It's Monday.....and it's random! :)

Don't say I didn't warn you!

1.  We have deer in our backyard!  Five in fact and it is just about the coolest thing ever!  You would think I had never seen a deer before by how I react every single time if they appear.  I'm rushing to find my camera and tiptoeing out onto the deck to see if I can snap some good pictures.  My roommate just rolls her eyes and says "you city people!"  Whatev......I think they're cool! :)

2.  I got "surprise" money on Thursday last week.  I say surprise because I was expecting it but not until August.  Have ya'll ever filed for renter's credit before?  If not, I HIGHLY suggest it!  It's like receiving free money from the government!  Anywho, it's not supposed to come until August but apparently the state of Minnesota is trying to stay on top of things and sent it early!  Thank you Minnesota!  I'm sure you're wondering what I did with said money......well this girl headed off to the MOA on Saturday and SPENT some of it!  Is there anything prettier than the following picture?

3.  This morning did NOT start out the best for me!  (don't worry, it has since turned around).  Already running late (what else is new?!), I ran into my bedroom to finish getting dressed for work.  After throwing on pants, socks and shoes, I went to put on my shirt.  Thank goodness I glanced in the mirror because that's when I saw THIS:

I washed it this weekend and apparently this happened.  It's like this perfect circle of stickiness with lint all over it!  Any ideas of how to remove it would be greatly appreciated!

4.  Dancing with the Stars is on tonight!  Can't wait to settle down with a glass of vino and watch some dancing! :)

5.  I discovered this weekend that Diet Coke makes me break out.  And I mean bad!  It's like a full-blown teenager.  About a month ago I discovered a new affinity for diet coke and ironically, it was about that time that I started breaking out.  I tend to break out around the time of my monthly so at first I figured it was just that.  But after weeks of it not clearing up, I started to look at what I had changed in my life.  I never thought of diet coke because let's face it, who would automatically think of that?  Well this weekend it finally crossed my mind and I haven't drank the stuff since.  Surprise, surprise....my face is finally starting to clear up!  Apparently the aspartame in diet coke can cause break outs.  Who knew?  Anyway, it's back to Dr. Pepper and Cherry Pepsi for this girl!

6.  Check out these mini-giraffes!  Okay so my cousin sent this link out on facebook and I just had to click it to see if they were real!  Supposedly they aren't but these petite lap giraffes are still about the cutest things I have ever seen in my life and I wish they were real!  I love giraffes to begin with and pretty much anything in tiny version is amazing (well, except chocolate.....and money.....and okay, well any animal in miniature form).  But I love that you can watch them on the giraffe cam!  Real or not, you have to check them out! :)

And I think that is about the end of my random post!  I hope everyone had a good weekend!  Go make some dinner, pour yourself a glass of wine and settle in to watch a little DWTS.  I know that's what I'll be doing! :)

Glitter and Rhinestones and DANCING.......

OH MY!!!

That's right!  Tonight was the premier of Dancing with the Stars!  Man, oh man, am I excited!  Let's talk some dancing shall we?

First off, WHAT was with Brooke's dress?  The bow (or whatever that thing was) on her hip was just rediculous!  Maybe it would have worked for an awards show such as the Oscars, but it definitely did not work for her tonight. 

The rest of the show was pretty good though!  Initially I was disappointed to hear who the cast was but after watching the first episode, I think it's still going to be a great season.  There are quite a few celebrities who have potential to do well at this!  Sugar Ray, Hines Ward and Ralph Macchio had a pretty great night and I was shocked to see that Kirstie Alley was actually pretty good!  Ms. Wendy Williams surprised me with how timid she was!  I expected that with her larger than life personality she would bring some fun to her dance.  Instead, she seemed to just bring the fear! :)  Still, it's looking like it's going to be a fun season.  I like that there's no real front-runner the first week in!

Oh, and did anyone else see Lindsay Lohan in the audience?  I might be wrong but I swear it was her sitting in the back across the isle from Chloris Leachman.  Perhaps she's trying to change her image? ;)

Those Pesky Leprechauns!

One of the best parts of being a teacher is creating magic for the kids.  Holidays are a fabulous opportunity for this and with today being St. Patrick's Day, well, let's just say......

magic was made!

A couple of my kiddos created a leprechaun trap today before heading off to school.  They were so excited and spent about 2 hours working on it!  At this point, while I was impressed with their ability to stick with an activity for that long, I was a bit skeptical on whether or not they really believed the leprechauns were going to come.  I mean, these are third and fourth grade boys.  Who don't believe in the tooth fairy.  Or the Easter Bunny.  Or even Santa.  But, realizing that at the very least I'd be able to make some magic for my younger students, I upset the trap, stole all the pennies being used as 'bait' and sprinkled green and gold glitter.....on my carpet. (I should insert here that I have a love/hate relationship with glitter.  I love how it can complete a project but I absolutely HATE the mess it creates!)  I also typed up a little poem from the leprechaun himself.

When my kindergarteners got back from school they were, as I expected, very excited to see that a leprechaun had been in our room.  As my older students started to trickle in, they were pretty excited too.  Then I went to pick up the boys who had built the trap.  They were hardly even on the bus before asking about the trap and when they got back, were so excited to see that they had almost caught a leprechaun.  I think what shocked me the most was when their parents came to pick them up, they just had to tell them all about the trap!  (the best part was the looks on the parent's faces as they tried to figure out how on earth their child really believed that a leprechaun was real!)

And I have to say, the treat the 'leprechaun' left was delicious!

Our version of a

"Shamrock Shake"

1 scoop vanilla ice cream

Sprite (add extra food coloring to make it more green)

Whipped Cream

Gold (or rainbow) sprinkles

The best part of the day? 

"Ms. Jessica, you always make things so much fun!" ~ 2nd grade girl

Don't you just love holidays? :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

What I'm Loving Wednesday.....

Well today marks the halfway point of the week and what better way to celebrate than with a little WILW fun?  Head over to this kind of love to link up if you haven't already!

{ I'm loving }

Last night's episode of Glee!  I didn't get a chance to watch it until today since I work Tuesday nights but it was well worth the wait!  The original songs were awesome!  

{ I'm loving }

That my tax money has been deposited into my checking account!  Time to do a little shopping!

{ I'm loving }

This glorious weather.  It is supposed to get to 52 degrees today and I. AM. THRILLED!!!  Now if it could only stay like this!

{ I'm loving }

The new Essie nail polish that I bought at Target last night.  I went in looking for the color Emily wore on The Bachelor after falling in love with it on Monday night.  Apparently I was not the only one who fell in love with it though....it was sold out!  I settled for the color 'ballet slippers' and I think I love it just as much! 

{ I'm loving }

That I made plans with my friend Katie this weekend!  I seriously have not seen this girl since the beginning of December and that is entirely too long!  Her birthday was back in January and we STILL have not had a chance to celebrate! 

{ I'm loving }

As always, I'm loving my family, friends and my fav. kitty, Chloe! :)

What are you loving today?

It's on everyone's minds anyway so......

Let's take a few minutes to discuss The Bachelor!  First off, can I just say how thrilled I was that Brad chose Emily?  All season I had been pulling for her...I think it was the southern charm.  Anyway, going into last night I realized that either way, it was going to be a good outcome.  Either he would choose fun-loving Chantal (who I really did like) or Emily (who I loved).  It was win-win.  In the end, Brad sent home a very upset Chantal (did he really need to keep asking her if she was okay?  What did he expect her to say?!) and chose Emily.  Let's talk about Chantal's dress for a minute.  I LOVED IT!!!  After looking around a bit I found out it's by designer David Meister and will be released on their website for $570.  I WANT IT!  I guess it is actually green though it certainly looked black on tv.  I think I'd prefer it in black.  Anyway, if you missed it, here it is:

After the Final Rose was up next and we all found out just how jealous Ms. Emily is.  I have to say, I can imagine it would be really difficult to watch the show back and see your fiance with other women.  That being said, she had to realize this is The Bachelor and being with other women is the part of the show.  She also should look at how many times he pulled her aside and broke rules for her.  Just saying.  I mean the man is absolutely head-over-heels in love with her and has been for awhile.  I hope she can realize that soon and that they will be able to work everything out. 

I guess we can chalk this up to another successful season of The Bachelor.  Up next:  Dancing With the Stars!  I am so excited! :)

Sooooo, how've ya been???

Helloooooooo!!!!  Wow, it's been awhile since I've blogged!  It's not that I haven't wanted to......sometimes life just sorta gets in the way, ya know? 

Since I've last updated, I've won a blog award, spent four glorious days in Wisconsin with my family, gotten sick and realized just how much I hate housework! ;)  So let's start with the blog award and go from there!

A big thanks you to Kim from Pink, Pearls and Polka Dots for the Stylish Blogger Award!  I was so excited to see that I had won!  Make sure you check out her super-cute blog!

Here are the rules:

1. Link back and thank the person that gave you the award.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Award 5 recently discovered blogs.
4. Contact them and tell them about their award.

Here we go!

1.  You know the book Confessions of a Shopoholic?  Yep, pretty sure that book was written about me.  I absolutely L.O.V.E to shop and I am a firm believer in the power of retail therapy!  I can also justify just about ANY purchase.  Did I mention that I live approximately 8 minutes away from the Mall of America?  :)

2.  I've always been sort of a 'problem-child' for my parents.  When I was little, I had ten seizures before the age of four believed to be caused by extremely bad ear infections.  Fortunately, I outgrew these and had three sets of tubes put in my ears to help with the ear infections.  I cannot even imagine how scary it must have been for my parents though to walk into a room and find me in the middle of a seizure!

3.  I have a cat named Chloe whom I absolutely ADORE!  My old roommate brought her home one day as a playmate for her other cat.  She quickly decided she didn't like Chloe though due to her 'spunk'.  I, on the other hand, fell in love with her.  When we parted ways as roommates she told me I could keep her and I cannot imagine life without her!  She recently got really sick and I thought I was going to lose her.  Fortunately, she got better and is back to being her 'full of life' self!

4.  If I had to choose two foods to live on for the rest of my life I would choose popcorn and mac & cheese hands down!  I'm a bit picky about my mac & cheese though.  It has to be Kraft brand and as crazy as this is, I love the shaped ones.  You know, the ones that look like Spongebob, Toy Story or Scooby-Doo characters.  I swear they taste different from the regular mac & cheese.  Don't judge me! :)

5.  I almost always have a 'to-do' list that I'm working on, though I call it my 'goals' list (that way, if I don't accomplish something, I don't feel quite as guilty!).  On busy days when I have a ton to get done, I'll add simple things like 'shower,' 'get dressed,' and 'put on makeup' to the list.  That way by the time I've finished getting ready for the day, I'll already have been able to cross off a bunch of things I need to do that day.  Crazy?  Probably, but I love the feeling of accomplishment when I get to cross something off!

6.  My favorite tv shows are Glee, Dancing with the Stars, Modern Family and The Bachelor.  LOVE THEM!

7.  I graduated college almost four years ago and have been looking for a teaching job ever since.  In the past four years, I have applied for over 900 positions and gotten...are you ready for this?  ONE INTERVIEW!  While this is incredibly frustrating, I know I will be a good teacher and I'm not giving up!  I WILL find a teaching job!

I'm not sure who has already received this award but I'm passing it onto:

Ashley

Halee

Deviled Megs

Jessica

Katie

If you haven't checked out their blogs yet, you definitely should!  Thanks again to Kim for the award! :)

What I'm Loving Wednesday.....

It's Wednesday again and that means it's time to link up with Jamie for a little WILW fun!

Here's what I'm loving today:

I'm loving that although it is only Wednesday, today is my THURSDAY!  One more day of work and then I have the next FOUR DAYS OFF!!!  This is one EXCITED chica! :)

I'm loving that it is Dr. Seuss week in my classroom!  We have been having all sorts of "Seussical" fun! 

Sneetch

Example of the Cat in the Hats we're making this week

Thing One with Truffla Trees in the background

Horton

I'm loving that I was able to buy a brand-new, never-opened copy of GLEE season 2 on e-bay for $20.  Target is currently selling it for $29.  Can we say bargain shopper?!?!

I'm loving that I get to see my parents and sister this weekend!  We're going to have a blast!

I'm loving Caribou Coffee campfire mochas.  I got one today simply because I decided I deserve one.  Which is exactly what I tell myself entirely too often.....apparently I deserve a lot! ;)

And, as always, I'm loving my friends, family and of course, Miss Chloe!

Happy Wednesday!

Out of the Mouths of Babes.....

My kiddos have said some of the funniest things in the past few days.  Sometimes I wish I could see into their little brains when they talk to see what they're thinking!  I really need to start saving these little quotes; they would make for a great book someday!

"Ms. Jessica, did you know I'm one-half German, one-half French and one-half Kolish?"

"You mean Polish?"

"Oh yeah...I'm so embarrassed!"

"Sometimes I talk sassy because she talks sassy to me!  And she says bad words!  Like the s-word, the k-word and the z-word!"

(I obviously knew what the s-word was and I figured the k-word was kill but I had no idea what the z-word was so I asked her)

"I don't know Ms. Jessica, but it's bad!"

"I'm in my element!"

Happy Tuesday everyone! :)