Let's Celebrate!

My list of favorite things about teaching grows each and everyday. Here's one of the things I love about being a teacher (put quite nicely by Todd Whitaker):

We all have the opportunity for this year to be whatever we want it to be. That is one thing that makes teaching so special. #IAedchat

— Todd (@ToddWhitaker) July 27, 2015

One of my goals for this brand-spankin' new year is to celebrate more. One way to celebrate more is with birthdays. We've all got them! Each one of my students deserves a day where they can be truly celebrated. 

Therefore, I present to you our birthday treats of room 52:

I made my schnazzy birthday tags with KG fonts, ribbon, and tasty kid-approved snacks. 

You can download your own copy of these birthday tags through Google Drive here.  

How do you celebrate in your classroom? 

Share with me! Help me reach my goals!

Skinny Peanut Butter Cheesecake

For my favorite guy's birthday, I made a Skinny Peanut Butter Cheesecake to celebrate his day of birth. I originally found the recipe on Nest of Posies website here. We both were craving an Oreo crust, so I made a few modifications to the recipe. 

Skinny Peanut Butter Cheesecake

 adapted from Nest of Posies

You'll Need:

• ready made Oreo pie crust
• 2 t of softened butter
• 8 oz fat free cream cheese
• 1/2 C Stevia
• 2 T of peanut butter
• 8 oz of lite Cool Whip
• 1 T mini chocolate chips for topping

Click here to follow Nest of Posies directions for making your yummy cheesecake!

Enjoy!

Sprucing up ABC Blocks

Anyone who follows my blog knows that I'm slightly obsessed with my niece and nephew. They are the peanut butter to my jelly. Before my nephew was born, I made him a baby blanket (with LOADS of assistance). I wanted to give Libby a handmade gift as well, but I wasn't sure what to create for her. On Pinterest, I stumbled upon an idea to spruce up baby blocks. Check it out here. I loved the idea of using Dr. Seuss images, but I wanted to make things a little more personal. Libby loves looking at pictures, so I put pictures of family members on the ABC blocks. Very personal and modge podged with love!

Before:

 After:

Heres'a close up of big brother BDE on the "B" block. 

To make the blocks, I downsized images of family members to fit on one side of the blocks. I put a layer of modge podge to glue the image down. After it dried, I put two more coats of modge podge on top of the image. I allowed for plenty of time in between coats. I didn't want the pictures to smudge. 

She was a big fan of the blocks at the party!

Let's just say, Libby was a big fan of everything at the party. Her mama is quite the party planner!

Have a great Thursday!

25

Do you hear that? Listen closely...

It's the sweet sound of the END of state testing! When school resumes tomorrow, things will go back to normal - well, as normal as they can be during the month of May. 

Last week I celebrated my 25th birthday. Are you familiar with the movie Miss Congenitally?  My birthday's claim to fame is a line from that movie!

(Pardon my screenshot from my iPhone - oops!)

Since it was my golden birthday, turning 25 on the 25th of April, my sweet boyfriend made me a golden cake to enjoy! It was even polished off with gold sprinkles. 

All day long I received lots of sweet messages, cards, and goodies from my friends and family. I was certainly spoiled on my birthday as well as the entire weekend. 

To round out the festivities, we celebrated with my family in my hometown. My cute (almost) 4 year old nephew was more than willing to assist in the candle department. 

... as you can see, I didn't quite think that one through. The look on my face, my Dad's face, and BDE's face cracks me up. 

Now that we're doing with the MAP test, my creative juices are flowing again. Tomorrow we're starting THREE brand new units in Social Studies, Communication Arts, and Science. For a few weeks, I felt like I was swimming in a pool of test prep - not anymore! 

Happy Monday :)