Currently for the New Year!

Welcome back! Evidently I have not blogged since the last day of November. Yikes! The holidays is a very busy time for school and home, but like I have to tell you!

I am starting the year with the newest edition of currently with Oh' Boy Fourth Grade.

Listening: I love hearing my family happy. The hubby playing video games, the kids playing nicely, together, and me sitting here typing getting to hear it all. These are peaceful moments that feel like heaven.

Loving: I LOVE coconut! I bought some coconut oil this week and got to thinking what I could do with it. Well, it helps make an amazingly tasty, aromatic Coconut Almond Granola. I posted a recipe I made up for it. 

Thinking: My list is gratefully pretty small. That just equals more time to play!

Wanting: As long as I reestablish my expectations, I think we can continue having fun and learning as normal when we return.

Needing: Granted, our house was not as bad as some friends Christmas morning, but after all the presents for the kids that had packaging, ties, wraps and things we put together ourselves, I could use a maid to come clean up, do some laundry, and maybe empty a trash can or two.

Tradition: This is our second year with an Elf on the Shelf. My daughter did not understand it as well last year as she did this year at 3. She would talk to him, remind her baby brother not to touch him so he wouldn't lose his magic, and let everyone know how sad she was he had to leave Christmas Eve but that he would be back next year at Thanksgiving. We loved this, and hopefully he comes back and sees us next year!

I cannot wait to read others' Currently and see what everyone else is up to! Have a great time back to school!

Thankful for time to create new activities and a sale!

It is already Wednesday, and I feel like I have gotten so much accomplished since school was out Friday.

So far, I have...

• created 3 new foldable/activity sets for our interactive science notebooks
• created 2 task card sets
• created 3 holiday think tanks
• made a Robot Researcher station for my classroom
• baked the most delicious pumpkin cheesecake snickerdoodles
• went to the grocery store...twice...
• saw Santa
• did all the kids laundry (folded and put away!)
• did my laundry (folded, but not put away)
• cleaned the entire playroom...twice...
• beat LEGO Marvels (I snuck in some video game time!)
• went to the doctor, dentist, and scheduled the eye doctor (what else are holiday breaks for?
• painted my toes

I am sure there is more, but I cannot think of it all. Thank goodness my youngest still naps 2-3 hours a day and my 3 year old "rests" during that time. 

We are into Earth Science in our curriculum, so here are our newest activities we are using.

I really don't think I like the cover to the WED foldable. Everytime I look at it, it just makes something in my brain go crooked. What do you think?

Oh, and...................................................

TeachersPayTeachers.com is having a Cyber Monday (and Tuesday) sale! Many authors are putting their stuff up for sale, too, so you could get up to 28% off all sorts of things! My whole store will be 20% off and then the TpT code on top of that will make my whole store 28% off. Have fun shopping!

Have a happy Thanksgiving tomorrow, everyone!

Teaching with Play Dough

My daughter was talking to her daddy today about learning. He was explaining that one day she would get to go to school and learn all sorts of things (because my sister, Emily's best friend, is away at college). She started to cry, and when he asked her what was wrong, she said she wanted to go to school with mommy and be in her class.  I was so moved I almost cried :) My little girl loves to learn. We do all sorts of fun activities to help her learn her basic and not so basic skills.

Yesterday we worked on her fine motor skills with some mazes and some play dough fun. She would go through a maze, and trace back and forth the way to go. With the play dough, I would make something, then she would replicate it. Then she would make something and I would replicate it. We did that for an hour! We started with our own homemade play dough. She loves to bake and cook things. Here is a great recipe for homemade play dough, so if she loses some on the floor, its okay if her brother accidentally eats it before I get to clean it up!

1 cup flour
1 cup warm water
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp cream of tartar
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 small pack of jello (use different flavors to make different colors)

Mix everything in a small pan until most lumps are gone. Heat on the stove over medium heat stirring the whole time until it makes a nice ball. Remove from the pan and place on a floured surface and wait for it to cool (about 20-30 minutes). While it cools, we make a few more colors. Knead it in flour until it doesn't stick. The website suggested adding glitter, so you know we did! Now play!

When you are done, keep it in a tupperware or plastic baggie in the fridge until next time, no more than a few weeks. Have fun!

July Goals

I am linking up with I Heart Recess for a July Goals linky.

Here are my July Goals:

Personal: I LOVE coconut. I am constantly making things out of coconut, and I like making my own recipes. My last concoction was a coconut berry trifle with coconut cake layered with coconut cream filling and strawberries and blackberries. Delicious! I would like to try something that is not a dessert. Maybe a crusted chicken or something...mmmm...the wheels are turning...

Family: I have a 1 year old son and a 3 year old daughter. They love the outdoors, playing together and, of course, science! We were planning to go to Sea World in August, but my husband, who is a police officer, got a schedule change and we had to cancel it. Now our only chance to go do anything is a slim picking of 48 hour slots this month. What to do? We would love to go on a vacation, but it may be a stay-cation. Maybe the Dallas World Aquarium or something.

Health: At the store, we were picking up more vitamins for my daughter when she asked, "What about your vitamins, Mommy?" That is a great question. What ABOUT my vitamins? They don't exist! So we got me some vitamins and a weekly pill box (I feel like I am 70) to help me remember. We put my vitamins and hers in the box so we can remember together :)

School: As the head of the science department, a new school schedule and structure, and 2 brand new teachers, we have a lot to get ready for this school year. I am super excited, and I want to help my department be ready, but I don't want to freak them out with my enthusiasm and organization. I already made them a planning calendar with all the important known dates and our scope and sequence on it. Too much?

Blog/TpT: We are starting Think Tanks next year, and I have so many ideas for them. I posted a few that I made on TpT, but I have son many more I made that are not posted. I would love to get the chance to get more of those out there. They are fun to create, and the possibilities are endless!

Outside the Box: My kids are both table food eaters. My 24 pound 1 year old can out-eat my 30 pound 3 year old, but who is counting? They eat all day. Breakfast is whole wheat toast/toddler cereal/homemade pancakes/eggs (the / means or not and!), lunch is a whole wheat sandwich/pasta salad(to sneak in new veggies)/chicken, and dinner is all the food groups; protein, veggies, bread. The baby gets whole milk all day with a water and usually no juice. My daughter gets one chocolate milk with breakfast with Carnation Instant Breakfast (she is a picky eater some days), and one juice at some time during the day. The rest of the day is milk and water. In between every meal and after meals is snack time. My son would be happy with snack time all day long! Carrots, apples, broccoli with cheese, puffs (for both!), a slice of bread, homemade tortillas, pretzels and peanut butter, and craisins are usually on our snack menu. They eat pretty well. Now mommy: pizza for breakfast, pudding for lunch, and a few bites of dinner between getting theirs, refilling milk, picking sippie cups off the floor, and cutting pieces even smaller. Usually I wrap up the day with something quick, like Nilla Wafers after they are both to bed. I am too exhausted to make or reheat anything by then! I need to eat as well as I make them eat. Maybe the vitamins really are a good idea!

Well, hopefully that all tells you a little about me. Share your July goals with us in this linky!