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I am a happily married new mom who loves exploring, creating new adventures and loving on my sweet daughter. I am a K-2 teacher who is now staying at home with my little one! Welcome as I explore all things a part of my sweet city love!
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11.26.2011

Crash!

Yesterday was a sad day.  While playing Santa's helper on black Friday, I got out of my car, heard "crash!" and realized my sweet Droid Incredible hit the pavement.  The screen is shattered and I use it now through a plastic bag so my delicate fingers don't become cut with glass.  Ahhhh the sadness I felt!

The nauseous feeling didn't last too long.  Good old Verizon gave me some good news - we are up for an upgrade! Sad times soon turned to excitement...I'm getting the new iPhone 4s, in white of course! Lemons were squeezed into lemonade and I'm joining the iPhone club today!! I'm all ears for app recommendations or any tips and tricks on how to make my iPhone fabulous!


Anyone get any great Black Friday deals?!


11.23.2011

What I'm Loving Wednesday!


YES!!! I'm so happy to be linking up with Jamie for What I'm Loving Wednesday.  It's been too long and I'm excited to be back to thinking about these wonderful Wednesdays! Let's get started :)

1. I'm loving that today was a early release school day!! I'm also loving that I only had 11 kids in my class today - how were they still talkative and slightly annoying? Maybe it was me ready to l-e-a-v-e :)


2. I'm loving that tomorrow is Thanksgiving!! My guy and I are responsible this year for making the stuffing and a dessert.  Thankfully, there will be a second stuffing in attendance just in case...


3. I'm loving how my sweet puppy smiles in his sleep


4. I'm loving that C and I both have bikes! We've been on several rides together and love it.  And, don't we look so hip and cool (especially with the fancy helmet...)?



5. I'm loving that I made a pumpkin pound cake that turned out and was delicious!! 


6. I'm loving a new book that I'm reading and that I'm only 2 books away from reading 20 in 2011! I highly recommend The Dirty Life - about a couple and their life starting a farm.


7. I'm loving that Survivor, Modern Family and Happy Endings are new tonight! Yesssss - how I love Wednesdays! Especially when I don't have a 6:00 am wake up tomorrow and can enjoy an extra glass of vino :)  



Happy Wednesday!!!!


11.22.2011

Top 5 Tuesday: Thanksgiving


I am linking up today with Rachel for the first time - it's Top 5 Tuesday! The theme this week is "favorite parts of Thanksgiving" which made me smile and excited for the kick-off to the BEST month ever!!

1. FOOD!
How could this not be everyone's number 1?? Where would Thanksgiving be without green bean casserole, corn pudding, stuffing, mashed potatoes and turkey?.  I always fill my plate so that food is spilling over the sides and then happily eat seconds - come on, it's Thanksgiving!


2. Family
Love anytime with the family - especially when it involves delicious food and wine. Excited to spend not one but two thanksgivings with my family and my husband's family.  Laughter and stories are the best medicine :)


3. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!
I'm even more excited for the Parade (and dog show that follows...go corgis!) this year because we lived on 34th street this summer in NYC and overlooked the huge Macy's that sponsors the parade.  The parade is going right through our old neighborhood - yes! 


4. Relax, relax, relax
A 4 day weekend means sleeping in every day - a break from the 6am wake up! Two thanksgiving meals also means lots of naps in front of the fire.  And time for catching up on life and finally doing some reading:) If you need me, I'll be in this claw-footed soaking tub...


5. Christmas decorations!
Now, I'm not a huge holiday decorator.  You'll find pumpkins on our front stoop, and a few candles flickering, but I don't really get into over-the-top holiday decorating (even though I love to admire everyone else!).  However, I do LOVE all things Christmas! The tree, the ornaments, my nutcracker collection, the scented pine, the presents, the candles, the peppermint...it all makes my heart swoon :) I'll be bringing down things from the attic this weekend - helloooo Christmas!


Happy Thanksgiving Tuesday!! Tomorrow is a half-day at school and I'll be sending the little ones out in a hurry.  This turkey has some cooking to do!



11.21.2011

Watch Out!

I bought a LivingSocial Adventure a few weeks ago called "Shootin' and Drinkin'" - hehe.  Of course shooting guns and drinking beer goes together....bah!  In recent years, I've really been interested in going to a shooting range and shoot different kinds of guns.  Now, reading that sentence couldn't possibly sound more UNlike me.  Surprise!! I wanted to try something new and why not learn how to shoot a handgun??  My guy and I went and had a blast (no pun intended...).

We got worlds fastest introduction to how the guns work and when it was time for questions - I was the ONLY one from a group of about 50 who asked a question.  Really?!? Was I the only novice?  Armed with earplugs, 50 bullets and a large outline of a "man" to shoot, we were ready to go.

Because it was freezing and I was shaking in my boots with nerves, I ended up dropping the magazine (the bullet holder that goes into the gun) with all my bullets onto to the side of the range where people were shooting (the firing line).  So, I had to get a helper with a long broom to swoosh it back to the safe side.  Even with a clumsy start, I had a great time.  We shot 22mm, 9mm handguns and automatic rifles. Let me just say - amazing stress relief! The only one I didn't really like was the 9mm.  It was too heavy with way too much kickback.  I felt like I could drop it by accident and start spraying bullets - yikes!

After shooting, we went to a beer tasting with the same crowd.  It was a great time - a new hobby perhaps?? Try something new, friends, as you never know what you might like!









11.12.2011

First day surprises

My first day back to school to begin setting up my classroom was here.  It was like being thrown back fast and hard into a world that I have come to know so well.  I know the challenges, the joys, the setbacks, the paperwork, the craziness and the happiness it can bring.  One day I was getting settled into my role as an Interventionist and the next day I was interviewing for a full time job.  It all happened so fast.  In hindsight, this whirlwind was just what I needed.  Any slower, my mind would have wandered too far and started asking too many questions.  My heart told me to do this - even though my mind was whirling with nervousness.

I have that first day of school smile and excitement - I was going back.


I came home that first day to the sweetest of surprises.  My sweet guy set up things that made this teacher smile ear to ear.  

First, a set of my favorite pens for grading, checking and giving lots of smiley faces :)


Second, apples for the teacher.


And third, beautiful tiger lilies that bloomed for weeks!


Thank you for helping me feel supported, loved and strong on my first day back and listening to me when I said...what on earth am I doing?? :) 

11.06.2011

An Award!!



This is so very long overdue.  Again, major fail.  I was given this sweet award from a blog that I love following and have missed over the last month! Thank you so much Ashley from Everyday AEM for awarding me The Versatile Blogger Award!!  I always wondered how people were awarded such sweet accolades and I am more than excited that you chose Sweet City Love as a winner! I am simply thrilled that you have enjoyed reading my blog :) I hope that I haven't lost you or my other readers over my down spell. I thought finally writing about this award and passing it along to some of my favorite blogs would help me get out of my blog-rut from the last month!! Thank you, Ashley!!


If you get the award, these are the easy and fun steps you should follow: 

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.

2. Share 7 things about yourself.
1. I am a 5th year teacher.  I've taught Kindergarten for 3 years and 2nd grade for 2 years.
2. I have a corgi-husky mix who is so amazingly cute.
3. I have been married to my guy for three fantastic years!  We've been together for 12 years all together!
4. I went on a 2 month backpacking trip to Europe with my husband  and had the most amazing adventure (did I mention we quit our jobs to do this...?)
5. I want to have a house in the mountains.  We miss college in the Shenandoah Valley tremendously.
6. I love to read and become completely intertwined with a good book, thus making it hard for me to have meaningful conversations with real people or engage in, well, anything...
7.  My dream house will have a wood burning fireplace, a screened porch and pillows everywhere!

After my month hiatus...I am ready to discover and love so many new blogs!!
 Thank you to those below for creating fantastic, love to read, blogs :)
3. Pass this award on to up to 15 bloggers you have recently discovered and (love to follow).

1. Emily @ Life of Emily
3. Nicole @ Bloom
6. Whitney @ How Sweet It Is
8. Jessica @ Garden Patch


A month of change!

September 29, 2011 - the last day I posted to Sweet City Love.  It has been a full month of neglect, of mis-treatment, of nothing. I am so embarrassed!  I was proud that I was gaining a few readers back in September. I was genuinely happy to write new posts almost every day and was loving the connections that I was making with other bloggers (thank you for not leaving me!).  And then...my daily life was rocked and completely changed.

I am here now to give an oath to my blog and to myself - I am ready to take control of my life again! Sound dramatic? My new job is just that crazy. It took a month of settling in but I finally feel somewhat ready to rejoin the world.  On September 29, I decided to take a kindergarten teaching job (ahhh!).  I was planning on working part-time this year while going back to school to pursue a new nursing career.  I studied hard this summer and did well in my anatomy class.  I was signed up for Anatomy II, signing paperwork at school for my 16 hour a week Interventionist job, when I heard a whisper of a new kindergarten classroom being made.  Numbers were too high and they needed to hire another teacher.  To make a very long story short, I thought long and hard, decided to interview and accept the position.  I simply couldn't turn it down.

I love kindergarten, I do love my school (even though it is impossibly difficult every single day) and I love the people I work with.  This brand new classroom is only for this year and then I can resume my quest towards nursing school.  As I always said, I wasn't leaving teaching because I wanted to get away. I love what I do (most days...!) but I know that if I don't try to get into medicine in some way, I'll regret it.

I was led to this job. It was an option for a reason. I thought hard about it and knew that it wouldn't be easy.  And, it hasn't been.  It's why I've been missing for the past month.  Teaching is all consuming.  Especially setting up a classroom, meeting 17 new children, jumping into lessons midyear, trying to create a sense of community and teaching routines and procedures.  I am three weeks into this new role and am liking it more and more every single day.  My life has certainly changed but, as I am now in my 5th year of teaching, I know that I cannot let it control too much of who I am.  I do it because I love it.  I'm learning this year more than any other that I can enjoy it without sacrificing other things in my life.  It's hard to remember that balance, you have to work at that balance, but I can do it.

For so many reasons, including my happiness, I am sticking to Sweet City Love.  I like it, and all of you, too much! Thanks for being there and hanging on as readers.  I look forward to many more updates of life as a TEACHER, a wife and a mom to a precious pup!