i made it!!!!

Celebrate good times, C'mon! WOOOO!!

My class party was today, and I got to talk to some of the parents from my homeroom.  It was so exciting to hear from a lot of them about how they've seen their students grow so far this year in their Math abilities.

I also got the SWEETEST card from the Step-Dad of one of my students who is moving away.  He mentioned how much he has enjoyed having me teach his Step Daughter in Math because she has really started to love the subject this year, and they have seen her mature, etc etc.  Then, to top it all off and make me really want to cry, he and his Step Daughter came in to talk to me in person about how much they are going to miss me.  SUCH a tear jerker!

I honestly didn't think that I would make it through the day because we didn't really have anything planned other than the class party, which started 2 hours after the school day began.  So, I let my students play the board games they created in their Reading classes, and I also brought out a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle.  It was so calming and fun to work at a task with them and get to see their reasoning skills come alive.  I know that's not really what puzzles are all about, but I'm always trying to learn about my students and what makes their world go 'round.

We didn't finish the puzzle, so I told them that I would keep it out for when they returned in January and we could finish it as a class. 

I also brought out my yearbook from when I was in 4th Grade.  According to my students, and their parents, I look the same as my 9 year old self.  I'll take that as a compliment, thank you very much! I'm okay with looking younger at this point in my life.  I'm hoping that trend sticks. :)


Anyways....

It's officially time for Winter Holiday! I am overwhelmed with the joy of having the next week and a half off.

Keeping my fingers crossed that this time will be as restful as I intended for it to be,

the craft rookie

1 more day

Can I make it? Only 1 more day til Christmas Break. Really, it's a 1/2 day; and, it's Elementary School, so it's a Class Party Day.  Can I survive the Class Party? Oh, Lawd, I hope so!

These past 2 days have brought new challenges in my experience as a teacher.  I would be happy to say, "Adios" to this week and never see it again. I'm just ready for a break - sleeping in, crafting again, sleeping some more, working out, sleeping, cooking good food, getting organized.  Oh, the list goes on!

While I say that this week has been rough, there have also been some really cute things happening, too.  The Pre-K students put together a "Polar Express" Parade around the halls of the school.  All of the students sat along the hallway to cheer on the little cabooses!  While I can't post photos of the students, I CAN post a picture of the staff members that started the train.

All Aboard!!!

These ladies (our front office staff) were the beginning of the line.  The sign they carried says "The Polar Express," and they carried sleigh bells and tinsel. It was really fun!

 This is one of the Pre-K Teaching Aides.  She was the Engine that pulled the Parade along!  As you can tell, she really got into it!









My students, even as 4th Graders, LOVED the parade! They thought the Pre-K kids were so cute, and even though those little babies were terrified of my little monsters, they seemed to at least like that my students were clapping for them and cheering them along (phew).

Okay, now back to dreaming of my holiday...

I'm also excited about break because I get to go on a ride-a-long with a friend of mine who is a cop. This is something I've wanted to do for a while, but I never got around to asking if I could tag along.  I'll let you know how that goes :)

Hoping to see someone get arrested,

the craft rookie

hair, dress, dog...

A lot has happened since I last updated!

My roommate went out of town for a few days and left her puppy, Ollie, and the kitty, Berkely, behind with me.  So, to say the few days were an adventure is an understatement!

She left Thursday night, which meant that the pup and kitty stayed in my room that night.  Berkely, being her usual self, slept on me all night long.  To add insult to injury, Ollie wouldn't stop snoring!  I barely slept, and Friday was rough...so tired.  So, so tired.



The cat that wouldn't let me sleep...She's a big fan of making a bed out of your side when you lay down.  Her likes also include waking up humans by licking their noses with her rough tongue; purring in your ear; kneading people's bellies, making certain someone's (ME!) feel fat.

The snorer himself. The lighting is bad, but you get the gist.  He's adorable, loveable, and totally still a puppy.  I think I held his toy up above my head in order to get him to look at the camera long enough for this shot. His likes include: squeaky toys and making them squeak; chewing on wood of any kind - trees, table legs, window sills...; eating; peeing when he gets excited; and chewing on anything else he can get his little puppy teeth on.







 

Speaking of Friday, I left work early (ohhh, how wonderful that was) to go to my sister's Pinning ceremony - it's a Rite of Passage for all Nursing School graduates.  So, after I left work, I ran home, played with the dog, entertained the cat, and then ran out to Denton with my family. 

The ceremony...was the longest ceremony. EVER. No lie. 95 graduates, 2 hours long. I loved being there and all, but there were countless times when I wished the people giving speeches would've seen that shepherd's hook coming out from the wings of the stage.

Here's how I did my hair...

 My sister put her daughter's red bow (that my sister made!) in my hair for the photo.  Silly, Kristina!

 A side view. Here's the tutorial for the 'do. It's super easy and ridiculously cute!  Mine ended up a bit more messy, but it took me about 5 minutes to do once I had put my hair into the 3 pony tails.







Fastforward to when I got home.  I had every intention to go out with a few friends Friday night, and boy was I in for a rude awakening.  I walked through the door, greeted the cat, and then, it happened.  I saw this....

Ollie had gotten bored. He had chewed up his bedding. He had caused a mess.  He had left it for me.  He had canceled my plans for the night. Oh, Ollie! Ugh....


Oh, well. I didn't really need to go out on Friday.

Now, Saturday. I was lazy for a while, and then went out to McKinney's Third Monday Trade Days.  Oh.My.Gosh!  I'm in LOVE!  I found this small shop out there called "Fancy Nancy's" and fell in lust with some of her designs!  The dresses she makes are adorable...and that doesn't even feel like a strong enough word for how much I like what she has created.

If you want to check out some of her designs, click HERE. You can e-mail her at shopmobile@aol.com, too. 

After Trade Days, I decided to stop in at Plato's Closet to find a dress for the wedding I had to go to last night.  I found the CUTEST dress for $15, ran home, showered, put it on, and my date was there before I even had the chance to finish my make-up.

Here's the loveliness...

The wedding was a lot of fun, and I saw a lot of things that I appreciated about the thought that went into the planning of the ceremony and reception.  Here are a few of the "loves" that I snapped some pics of.

The centerpieces! They were so cute!  Wire trees with votive holders at the top and strings of crystals hanging off the limbs, all sitting on a mirror.  They were beautiful in their simplicity.  I appreciated the "non-traditional" look of not using floral arrangements that overwhelm the nose!

Each table was named after a memory of the couple.  With each location, they told the story that made that place special to them. 

There were assigned tables.  When I picked up my name, I then got to go on a mini scavenger hunt of the couple's memories as I found my way to my table.  It was really cool!

Also pictured, the lovely drinks.  I had Chardonnay and Champagne all night. YUMMY!

wishing the weekend was longer,

the craft rookie

p.s. only 2 and a half more days til Christmas Break! YESSSSS!!!!

the sickness...i'm not down with it!

Craziness of all craziness happened today at work!  Our school has literally been HIT with a stomach bug. 

At 10AM this morning, we had 108 kids absent, and throughout the day, we just kept sending more home.  Our school nurse had to rename her clinic the "Vomitorium" because of all the up-chucking happening in there!

Even our Principal's Secretary couldn't get away from it!  We have a Security Camera still shot of her accidentally stepping in a pile of throw-up when she walked out in to the hallway, unknowingly!

I had a total of 35 students today when normally, I have 60. SO CRAZY!

One of my coworkers started the day with 9 students in his class, and, by the end of the day, he was left with 6.  The kids just kept falling like flies!

We even had a Kindergarten kid who's mom sent him to school with a barf bag...haha, that made me chuckle more than a lot!

I had a student who, during dismissal, as school was just about over, ran to the bathroom to throw up. I had to send her to the nurse and make her miss her bus because I didn't want other kids to get sick!

My classroom officially got cleaned by Clorox wipes 3 times today, and I didn't let a kid do ANYTHING without sanitizing their hands or washing thoroughly with soap and water first!  This is getting unreal!

I'm thinking tomorrow, I'll have even fewer students because they just keep spreading it around!  If this isn't a life-lesson for them on how to be sanitary and not be little germ incubators, I don't know what could possibly teach them that invaluable lesson!

Here's to hoping I don't get sick!!! Please keep your fingers crossed for me :-/

Waiting for the inevitable,

the craft rookie

iphone hanging charger...

Ok, so today's craft comes from pinterest :) I found a cute idea for a hanging pocket that your ipod/iphone sits in while it charges.  The original example can be seen here. 

What I loved about this idea - it keeps my phone off of a surface in my house.  I absolutely dislike clutter of all kinds, and the phone with the power cord with the ughhhh feeling I get are easily mended with this cute fix.

What I disliked - they just posted pictures with no tutorial! So, here I go again.  I made my own version of the original.

Here's what I ended up with:

Total cost?
$1.25

And, now for the tutorial...

I started with 1 sheet of felt and the fabric was actually from a bandana.  Obviously, you don't need a lot! The other materials I used were scissors, needle and thread, sewing pins, and my phone.  I would recommend using a strong felt.  I used flimsy felt and it's a little weak.

I started by cutting the felt in half hot dog style.  If you just have a sheet of felt from buying a yard or so, then what you can do is lay your phone on the felt and leave about a half inch to 3/4" space on either side of your phone (this is to allow leeway for the fabric when you sew it down).  Then, you can lay that over more felt and cut an exact copy.

Then, I folded my first piece of felt in half again, hot dog style so that i could easily cut a rectangular hole in the felt towards the top.  This is to create the "hanging" section of the whole project.

 I did this for both pieces of felt. To ensure that the hole was in the right position and just about the same size, I used the first piece of felt that I had already cut as a stencil for the second piece.

 This method does not create exactly identical pieces of fabric, but that's not important.  

Next, I cut my fabric for the pocket. I used my measuring mat as a way to ensure a straight cut.  But again, this is not a necessary step. I made sure my fabric that I cut was larger than my phone by about half an inch width. This allows for the pocket to "give" when the phone is placed in it.

 Next, I placed my fabric on one of the felt pieces.  This will be the front of your hanger.

I first sewed the bottom of the pocket down so that I had a starting point for pinning the side pieces.  I pinned the bottom and sewed the bottom (this entire project was done by hand - no machine).

 Here's proof that it's been sewn! I don't know why I felt this was necessary to share...but, nevertheless, it made the cut.

 Next, I put my phone under the fabric (like I was tucking it in for bed...please, don't call me crazy for that simile). Then, I pinned around the side with the phone still in the pocket.  I did this to ensure that my phone would be able to fit in the pocket once it was all sewn down.

 Once that's done, you're on the home stretch!  Now, I put the other piece of felt on the back and pinned it around the edges.  I did this to create extra strength.  I used kind of a flimsy felt, which I quickly learned wasn't the best idea.

 I sewed around the outside border, and then I also sewed around the inner rectangle.

 And, now you're done! Check to see if your phone fits...and voila!

Then, hang it up and ENJOY!

By the way - you can also take a piece of ribbon and tie it to your bed post.  This is what I've done because I use my phone as my alarm :)

Charging my phone and loving it,

the craft rookie

is it bad...

...that I spent all that time on my yarn wreath, and now I don't want to hang it up because I don't want it to get ruined?

I feel awfully selfish..but I love it and want it to stay perfect :)

Decisions, decisions!


yarn wreaths and merry things,

the craft rookie

restful weekend...

Nothing new to report.  The only thing I have to share is that I finally finished my yarn wreath :)

Materials Used: 

- Wreath made of hay from Hobby Lobby (about $5)

- Hemp for the cord that holds the letters

- Wood squares

- Scrapbooking letters

-Mod Podge

- Felt

-Buttons

-Yarn

- Fabric for Rosette and Bow

This was a very easy task, but it was certainly tedious.

Here's the final product:

Isn't it cute?! I think so..but I just might be a little biased!

Take THAT hot glue gun!

I say this because in the process of making this yarn wreath (which is also partially why I put this project aside for a week or so), I burnt the BA-JEE-ZUS out of my pointer finger on my right hand.  Hot glue straight onto the finger.  It bubbled up...it wasn't pretty....it hurt very bad :(

Look at the grossness:

 It stayed bubbled up like that for a good 4-5 days.  It's still kind of disgusting a full week and a half later :(  Dangit, I hate being such a klutz!

love,

the craft klutz rookie