Whatcha' been up to???

Let me know what's been going on in your neck of the woods! I would love to know. Here's a few things going on in ours:


I painted ANOTHER chair..I had a bit of green spray paint left and some of my new favorite blue left, so I painted my mommy/teacher chair. I only had enough green for on section and I'm on the hunt for a new cute cushion...but for now I am happy that it matches and it's much cuter (sorry, again I was to impulsive to remember to take a before picture.)



I saw the cutest idea on the Miss Kindergarten blog and I had the supplies...so VIOLA I made these "silent" dice. They are also very light so that mean less chance of them flying across the room when the Prince takes his turn :/...We used them this morning to play the math game Even Steven/Odd Todd and they worked liked a charm. We will be using them for family board game night too!



Also Miss Kindergarten loves to add ribbon, so she inspired me to "pretty-fy" the trash cans for our classroom and the hubby's office. Not sure how much the hubby appreciated it! HA!




The picture is the Prince frosting his carrot cake with his homemade creamchesse coconut frosting! This week, we made three desserts...YES!! 3...HOLY YUMMINESS...but also HOLY SELF-CONTROL so I don't gain 20lbs in one week! Good thing I had a couple of helpers in eating them. Here is the link to the  FRESH STRAWBERRY PIE I made!! First, let me give you permission for making this and eating it by telling you that it is only sweetened with honey and the crust is made with almond flour which is SUPER low in carbs...now run off and bake..and invite me over. **I used apgar powder instead of gelatin**

We love "craftivities" that are lesson related.  Yesterday, for our writing block the Prince made these gorgeous "I'm special because.." sunflower. His pedals read:
I have a turtle.
I have 2 dogs.
I am fast.
I am tan.
I am 4ft. 1 in.
This FREE cratifivity was provided by Mrs. Lemons!




Today, for our math block we had a game scheduled (mentioned above) but I saw this OH.SO.CUTE mathematician on Step into Second Grade and thought it was too cute to pass up and what a great reminder to our Prince that he is already a mathematician!! What kid doesn't like to use a big word when referring to himself?! Since we already had something planned that the Prince was looking forward to I just added this too our math block and for the sake of time I wrote all the answers that he brainstormed and then he created his lil' mathematician...HOW CUTE IS HE??!! Step Into Second Grade has an entire packet that you can purchase, it is adorable and looks like so much fun, go check it out.



Happy Friday Everyone!! Oh..this weekend I'm making vegan chocolate chip cookies and a pumpkin crumb cake...this sweet tooth needs to leave or I'll have start doing double daily workouts.

I love to eat.

Do you?

**Comments make me smile***

 

 

 

Vegan (OR NOT) Chicken Salad on a Homemade GF Pita

First.. If I caught the attention of any meat eaters, DON'T stop reading. I made two batches of this salad. The second, for the hubby, had actual chicken. I pan boiled about 7 chicken tenders and then diced them up. The only other modification was the chicken salad required a bit more vegannaise/mayo.


On to the YUMMY vegan version.

Ingredients

• 1 14-ounce package organic extra-firm tofu
• 1/4 cup “no-chicken” broth (I use the cubes and dissolved part of one)
• 1 tablespoon GF soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 2 ribs celery, finely chopped
• 2 1/2 tablespoons vegannaise (or regular for non-vegan)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons sweet relish
• 1/4 teaspoon honey mustard
• 1/4 cup of quartered red grapes 
• 2 tablespoons chopped raw almonds
• 2 teaspoons chopped chives
• salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Open and drain tofu. Wrapped in kitchen towel or multiple layers of paper towels and place something heavy on top to encourage the absorption of water, for at least 20 minutes or longer. Preheat oven to 400 F and grease a baking sheet. Stand tofu on it's side and cut in 1/2. Cut each half into fours and then cut each fourth again. You will have 16 "flat looking french fry shapes."  Place the tofu on the prepared baking sheet.
2. Mix the broth, soy sauce, thyme, sage, and pepper. Pour half of it over each slice of tofu. Flip tofu over and pour the remaining liquid over it. Bake tofu for about 20-25 minutes,flipping half-way through, until tofu is beginning to brown on the edges. Remove from the oven and let it cool.
3. Once the tofu is cool, Fat Free Vegan made a GREAT suggestion, tear each piece into small, irregular pieces. This way it looks more "chicken-y" and less "tofu-y"...HA, yep, I made up words.

The GF Pita is the pure genius of Michelle at Gluten Free Fix. Go visit for that super duper fast, easy and yummy slice of genius.

Black Eyed Pea Quinoa Salad

Adapted from Basil Tomato Quinoa. Thanks Diva Dish.

Salad
2 cups cooked quinoa
1/4 to 1/2 cup finely diced red onion
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup sliced grape tomatoes
1 can drained and rinsed black eye peas
Salt and pepper to taste

Dressing
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs olive oil
Zest of one lime
2-3 finely diced or grated garlic cloves


Mix salad ingredients in one bowl. Mix salad dressing in a separate bowl. Then toss together. This is one of those salads that taste even better if it has time to rest.

 

Success, Efficiency and Yumminess

Ok, so the title may have given away the fact that this post is a bunch of my daily randomness all thrown together...indicating that I truly have a "all-over-the-place" type of brain. So,  try to go with it. HA!

Success:

Today, during our math block, the Prince experienced our new math review center for the first time. He really enjoy it. Success. Success. Success.






Efficiency:

We use dry erase boards A LOT. Why waste paper for figuring out math problems or for spelling practice, right?! Gotta be green whenever you can. Here's the thing, for some reason, the Prince has an adversion to using the actual dry erase marker and is always using his finger...but what happens on the day momma/teacher has on a white skirt or white shorts?

Exactly!, time for a solution.

Then I saw it, I can't remember where I saw it or I would share the link, but when I saw it I knew my whites could once again be safe by a student, in our classroom, with a dry erase board.

I super glued pom-poms to the tops of the dry erase markers!! Efficiency. Efficiency. Efficiency.






Yumminess:

Now this I'm certain I saw on Pinterest...but I could be wrong. Dang it! I need to keep a "Where I first saw shit notebook!", so I can give proper credit. Anyway...I saw what I thought was a genius snack idea. Peanut butter and jelly using apple circles instead of bread. This is gluten free and is perfect for a healthy snack because it's not loaded with carbs from any sort of bread. And maybe I was a bit excited because I was also going to make this for myself using the peach jelly my momma recently canned and sent her favorite daughter, ME:) The Prince used the blueberry jelly Nana sent and  devoured it. He thought it was a really cool idea. YUMMINESS. YUMMINESS. YUMMINESS.




Off to prepare lessons for next week and to mop :/...Happy Thursday y'all!

 

 

 

 

I have no idea which makes me more excited!

Ok, things that excite me have changed over the years. Ha :). Or. Waaaa :('. Your choice.

The Prince is flying through multi-digit multiplication, but he will sometimes stop and say "what's 5 + 8, again?" or we will get to the cash register at a store and he will start counting his money and draw a blank. Both are completely normal, it still happens to adults once in a while (insert picture of the husband..hahaha), but it reminded of the importance of review.

I know one thing for certain about my Prince, he likes choices and feeling in charge. Feeling in charge being at the top of his list; I wonder where he gets that trait??? So, I decided a math review center was perfect for him, but I wanted it to be simple and already done for me. 

I asked my husband "why in the world would I want to do something someone else can do for me?!" His non-verbalized answer was "BECAUSE YOU ARE A CONTROL FREAK!"...Sorry, back on topic.

I follow many blogs but Second Grade Shenanigans is the one that gave me what I needed. Well, I mean, gave it to me for $6 on TPT, but 6 bucks later all I had to do was print, staple and slightly adjust the manipulatives for my class of one not 20plus.

This packet comes with 14! Different centers. I only posted 5 and plan to switch 1 out ever week or two or I can just replace the answer sheets sticking out of the top (see picture) and his can do them again.

One or twice per week the Math block will be "center time" instead of a new skill... The Prince picks and I sit back and sip coffee, browse Pinterest, scan and comment on FB, sit beside him ready and willing to assist, at any second!

If you are interested in the packet I purchased from TPT... Contact me! I will tell you more ;)


Okay, onto the second thing that has made me happy in the past 24 hours. A wall clock! A basic wall clock. Oh!, and the fact that it was on clearance for $2.69 at Walgreens yesterday when I popped in to pick up my free 8x10 collage.

This immediately acts as a practice/review piece, but more importantly.. The Prince's continual questions of " how many more minutes for this lesson or how many more minutes for this block or how many more minutes until snack or how many more minutes until school is out?"; Can now be answered ON HIS OWN !

Happiness is.....

Funny how the Prince doesn't appear so happy. That may occur when your mother takes a million random pictures.

NM Family Photo Shoot July 2012

I love pictures that appear to capture real emotion and personality. These did just that! Thank you, Cindy Ellis.

I can't believe my baby is 6! He is such a big boy right now. I also can't believe I have such a hottie for a husband.