July Currently

Hello All!

I am linking up with Farley for her monthly Currently.

Listening

I love Once Upon a Time! I am behind a whole season. Now that I finally have some time to relax, I'm getting caught up. :)

Loving

One of my favorite things about summer break is sleeping in. I have had so many trainings in the week that I have been out of school that I haven't been able to enjoy sleeping in yet. I am definitely looking forward to relaxing.

Thinking

I signed up for my 1st 1/2 marathon a couple of months ago. (Now I'm wondering what I was thinking!) I'm on week 2 of my training schedule and I'm supposed to run 2 miles today. It has been 90 degrees in Washington. Which may not sound too bad for some, but we are not used to that type of weather up here. I better get out there before it gets too hot.

Wanting

I would LOVE to go to Vegas this year for the TpT conference but unfortunately with my wedding and honeymoon it's not going to happen this summer. Maybe next summer. :) I can't wait to see pictures of all of the fun everyone is having.

Needing

I am going on a road trip in a couple of days. We will be camping and trekking through Washington, Oregon, and California. I need to start figuring out what we will need for our trip.

All Star

I think I am a good listener. (However my fiancé might disagree at times. :)) I tend to be the person my friends talk to when they need someone to help them process their thoughts and emotions.

Check out the linky at:

November Currently

Hey all!

I am linking up with Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade for her monthly linky, Currently.


Click on her button to take you to her blog.

Listening: Top Chef
I love watching Top Chef. I have already seen this episode so it is more background noise than actually watching the show.

Loving: Recently I played Cards Against Humanities. If you have never played the game, it is the adult version of Apples to Apples. It is so funny. I have not laughed that hard in such a long time. It was a great game for Game Night. It is also completely inappropriate. :)

Thinking: Next week I have conferences. We actually have no students on Thursday and Friday because we use those days to meet with parents. That being said, I haven't even thought about what we will be doing next week. Thank goodness I still have Sunday to figure this all out!

Wanting: Have you seen those pictures of Tieks all over Instagram and Facebook? I have been admiring them and trying to convince myself that spending almost $200 on a pair of shoes is worth it. After I destroyed another pairs of flats that I just bought 2 months ago, I am almost ready to take the plunge. I especially love this color.

Needing: I got engaged about a month ago. We just figured out the venue and our wedding date. Now on to the dress. I have spent hours some time on Pinterest checking out pictures but I have not actually tried any dresses on.

Reading: If I am able to read for pleasure, I love to read books that are mindless. I already read so much for school that requires you to analysis each word and chapter. Sometimes I just want to get caught up in simple characters. I am currently reading "Rock Chick" by Kristen Ashley. I read this book in a couple of days. It progresses pretty quickly and the keeps you interested. It was just what I was looking for.

Happy November everyone! Don't forget to check out all of the other Currentlys.

August Currently 2014

Where o' where did July go?  Is anyone else feeling that?

I am linking up with the wonderful Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade for her monthly Currently.

Listening: I love the Food Network. I'm pretty sure Chopped with my favorite show on that channel. Diners, Dive Ins, and Dives is a close 2nd. They also post all of the restaurants they visit on the Food Network website. Every time I am visiting a new city I check the list. It has some great suggestions but there is usually a line.

Loving and Wanting: It has been in the 80's in Seattle. (Say What?!) It has almost been too hot for my Pacific Northwest skin. Also, my new house gets pretty hot in the afternoon. Hence the cold drink. :)

Seattle

My front yard.

Thinking: We are in full on unpacking mode. I have been sharing some of the pictures on my Instagram account. @msrichardssmusings My wonderful boyfriend got talked into hanging curtain rods on his day off today.

Needing: My family has a bad tendency to get grumpy when we are hungry. My boyfriend calls it hangry. (I'm not sure where he got it, but I have heard it before.) The lovely Rachelle Smith from What the Teacher Wants and For Blogness' Sake posted this tank on her Facebook page the other day. This tank is perfect for me.

Tank is from Ruffles with Love

First day: Teachers have an inservice Sept 2nd and we have an all-school Open House after the inservice. Students start Sept 3rd. I still have a trip to Iceland in August before school starts for me. I can't wait!

Enjoy the rest of your summer (if you have any left) Don't forget to head over to Farley's blog to link up.

July Currently 2014

It is July 1st! So I am linking with Farley for her wonderful linking: Currently.

Listening: I have to have background noise when I am reading or working. Today it is Good Morning America.

Loving: It has been absolutely beautiful these last couple of days. Usually it is grey and cloudy for the 4th of July. This will be perfect camping weather.

Thinking: The USA vs Belgium game is today. Are you watching? My house has been everything World Cup since it has started. I believe...

Wanting: So I live in an apartment. Most of the time it is okay, except when my neighbors are yelling at each other. Today they were yelling at each other at 6 am. (Grrr) Maybe I can get in a nap before the USA game. :)

Needing: Among other reasons, my boyfriend and I are moving into a house in 3 weeks. We are ecstatic! Unfortunately that means we are in the process of packing up everything. My house is a mess and it is driving me a little crazy. I can barely walk through it without kicking or knocking something with my knee.

4th plans: My birthday is July 3rd and my boyfriend's birthday is July 5th. (Weird, right?!) This year I will be turning the big 3-0. (I'm not sure how that happened.) In honor of my birthday, I have a little something up my sleeve. Check back tomorrow for more details.

May Currently and What I have been up to

Hey friends!

Remember me?

It has been way too long since I posted anything and I have missed it. Last time I posted I was just getting into the National Board process. Well 5 months later and I have 2 weeks until I have to submit all of my evidence and papers. (Ekkkk!) Everyone I talked to before starting this process said that it was crazy and rewarding. I just was not prepared for how much it has taken over my life. Well thankfully I am close to completing all of my requirements.

On to my May Currently!

Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade!

Listening: My family is a soccer family all the way. Saturday and Sunday mornings we watch English Premiere soccer. It is almost the League Championship so the games have been full of upsets and really good.

Loving: This last week I have been waking up 1-2 hours before my alarm and have not been able to fall back asleep. :( One of my co-workers reminded me that the end of the year is very similar to the beginning of the year. For me this means that I have a hard time shutting off my brain because I am thinking of all the things I need to remember to do.

Thinking: All of my papers for my National Boards are due May 16th. I should be finalizing all of the corrections I need to make on it instead of getting wrapped up wasting time online with Pinterest and Facebook.

Wanting: I desperately need new shoes for school. My old flats have holes in both heels and they have started to get me blisters. It has been so hot here lately that I am really limited on which shoes I can wear to school that won't kill my feet and are still practical for school. We are not supposed to wear open-toed shoes to school however I don't have any other schools that are appropriate for school. Any suggestions? Any brand of shoes that you can't live without that are fabulous?

Needing: One of the last things I need to do is to scan all of my evidence for my Boards, proving all of the things I talked about in my paper. I just got a new printer a couple of months ago and I haven't figured out how to use the scanner feature yet. Hopefully it is as easy as it looks.

Surprise: Have you checked out Nicole Swisher's blog All Things Apple in 2nd Grade? She's fabulous! She has some great ideas and her Reading Skills Posters are wonderful.

I am looking forward to getting back to blogging and creating more units.

Happy weekend!

November Currenly

Hey all! It's me, Krystyn. I am alive. It had been pure craziness in my world lately. Sorry for the lack of blogging. I have missed it!

It's the beginning of a new month and you know I can't resist contributing to my favorite linky. Head on over to Oh' Boy 4th Grade for all the details on how to participate in this linky. You can also check out all the other people that have linked up.

Listening: My sweetie is watching the Manchester United game. I always make him watch all my cooking shows and dramas, he can take over the TV on Saturday and Sundays.

Loving: Yesterday, I got to enjoy an entire day free of sugar filled students. Instead I had to sit in a 3 hour training. (In my mind, SO much better than dealing with sleep deprived, sugared-up students.)

Thinking: Today is the next Sounders game. We are in the playoffs against Portland. This is a huge rival so it should be a great game. Unfortunately, it is raining so hard it work me up. Hence, the thought about trying to find my rain gear.

Wanting: My computer is slowly dying. This is my 3 laptop in the last 6 years. I figure it might be time to spring for a Mac. Everyone I talk to loves them. I just have to rationalize the amount of money. :)

Needing: I am definitely feeling the pressure this year with trying to complete my National Boards. In addition to that, next week are Parent/Teacher Conferences. This year they decided to switch things up and make them student-led conferences. Which is a wonderful idea but I have never done them before and our district is not offering any training on them. (AHHHHH!)

Yummy Pin: Doesn't this look delish? Yum-o!

October Currently

Hey all!

This is absolutely one of my favorite linkys by Farley over at Oh' Boy 4th Grade. I figured I would take a short break in my paper writing to write this quick post.

Listening: Every Saturday and Sunday morning, NBC plays 3 English Premier games. My sweetie and I watch it with our morning coffee. Since I make him watch Project Runway and Grey's Anatomy I figured I can spend my weekends watching soccer.

Loving: Yesterday and today has been absolutely beautiful in the Pacific Northwest. It is sunny but just a little chilly so I can still wear scarves and boots.

Thinking: On Tuesday I have my cohort meeting for my National Boards. I am supposed to have 1 completed entry to turn in to them. (Eeeek!) I have about 4 pages to write to get there.

Wanting: Lately when I have had the chance, I have been reading some of those free books from Amazon. I don't even remember the title of the one that I am currently trying to read but I love how mindless it is. It is a perfect break from analyzing my teaching practices. I just need to make sure I don't get lost in it and spend hours reading instead of the other things I need to do.

Needing: Somehow I forgot to grab my lesson plans off my desk on Friday when I was packing up. I have to make a trip into school to grab them before I can start my lesson plans. Good thing I live close to school.

Trick: When you are getting ready to transition and you say "be ready by the time I get to...", skip count by different variables to keep your students paying attention. Lately I have been skip counting by 2's forward and backwards. It doesn't take long for my students to realize I am not counting by 1's and they get extra practice with skip counting.

That's all for me today. I'm going to go hide in my room to working on my National Boards.

Currently (September)

Hey all! I have been seriously neglecting this poor little blog of mine this summer. I am not sure how the summer flew by so fast. I couldn't resist linking up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade for this month's Currently.

Listening: I love watching the Food Network. More often than not, it is what is on in the background.

Loving: Fall is my favorite season. I love when the leaves start to change and the air gets a little chilly. Plus Starbucks has Pumpkin Spice Lattes. Yum yum!

Thinking and Wanting are pretty self explanatory.

Needing: School starts Wednesday so I need to figure out what we are doing for the first couple of days of school. I had a schedule all figured out then they changed my start/end time of school, as well as, my specialist schedule. So I had to change everything and start all over.

My goals this month are to make sure I stay on track with my National Boards and to work out. This year is going to be crazy. I have to remember to take time for myself.

Another goal that I forgot to add would be to be better about posting on my blog this month.

I hope everyone is enjoying their Labor Day weekend.

August Currently

It is time for Farley's new Currently! Can you believe it? Where did summer go? In a little over a month I will be meeting my new 2nd graders...ekkk! I have so much to get done.

Listening: I am primarily a country music listener. However, I heard one of his songs and it was so catchy that I can't stop listening to it. (I'm sure my boyfriend wishes I would stop.)

Loving: I woke up at 8:30 today! This may not seem like a big deal but I can NEVER sleep in. So I was really excited when I realized it was past 7:00.

Thinking: My filing cabinet is a disaster. I have been just jamming things in there without really organizing anything. I know I need to organize all my centers and papers so I am not reinventing things I already made. (I hate when I do that!) As of 2 weeks ago, the janitors in my building were still cleaning. So not a whole lot I can do which of course makes me want to do it even more.

Wanting: A Big Lots just moved in a couple of miles from me but I have not been in there yet. I have seen tons of adorable things that everyone has been getting there on Facebook and Instagram. It definitely has encouraged me to get my behind over there pronto!

Needing: I have not been in my room all summer. Crazy, right?! I am going in for the first time today to try to put some things in order.

B2S must haves: I love smelly markers. (I don't know a teacher that doesn't.) I have found these are perfect for all those anchor charts I make throughout the year.

The clothes I wear for school are generally the clothes I will wear outside of school but it has to pass a "test" before I will buy it. It can't ride up to high or too low.  I don't want to be fiddling with my shirt all day. Sometimes this can be challenging.

I love buying a brand new, never been used spiral notebook for the beginning of each school year. It gets me in the mindset for the new year.

I hope you enjoyed my Currently and will link up with Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade.

July Currently

Oh. My. Word. Can you believe that is is almost July? I can't. This also means I will be in Europe in less than a week. Eeekkkk! I am so excited but I still have so much to do. In the meantime, I am linking up with Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade for her monthly linky.

Listening: I LOVE watching the Food Network. Chopped is one of my favorite shows. I think I have seen almost every episode. I really like seeing what the chefs come up with in a short amount of time.

Loving: I live in Western Washington. Generally, our summers are pretty mild but lately we have been having some beautiful weather. My favorite thing to do when the weather is nice is to spend it one the beach. Take a look at the beaches near me...a little to rocky to lay out. However it is perfect for a lawn chair and a good book.

Thinking: I have not had a chance to clean my house since I have been out of school. Tomorrow I am going to have to stop procrastinating and just getting it done. In a couple of days I will be going to Europe. I hate coming home to a messy/dirty house.

Wanting: I desperately need a pedicure. Endless hours on my feet throughout the year mean that my feet are gross. (Perhaps a little too much information. Sorry!)

Needing: After 4 days at a conference about my National Boards Certificate, I really need to go through all that information so I don't forget to do any part of it.

Tips, Tricks, and Hints: Try to post a couple times a week on your blog. Your followers want to know what is going on with you and hear about all your interesting ideas.

Enjoy your weekend. 

June Currently

Hell All!

Sorry I have been MIA this last week. I am still in school for another 13 days. We are finally getting down to the single digits. (Boy o' boy am I ready.) My already challenging class has kicked up their behaviors. =( Which makes this teacher, one very tired teacher. Okay on to my currently. I am linking up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th grade.

These are all pretty self explanatory. I always keep a book with me because you never know when your plane will be delayed.

Here are some pictures from the Kenny Chesney concert.

Eli Young Band

Eric Church

A little blurry. I was excited!

Sorry for the post that had very little school related content. I hope all of you enjoy your Sunday.

May Currently

Oh boy! Where did the month of April go? I can't believe it is already May. This also means I am linking up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade. Here is my Currently for the month of May.

Listening: I love Criminal Minds. Sometimes it gets a little creepy so I have to DVR to watch later. Plus Shemar Moore is so dreamy.

Loving: Today was a beautiful day. After such a wet Spring it is nice to enjoy some sunshine. However, it is so much easier to teach when it is raining than when it is sunny.

Thinking: Spring fever has hit my class hard this week. They are really struggling with working independently right now. So I am going to have to change my math lesson so I can make the time move more smoothly.

Wanting: A massage sounds so nice right now. What a relaxing way to spend an hour! I have a Professional Development Day on Friday, so 1 more day this week. (1 more day, 1 more day, 1 more day)

Needing: I stayed up last night working on a new unit. I swore I was only going to work on it for an hour longer and it ended up being 3. (haha) I can't wait to start using the activities with my students.

Summer Bucket List: A couple of weeks ago I won a giveaway from Amanda at Teaching Maddeness Blog for a classroom decor. I can't wait to start decorating my classroom. I just hope there aren't any unexpected room changes over the summer.

Off to bed for me. Enjoy your Wednesday.