makes it easier all around.

This year when I was packing up my classroom, I noticed that the poster was a little worse for the wear.  I threw it away and decided I'd just order another one before school started.  My particular poster was black where the above is yellow and green where it's blue.  Of course, mine is no longer available.  I could have gone with another color, but I started thinking about ways I could improve upon this concept.  Here's what I did.

First, I laid out the smaller paper on the poster board and cut out the stickers for all of the letters I'd be using and lined them up for spacing.

I glued the smaller papers down where I wanted them and then stuck the letters down.  This was tedious because I wanted them nice and straight.

They aren't as straight as I'd like them, but they look good.  Next, I printed out the words I wanted at the top of the poster using a font I really like.  I used "Homegrown Doodle" which you can download for free by clicking the link under the picture of the font below.

Download this font by clicking here.

After I printed out the words, I cut them out, leaving a border around them and taped them onto the scrapbook paper I wanted the words to be on.

Then it was just a matter of cutting out each letter one by one.  Remember when I said you'd need patience and time for this project?  This and sticking the letters on for the days of the week are the reasons why.  After I cut out each letter, I glued them down.  Lastly, I added a square of leftover green paper layered with white paper and made it the space where I will put my color key.  I'll laminate this to make it wipe-off.

Stay tuned for Robin's hand-lettered (if it turns out) Homework poster and our Learning Goals display posters.

Enjoy what's left of your weekend, the summer, and I hope you're joining me in cheering for Team USA.

Shake It Like a Polaroid Picture

I have so much to share with you today!  Before we get down to business, I want to draw your attention to some new blog features.  Direct your eyes to the green circle on the bottom left of this post.  See it?  Good.  Now put your mouse pointer on it...isn't that COOL?  You can share your most favorite CK&C posts on your favorite social networking platform.  One more I have to share...go to the sidebar on the right and scroll down until you see "Follow by Email."  Want to get emailed whenever a new blog post goes up?  Well then just stick your email address in that handy dandy widget and you'll get it fresh to your inbox.  If only everything in life was that simple!

Are you wondering about the title of this post, yet?  I like clever wordplay...in case you didn't know.  In this case, it refers to the fact that I'm a shake drinker.  No, not like Steak-n-Shake or those delightful concoctions Chick-fil-A whips up.  A good-for-you shake drinker.  Back in the day I loved Slim Fast and before my surgery I begrudgingly drank the very, very low carb and not too tasty EAS shakes.  Those are a thing of the past, though.  In the past year I've been a convert to Beachbody's (the creator of P90X) Shakeology.  Shakeology is great for you.  I drank the chocolate shakes for breakfast with almond milk diligently.  But Shakeology started to...I don't even know how to mince words here....make me gag.  Seriously, I had to choke it down.  It was totally a mind over matter battle and not even adding the little bit of peanut butter was helping anymore.  I can only attribute this to the fact that I could smell the greens in it.  I know...I'm weird.  I'm telling you, it's a great product but I couldn't do it anymore.  Thankfully, I sent the last unopened bag back (Beachbody has STELLAR customer service) and sent the barely used bag to my mother, who loves it now.  Not a day later, my former personal trainer and good friend sent me a package containing a sample kit of Body by Vi.  I was skeptical, to say the least.  The shake is Sweet Cream flavored, and I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to drink it after my Shakeology experience.  I. Was. Wrong.  I am in looooooove with this product.   My sample pack came with add-ins (little flavor packets with added health benefits) in chocolate, strawberry, peach, orange, and banana.  Other than the banana, which tastes a tad artificial, they are all delicious.  And now we've arrived at our destination.  I give you my first shake recipe, Peaches and Cream.

Peaches and Cream Shake

Ingredients

2 Level scoops of Body by Vi shake (or whatever kind you choose to use!)

1 peach, cut into slices, then halve the slices

1 cup of fat free milk (or your chosen kind)

ice - enough for your desired consistency

1 Peach Complexion Care BBV add-in packet (optional)

 Throw the whole shebang in your blender until it's the way you like it and drink up.  

Mine made enough to fill my cup twice.  That makes for a great breakfast if you ask me. 

Here's the best part: Calories (in the WHOLE thing) 254, Fat: 1g, Protein: 22g  

Yummy!

Before I share my next recipe with you, I have to share some "happy dance" inducing news.  You know I have a hate-dislike relationship with running.  You also know I'm running a 5K in September.  It's called Color Me Rad and I've got a group of friends running with me.  We're the Crayon Commandos.  I ran a 5K over a year ago for Girls on the Run, which I was coaching at the time.  My mom ran with me and I swore up and down I'd never run another.  I was miserable.  Apparently I'm a glutton for punishment.  But I saw the video for Color Me Rad and I just knew I had to do it. (See the video/sign up here.) Couple that with a Groupon sign-up deal and I was hooked in to doing it.  Also, it's not timed...and that's a big deal for me.  Plus...I love color!  And it looks fun!  (Seriously, getting me to say that is a huge feat...)  So I've been using the Couch to 5K app on my phone and I'm on week 3.  The happy dance news?  I ran this week using it on Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday.  Look at my average mile times: Tuesday - 18:06, Friday - 17:10, Sunday (today) - 16:16.  I'm kinda really excited looking at that.  Now I know that this week's intervals (w2r2w2r3) were somewhat easy and I'm scared of next week's, but when I look at what I accomplished in just 1 week of this, I just have to thank God.  I can't do it without Him.  This battle is purely mental, I know my body can do it, but my mind keeps saying no and to stop.  All you runners out there, how do you combat that?  

So there's your ...and Cardio part of today.  Onto carrots.  Yes, carrots.  My mom turned me onto the idea of carrot fries, and I've got a super easy way for you to make them!

Carrot Fries

Ingredients

1 bag cut carrot sticks (or cut them yourself, or use more bags if you want)

 Trust me: the bagged kind make this SUPER EASY.

 EVOO

seasoned salt

garlic powder

Optional: pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Open the bag of carrots and drizzle some EVOO in (I do about 1 TBSP).  Then shake in the seasoned salt (not too much, you don't want high blood pressure) and garlic powder.

That's the garlic powder you mostly see...NOT salt!

Seal the bag shut and shake it like a Polaroid picture until the carrots are evenly coated.  Then spread them in a layer on a baking sheet.  Mine is used precisely for this purpose.  I have others for my baking.

Moisture on pan is because I rinsed carrots before ingredients were added, it's not excess oil.

I sprinkle pepper on at this point.

Pop those beta carotene-filled nuggets in the oven for about 35 minutes.  They will still be slightly crunchy.  You can adjust as you'd like.  They won't look a whole lot different when they come out, just slightly smaller.

Voila!  Carrot fries!

I guess if you wanted to, you could dip them in ranch, but I like them plain.  I usually eat them as a side for a fillet of lemon-pepper tilapia.  Enjoy!

Things I (We) Love - Pinterest

I've spoken before of my love of Pinterest.  I'll share how this love started.  My friend, Kortnee Atkins, sent me an invite to Pinterest about a year ago.  My life has never been the same.  I'm not kidding.  I love to pin.  I have so many pins in my "Ms. Larese's Class" category that I've decided I need to undertake the arduous task of reorganizing them by subject for easy access.  Pinterest truly has digitized hoarding.

My friends and I are Pinterest addicts.  We pin so many things, and guess what?  We actually DO them.  Now that Kortnee no longer lives in the same state as us, we text and share our Pinterest successes (and failures).  Thank goodness for our iPhone iMessage.  The two other amazing ladies I've yet to introduce are Jennifer Lee, another teacher and friend, and Robin Hart, my very best friend and co-worker.  We were lucky enough to work together for 3 years in different capacities.  I think it's safe to say that we probably had more fun together than you're supposed to have at work.  Without further ado, I bring you our first Pinterest Project-Share.

Kortnee's Project: Subway Art

 For as long as I've known her, Kortnee has had this quote from Mother Teresa framed on her desk at school.  It's a great sentiment for teachers, and the world in general.  It's a great sentiment to instill in kids.  So what better choice for art in her new apartment?

Isn't it gorgeous?  She'd want me to tell you (or maybe not, as the case may be) that her Dad helped her make this.  Want to make your own?  Just follow the steps found here - where Kortnee got the idea from originally, which was on Pinterest. 

Robin's Project - Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

I want to start by telling you that Robin does not like crafts.  Robin thinks she's not good at being creative, but I can tell you that some of the best lessons we've ever taught have come from her creative brain.  It's true that she's way more left-brained than right-brained, but there's room in the logical for creativity.  So for those of you who identify with Robin, this is the cake for you!  It's easy-peasy and comes out very, very yummy.  She made it at the request of her husband for his birthday.  I ate a smallish piece and I'll tell you that I liked it a lot.  Here's what Robin's looked like:

 She said to me, "You know I didn't even get creative with the caramel."  Honestly, it didn't matter.  The caramel was sandwiched in between, too, and as it warmed up it gooified the piece you were eating.  The original pin for this cake is here. The "cake" is basically repeated layers of ice cream sandwiches, cool whip, and caramel.  Yummo. 
The lady who made it added chopped up Reese's Mini cups, but Robin thought (and I agreed) that just might be a little too much.  After tasting it, I think next time she should make it with crushed up Oreos.  I'm drooling just thinking of it.

Jennifer's Project - Classroom Door Decoration

Jennifer is moving to a new grade level in a new school this year (much to our dismay, we've had to split the fantastic foursome up).  One of my favorite things that a fellow teacher said about Jennifer is that "she just makes it look so easy."  It's true.  Here's her take on the pin:

Isn't that the coolest?  If you were a parent or a student, wouldn't you love to see that on the classroom door?  The original pinner's link isn't working, but if you have a Pinterest account you can click here.  You could customize this in so many different ways...fonts, colors, etc.

Andrea's Project - Tee to Workout Tank

If you read my previous post, you know I exercise.  I've got a ton of old t-shirts that are too big now and I really hate wearing t-shirts to workout anyway.  I much prefer a good tank top.  Hence, my project.  I've seen this project a bunch of different ways on Pinterest.  The first way I looked at is here.  It wasn't quite as detailed as I wanted, so my first try wasn't really that great.  In fact, that shirt is now cut into squares to use for dusting.  Then I found this one and I felt a lot better.  Here is my workout tank:

Excuse the cliched self-pictures in the bathroom mirror with the iPhone, but I'm single!  The shirt was a little loose on me before I did this, and I think that's just about right.  Especially if you want it to hang down lower.  I did not cut mine at an angle at the bottom like the second link shows.  It's super comfy and a way to upcycle all the shirts I really didn't want to give up because I love what they have on the front.  Bonus: Is there a t-shirt your husband or boyfriend wears that you hate?  Practice on it first! I recommend practicing on a shirt you don't mind ruining first no matter what.  Practice makes perfect! 

So there's the collective of our first Pinterest Project text message share.  Wanna share with the readers any projects you've been successful at recreating?  Email me or post below in the comments...I'd love to hear!

Guest Bloggers...and Cardio

When I first started to think about this blog, I considered calling it "Coffee, Kids, Cupcakes, and Cardio."  Then I figured that there may not really be an audience wanting to hear about my journey and my cardio.  But today, as I ran intervals (2m walk, 2m run, 2m walk, 3m run) I needed something to take my mind off of feeling like I was going to die, so I started pondering this blog.
When writing, we start by telling our kids to identify their audience.  So I identified mine.  It's mostly women, mostly people I know (at least right now), and mostly teachers.  Also, most of them are active.  So I thought, "You know what?  This blog isn't just about me!  There's someone out there who might like hearing about my journey!"  Then I had to humble myself.  You see, Beth Moore (if you don't know who she is, my friend, look her up.  She has changed my life in countless ways and she's one of the only people in the world whom I've never met, but I can honestly say, I LOVE HER) spoke to me last night when she said that our culture is "mass-producing narcissists." Are there truer words?  We live in an age where there are platforms for sharing ourselves that have created this idea that we are the most important person in the world.  Twitter is basically a place for a status update.  Facebook allows us to showcase the self that we want people to see. Are you still with me?  If so, thank you!

So where am I going with all of this?

I don't want people to think that I'm all about me.  I don't want people to stumble upon (maybe literally) this blog and think, "This chick is SO full of herself!  She thinks she's got the best cupcakes, the best classroom, drinks the best coffee, teaches the best children, and has the best friends and co-workers." (Ok, to be fair, the last two are absolutely, 100%, verifiable and true.)

Enter: The Guest Blogger.  Yes, ladies and gentleman.  Those co-workers and friends I rave about?  They exist.  And they're gonna get all up in your business on my blog.  They're going to share their stuff, from crafts to classroom, to their beautiful homes, to their opinions on the NFL and the Olympics.  Go ahead, ask me how that fits into "Coffee, Kids, and Cupcakes."  Go ahead....I mean it....ask!  If you've read the blog description on my sidebar, you'll remember I said that I was just using my "God-given prowess for technology to inspire others."  That's what it all boils down to.  I want to inspire others.  I want to share with you how my friends have inspired me or how they're inspiring others.  There's so much desperation in this world that I think we could all use a little inspiration.

Back to cardio. (That was a tangent, wasn't it?)  I've struggled with my weight my entire life, or at least as far back as I remember.  To make an incredibly long story short, I've lost about 65 pounds with diet and exercise, and I had Lap-Band surgery in 2006.  It's a journey I'm on.  It's a long journey.  It's a difficult journey.  I'm not whining, I swear.  I used to hate exercise.  Now, most days, I love it more than I hated it.  I'm still battling hating running...but I'm hoping I come around on that, too.  So I wanted to let you know that sometimes I'll blog about my journey towards a healthy life.  Think of it as my "Odyssey to Good Health."  Today I wanted to share something that I hope will make you laugh, or at least smile. (I'm convinced that we use 'lol' far too often.  I mean, are you really 'lol-ing' that much?)  On Pinterest (the tangent I could go on about Pinterest makes me giddy...future blog post!) I saw this and it made me laugh on the inside:

Source: Uploaded by user via Andrea on Pinterest

And that's right!  So for your laughing pleasure, I wanted to show you what a real woman looks like after a workout. Not some air-brushed, personally trained, fed-by-a-personal-chef woman.  Yeah.  Me. 

After Week 3, Day 3 of Couch to 5K

It ain't pretty!  This picture does not do justice to the fact that I was drenched.  In fact, I wasn't sure you'd believe that it wasn't a post-workout glow you weren't seeing, so I procured sweat evidence. I give you Exhibit A.

Wet stuff = sweat from me on the bottom of the treadmill...ew.

Pretty gross, huh?  But I did it, and I'm proud.  I hope you have a great weekend and that you do something that inspires you...even if it's float in a pool or dig your toes in the sand. 

Must Do, Catch Up, and May Do

If you've read my Twitter post, you know that I have something called Must Do.  I also have something called Catch Up and May Do.  For those of you crafty and with time (that's a huge distinguishing factor...I'm crafty, but I don't have time!)  you could make these yourself.  For those like me who only like to recreate the wheel as they choose, in steps Really Good Stuff.  If you don't know this company, go ahead and sit down after getting out your debit card.  They truly do make REALLY good stuff.  All the "stuff" we want as teachers but don't have the time to make.  Also, tons of stuff you didn't even know that you have to own for your classroom.  Go ahead, veer away from the blog for a couple of hours and visit them:
www.reallygoodstuff.com
Now, like all amazing products, the "Tasty Toppers" set is no longer available for purchase.  It would, however, be easy enough to recreate.  Here's how it looks in my classroom:

This isn't the best picture because I originally took it for my Graphing Question of the Day (also available from Really Good Stuff).  You can't see the May Do section, which looks like an adorable jar of mayo.  As soon as I'm back in my classroom in August, I'll take a proper picture for you.  The sections are divided by Mavalus tape, with polka dots.  You don't know it yet, but my whole classroom is done in polka dots.  Just wait until August!  

I use the Must Do section for work the students need to be completing right now.  Most of the time, it's where I write the current day's assignments.  Catch Up is a list of assignments that they may not have had time to finish earlier, or things that are ongoing.  You can see here that their Finish Me Folder is the number one thing on the list.  I have an "every paper has a home" policy in my classroom.  Incomplete papers or work in progress always goes in the Finish Me folder if we're off to resource or something else comes up that doesn't allow them to finish.  I teach inclusion third grade, so I also love this for my kids who get extended time on their assignments.  If I'm wondering why something hasn't been turned in, I just go to their Finish Me folder.  From there, depending on how much work is in the folder, I can shorten assignments, etc.  

May Do is where I list things that students can do when their work is completed.  If I list them for you now it won't make much sense, but as teachers I think we can all agree that we customize and tweak that list all the time. 

Through writing this post, I just realized I have tons more fodder for blog posts about all of the amazing items I've purchased from Really Good Stuff...

The Twitter Wall

Part of the purpose of this blog is to share all of the things I find (and actually do) on Pinterest.  If you're not addicted to Pinterest, I want you to seriously reconsider the meaning of your life.  Pinterest was created for people like me.  People who have all these fantabulous ideas floating around in our ol' noggins, but no notion of how to retrieve them and breathe life to them.  Behold the inspiring nature of wanting to do what someone else has already done.  Behold Pinterest. 

I saw this Twitter idea for the classroom on Pinterest.  I liked it, but the teacher there had it posted outside of her classroom.  As I'm in a "relocatable" that just wasn't an option.  BUT, using the back of the cubbies by my desk was an option.  I started by having a conversation with the kids about what social media is and how it affects their everyday lives.  As 8-9 year olds, they didn't really have a huge concept of social media, but they do know that their parents have facebook accounts and that some of them even have Twitter accounts.  I explained that in their lifetimes, they were going to be using the Internet and connectivity more and more to interact with others, and that by doing so, they were revealing little bits of information about themselves and how they interact with others.  They were intrigued about sharing themselves, but who isn't when you're 8?  I told them that our classroom way would be completely safe for them, because the only people that would see their "tweets" were our classroom family and other visitors to our room.  They were super excited! 

Some guidelines I set for them:
1.) Your tweet must include your username and your username must have your first name in it somewhere, so we know who you are.
2.) Every time you tweet, you must include the time which you are tweeting, including AM and PM. (This was a great way for me to keep them practicing telling time!)
3.) Your tweet had to be about something important to you.  It can't just be a statement like, "The sky is blue."  It has to somehow relate to you and your life, in or out of our classroom.
4.) Your tweet must fit on the sentence strip.  I explained that Twitter was more restrictive, allowing only 140 characters, and I only asked that theirs fit on the strip.  By the end of the year they were getting really creative.
5.) Emoticons are acceptable. (This was an addendum.  Little did I realize that my kiddos were quite familiar with emoticons.
6.) It's ok to respond to someone's tweet with your own tweet. (Another addendum.  There were adorable conversations and playful disagreements happening on the Twitter wall all the time!)
7.) You only get to tweet when all of your other "Must Do" work is complete.  (For an explanation on Must Do, I'll do a further post.)
8.) Sometimes Ms. Larese will ask you to tweet about something specific.  (This is the way that I did "Exit Slips.)  One of the best ways I did this (if I do say so myself) was after our cause and effect lesson.  I had the students write a cause above the dotted midline of the sentence strip and an effect below.  It was a great way for me to determine who "got it."  Plus, they were allowed to write about any cause and effect relationship that they wished.

There are lots of different ways to create your Twitter wall/board.  What worked for me was laminating neon sentence strips, then placing the 1-inch sized Velcro dots on the back.  I stuck the other side onto the wall and it made removing and replacing the tweets a breeze.  Students used dry-erase markers and the perfect small dry erase erasers from Kagan to update.

The VERY best thing that came out of this Twitter wall was the tidbits I learned about my students' lives.  I found out things about them I'd never have known before.  The best part - they were the ones who shared.  If you decide to create your own Twitter wall, please share how you use it!

The Birth of a Blog

"Andrea, you should TOTALLY start keeping track of all the things you do in your classroom!" And so began this journey...

I'm a third grade teacher and I ADORE my job. My students are the biggest blessing in the world to me. I love my colleagues, and I am supremely lucky to work with a group of the most creative, talented, and inspiring people on this planet. No really! You have to meet them. I'm humbled each and everyday. Many of my ideas came from or were adapted from things that they created. If so, I'll be making a note of it. I'm a firm believer in sharing what I've created, because so many wonderful veteran (not that I'm a veteran by any means!) teachers shared with me when I was first starting out. But this isn't just a blog about teaching. This is a blog about life from my little slice of heaven. I'm a baker, and I co-own and operate a cottage cupcake business with my two best friends. Sometimes I'll share our recipes, but more often than not, just pictures. We've got to keep some of our trade secrets, well, secret! My hope is that this blog will inspire you to be creative, to adapt things to fit your classroom, kitchen, and life, and that you'll leave with a smile on your face. So pull up a chair, pour another steaming mug of coffee (I'll take a Venti iced coffee with sugar-free Cinnamon Dolce syrup and half/half, please!) and start reading!