Where Have I Been?!

Ya'll. I have been a blogging failure this summer. It has been a busy busy summer and I have barely been home in the month of July! Let me give you a quick little update on my life. 

1. Next year I am going back to teaching 4th grade. I'm like 70% excited right now because I LOVED 5th grade but I understand that the STAAR Writing test is a beast that need someone with experience to tackle. (yay...) 
2. Next year is going to be ...challenging. Some of my very best friends are moving schools, moving positions or just plain moving. I'm so sad because I work with some of the best teachers on the planet but I know sometimes you have to share the wealth. 
3. Next year I have new teammates again. Don't get me wrong, I love all the people at my school. I'm not even joking, we have the best staff. But I am going to miss teaming with my bestie. and James. The CKJ trio was like the dream team for last year's group of kids. It just worked. I know I will love my teammates this year but why is change so hard?! 
4. I keep saying "next year" but really it's in like a week...where did summer go? 
5. I know where summer went: I sat in 10,000 interviews, went to various PD, shared at GT PD, applied for grad school, entertained my 2 year old, created new TPT stuff,and traveled. In fact, I'm typing from Mississippi right now on our way to Florida tomorrow. The beach is calling my name, people! 

So there is a little update...check out the pics below for a peak at my summer! 

Also, I have some guest blog posts coming, new products on TpT revealed, a review for ABCteach.com (( Check it out--there are a ton of resources on there! I could spend hours looking through everything.)) :) and of course, back to school pics! See ya soon! 

My girlfriends and I headed to Houston earlier this week to visit our friend Megan who just moved there. We are going to miss Megan sooooo much but her new school is absolutely blessed to have her! 

Car Selfie

Aren't my friends beautiful?! In this pic we have 4th grade, 2nd grade, academic coaches and specialists and admin. I am so lucky to work with my besties.

I'm going to miss Megan so much! 

I led a training about teaching gifted children with these 2 ladies and it was quite interesting! It was one of the largest groups of strangers I've presented to yet :)

My old partner teacher and bestie, Kristin, surprised me with an afternoon visit to the Gaylord Texan (which is like 10 minutes from my house) to see all of the Wizard of Oz art and decorations :) We had a blast on our adventure!

Y'all. I've been coaching volleyball for a summer league and these middle school girls are my favorite people right now. We laugh so hard and have a blast. And they are pretty awesome athletes. I absolutely love these girls. 

We tried to get a family picture and this was as good as it got. Jackson was only interested if it was "exciting"

Just living out of a suitcase. #teacherlife

See ya soon! 

Blogging Challenge Day 13: Travel Adventures!

Oh my goodness. Another day of the blogging challenge where I could write a book.

Travel: past adventures or future excursions

I have been to 29 states and 9 countries so far which means I have ALOT of traveling I still want to do! After my senior year of high school, I went with my German club to visit Europe. We ventured to Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, and France. It was amazing and I am determined to take my family over there some day. {I don't have pictures for this post because it was 8 years ago so the pics are probably on a CD with my scrapbook somewhere}

My favorite way to travel, is by cruise ship. If you haven't done it, you are seriously missing out. The food, the sun, the water...I mean, it's the BEST way to travel. 

I took this picture with a water camera while parasailing in Key West. Isn't it gorgeous?!

On a private island in the Bahamas..aka heaven.

I love love love cruising. Since we live in Texas, we can drive a few short hours (ok, 6...) to Galveston and hop on a boat there without paying airfare. But I have cruised out of Florida too. You've gotta do it. 

Future adventures: Myrtle Beach, SC in a month and then my hubs and I want to go to Washington DC (he's never been but I have and loved it), NYC, Vegas (he hasn't been there either--too many people he says BUT I will convince him to take me!) and of course, another cruise..or 2. Or one every summer. Whatevs.