So I Did Just a Little TpT Shopping…

And by little, I mean a lot. 

And I LOVE everything I bought! {Click the images below to head straight to the TpT Stores of the awesome sellers}

To keep me sane in December:


Left to Right: Chankyra, A Year of Many Firsts, and Queen of the First Grade Jungle


And to Jazz up my own products:


Left to Right: The 3am Teacher and Creative Clips {Krista Wallden}

I am so, so, so happy with my purchases!! No shopper’s regret for this gal!

And thank you to everyone who scooped up something from our shop!  We very much appreciate it!

That’s about all the the energy I have for tonight!

Have a good weekend, friends!

~Halle

We’ve Got Christmas Covered! {Plus, a Christmas Reader FREEBIE!}

So perhaps you’ve heard there’s a little HUGE sale coming up…

Adorable button courtesy of Ashley at The School Supply Addict

I am so excited.

It’s the most wonderful of the time of the year.

My cart is stocked and ready to go come Cyber Monday.

And I sure am hoping someone hosts one of those linkies where we all brag about those good deals we found!

And…if you’re looking for good {Holiday-Themed} deals, we’ve got you covered.

I’ve been battling a cold all Thanksgiving weekend, but I somehow managed to put the finishing touches on a few holiday units.  I am so excited about them.  Maybe you’ve seen them on TpT, because while I’ve managed to post to our store, I haven’t gotten around to showing them off yet.

Won’t you please allow me to do that now?

Thank you. 

I promise there’s a reward at the bottom.

Here’s what we’ll be working on starting Monday:{Click cover pages of all units to head to TpT}



We’ll start off by reading one of my most favorite Christmas books ever, “Olive, the Other Reindeer”.

Then, we’ll brainstorm other animals that could guide Santa’s sleigh {you know, in an emergency}



After a good brainstorming sesh, we’ll get started on our bulletin board display, and write why our animal is the best pick for Santa.  I am so excited to see how this turns out!

I must have high hopes for Monday, because we’ll also be starting our classroom Secret Santa.

No, not that kind of Secret Santa.  We won’t be buying presents for our friends.  We’ll just be giving them a huge case of the “Warm and Fuzzies”.



See, once a week, leading up to Christmas Break, we’ll be sending secret messages to our friends and classmates, letting them know just how special they are!



They’ll be using a different prompt card every week.  I cannot wait to see how they do with this.  I’m predicting spontaneous smiles from ear to ear over the next few weeks!
We’ll also be starting our new holiday math centers.  This is the first time I’ve made math centers, but I’ve been dying try my hand at them, and all that adorable Christmas clip art out there provided the perfect opportunity!







I created centers for place value, odd and even numbers, arrays, number stories, number sense, and addition/subtraction.  I’m about halfway through cutting them, hoping my student teacher will help me with the rest!

Last, but certainly not least, Jenna and I teamed up on a “Holidays Around the World” unit. 



This one is a biggie.  My frustration with teaching Christmas around the world was always the lack of literature and children’s books centered around the subject.  I used the book, Christmas Around the World by Mary D. Lankford in the past, and although it was very informative, it was just a page per country with one illustration, and it didn’t really hold my kiddos’ attention.

So, I had a lightbulb moment!  Create books for each country!





Our Holidays Around the World unit has an interactive reader for each holiday/country taught.  Many of the pages are interactive {ex: draw the presents Ana might receive under the tree} to keep students engaged.



There are simple extension activities for each country, as well as airline tickets, a passport book, itineraries, maps…everything you need to take a trip around the world!










Countries and Holidays Covered in Our Unit:
Christmas in Scandinavia {Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland}
Christmas in Germany
Christmas in Italy
Christmas in France
Christmas in Australia
Christmas in Africa
Las Posadas in Mexico
Christmas in the USA
Kwanzaa in the USA
Hanukah in the USA
Christmas in The North Pole

We are really hoping our students get a whole lot more out of our Holidays Around the World unit this year.  We know we will!

As a reward for scrolling down to the bottom of reading this post, we’re offering up one of our interactive readers for FREE :)

It’s our North Pole Reader.  Its included in our unit, but its here FREE for you today :)

Click the picture to grab it!

Thanks for reading friends!

Now get shopping :)

~Halle

Stuffed with {MORE} Thankful thoughts….

On this bitter cold Sunday night, as I sit here with my hunnie, surrounded by my numerous forms of technology ( iPad, laptop, school tablet), I can’t help but also join in the sharing of all the things to be thankful for…

    

1.)  First, I am thankful for my best friend and love of my life, Anthony. I couldn’t ask for a better boyfriend. He is so loving and supportive and listens to me whenever I need him. ( And I LOVE to talk) He bends over backwards for me and always goes along with some silly things I want to do. I truly don’t know what I would do without him.
  
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2.) My Parents, I could easily argue with many people that I am the luckiest girl in the world when it comes down to parents. I have the greatest parents EVER. They have always been behind me and supported me through all of my adventures in life.(Even when I decided to move to Hawaii) They are two of the most kind, caring, and compassionate people on this earth and I am truly blessed to have them as my parents. They are selfless and would do anything for anyone, I don’t know many people like them. I am a true Daddy’s girl at heart, but Big Deb is my best friend. I’m an only child, so needless to say I was (am) SPOILED!

3.) Nanny and Pop, Want to talk about some major cuties…here they are! I am beyond lucky to have my Nan and Pop in my life still. Pop is 86 and Nan is 84. They are TRUE old Italians that believe the more the merrier. As a child, when my parents were at work, I was taken care of by Nan and Pop. My bond with them continues to grow stronger each day. We spend many Sunday mornings at the diner then off to the mall shopping or stopping for coffee. They have 8 grandchildren, but everyone knows that I’m their favorite :) 

 

 

 4.) Hawaii: I am thankful for the opportunity to live in beautiful Hawaii. It was an unbelievable experience that has forever changed my life. It is the most gorgeous place in the world and thousands of people vacation to the place I was so fortunate to call home. It truly is my happy place.

5.) Kaimana: I am SO thankful for this handsome little guy. He is the sweetest little bud and SO smart. He knows when I’m sad and can always make me feel better. Even though he didn’t make the big move to the city with us, he is still one of the most important people ( I said it..) to me. He has truly made me come to realize that I think I like animals better than dogs!

    
6.) My Best Friends: Over the years I have lived many places and had many jobs..due to this I befriended many people. Some I have lost touch with, others I could not imagine my life without. Between high school, college, living in London and Hawaii, and numerous jobs along the way I have developed a few circles of people I would not be able to live without. My girlfriends keep me sane and help me survive those times when I need them. I can’t think of anything they wouldn’t do for me, or I would do for them.
 
7.) My Grade Partners: I wouldn’t want to imagine not having these two amazing, inspiring, supportive ladies as my grade partners. They are not just my colleagues, but have become two of my very best friends. They see me ( and deal with me) in my craziest moods. They help me and listen when I just want to complain. They make me laugh, and laugh at me. They are two of the best teachers that I know and have taught me so much. I am truly thankful for them, more than they know! 


 
8.) LIFE:  I am thankful for life and the opportunities I have been given. I truly am one very lucky girl.  I have been blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life. I am thankful for my amazing family, sports, surfing, the beach, teaching, COFFE, Hawaii FIVE –0 and MAC Lipgloss {guilty pleasure} I am thankful to have a camera to capture LIFE’s most important moments. I am thankful for the ability to run every day and wake up next to the one I love.


I will leave you on that note, sorry for the 900 pictures, but I love taking pictures..they remind you of the good times you have to be thankful for.
Take the time not only this week, but more often to think of all the reasons you are thankful and how lucky you are, I know I am going to!
 
Have a great Monday!
- Jenna

So Thankful that I’m Stuffed {an excuse to show off my wedding pics!}

Happy Sunday!

I’m spending mine surrounded by pumpkin spice candles {literally, I have 5 lit right now}, and hammering away on a TpT unit or three.

I’m joining the thankful party over at “A Year of Many Firsts” with lots of other fabulous ladies {and a gentleman or two} who have lots to be thankful for.


Just like me.

Oh, and PS, I'm using this as a way to show off some of wedding pics that have finally arrived!

1} I am so, so, so thankful for my husband. 



Can you believe he actually listens when I tell him about Linky Parties and my TpT sales?  He is loving, loyal, dedicated, funny {so funny!}, hard-working, generous, a good dancer, and just so much fun to be around.  Oh, and he’s handsome too.



2} I am thankful for my mom.



I am thankful for my whole family, don’t get me wrong.  But my mom has become one of my very best friends.  She is the most supportive person in my whole life, she always knows the right thing to say, she is kind, she is artistic and creative, sensitive, beautiful, and the absolute best mom ever.  She is such a role model for the kind of mom I hope to be someday.

3} I am thankful for Georgie



You’re either an animal person, or you’re not, and I so definitely am.  I love all the pets furry family members I’ve had in my life, but Georgie is on another level.  She is the sweetest thing I have ever met.  Every.single.person that comes across her path falls in love with her.  She brings so much joy to our little home.

4} I am thankful for my friends



I know, I know. “How big is your wedding party?!?!,” is what you’re thinking right now.  But truth be told, I couldn’t be happier to “have” to include so many awesome ladies in my big day.  I was born and raised in Ohio, and I have friends as far back and 3rd grade {longer when you include my cousin Louise} that I still consider dear, dear friends of mine.  And lucky me, when I moved to NJ, I formed such special bonds with my friends here.  My friends are at so many different points in their lives {some are mommies, some are career ladies, some are living the single life and LOVING it!}, and they are spread out throughout the whole country .  They all bring a different “specialness” to life.  And they are all a RIOT!  Seriously. Love you all!

Bonus Picture: I had to show off these adorable robes!  That’s my younger {much taller} sister on the right!

4} I am thankful for my grade partners

Boo. Hiss. I’m not in this picture, but they both look so cute here, I had to share it.  Our relationship goes beyond a working one, they truly are two of my best friends.  Let’s face it: teaching can be TOUGH these days.  They keep me sane.  And they both make me laugh. A LOT!

5} I am thankful that I am fortunate.

Dave & I in Lake Tahoe…so, so, so beautiful!

I am thankful that I am fortunate to be healthy, to have enough money to do many of the things I want to in life, to be surrounded by good people who love me so much, to have a job that fits me to a T, and so many other things.  I recently started a gratitude journal.  I write down three things I am thankful for each night before I go to bed.  It is so easy to get caught up in the stress of everyday life, and to think about all the things we want, but can’t have.  In reality, I am a lucky, lucky, girl.  And I want to remember that.

6} I am thankful for cheeseburgers.

This cheeseburger was one of my top 5…Yountville, CA 2012 :)

I’m fully aware that cheeseburgers aren’t on the same level as everything I’ve listed above, but seriously they’re so darn good. {Need cheeseburger recommendations in Philadelphia, South Jersey, SC, CA, NV, or OH?  Email me!}  I am also thankful for coffee, leggings and big sweaters {please stay in style forever!!!}, my computer, Teachers Pay Teachers, Parenthood {the TV show}, my students, My Mac {who’s cuddling me despite the fact he didn’t get s singular shout out like Georgie did}, good wine, and beautiful scenery.

And about a million other things.

I leave  you with my fireplace mantle, and a deep thought ;)

Now go be thankful, friends!

~Halle