Wednesday Link Up

  

So, I'm a little late to the party, but I thought I'd link up with Katie from Queen of the First Grade Jungle for:

PS Looks like Katie hasn't posted yet...this is last week's link and not an official link-up.  Boo.

 

Week 3  

This is my 3rd week of vacation so Katie and I are not quite in sync.  Although I have not been very good at making progress size-wise, I think I have done a pretty good job becoming more active.  I am active for 50-60 minutes four times a week, which is double what I was doing when school let out in June.

I enjoy Pilates classes, Zumba, weights and cardio at the YMCA, and walking (usually around town at the touristy spots or the beach). Usually one of each per week.

My walk on Monday evening was at beautiful Balboa Park. I was hoping for a sunset shot but the clouds rolled in about an hour before I got there.

I also wear my Fitbit daily but since I have been in my swimsuit lately and it can't get wet, I am down on steps this summer.  I am frustrated with this because although I enjoy lounging around and reading tons over the summer (and jumping in the pool in between) I HAVE been more active.  Also, Pilates and weights don't count as steps--you actually have to be "stepping"!

My goal next week is to tell you all that I have kept better track of my food intake and made a negative weight change.  I am hoping that this link-up will make me more accountable.  I am not competitive so I'm not a big fan of "challenges" but if you want to be a Fitbit friend, I am willing.  :)  Here's to a healthy week!

A Little Motivation for a Monday

Okay, so I am motivated today!  This will be my third week of summer vacation. My daughter was in a theater performance that kept us pretty busy the first week, and last week my husband was also on vacation, so we enjoyed ourselves around town both as a couple and as a family.  That was very nice, but it is time to mix some business with pleasure.  The weather in San Diego has been all over the place so far, too! Weird! My summer is pretty short, and my current hole is pretty deep (so to speak)!  I did spend one day in my classroom last week, cleaning up some piles and putting stuff away, but I need to spend more time in there AND here at home.

So today my goal was to clean off my desk.  I wish I had taken a "before" picture so you could really see what a disaster I had to deal with; but doesn't it look nice now? I even detailed my computer--looks like brand new!  I went through several piles of papers and put things in their place--including a LARGE stack of school work that I reorganized because I want to put them into binders.  Now I just need to decide how to subdivide those binders!

I also am the "keeper" of a few iPads that will be shared with my team when we go back to school.  The devices are "hand-me-downs" from the 5th grade team, who has one-to-one devices all day long.  Having recently received a MS in Educational Technology, I am a believer in one-to-one and using them in a variety of ways through the school day, but I will take my small group set once a week and smile. That is likely all we will get for quite some time.  I am not jealous!  Anyway, the devices are loaded with apps that are not necessarily appropriate for my primary students, so I have previewed their content and am prepared to make recommendations on what needs to be added and removed when we return.  I have also been scouring my brain, Pinterest, and previous coursework to find and develop lessons to use right away with my kiddos.  In the process, I have decided to write a grant on Donor's Choose to request another set of six (then I will have one-to-three; ideally, I'd love to have 2 students per iPad).  I have not finished my request but I am developing my proposal and I'll share when I finish.  In the meantime, I am open to any suggestions you may have as to lessons, apps, or even management with second graders.

I also finished a smutty romance novel (what else is summer for!), lounged by the pool for a bit, and enjoyed a sunset power walk in Balboa Park.  All in all, I'd say it was a productive day!

Currently

OK, OK, I know it is already the 18th and I'm late to the party, but I am trying very hard to post more often and there has not been much going on in my classroom this last week.  Why not hook up with Farley for January Currently???

So...
I am listening to my husband watching one of those cop hidden camera shows, which I ususally don't like since I have loved ones in law enforcement.  They face so much crud each and every day!  People, just do what you are told and be polite--these are people with families, just like you, trying to keep everyone safe and do their job!!
That was my PSA for the day, sorry, and yes, I know there are "bad" cops out there, just like there are "bad" teachers, but it is not the norm!

Loving that I have one more day to the weekend (and I'm taking Wednesday off for my daughter's conferences--this week should fly by!

Thinking that I'm glad to be getting some school work done with a whole day left in the weekend, though I'm taking a bit of a break to write this.

Wanting pizza for dinner, but my husband is on some whacka-doodle diet, so that's not likely.

Needing to clean off more of this mess that I call a desk.  I even thought about posting a picture for you, but that would have been too embarrassing!

Yes!  I am slowly but surely making some organizational progress.  I am currently living a life of clutter, but I am working on it!
Maybe I should grade some tests I have procrastinated about since before the holidays next so I can check that off my list, too.
I wish I had a Fairy Godmother to wave her magic wand and instantly meet all of the goals I have set for this year personally and professionally.  Wouldn't that be nice?

I'm looking forward to some fun with my class next week for MLK day even though I have students who don't celebrate holidays.  I purposely plan our Long Ago & Today unit around February to catch those holidays within history education.  I am motivated by having seen Selma this afternoon!
Enjoy your weekend!

New Year, New Plans

Well, we are now a week into 2015 and, I figure, among all of my other goals for the year, I better write a post!   There's no better time than now to link up with Art with Jenny K. and give you a peek into myself and my blog!

I first had a wild hair to start a blog the summer after I enrolled in grad school for Educational Technology.  My thinking was that I may need to begin a blog as part of an assignment so I wanted to get ahead of the game; and of course I was going to start with a BANG!  Needless to say, I never needed a blog for class...

I actually started out with a blog design that I liked from The Honey Bunch.  I chose one from their premade designs, one that no one else would have.  As a native Southern California Girl, the sunshine was perfect, the colors were all me,  and the little accents were super cute!  Erika did a great job, don't you think?  I loved the look of the design and the price was reasonable for what I thought I would use it for.  So I thought for a while about a clever name that would go well with the sunshine and made a decision to purchase this little cutie!

The title of my blog comes from beginning a master's program and continuing teaching (at the time, my 17th class), as well as a wife and mother of two girls--a teen and pre-teen.  What was I thinking?! Thus, Me & my Bright Ideas!

I am My home and classroom are still recovering from trying to stay afloat during my classes.  This is the year I will get it all back together!  It might take some time, but I will conquer the disarray eventually.  I also intend to keep up with this little blog more.  I am very proud of receiving my Master's Degree last May and managed to complete the program with straight A's--something I never imagined I could do! 

Currently

I am linking up with Farley over at Oh Boy Fourth Grade today.  I've always wanted to join her Currently.  It has been a crazy busy beginning of the year and this Currently is an excuse to write a blog post, so here it is:

Listening to the TV.  My lovely husband, mentioned below, was watching TV and left it on after dinner--I just came in the living room to work, but I'm not actually watching the Colbert Report.  But they are talking about the people angry about other passengers leaning back their seats...I just have to say, COME ON! Like anyone is comfortable on a plane for hours?!  Be respectful!  Anyway...

Loving the fact that hubby is doing the cleaning up after dinner, even if I am left to watch TV I don't like.  :)  Thanks, babe!

Thinking that I have bunches of things to do.  So much so, I don't know where to start!  I have got to get it together!

Apparently my car of 5 years, needs some major repairs...I had coveted my Volvo XC90 for a LONG time, so when it was time to get a new vehicle, I could only afford a used one.  We traveled to Orange County from San Diego one night after work to get the color I wanted with low miles, only two years old, what a hassle that night was! But it was the car of my dreams and I LOVE it!  Now it needs very costly repairs that may exceed the value of the car...my husband suggests it may need to be replaced by something else...NOOOOO!  Let's hope this adventure ends well.

I need to get myself organized!  I've been at math adoption meetings for two days instead of my classroom and have plenty to do.  You should see my "office" at home, its a disaster!  I just don't want to tackle it.  And, see above "Thinking" section.  No explanation needed here.

Finally the three trips.  I have always wanted to visit Europe.  I'm not sure exactly where, but probably Paris or England.  Who knows, one day...   I have a photographer friend who took some gorgeous photos of Antelope Canyon in Utah.  This may be our next family trip:

 photo credit:  Pat Sanford

As for Riviera Maya, that one is IN THE WORKS!  Whoohoo!  only 29 days until my husband and I take this trip for our 20th anniversary-no kids!  We can't wait!  Don't worry our school district has a modified year round schedule.  October is the best time to take a vacation!  Too bad my older daughter has a different high school schedule, so no more fall family vacations.  

Well, that's my currently.  Hopefully that will launch me into regular blog posts from now on.  ;)

Five for Friday Linky

Oops, I fully intended to post this yesterday but time got away and so I'm doing it now, forgive me for my tardiness.

I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday.  Five random things from my (mostly) uneventful week:

This week started by taking my older daughter to camp.  It is a great week of fun and fellowship at church camp in our local mountains.  We pick her up tomorrow and send the younger one on Sunday.

I spent A LOT of time on the creation of my plan book.  That was an amazing undertaking and, frankly, I'm quite proud of myself!

So I did have an anxious day on Thursday.  The unthinkable happened!  I spilled water on my very expensive 4 month old iPhone!  You will not believe the craziness that led to the purchase of this unlocked iPhone, that in the end cost us about $800!  Then I had a spill, and got some message about an incompatible device and it is not even plugged in to anything!  I dried it off as best I could, threw it into bag of rice, and rushed it off to the emergency room Apple store.  There is a happy ending, although it did come into contact with water, there was not water in the phone and it works fine now--phew!

The family enjoyed a fun party in the park hosted by our orthodontist.  With two kids in braces we definitely deserve pay back patient appreciation and this guy is no slacker on the party scene!  There is plenty of pizza and drinks, wandering magicians, a variety of inflatable fun, a rock climbing wall, Schwann's ice cream, face painters, balloonists, and prizes!  What a day!

OK so this is a work in progress...I had an extremely tall pile of papers to file by the end of the year. And, trust me, there are plenty more piles!  Somehow I decided with the adoption of the Common Core to change the way I file!  I am going to transfer them to binders.  I started with Katie's post here and then decided binders would work better.  So I took the pile home and got this stack organized-not too bad now, right? I realize that there is no way I'll get the entire job done this summer, so I have good intentions to go get another stack from my classroom that is relevant to the beginning of the year, and then continue the rest throughout the year, as I go. Wish me luck!

I did it!

After about a week of work and some tutorial help from Teacher to the Core, The 3am Teacher, and this YouTube video by Tori from Tori's Teacher Tips, I have created my first "TPT Product"-although I have no plan to actually sell it on TPT--my very own Plan Book!  I actually completed it late last night but didn't post until today.  Since it was completed yesterday, I think it is worthy of a link up with Tara for Made it Monday.

 Here it is.  It fits me, my personality, and I'm going to use all of it!  I plan to have it printed in full color at Staples or Kinko's on thicker paper, not quite cardstock, and keep it in a 3-ring binder.  Unfortunately I have to wait until we return to school to add the finishing touches with my class info, and anything else I need from our new principal such as dates and things.  It includes over 40 unique pages of not only a plan book that fits my schedule (in four colors), a calendar, birthday chart, class list, parent information, a contact log, volunteer information, etc. I can't wait! And boy...did I learn a lot in the process!

Special thanks to:  

for digital papers

for frames

for clip art