On/Off.

Have you ever had one of those days when you're just ON? Everything out of your mouth is the wittiest thing ever, people left and right are congratulating you for your awesomeness, and all you need is for the red carpet to unfurl before you as you sashay your fabulous way through the world. You are just ON fire, and everyone knows it. Including you.

Sounds wonderful, right? We've all had those days, right? Yeah, well, today I'm definitely OFF. Everything out of my mouth today has sounded convoluted and stupid even to my own ears, people left and right must have been wondering what is wrong with me, and all I need is for the world to stop and let me get OFF because I'm having ... well, an OFF day. And I'm sure everyone knows it. I definitely do.

At least tomorrow is a teacher planning day -- no students, just me in my classroom grading papers as I listen to my iPod and revel in my teacher downtime, which is not something we get a lot as teachers.

Here's hoping tomorrow is an ON day.

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Cheer me up with a comment, would ya?

Oh, and enter my giveaway here. That will cheer me up, too.

Giveaway!!! {Ma Cherie Creations}

My next giveaway is sponsored by my bloggy and real life friend Adri from Ma Cherie Creations.

Ma Cherie Creations specializes in handmade cards, scrapbook pages, and whimsical jewelry. Adri is a true renaissance woman -- there's nothing she can't craft, apparently. :)

Here are some of my favorite items from her shop:

Owl Notecards

Disney Premade Scrapbook Page

Gray, Silver, and Black Circle Earrings

Wired Antique Finish Earrings

The giveaway prize this time is for any one item priced $10.00 or less from Ma Cherie Creations. Here are the rules for my giveaway:

1.) Visit Ma Cherie Creations and comment with your favorite item. Be sure to include your email address in this comment.

(1st entry -- mandatory!)

2.) Leave another comment if you are a follower of this blog. 

(2nd entry -- bonus entry!)

3.) Leave yet another comment if you tweet or blog about this giveaway (with link!). 

(3rd entry -- bonus entry!)

4.) Leave yet another comment if you are a follower of the Ma Cherie Creations blog. 

(4th entry -- bonus entry!)

 

Please remember that multiple entries means multiple comments! I will be selecting a winner at random next Tuesday, September 14th at 5:00 PM (EST). Good luck! :-)

Lolcat of the Week

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Happy Labor Day! Happy I-can-sleep-in-today Day! Happy I-don't-have-to-listen-to-students-whine-today Day!

(Can you tell I'm happy it's Labor Day? ;D) Have a great Monday!

Week in Review

I haven't done one of these posts in a while! I guess the start of the new school year has been keeping me busy. This week I was certainly occupied with writing lesson plans, creating seating charts, and perfecting my classroom management skills. There are already some students I know will be keeping me on my toes this year -- I can just tell. I think the fact that I learned their names on the very first day is very telling. ;)

When I wasn't keeping my kidlets in order this week, I was (finally!) finishing Mockingjay, which I adored. I was also going shopping for groceries with le boyf, which I always adore. There's just something fun about going grocery shopping, especially when it's at Target. (Even though I invariably end up buying more than just groceries.) This week I also finished organizing my closet and throwing out a ton of worn out shoes I never wear anymore, plus bagging up some of my clothing which I also no longer wear to donate to the Veterans' Association in my city.

I feel so much better now that my closet is decent again. I cleared up a ton of new space should the urge to buy new clothes and shoes arise. Which no doubt it will soon, what with Fall beginning to take over clothing stores.

Here are my posts from earlier this week in case you missed any:

Lolcat of the Week

And the winner of the Flapper Doodle giveaway is...

    

This is making me happy right now...

Words. 

Happy Friday!

How I spend my Saturdays.

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What did you do this week?

How I spend my Saturdays.

It's Saturday morning and I am lying in bed doing some online "window shopping" on my laptop (so many good sales this weekend!). There is a cup of coffee on my bedside table and a darling kitty cat curled up by side who just happens to be using my Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire book as a pillow. Even though tomorrow is Sunday (normally a day of dread in this household), I have Monday off, so right now the weekend is still wide open.

I convinced Ricky it might be better to save Orlando for another weekend when the theme parks won't be so crowded, not to mention hot. I'm glad we decided to stay home because I woke up this morning to a surprise visit from Aunt Flo. And she can be a real pest, so I think I would have been miserable dragging my crampy self around Orlando in 90 degree weather. Nothankyou.

No other plans for the weekend, but right now I'm perfectly happy just lounging in bed. Having nothing to do and nowhere to go can sometimes be wonderful, n'est-ce pas?

Online shopping + sipping on coffee + cat curled up by my side = BLISS

How are you spending your Saturday?

Happy Friday!

Friday, you have never been more appreciated than you are right now. I don't know if it was because of the long weekend, or what, but my freshmen today were like little devils. I had to stay on top of them ALL DAY. And now I am beat and sadly in need of caffeine. And a nap. And a back rub.

For now, I'm going to jump in the shower and get ready for my salon appointment. I'm going with a friend to get our hair and nails "did," which is an excellent way to celebrate the fact that the weekend is here. I am doubly happy that it is the start of a looong weekend. I need the break! Ricky and I were thinking of going out of town this weekend, maybe to Orlando, but honestly, I don't care if we leave or stay home. So long as I can rest.

As luck would have it, Lauren's fill in the blank for this week happens to be travel themed! Make sure to link back to her if you want to play along. Here are my answers...

1.  If I didn't have to work anymore I would  sleep in every day, roll out of bed and spend all day writing short stories and poems. In my pajamas, natch. On the days I wouldn't feel like writing, I would explore Miami because I often feel I don't know my own city enough.

2.  My favorite thing about a vacation is  being on my OWN time -- not having to worry about work or responsibilities.

3.  When packing for a trip I  tend to overdo it ... A LOT. It drives my boyfriend nuts, I'm sure.

4.  If I could go on a road trip with anyone (dead OR alive) I would choose  my boyfriend, Ricky, every time. Not just because he's my ever-loving soul mate, but because the boy could find his way out of a tornado, he's that good a navigator.

5.  My top 3 absolute travel essentials are   a comfortable pair of jeans, a comfortable pair of shoes, and good reading material for any downtime spent on planes, trains, or just hanging out in the hotel.

6.  Vacations are  little snatches of paradise in an otherwise humdrum working life.

7.  On vacation you must always  be prepared for the unexpected, and take everything in stride. I find it's best to be positive when you're on vacation, because this is your time to RELAX.

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Are you doing anything awesome this weekend? Let me know in the comments!

Words.

Sometimes I come across quotes that just speak to me, the words almost jumping out of the page in their eagerness to be read, to be felt, to be understood.

As a bell-work assignment, I often ask my students to interpret specific quotes and share how they can relate to them personally. Their responses never cease to amaze me in their uniqueness, their immediacy, despite the fact that they are all responding to the same quote. Sometimes they even "donate" quotes of their own, which I love.

This is one quote that has always spoken to me. I need to follow its lessons more:

“After a while you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul, and you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning and company doesn’t mean security, and you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts and presents aren’t promises, and you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes open, with the grace of an adult, not the grief of a child, and you learn to build all your roads on today because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans. After a while you learn that even sunshine burns if you get too much. So plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers. And you learn that you really can endure… that you really are strong, and you really do have worth.”

—	Veronica A. Shoffstall