Reminders.

One of those days, man. You know the kind. When nothing big and bad really happened, but it's a day just the same. It's freezing cold out; you can't find your keys in your purse; for every thing you cross off your to-do list, two more things get added; you find out it costs $110 just to renew your passport (and checks only, of course, don't even think you can put that on a credit card and pay it off over a period of a couple months); you have a headache; your rabbit camps out in his litterbox right when you were getting ready to clean it; you stand in line at Family Dollar while the cashier and her coworker tell stories about how much they hate their jobs (while you mentally correct their grammar, not because you're rude but because you literally do it all day long and your brain can't turn off); and did I mention it is FREEZING COLD OUT?!

Winter. Blah.

I was dusting this evening because it's Thursday and that's what I do, and, as always, I gently moved my copy of Once Upon a Time, best gift ever and authored by The Great and Powerful Story, to dust underneath. On a whim I opened the cover, and I was glad I did because I needed to see what was in there.

Nesting.

Today I'm over at my friend Miranda's awesome blog Our Nesting Place contributing to a post about day planners! Pop on over, and I hope you enjoy her site! Click here.

BSC

One reason I was really pumped to start school yesterday was that right before Christmas break a very special sixth grader bounced up to me (trust me, she bounces!) before class one day and said, "Miss Lafferre, did you ever read The Baby-Sitters Club?"

BE STILL MY HEART!

This is like that legendary teaching moment you'll never forget. Because I lived and died for The Baby-Sitters Club for the majority of my young life. Heck, I even follow Ann M. Martin on Facebook to this day! I've even blogged before about my unparalleled ability to recall the names (first and last) of all the BSC clients, along with their phone number (KL5-3231) and the street where they had their meetings (Bradford Court), amongst other useless details.

I have almost every single BSC book ever written, well, most are in boxes at my parents', but I digress, and from time to time my mom used to ask me if I'd like to donate them somewhere. But I've never been able to part with them because they are so special.

But over break, I rounded up 6 or 7 of them and put them together to give this sweet girl our first day back. I told her to start with those and to keep them as long as she wanted and come back whenever she needs more. It took all I had not to ask her if she wanted to form our own Baby-Sitters Club because I'm not 13 anymore and that is weird.

But I can't tell you how much I love that she is reading and loving them. BSC 4 lyfe.

2015: Looking Ahead -- A Link Up

I recently stumbled upon a new blog called Here I Am, the Handmaid of the Lord. What a cool blog title, one that really carries with it a lot of weight. I happened to find it right as Natalie, the writer, was hosting a link up called 2015: A Look Ahead. She provided a list of questions to answer, and I thought I'd join up!

1. Do you think you will be going to school at any point in 2015?  If so for what?
Oh man, I sure will be, and, in fact, it begins in just a week or so! I'm continuing in my second semester for my Master's in Teaching.

2. Will there be a job change for you in 2015?
I sincerely hope not. The most I'd like to change in the upcoming year is maybe teaching an American history class (nerd alert), but I'd be thrilled to be doing exactly what I'm doing now.

3. What adventure or event are you most looking forward to during this coming year?
Well, I am certainly looking forward to taking my 8th graders on their class trip to Washington, D.C., in May! We depart our school on a bus at 4 a.m. and the trip just gets even more crazy from there! Should be a really good time. I'm also looking forward to my first "free" summer since I was a kid. Of course, I'll be packing in four (hopefully online) classes and getting my classroom ready for next school year (I hope), but I'd like to take my grandmother to see my aunt and uncle in Greer, S.C and visit Ashley in Tulsa and Colleen in D.C.

4. Do you think there will be a move to a new house/apartment/city/state/country in 2015?
No, not in 2015. Maybe 2016!

5. What do you see as the direction of your blog in 2015? Design update plans? Link-ups coming down the pipes? More or less posts?
I'd like to do more posts. I really ramped it up last year, but I'd like to do even more in 2015. I think what I need to focus on is planning so I have a general idea of what I'd like to write about every day.

6. If you could guarantee that one thing could happen this coming year what would it be?
If I could absolutely guarantee something it would be that there would be no sicknesses or deaths in my family or close circle. Other than that, I'd like to guarantee that my Master's program will work with my current job so that I can continue teaching at the school where I am now.

Bonus!

I found my verse of the year for 2015. I was really surprised by it, as I am usually much more of a New Testament girl, but there must be something God wants me to know in this. The verse is:

Forget the things that happened in the past. Do not keep on thinking about them. I am about to do something new. It is beginning to happen even now. Don't you see it coming?
- Isaiah 43:18-19

An Ode to the First Monday Back After Break

'Twas the night before Monday
And all through the town
Every teacher was celebrating
Their last precious moments of sitting down.
Yes break ends today
And tomorrow is the first day back
We'll all be getting our rest tonight
Because the students will all be wack.
Tomorrow's outfit is all picked out
And a packed lunch awaits
And we're vowing for at least a week
We won't be running late. 
But although we've enjoyed our time off
And our time with family and friends
We've really missed our students
So we're kind of happy spring semester begins! 

************************************************

It's all true! I swear it! I actually am trying to get a jump on things this semester. I was at school for several hours today finishing preparations and just completed a few more things at home. I got my first day back outfit laid out, and I packed my lunch and my clothes for the gym after school. Right now I am kicking back with a delicious hot chocolate in a beautiful mug, both of which were given to me by a sweet student for Christmas.

Although Sunday nights are always a little bittersweet, this one even more than others, one great thing is helping me ease back in to Monday. And that is DOWNTON ABBEY! It returns this evening, and don't you worry, I'm all prepared for that too:

Just like the Brits do, right? :) 

Oh, and just a little funny for you in honor of tonight's premiere ... and the fact I believe my real last name is Mountbatten-Windsor. :)

Thanks for finding and sending this one, Erin! 

Whether you are a teacher or a non-teacher, I hope everyone has a great day back at work tomorrow!

Dinos and Sharks

On the last day before Christmas break, my friend/coworker Sarah and I decided we'd wear silly Christmas sweaters and hair ribbons to celebrate the day. So we did. I also had bought my students some cookies and Capri Suns and allowed them to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas for half the class. (No, not all the class, I'm not that nice. Haha.)

The eighth graders came in for 4th period, and I had a writing activity for them to complete the first half of class. (It was fun, I swear! I'm not a Grinch either.) I put a writing prompt up on the board, gave them about 3-5 minutes to free write, and then I changed the prompt. (I do this from time to time, and it really is fun! At least for me. I would have loved this when I was in school. I guess not everyone is like me though. Sadly. :) ) As they were writing, I realized that my sore throat really needed a drink of water. Usually I have several water bottles in/on/around my desk, but that day there were none to be found. Then I realized ... I have a Capri Sun! So I popped one of those suckers out of the box, stuck the straw in and drank my Capri Sun. I carried it up to the laptop with me as I went to click the slide to the next prompt. As I did, one of my students said, "Miss Lafferre, I really hope that when I'm 30 I will still be wearing hair ribbons and drinking Capri Suns."

That REALLY made me smile. And I told her -- and the rest of the class -- that my hope for them is that they never get too old for Capri Suns or ice cream trucks or cartoons. And I realized that if I can teach them to love the little things and grow and mature while keeping a childlike heart, then I will have done all I need to do.

Incidentally, some of my favorite silly things are dinosaurs and sharks. Sharks and dinosaurs. Do not even get me started on the cinematic wonders that are Jurassic Park and Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus. In fact, if you have any questions about my love, feel free to check in with my friend Colleen. Imagine how thrilled I was, then, yesterday to discover this gem at the local Aldi:

Dinos AND sharks in one bag?! Sold! Obvs it was then time for Mega Shark vs. Giant T-Rex:

Oh and you may remember that time I mentioned that I feel like the internet read my mind and knew that the only thing that would talk me off the ledge of internet going in and out hate is a picture of a dinosaur to bring me the bad news? Well the internet outdid itself. Check this out:

 It is quite obviously time for me to go back to work. I can't be left to my own devices one more day.

Hezky Den

As my Czech friends would say, hezky den! Which translates to have a nice day or have a beautiful day. And I hope you all do have a very hezky den today, this first day of 2015.

As I said to my sister last night, 2015, man. Who thought they'd see the day? As Erin said, life is weird.

And it is.

I love new beginnings as much as the next person, and I take full advantage of the clean slate the new year brings. While each new day is a chance for a new beginning, there is something special -- magical you might say -- about the year changing. You have a fresh, new day planner with nothing yet written in the pages, and it's comforting to know that.

I don't necessarily subscribe to new year's resolutions per se. I think it's always good to set goals, but I also don't believe you should start a new year with setting yourself up for failure. (I'll lose 10 pounds by the end of January! Yikes.) However, I will say my best resolution of all time came a few years ago when I boldly stated I'd like to wake up every and ask myself, What would Kate Middleton wear? That was something I could actually do. (And my friend Story kindly turned it into a piece of wall art I have hanging over my closet to this day!)

But what I do love is choosing a word for the new year. I'm not sure who came up with it, but I first heard about it on Conversion Diary, one of my most favorite blogs. Basically, it's a word that you meditate on that year and set your goals around. And I thought it about it for about two seconds this year before I realized what my word would be.

And that world is HELP.

I realized that something I'd like to intentionally focus on is helping someone every single day. Helping someone in a real way, be it big or small. Some days somebody might need some serious help through organized volunteering. Other days, someone carrying a lot might need me to open a door for him or her. Either way, I'd like to help someone every day. I think it might be fun when 8 p.m. rolls around and I realize I haven't helped anyone yet that day. I'll have to find something to do! The most important person I am going to try and help this year is Joseph. We have until October 2015 to find him a family. Can you help?

I also like this fun idea that's been floating around the internet. I'm not sure I will be able to afford it, but it seems like a manageable way to save some money, so I am going to try! In fact, I just moved $1 from my checking account to my savings account, so I'm off to a super good start!

Oh, some fun news. In the next day or so I'll be featured, along with some other writers, on my friend Miranda's blog talking about day planners! (One of my favorite topics.) I'll post the exact link here when it's up, so be sure to read my thoughts on my awesome Kate Spade Bella Bookshelf planner!

Whatever your hopes, goals, dreams are for 2015, I hope it all goes your way in 2015. Here are some thoughts to leave you with: