Procrastination

I am totally procrastinating by being here on blogger. I just finished my seatwork, center 1, and whole group lesson plans for reading (with a brand-new reading series this year, that's a lot more time consuming than in previous years!), and I thought I'd take a little break before I delve into center 2 and small group instruction (aren't my Saturdays just fascinating??). ;)

I digress... I wanted to share that I actually got to SEW last night! I can't tell you how good it felt to sit down at that machine (Stella has been so patiently waiting for a bit of my attention) and CREATE something. Oh how my heart needed that, I discovered. All I made was a simple oven mitt that is part of a gift for someone. But I used some new fabric, and I really like how the colors and patterns go together. I also used my deeper understanding of bias tape to make a more finished looking edge for the cuff. Sigh of relief. Yes, I needed some sewing time. Now it's on to a few other projects, as time and energy allow (both have been harder to come by lately).

What are my other projects? Well, one goes with the oven mitt. I'll have to wait until they're mailed to the recipient before I post. I've also had bits and pieces of a wedding gift stashed for someone, using the excuse that she and her husband were moving at the end of the summer anyway. I figured I'd just save them the hassle of unpacking and repacking by holding out on finishing their gift. ;) But they are settled now, and it's time for me to wrap it up (literally and figuratively) and send it on its way! I've also been perusing sites for ideas of things I could make to sell. A c0worker sold 3 university themed picture frames tailgating a couple weeks ago. Then my mom mentioned an easy project to me. I've decided that I just might venture into the world of Etsy and try to sell a few of my wares there. Maybe some aprons, probably some university themed items. We are located such that there are 3 predominant teams people root for around here (UGA, UF, and FSU), plus there's a certain other orange that's quite popular back home (UT). I think I might try to take advantage of that and whip a few things up. We'll see... and I'll let you know how it all turns out!

Alright, enough procrastinating from me. I might as well get a move on, because I'll have to decide what's for dinner after this! :)

Have a great weekend. :)

Itching for Stitching

Thanks for all the comments lately. :) It was a SUPER busy week, so I appreciate the encouragement. :) Combine two 12 hour days, a 13 hour day, and a day with a migraine, and you have a teacher who was ready for the weekend! Unfortunately, the weekend has included work, too. And I cannot believe September is half over tomorrow. EEEK! But we're keeping at it all, one day at a time. Despite the grading and lesson planning that had to be done this weekend, we celebrated 2 special events at church this morning: the ceremonial ground-breaking for our building and ordaining deacons (including my hubby!). We are so thankful for our church family here in FL, and we are so excited and feel blessed to be a part of the ways God is growing, stretching, and leading the body here in a time of great change.

Now, the title of this post. I AM DYING TO SEW! I have been so busy, I haven't sat at my machine since my 2 days off for Tropical Storm Fay. That was the first week of school. That was 3 weeks ago! The more I craft, the more I realize I NEED crafting as an outlet. A way to explore, decompress, and think. Thankfully, I have a couple projects that need to be completed. I say thankfully, not because they're incomplete, but because I know EXACTLY what I will get to work on as soon as I have time. :) I also used a gift card from a student to purchase 2 handbag patterns I'll be excited to try. I can't wait to get started on everything and share them with you! :)

Lastly, before I head to the bed that is loudly calling my name, I would love some ideas for a birthday party coming up. Friends of our have 11 month old twin boys, and they are having a rubber ducky themed birthday party next month. Any ideas for something I could sew or make for them? I'm okay at ideas for baby showers/newborns... but 1 year old boys?? Help!! :)

Thanks, and hope you had a great weekend!

p.s. I have 2 blog awards I need to pass along.. stay tuned (and thanks to those who recognized me). :)

Stamping Challenge

There's a paper crafting challenge over at Stampin' When I Can that is HOME themed. That sounded like fun, so I thought I'd post this as my entry. :) Tomorrow is the deadline, so I'm posting it just in time. :) Check out the comments on her post for more home-themed inspiration!

Trust

I'm at work late (again)... waiting for the Fall open house to begin so I can talk, talk, talk, answer lots of questions, and then GET HOME!

I was here at school til 6 on Tuesday and 6:30 on Wednesday. I know that other teachers stay later or will continue to keep those hours even after open house week is behind us. I must confess that I am a homebody, though. Being gone 12+ hours (today) and then still needing to figure out dinner, clean up from dinner, prepare for the next day, and such wears a person out!

Hmmm, I just looked around my room and realized I never posted pictures of my classroom for this year. I must take care of that. :) I've put in too many hours and spend too many hours here not to show off some of my favorite little parts. :) Currently there are 19 cereal boxes hanging from the ceiling, each decorated for a different country. The kids' excitement this morning when they realized I took their projects and hung them for ALL to see (over their desks, nonetheless) was worth all the time it took to hang the boxes. :) They are a great group of kids. :)

Teaching is such an amazing and challenging and sometimes odd way to spend the day/year. Today's "hats" included earring remover, scalp inspector (one child was pretty convinced she had lice... I was pretty sure she had dry skin, and the nurse agreed with me ;)), cheerleader, encourager, prodder (finish up, please! ), corrector (I asked you to put that away a moment ago), oh yeah, and educator. ;) Sometimes I feel like such a taskmaster, especially at the beginning of the year when our kiddos are adjusting to the pace of the magnet program and such. And then there are glimpses in a day when I want to thank my students for the opportunities they give me. Today we planted seeds (we're studying life science and beginning with plants). You would have thought I gave them an Xbox 360. SEVERAL children THANKED me for giving them the seeds, dirt, cup, etc. I really do have a great group of kids (have I mentioned that?). Today one of them said, "You provide for us well." Wow (yes, these are 8-9 year olds, and yes, they blow me away at times).

I have to stop and think. So often I'm directing and correcting, especially at the beginning of the year, that I wonder if my acceptance of them comes through as much as I want. When you have some tender hearts, it's oh-so-hard to strike that balance, at the beginning of a new year, of the child KNOWING without a doubt you think they're great, but also being able to correct when needed (without the child taking that on as, "the teacher hates me."). Wanting to earn their trust. I think they're getting it. I think after 4 weeks, they see that they can mess up, and I'll still be cheering from the sidelines for them to make the right choice. I won't give up. I don't expect perfection. When we fall, we just get right back up and learn from our mistakes.

And what about God? Isn't He so often directing and correcting me? May I keep the perspective of so many of my students. "You provide well for us." They are learning to see through the rules and routines and discipline to the heart. May I keep my eyes on His heart, even when the things He allows or has to accomplish in me hurt at the time. My students have known me 4 weeks. They already trust me. I've known God 2o years, and sometimes it's really hard to trust.

But just like I tell my kiddos, try again. Do it right the next time. Let's fix that mistake. And am I ever thankful for a Savior who paid the price for me to be able to try again, do it right the next time, and fix that mistake. Lastly, may I ever increasingly seek to do it right the FIRST time, not just the next time. Only by His grace...

Meet Isabella

We drove up to SC after work on Friday and arrived around 1:45 AM. After catching up with Matt's parents, we went to bed! On Saturday, we got to go over and spend the day with Matt's sister and her family.... including ISABELLA! :) She is happy and healthy, and Lakey is doing such a great job!

Without further ado, here some pictures...

Lakey and Isabella (isn't Lakey's smile wonderful??)

Isabella with her mommy and daddy

Uncle Matt with Isabella!

Me holding Isabella for the first time and getting a good look at her :)

I was just a little bit in heaven... just a little ;)

You just have to love these (not so!) little feet :)

We did eventually see both her eyes WIDE open, but here was our first peek at one (after the bath where she peed on me and shortly before she spit up all over me :))

She's Here!!

Isabella Rose

arrived

Wednesday, September 3rd

9 lbs., 5 oz.

21.5" long



And this auntie and uncle are on their way to meet her!

Teacher Tools

If you are a teacher, I have to tell you about an amazing new tool my team mate told me about! It's called Engrade (I think it's supposed to be a play on words of "en garde"), and it's an online gradebook. Not only is it an online gradebook, but it's SUPER simple and user-friendly, highly customizable (in my opinion), and you can choose to give parents a password to access their child's grades online.
There's a clear tutorial you can watch on the site, and then it's easy to get started. I have to admit, I have not used any other grading software. I have always made my own Excel spreadsheets and entered my own formulas and such for them (thanks for teaching me that, honey!). Our school system just went live with a fancy-schmancy system that's supposed to do EVERYthing you could dream up. But when I log in and choose gradebook there, all I get is a red x. So much for that. Lots of us are having trouble with it and encountering bugs. I didn't want to wait for that to get sorted out, so I jumped on this new program when it was introduced to me. :) I appreciate being able to access it anywhere I have internet access (you can print it out too, though), instead of taking my jump drive with my Excel files back and forth between home and school.

One of my favorite features is the various reports that can be printed. You can print a student's report in any subject or all subjects. You can also print a missing assignments report (!!!). I am really excited, in case you couldn't tell. :)

And lastly, the blessing in disguise of not being allowed to have personal computers on campus this year and having a school CPU hooked up to my Smart Board is that now my laptop lives at home. I am so much more productive in the evening! Entering grades, answering emails, blogging. ;) I can multi-task where my hubby is while he himself slaves away on his work laptop. We are such geeks. :) Our side-by-side laptop days go all the way back to grad school and dating. :)

Alright, I need to go grade some writing prompts. Sorry this isn't too exciting, but I just had to share for any fellow teachers out there. :)

Hope you had a happy Labor Day! We already had burgers twice this week (once here and once at a friend's--both times very yummy), so tonight we had chicken alfredo. Super festive, huh? :)

Latest Nursing Cover

This nursing cover is for the same recipient as the cowboy burp cloth. :)

close-up of the ribbon I found that matches perfectly! :)

back fabric with coordinating pocket (from front fabric)

Close up of the fabrics (and terry cloth corner)

On a Roll...

You're going to get so sick of seeing burp cloths.... I finished my first pack of them, so you'll have a short break until I can go buy another pack. ;) In the meantime, I'm hoping to whip up a few napkins and monogram them. We'll see how the weekend goes...

First up, we have this:

It's for my friend, Jamie, whose baby shower I hosted and posted about back at the beginning of June. Well, Miss Katherine Elizabeth arrived last week! Everyone is back home and doing well, which is a praise, of course. :) As I was perusing embroidery sites yesterday, I found this ladybug alphabet. They had one sample letter for free--a K! Now, that will, hopefully, be great for us at some point because our last name begins with K. But in the meantime, I thought it would be perfect for little Katie! I had some ladybug fabric stashed for a project for Matt's sister--and I had more than enough. So, I took a section for the bottom of the cloth and added the pom-pons as well. I hope she likes it! :)

I also tried this:

My first applique with the embroidery machine! A couple who was in our small group has moved to Texas and are expecting baby Dusty in October. There is a "shower by mail" I was invited to "attend," so I thought I'd try something a little different. I actually used the FABULOUS 4D Embroidery Extra software to convert a cowboy boot clipart into an applique design. Then I used my oh-so-cute cowboy fabric to fill it in and decorate the bottom of the cloth. Lastly, I made an embroidery design of a sheriff's badge (also using clipart and the software) and put Dusty's name inside. It should be going in the mail on Monday... hopefully it will be well-received. :)

Embroidery Day 2 :)

Isabella's mommy and daddy are huge football fans and Carolina Panthers season ticket holders, so I thought this next little project was in order....

I also originally planned on a set of 3 coordinating ladybug cloths, if you recall.... and I finished the 2nd one. Only one more to go! :)

The first 2 together

Couldn't Help Myself

We've been told that if we want to stake our claim for Isabella's future education, we need to act fast as she already has Clemson gear. I couldn't help myself.... this is my latest (and favorite so far) creation from today. :) I *love* the "fUTure" campaign because I'm a geek and love word play. AND... it's CENTERED!!! Woo hooo!! I might need to make some of these for little Gator babies down here in FL.... just to make trouble. :)

It's here!!!!!

After ordering my Husqvarna Viking 4D Embroidery Extra software on July 7th... it finally came in! Apparently there have been delays across the board with Husqvarna products due to some customs hold-up(s). But it's finally here--and just in time for me to have 2 extra days home from school due to Tropical Storm Fay (well, they're not really days off because we'll have to go in 2 extra days in the spring that were previously days off... don't get me started :) ). So, I've been fiddling around trying to remember everything my sil told me about her Husqvarna machine and the software. And I finally successfully made something! I'm still working on the whole centering thing (I even used the little hoop template grid--I know the design altogether looks centered here, but on the software I designed it with the I centered and the ladybug off to the side, not with the center line between the ladybug and I like it looks here). If you have tips for centering, they are MORE than appreciated! :)

But nevertheless, here's the first of a pile of things I've been saving to monogram for our newest niece, Isabella (due Sept. 7). Her nursery is all ladybugs, so I thought this would be perfect. :)

Stay tuned for more!

Goal for this school year

One crafting goal I have for this school year is to try smocking. It might only amount to trying a few stitches on a sampler, though I certainly hope it turns into more than that.

In an effort to get started, I asked for recommendations from several people. Over and over, I was steered toward A-Z of Smocking and A-Z of Sewing for Smockers (thanks to those who suggested these).

I now have both at my fingertips and can't wait to try when school settles down a little. I would love to make this some handwork I could do in the evenings. I am loving the process of taking a flat piece of fabric and turning it into something three-dimension and useful. This could be another perfect outlet for producing something from cloth. :) And I wouldn't even need my machine (as fabulous as it is) to do the smocking, so that means this craft can travel!

Anyway, just wanted to update on the latest hoped-for crafting adventure. :)

Stay tuned this week for pictures of my latest cards. :)

Here we go again....

School starts Monday, and I have been going non-stop this week. Even yesterday, I was there 12 hours.... and still went back for a couple hours today! WHEW!

Please bear with me as the year gets up and running. Crafting is my "therapy" of sorts, so I hope to still make/keep time for it... especially if my embroidery software EVER gets in. ;)

Thanks for waiting for me to come back around, and I hope you are well! :)

Blessings,
Becca

Summer To Do List, revisted

Summer vacation is drawing to a close (pre-planning inservice begins Monday), so I thought I'd take a moment to see how I did with the summer checklist I posted here in May....

How I (hope to) Spend My Summer Vacation

1. Sleep in
2. Make my hubby's lunch more frequently (he took over lunch-packing duty for both of us most of this school year, amazing hubby that he is!)
3. Visit family
4. Make my owl pj pants
5. Start the wonky cabin quilt
6. Rebuild my rubber-stamped, ready to send card stash
7. Paint the master bathroom
8. Paint the laundry room
9. Keep asking Matt about painting a dining room accent wall :)
10. Visit family
11. Sew some things yet to be determined
12. Get my embroidery machine (that will be towards the end of the summer)!!
13. Finish touch-ups needed in remodeled family room
14. (BONUS) Visit family!!!!!!

How I Actually Spent My Summer Vacation
1. I did sleep in... it was glorious. :)
2. I have made Matt lunch more, and he's even come home for lunch a few times so we could have lunch *together.* :)
3. We spent a week visiting our families in SC and TN, and my mom spent almost a week down here with us. I love, love, love that part of summer. :)
4. Owl pj pants... did not start on those yet. But I DID make the dress. That was my first foray into garments, and I think I might have the nerve to try my pj pants now. :)
5. Start the wonky cabin quilt--errr, again, no. It's not that I've been afraid or haven't wanted to, though. I just do not even know where to begin with choosing the fabric for it! Any suggestions?? How do you choose quilt fabric???
6. I didn't make as many cards as I'd like, but I did make enough to get me started. :)
7. Paint the master bathroom--CHECK!! We love the bright, new, much-more-modern color.
8. Paint the laundry room--no. I did not get to that. I'll chalk it up to being summer in FL, and that is the hottest room in the house. ;)
9. I actually haven't asked him about the dining room wall, BUT I have kept the paint chip in plain sight. ;) And we *did* buy a couple things to make the room more finished--some candle sconces, hung a painting we bought months ago, and we have some more wrought iron wall art to hang in the dining room. So, the overall idea is moving along. :)
10. Visit family--again yes, lots of times with loved ones (especially the little ones... who, not surprisingly, are becoming less and less little!)
11. Sew: yes, I make coffee cuffs, a lunch bag, a sandwich wrap, and a dress!
12. Embroidery machine: check!!!!!!!! :) Now if only the 4D embroidery software would get in... they said maybe August 8... that's this Friday.... please oh please oh please?!? :)
13. Touch ups in family room. Well, yes and no. What I had in mind some touching up some places on the walls, which I did not do. But we *did* spruce things up by adding/rearranging some furniture and accents. It looks much more finished now than at the beginning of the summer. And we'll get to the wall touch ups. :)
14. Visit family: that's a whole-hearted YES! :) I love how summer affords substitute-teacher-prep FREE time (i.e. no sub lesson plans) to soak up our families! :)

All in all, I accomplished 8 of my 14 goals outright. Another 4 I kind of addressed. And 2 (laundry room and quilt) I flat out did not do. I *did* however have a wonderful summer break. A summer break with sweet memories, fun pictures, enjoyable crafting, and I even managed NOT to go to school at all for the entire month of July (a first in my teaching career). I will miss these relaxed days very, VERY soon, but they have been a sweet time of respite before the new school year begins! :)