February Freebie Linky Party! *Groundhog Freebie

It's back!! My monthly freebie linkup is back and ready for you to hop on board! If you have a cute February Freebie I'd love for you to link up!

 Remember that this must be a link to a freebie that will stay a freebie forever, and please post the linkup ad on your blog post!

Here's a freebie to get the ball rolling! It is a headband topper! I use these all the time in my class! Just print, have the kids color and cut out, then past onto a headband strip (I use sentence strips because they are just the right size!)

And there you have it! This is part of my Groundhog Printables packet in TpT.

C-RAZY Weather!! And a Video Happy For You!

Holy SNOW, Batman!!! Yah, who goes to school in a white out?? We do!! We had over 7 inches of snow today and still, we Utahans push through it and carry on as though it's April showers!

See that semi? Yah, that was almost my hubby and me today on the freeway!!! The car in front of us started sliding off the road and we braked and started fish tailing it...

Ya know how in really scary situations it feels like the world is in slow motion and you can totally predict what is about to happen and you are bracing for the worst and yet you can't do anything to prevent it from happening?? {I bet cha that's what that semi driver was feeling...}

Yah, so there we were sliding in slow motion one way then the other way...the anti-lock brakes were going thud, thud, thud....and my hubby calmly, slowly, as though he is like some awesome stunt driver who has done this millions of times, gets the car back into control and manages to STAY ON THE FREEWAY!!!

He's awesome!

Saved my life today, he did...

When I got out of the car,  I kissed that snowy white sidewalk and thanked the Good Lord above....when I got to the doctor's office, of course. {Not that darned freeway!}

So yah, I got to play a little hookie this afternoon to go to the doctor in this crazy weather. I'm not sure it was really worth it....I mean, who likes taking time off to go see the doctor?? {In a snow storm?? And almost getting killed???}

Anyhoo, the cute little nurse says to me she just wants to slip that little blood pressure velcro thingy around my arm and check things out....

Let's just say that a "normal" blood pressure reading for me is pretty low....say 90/69 or something....

143/68!!!!! I've NEVER been over 100!

She says, "Under a little bit of stress?"

Uh, no!! I just almost had a near death experience on the way over here!!!!

Ugghhh....anyway, we made it safely back home, no thanks to all the crazy drivers out there, and we've been holed up watching a movie while the snow is still falling....

and falling...

and falling...

I'm a transplant from the midwest where they cancel school the day before because it just might maybe  if you are lucky snow....

And it's not supposed to stop for two more days.

And yes, we will have school...

....because Utah rarely closes school for snow. {Am I right, my Utah peeps??}

I hope you are all surviving all the crazy weather we're having across the country. I saw that there were tornado warnings in the south and crazy warm temperatures on the east coast!! (SOOooo jealous!!!) If you have any crazy weather stories please share!!

Come back tomorrow! I have a new February Freebie Link Up, some new packets on TpT and a freebie for you!!!

Peace out,

P.S.

YOU have GOT to watch this video my friend Jennifer from Rowdy in First Grade posted on Facebook today! I love it!!

(...and I love Space Jam....)

Ok, update!!! The last link was NOT the video I meant to post!! 

Here it is!!!!!

Inside Recess Solution: Adventure to Fitness

One of our Special Education teachers shared this link with us last week and I just LOVE it! We have had a MONTH of inside recess due to the weather, cold temperatures, and the toxic smog trapped in our valley!

If you are looking for a fun way to help your students get their wiggles out, check out this web site! I just projected it on my Promethean board and the kids had a ball! The fun thing is, it teaches the children about different parts of the world as they exercise! I did have to register as a teacher, but it is free.

Here are a few of the topics they cover:

We are having a snow storm right now, so I am looking forward to watching another one of these exercise videos during our lunch recess tomorrow! 

Hugs,

Penguin Packet Winners!! and The Smog is Killing Me

Hey everyone!! Thank you so much to everyone who has linked up with my January Freebie Linky Party!! It's not too late to join in the fun! Just click on the picture above and add your link to your freebie! And go check out the amazing freebies already linked up!  

And THANK YOU sooo much to everyone who entered my Penguin Packet giveaway! I'm so excited to announce the WINNERS!!! 

I meant to post the winner yesterday but my sweet husband took me out on a date and I didn't get 'er done! SO, to make up for the delay, I chose THREE winners instead of just one!! Whoo hoo!! The winners are.....Cherie, Kelly S. and Rachel Lindle!! Keep an eye out, I'll be sending your packets shortly! 

We had yet another full week of inside recess due to temperatures hovering around 10 degrees and poor (can you say TOXIC WASTE) air quality. I think this horrible pollution is going to give me lung cancer!!!

Seriously, people!! It is so bad that when I go outside I just choke and cough. So many people I know are suffering from sore and irritated throats around here! I seriously think I need a mask for when I go outside....

So, I just took a break to see how bad our air quality really is and found this:

This, my friends, is a map from the government website, AIRNow.gov. See that red spot? Yeppers, that's where I live....

Then I found this from January 7:

{Courtesy of Fox 13 News, SLC, Utah}

Yummm....Doesn't that air just make you want to go for a nice long jog?? Ha!

I think we have been in this inversion since the start of the new year and I know it can't be healthy....

nor is it good on my sanity....

three weeks of inside recess = head banging brick wall

:)

Ok, so on a much happier note, I am redoing my winter packet and getting together some freebies for you! Come back again tomorrow and I PROMISE I will have something much more teacher related for you! 

In the meantime, go check out the air quality map and see how your town ranks!

Hugs,

Penguin Unit Update and Give Away!

Happy Wednesday! How's your week going? I updated my penguin unit this month and would love to give it away this week to one lucky winner!

I'm going to make this easy on everyone....Ready??

Just follow my blog and leave me a comment below! Leave a second comment if you blog about it or mention it on Facebook! (And that'll bring a smile to my face!!) I'll pick a random winner on Friday!

I'm so tired tonight (yah, it's 1:30 in the morning actually...insomnia is becoming my familiar friend) so I'm going to make this a quick post and try to get some shut-eye before morning rolls around. Happy Wednesday to us all!

Hugs,

Huge Product Swap!

 

I'm so excited to be a part of Jessica Stanford's Magical Product Swap this time around! I swapped products with sweet Stephany Dillon over at Primary Possibilities! Stephany is one of three primary teachers who have joined together to create their blog. They have a fantastic blog with tons of interesting ideas and photos. I love dropping in on their blog and checking out their latest posts! If you haven't checked them out you should hop on over and say hello!

Stephany sent me one of her super cute packets from TpT! I know it is the middle of winter and we're buried up to our kneecaps in snow out here in Utah, SO I asked her to send me her packet on Ladybugs to help me think happy thoughts of warm weather and SPRING!!

I LOVE ladybugs!! Jessica's packet is definitely one I will be using this spring with my kiddos!
This packet is FULL of adorable activities for lower grade students! Here are some of my favorites that I just love:

Now, remember these are just a FEW of the many many activities included in her super cute "Ladybugs!"  packet! There are graphing and measurement activities, Venn Diagrams and labeling activities, too! If you want to check this out and buy it for yourself, hop on over to Stephany's TpT store! 

AND, don't forget to hop on over to 

where Stephany is spotlighting my

AND don't forget to check out the rest of the spotlights by clicking on Jessica's button at the top or here!

If you've made it all the way here, I will be giving away my Plant and Flower Activities to the first three people who leave a comment below. Don't forget to leave your email address! Happy blogging!!

Remember, there is only love!

 

Friday Freebie Place Value

        

So, ya know how I told you all about how my class has been sick so much since we got back from Christmas break? My goal has been to have at least one day with ALL of my students back to school with me before the end of this week! Guess what?? Yesterday was the day!! All 26 of my little darlings were there for the first time THIS NEW YEAR!!

                                 Can you give me a "WHOOOO HOOO!!"?

But, sadly it was short-lived...today three were sick and.....

                             TEACHER WENT HOME SICK, too!!    *Gasp!!*

I know, I know....Here I am complaining that my kiddos are sick every day and then, WHAM!
Like a freaking mac truck it totally hit me at 10:30 this morning.

I will say that I wasn't feeling well last night....up off and on throughout the night....but I woke up feeling ok...so off to work I went.

Then an hour into teaching... Shock-a-FREAKING-kon!!!! 

This stomach bug that is going around is simply not very nice....I won't go into the gory details of the rest of my day, but let's just say this girl ain't going anywhere near a chili cheese dog for many moons!

Anyhoo, I have a super cute freebie (that I made last year) for ya! I hope you enjoy! (Just click on the image below.)

If you download this freebie you'll make my day by showing me some love in the comments! You can even go the extra mile and show me the love by following my blog or TpT store! Either way, here's a love for you!
                                                             

I'm keeping this short and sweet 'cause I'm hangin' by a thread right now.

Check back tomorrow for a give away and a blog spotlight!

Hugs and Love!

P.S. Don't forget to link up all your great freebies for January here:

I Have No Response...

Hi All! I know! I know!! Two blog posts in ONE WEEK!! Shocker!! I am so sad that I kinda stopped blogging last year when I had neck surgery and then ran off and got married! Now that life has settled back into a routine I am sooooo excited to reconnect with all my old bloggy buddies who probably thought I had fallen off the planet! And WOWY!! I've been doing me a little blog hopping lately and there are A TON of new blogs on the block! It's so exciting to see all the new faces that have joined the bloggy world since I've been M.I.A!!

If you are new to my blog I'd love for you to join in my monthly linky party! Thanks a million to those who linked up already! There are so many awesome freebies out there and it is always great to be able to spread the word and link up! Just click on the button above to add your freebie! (And go check out all the awesome freebies that have been posted!)

I found this on Facebook and seriously spit out the Sprite I was drinking and laughed out loud! Yah, this basically sums up how I'm doing on my New Year's resolution to do yoga every other day! Bah!!! Soooooo hasn't happened yet!! But hey, who can blame me? It is super cold and the pollution level is like the second worst in the WORLD and so I just don't think it is even slightly realistic to overexert myself under conditions such as these....

Ok, and further more, ya know that cold air and pollution and snow and winter yuck that I just mentioned? Yah, well that plus that plus that plus that = NO OUTSIDE RECESS!!! Arrrrrghhhhh! 

Before you start shrugging me off as the "Super Whiny-Wimp Girl", let me tell you how many days, no, how many consecutive days of inside recess we have had....

Well, seriously, I forgot to mark the first day it happened on my fresh January 2013 calendar like I do all important events and happenings and not so important events and happenings, but I think it has been like 5 DAYS!!! 

You all know what one or two inside days are like. Yah, now multiply that by 5, and times that by 26 hyper students, and several students with colds and stomach aches and.....yep, you get the picture....(I ain't so wimpy now, am I??)

Speaking of kids with stomach aches and colds...Monday, I came to school and all six kids from Table 4 were home SICK! Two went home from school sick yesterday. This morning I was really going for a full house with everyone back. 

We almost had everyone there today...(come to think of it...I haven't had everyone there in my class yet since we started back on January 3rd....) All the sick kids had come back to school, everyone was happily hanging up their backpacks and turning in their homework folders and then I hear sweet Kate standing below me saying in a faint voice those dreaded words:

                                      ......."Teacher, I don't feel so well."
*Panic* 

Have I ever mentioned that there's probably a very good reason why I never had children of my own? I can't stand spit, puke, runny noses or blood. I seriously gag and get light headed. 

It all happened so fast--

Bless her cotton socks! At least she grabbed the garbage can and aimed inside it...

I, on the other hand, feeling my own gag reflexes kicking in, made a heroic dash across the hall to the custodian's office (just in case he needed to clean anything up) before I witnessed anything. 

So, poor dear little sweet Kate went home on her birthday no less! (I know, sad huh? Don't worry, we will really celebrate when she comes back!!)

And we are still 0/5 for ONE day where every student has been in attendance.  

In the meantime, I've been hiding out in the faculty room eating my chicken cordon bleu drinking my protein shake and dreaming of those long lost days of being a slug on my cozy bed during winter break....

Happy Wednesday!

Hugs and love,

January Freebies Linkup Party!

                 

Hi all! Happy New Year!! I want to give a huge shout out and a warm welcome to my dear friend, Caitlyn over at Simply Second! Caitlyn teaches at my school and is super creative! I've been encouraging her to jump into the blogging, TpT, Teacher's Notebook world and she is finally here! Once you check out her blog, you'll see what I mean! She created her entire blog HERSELF!!! (It's so stinkin' cute!!) (I'm thinking she could make some bucks just creating blogs for people!!)

                                                                      I am always finding the cutest freebies out there but I don't always have the time to hunt them down! To help you find some fabulous freebies  I thought I'd start a monthly Freebie Linky Party! Just grab the January Linky button and link up some of your favorite January freebies below!

Here's a couple of January FREEBIES to help you get rolling this month! (I don't know about you, but man, going back to work on Thursday was so incredibly difficult!! I had to drag myself out of my warm comfy bed....) Cheers!