Reading In Style

It's nothing new to know this girl loves to read. Reading is one of the most relaxing and enjoyable activities you can do. Everyone has their "type" of book. My type is a mix between books I can relate to and books that you can imagine every detail. I have a deep love for books set in the south and books about girls my age. Not too long ago I posted here about "10 books every girl in her twenties should read." I have since read two of them- 

 They were both pretty good. I would recommend them to girls my age! Neither was quite what I expected though. Both books jumped around from person to person, or different parts of a characters life. None the less I could relate to both books so that was a win for me. I just finished the last one so now it's time to move on to the next! My mom was so sweet to give me a Kindle Fire for Christmas and I am so excited to download my first book purchase on it!! I was starting to acquire quite a large stack of books and didn't know where to put them. I don't have a hallway like this after all.. (although it would be neat if I did) 

Now with my Kindle I can read all I want and not worry about where to store my books! 

This is where I need your help though!! I would LOVE some good book suggestions! I know I would like to read Pride and Prejudice which is on the list mentioned above. I'm not sure what else though. I would really appreciate any suggestions you have! 

Christmas Recap

Does anyone else get sad when Christmas is over? We spend a whole month getting ready for the holiday and then actual Christmas day goes so quickly! I had a WONDERFUL Christmas with my family! 

Our tradition always starts with Christmas brunch at my house. Since there are no young children in the house with tend to sleep in and take our time cooking and eating. There is no need to rush through the festivities after all! When we finish eating we move on to presents. I must have been good this year because I got a little spoiled by Santa. Two of my favorite presents include 

A Kindle Fire 

and a new Patagonia pull over 

After presents we had a little down time to get stuff put away and hang out. I think this turned into nap time for some of my family! Not for too long though because we have a Christmas dinner tradition with some close family friends. We got together with family friends for dinner, drinks and lots of laughs. That part of Christmas is always so much fun! Here are some of the kids.

I'm so sad Christmas day is over! I'm not complaining though because luckily I still have 5 days to relax before I head back to the real world. I hope you all had a nice Christmas! 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to you and yours 

How sweet it is..

Did anyone catch on to my title? I have "how sweet it is to be loved by you" stuck in my head. Not a bad way to start Friday! I'm changing it to "how sweet it is to be at home" for the purpose of todays post. 

I am SO happy to be home for the holidays!! 

My favorite thing about coming home is being able to wake up to my Basset hounds, coffee already brewed, and being able to sit and watch Good Morning America with NOTHING to do!! I actually do have plans today but as far as the morning time goes I am free to relax. 

Last night my mom made a pot of homemade chili, cheese toast with avocado and wine. Can we say welcome home?! It was absolutely perfect. 

While I love coming home to relax, I also like being able to do fun "stuff." I have a few exciting happenings over break that include, a trip to Richmond, a family Christmas party, Winter Wonderland trip with my mom and sister, outdoor ice skating, Monday night bingo at the bar, and some New Years festivities!! Oh and Christmas of course! 

First up on the list is the trip to Richmond. I'm leaving this afternoon with my all time best friend Ashley to head to the river city and meet up with some college friends. We have a limo rented out to drive us around a Tacky Light Christmas Tour. I'm so excited for the festivities! Here are some lights from past years..

Happy Friday friends!

Giveaway Winner

And the winner of this fabulous Clotfelter necklace is... 

Pamela at Pamela's Place

Congratulation! Please email me your mailing information(:

1st Grade Fun

Hello friends! Today marks the start of Christmas break!! (at 2pm anyway..) It has been a very fun but busy December in 1st grade! We had an entire week devoted to Gingerbread stories, a week for the Grinch, reindeer research, and Christmas Around the World. Lots of fun activities but of course it requires non stop action to plan. I was able to slow down long enough to snap a few pictures to document our holiday cheer! 

As fun as it has all been I am one happy girl that today marks the start of Christmas break!! I have lots I want to do that includes: sleeping, doing nothing, relaxing, eating, sleeping. That pretty much sums it up(: yay for the holidays! 

Blessed

Clotfelter Holiday GIveaway

What girl doesn't love a nice statement necklace or bangle to spice up an outfit? There is no girl! Good jewelry is essential to complete the perfect outfit. Lucky for us, a new fantastic online boutique has just opened up. Clotfelter has a fabulous selection of accessories and clothing for a great price. Check them out on facebook here. 

These are some of the pieces I am wanting to add to my collection asap. 

how precious would this be in the summer?!

simple and perfect

Lucky for one reader, Clotfelter has offered to give away one pink bauble necklace to someone. Just in time to start the New Year looking fabulous! 

To enter leave a comment with your name, and your favorite piece from Clotfelter. Visit the online boutique here. You have until Friday, December 21st to enter! 

Speaking with a heavy heart

Today it's all I can do to hold back tears. The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary is heartbreaking. It seems like everyone wants to know why but I don't think that question will be answered. Tonight I will pray for all for the families of Newtown. I will also pray that this kind of violence in our world can come to and end. 

I can't help to think about my first graders- precious and innocent. I did not find out about the event until after school. As an educator I feel that the school is supposed to be where our kids come to feel safe and welcomed. Not come in fear. As usual my entire focus on Friday was on my students, not the news. I found out that afternoon after my students left. I keep thinking what would I have done as there teacher in that kind of crisis? I will give all of my students a hug tomorrow as they walk in the door. My heart is heavy for Newtown. 

Holiday Parties

Oh how the tables have turned this holiday season. I remember last year attending Christmas cocktail with my sorority, Christmas formal with a fraternity, Teaching Fellow holiday social, etc, etc. In college the holidays brought lots of fun events to dress up and socialize. It was also the time to have a little fun before buckling down for Exams, getting busy studying, then celebrating exams being OVER.  Not anymore my friends.. the tables have turned. 

I am now spending my Christmas big girl real world style. Cramming for exams has been replaced with progress monitoring kiddos at school and watching Alvin float around our room. 

Christmas cocktails have been replaced with holiday parties on week nights. Where the drink specials were once the highlight of the evening in college, parties have transformed into the delicious food becoming the highlight of the party. 

The Holidays have been just as much fun if not more fun that last year! It's funny to think how different things are though. 

My roommate hosted a Christmas party Sunday night that was complete with appetizers, dinner, games, prizes, and girl talk. We had SO much fun with all girls and tacky Christmas  sweaters. I'm so sad I didn't take more pictures of the night but I did grab a few. I also ended the night winning several prizes  including some lilly pulitzer and a new throw blanket.  

A couple of the girls and I 

One of the games- a race to blow ballons, stuff them in panty hoes, 

put them on your head and sing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

I went to another Christmas party with the girls I work with Tuesday night. I'm lucky to work with a very young group of girls around my age. I only got one picture of some of the food.

This really did not capture even half of the food but I'm sure you can imagine(: 

I am now ready for Christmas break so I can celebrate the holidays out of school! (there are 7days, or 5 school days left.. I'm not counting or anything,ha) 

Elf on the Shelf

Christmas is such a fun time of the year in and out of the classroom. In first grade we have been doing so many fun Christmas activities! Gingerbread science, Gingerbread man story elements, Reindeer research, letters to Santa .. you get the drift. Well I decided to play along with the Elf on the Shelf phenomenon. For those of you who don't know the story it goes a little something like this.

This is the Elf on the Shelf

He is sent by Santa to watch children throughout the day. He uses his special Elf Magic to fly back to the North Pole while you are sleeping to tell Santa how you are being. Throughout the day he sometimes gets into mischievous like this:

 or this: 

There are only 2 rules you must remember. You must name him immediately, and you can NOT touch him. This is VERY important because if you touch him he looses all of his special magic and can't fly back to the North Pole to tell Santa about all of the wonderful things you have done. 

.. Well we have an Elf on the shelf in first grade. His name is Alvin and he has been in our room for a whole 2 days. One of my kids got the bright idea to test out rule number 2-- (no touching). During math centers Alvin was poked and low and behold the world ended. I kid you not. The world must have ended. ..Or that's what my kids thought at least. No they did not care that I wanted to teach them to tell time. Of course not, who would?! They cared that poor little Alvin just lost all of his magic power and Santa would not be able to know about what they were doing anymore. 

Bound and determined to throw a little common core into the end of the world I thought it would be appropriate to write letters to Santa explaining what happened, promising to never touch him again and asking to please give Alvin his magic back. 

What to do, what to do. I honestly don't know. 

I'm thinking Alvin will be in his same spot tomorrow. (obviously, he has no magic) I'm sending the letters to Santa tonight, hopefully he will write us back with a solution. Fingers crossed!

If I had all the time in the world

Wow, what a start to December.. we had 70 degree weather in my part of town yesterday! I think today is going to be comparable. I get cold VERY easy so I welcome warm weather anytime. 

Since I entered real life/big girl world in August I have come to realize there simply are not enough hours in the day. My job takes up a lot of my time... and when I say a lot I mean too much. I'm not complaining though, I sometimes choose to stay late and get extra "stuff" done. This leaves me very little free time however. I recently started thinking about the question: what would I do if I had all the time in the world?

If I had all the time in the world I would.. 

1. Read all of the book sitting by my bed, then find more. 

I'm currently reading this: 

I like it so far however it's taking a while to get through because of this whole not enough hours in the day dilemma. 

2. Cook .. REAL food, that can't be made in 30 minutes or less

3. Spend more time on lesson plans, centers, school work 

crazy right.. I already spend most of my day doing this but it's still impossible to get everything done. 

4. travel, of course! 

5. Get a full 8 hours of sleep (or maybe even 9 if we're getting crazy) each night

I'm sure there are many more things I would like to do if time isn't an issue but unfortunately it is and I have to get to work(: Happy Tuesday friends!

Christmas Shopping Side tracked

Tis the season y'all! 

It's the season to give, which means the season to shop. 

It's no surprise that this girl loves to shop. I can't help but to instantly get a "mood lift" every time a good purchase(or deal) has been made. Along with shopping though also comes the downfall of "should I really have spent that money? probably not.. Did I really need that? ..not really" which can be a  bit of a buzz kill if you ask me. Lucky for us, It's the season to shop shop shop and not feel so guilty! I absolutely LOVE picking out gifts for loved ones this time of year. Unfortunately, shopping for a mother, grandmother, sister and friends I am all too often in girly shops where the temptation to make purchases for myself is stronger than ever.  Does anyone else get side tracked when Christmas shopping? I always seem to find something for myself in the process, ha. 

During the black Friday shopping rush I scored a few items that I have been extremely happy with! 

1. Cheetah flats

These aren't the exact ones but very similar 

2. the softest neutral color sweater 

(once again, not the exact one but similar) 

3. Mint/Teal statement necklace 

Hopefully I can make it through the rest of my holiday shopping without splurging on myself. I am happy with these items though! 

Thanksgiving Recap

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family, lots of food, and maybe a little shopping. My family hosted Thanksgiving at our house this year which meant my mom and sister did  most of the cooking. I helped in some ways (like making the Bloody Mary drinks for mom and I, ha) but couldn't do too much as I found watching my sister maneuvering around the kitchen amusing. She is a rookie in the kitchen and had a couple little humorous mishaps. 

After a late lunch that was delicious, I of course had to take a small nap before my sister and I attempted Black Friday shopping. I have never participated in the trend believe it or not. Ginny and I thought we would hop on the band wagon in search of deals on clothing. I am obviously not a pro at the whole midnight shopping thing and could hardly stay awake come 8pm. We decided to go to a 10pm movie to kill some time before the stores opened at 12. We went to see the movie Pitch Perfect. We also might have had a slight blonde moment on our journey though.. As we were sitting in the theatre waiting on the movie to start we kept seeing guys walk in. Of course it is not abnormal for guys to head to the theatre but we did think it was odd we were the ONLY girls to see this semi girly movie. Only after laughing at these boys for a good 15 minutes did we realize maybe, just maybe, were we in the wrong movie. Sure enough, yes we were. We were sitting in the middle of Red Dawn. We got a good laugh before awkwardly walking out and heading to the right movie. 

The movie ended just in time for shopping! I was able to score a couple deals for myself, part of my sisters gift and a gift for my mom. I think shopping was a success! 

Thanksgiving Eve

Happy Thanksgiving Eve everyone! It's only appropriate that I share what I am thankful for this time of  year! I am truly blessed, and have much to express gratitude for. 

First and foremost I am thankful for my family!

I mean it when I say I don't know what I would do without them. 

and of course Cooper and Charlie are part of the family! 

I'm thankful for my wonderful group of friends that 

seem to always be there

I'm thankful for my job and my kiddos that bring a smile to my face everyday

I'm thankful for my faith and my God. 

those are some of the more important things I'm thankful for. 

I'm one lucky girl if I may so say myself! 

and of course there is all that little stuff too(:

weekends.saturdays.sweettea.lillypulitzer.fall.thesouth.sunshine.cleanclothes.goodmusic.awarmblanket.coffee.chaitea.desserts.countrymusic.pizza.beachmusic.yurman.

should I continue? ha, just picking!! 

Happy Thanksgiving Eve y'all! Tonight seems to be the night to be thankful with hometown friends while tomorrow is all family. 

Perfect Saturday

It's not often that I come across a Saturday where I literally have NOTHING to do. This past weekend I had one of those days though and it was absolutely perfect. Of course football games, shopping, social events, etc.. are all fun but sometimes it's nice to just not have anything on the agenda. 

I was rather lame Friday night and ended up in bed before 10:30. That was okay though because I woke up early Saturday feeling refreshed and ready to go. I enjoyed the first part of my morning with some Chai tea, blogging and morning news shows. That morning routine is one of my favorite parts of the day but unfortunately there is no time for that kinda thing on week day mornings. Once I was nice and relaxed I decided to head to the gym. I got a VERY good workout in that I am still sore from. It feels good to be a little sore though because I know it was time well spent. 

After the gym I went to my friend Ashley's house to take her new puppy on a walk. She recently got a golden retriever puppy who is absolutely PRECIOUS. We walked Layla all around ECU's campus which was absolutely gorgeous with the fall leaves. 

Seriously, how perfect is she?

When we got back Ashley convinced me to try out her Jillian Michaels 30 day shred workout video.  It was another good little workout for the day which probably contributed to my soreness today. 

The rest of the day was spent relaxing, cleaning and seeing friends. To me it really was the perfect Saturday. It left me as one happy happy girl!