Keeping Up With Kirbys

Gosh!!  A day late......REALY?!, I'm sorry but I wanted to link up with Smitten with First to share my loves for this week but we will need to change it to Friday Love-day.   Ok, well I'm sure by now everyone is tired of hearing about my floors BUT seriously, I LOVE them and we did them ourselves.  It was haaaarrrrrdddd work. So I'm  loving .... my floors.  Aren't they cool?!?  It is actually tile. Okay the next thing I'm loving is...... SCRAPBOOK PAPER!!  I don't love this because I scrapbook because I don't.  I LOVE them because it is soooooo CUTE!  I love to use scrapbook paper to frame kids work or to cut letters from the die cut machine.  I laminate a class set and put them on my cabinets and in the hallway to display my kiddos work. This is so much easier than to redo an entire bulletin board (which I'm over).  I use to LOVE bulletin boards........but after years of teaching my passion for changing m...

I love to write with my kids but I always get nervous and question myself......... am I doing it right.?!  I think the most important thing in any new adventure, young or old, is praise! encouragement!! and more praise!!!  Writing is definitely an adventure for our kiddos (and us).  So I just want to say "You are doing a fantastic job!!"  Just wanted to share the way I organize my writing folders.  I have always had helpful parents that have volunteered to put these together at the beginning of each year. First, attach 2 three brad folders together.  This will allow the kids to have 4 pockets in their folder for the different processes of writing and their very own word wall in the middle.  Next, add your labels and word wall  templates.  Again, you can have a parent volunteer do this for you or you can allow the kids to cut and paste.  We make a big deal about our writing folders and the kids really feel like these are ve...

Oh, little blog, how I've missed you! ....and it's Monday Made It #4 with Tara                                                           I have truly taken on a project WAAAY bigger than me.  This little  project is now going on 2 weeks and after bruised knees, blisters on the palms, and sore muscles, we are ALMOST finished.  (yes, I said almost, it's still not done)  But it's going to be beautiful. This is the tile we've been laying in our house (almost entire house).  Isn't it beautiful??!!  This picture is without the grout but this little  project has kept me from blogging, properly feeding my children, doing laundry (I'm okay with this), and leaving the house. Summer Fun We found small smooth rocks in our neighborhood and after they were nice and warm from sitting in the sun we colore...

Well, this is my. very. first. linky. linkup. (GASP!)  It took my friend Michelle  to explain this to me.  really?! .......I was just kinda afraid I'd mess something up. BUT now that I've explained that this is my first time, I'm sure y'all will be forgiving.  right?  Obviously, I have been busy crafting but nothing for my classroom (soon....very soon, I will) so I thought, what a perfect linky to begin with.  I'm linking up with  Tara at 4th Grade Frolic This little craft is bitter sweet.  My lil' sass and I transformed her Disney Princess toy box (once again, i feel the need to explain our floor renovations....please excuse our mess) into a big girl storage chest.  A friend bought me some contact paper from TJ Max and that is what I used to cover the lid.  She LOVES it!   Okay in other news, our swimming pool motor blew up (smoke and all) on the very first Saturday we were out of school.  Geeezz!!--and it took...

What a wonderful summer Saturday.  First, me and lil' sass woke up early and went to a few  garage sales.  Well.......I actually knew a friend was having a garage sale so we went to hers.  ha!!  She probably didn't make any money, her HEART is so BIG she just kept giving stuff away.  Some of my fun finds that we added a little of our own sass to.  We added the cute tutu to sass up the trash can.    I think tutus make everything cuter......... Next, we sassed up this cute stool. Oh and yes, the Disney Princess' toy box is next......   Please excuse our floor renovation mess, hopefully soon we will have new floors but in the meantime let the crafting commence on the living room floor. (hahahaha!!) Play doh I have a confession.....I have a teacher crush on Babbling Abby  and while I was stalking  admiring her latest post I saw that she was making Play doh.  I LOVE to make Play doh BUT this was a little differe...

  I'm not sure if I had mentioned this in previous posts but the name of my blog was created by my Sweet and Sassy 8 year old.  Sooo fitting.... ;) Well, I've tricked my little sweet and sassy into reviewing her coins and adding money (without having to go shopping).  During my late night blog hopping I came across Hungry Hippo on  heathersfirstgradeheart.blogspot.com , too cute!!  Well, this got me thinking about a game that my daughter received this year, which is really too young for her UNTIL NOW.  Do you remember this........... I've changed a few things and now we are counting coins and buying cooties. (eeeeewwww!!)   Buying Cooties My sweet and sassy did a fabulous  job adding and subtracting money AND she beat me by completing her Cootie before me. After feeling so confident with her money, she decided to start her own lemonade stand in the driveway.  It's been a fabulous Friday!! 

Well......we have officially been out of school for a full week AND I have not started ONE school project BUT I've started several home projects.  I <3 home projects in the summer.  The first project I started was redoing the floors in our living room.  Originally I wanted to stain the concrete buuuutttt after watching at least 10 different how to videos me and the Mr. headed to Lowe's to schedule an apt.  I can't wait to share the after photos.  Right now we are rockin' a half-concrete/half-carpet living room.  It's making me crazy.  I'm assuming because I did not get the satisfaction of finishing this project I decided to start another one. Yikes!  Repainting our pantry and asking the talented Mr. if he would extend my shelving sounded perfect. I think he was more than happy to do this.  :)  This project became a family event and I think we all enjoyed it. During this little project I discovered my LOVE of vinyl.  OH ...

I'm a little embarrassed to admit to this but I have thought so much about my little blog since my first post.  Super silly, I know.  I just couldn't wait to share again and then to see that I have someone following..........gasp!!--makes it all the more EXCITING!! LOOK at this amazing little ??, well, I'm not actually sure what it is but as I was packing up the classroom yesterday someone asked me if I wanted it.  UUUMMMM.......yes!!  It is a treasure and I 'm soooo excited to do something with it.  One side is a cork board and the other side is a white board with shelves in the middle.  This looks sooo stinkin' fun!! -I would love to hear your ideas on how you would use this.  I'm going to be dreaming about this thing all summer.  ha!-the things that excite a teacher. :)