Primary Polka Dots $2.00 Sale!!

Primary Polka Dots is one of my favorite TpT sellers! I absolutely love her products. My students can't get enough of her crazy close reading topics! Today she has all of her products for sale for $2.00 each!! 

My cart is full of her products and I want to show you what I will be purchasing!

I now have all of Lindsay's close reading products! I can't wait to use these new products next year!

TpT Seller Challenge: Week 2

I'm a little behind in the fun, but my good friend over at Sliding into First told me I need to join in on this TpT challenge so here I am! I will have to go back and work on the week 1 challenge, but this week's challenge is to share your goals and dreams for your TpT business. 

Here are some goals I have for myself. 

Travel: I love to travel and as a teacher it is so nice to have the summer to do that. There are so many places just in the United States that I would love to visit. 

Home Improvement: I am the queen of home improvement projects. I am driving my boyfriend crazy right now because every night when he comes home, I seem to have started a new project. I have some bigger projects in mind that I would love to be able to save up for with the help of TpT earnings. 

Give: I am a very cheap person when it comes to myself, but I really do try to be generous when it comes to others. I would love to be able to give even more though!

What are your big goals?

Great Summer Reads!

I just got back from a great week at Panama City Beach. It was a nice relaxing week after the chaos of the end of the school year. I love to read, but find I don't always have much time for reading during the school year, so I was excited to have the whole week in Florida to read. I read some great books during my week on the beach that I want to share with you all! You can stop reading now if you are looking for professional reads, these are all fun reads :)

The Butterfly Sister by Amy Gail Hansen: Here is the summary from Goodreads: "Eight months after dropping out of Tarble, an all-women's college, twenty-two-year-old Ruby Rousseau is still haunted by the memories of her senior year-a year marred by an affair with her English professor and a deep depression that not only caused her to question her own sanity but prompted a failed suicide attempt.

And then a mysterious paisley print suitcase arrives, bearing Ruby's name and address on the tag. When Ruby tries to return the luggage to its rightful owner, Beth Richards, her dorm mate at Tarble, she learns that Beth disappeared two days earlier, and the suitcase is the only tangible evidence as to her whereabouts.

Consumed by the mystery of the missing girl and the contents of the luggage-a tattered copy of Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own, the book on which Ruby based her senior thesis, and which she believes instigated her madness-she sets out to uncover the truth, not only about Beth Richards's past but also her own. In doing so, Ruby is forced to reexamine the people from her past: the professor who whisked her away to New Orleans and then shattered her heart and the ghosts of dead women writers who beckoned her to join their illustrious group. And when Ruby's storyline converges with Beth's in a way she never imagined, she returns to the one place she swore she never would: her alma mater."

This book has all sorts of twists and turns which kept me hooked!

Something Blue by Emily Giffin: Here is the summary from Goodreads: "Darcy Rhone has always been able to rely on a few things: Her beauty and charm.  Her fiance, Dex. Her lifelong best friend, Rachel.  She never needed anything else. Or so she thinks until Dex calls off their dream wedding and she uncovers the ultimate betrayal. Blaming everyone but herself, Darcy flees to London and attempts to re-create her glamorous life on a new continent. But to her dismay, she discovers that her tried-and-true tricks no longer apply--and that her luck has finally expired. It is only then that she can begin her journey toward redemption, forgiveness, and true love."

This was probably my least favorite of the books I read. The main character just drove me crazy. I will probably still read Something Borrowed to hear another character's viewpoint of the story. 

The Language of Sisters by Amy Hatvany: Here is the synopsis from Goodreads: "Ten years ago, Nicole Hunter left her troubled home behind her, unable to cope with the demands of a life with her disabled sister, Jenny. But when a shattering event turns her world upside down, she finds herself back in her hometown, caring for her pregnant sister and trying to heal her embattled relationship with her mother. And when she is faced with the most difficult choice of her life, Nicole rediscovers the beauty of sisterhood-and receives a special gift that will change her life forever."

I really loved this book. It pulled at all of my emotions. I loved the main character and the connection she had with her sister. I'm also a sucker for a happy ending :)

Family Pictures by Jane Green: Here is the synopsis from Goodreads: "From the author of Another Piece of My Heart comes the gripping story of two women who live on opposite coasts but whose lives are connected in ways they never could have imagined. Both women are wives and mothers to children who are about to leave the nest for school. They're both in their forties and have husbands who travel more than either of them would like. They are both feeling an emptiness neither had expected. But when a shocking secret is exposed, their lives are blown apart. As dark truths from the past reveal themselves, will these two women be able to learn to forgive, for the sake of their children, if not for themselves?"

I enjoyed this book even though I felt like the plot was similar to other books I have read. You can figure out what will happen in the book early on, but I still couldn't seem to put it down. 

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen: Here is the synopsis from Goodreads: "Suley, Georgia, is home to Lost Lake Cottages and not much else. Which is why it's the perfect place for newly-widowed Kate and her eccentric eight-year-old daughter Devin to heal. Kate spent one memorable childhood summer at Lost Lake, had her first almost-kiss at Lost Lake, and met a boy named Wes at Lost Lake. It was a place for dreaming. But Kate doesn't believe in dreams anymore, and her Aunt Eby, Lost Lake's owner, wants to sell the place and move on. Lost Lake's magic is gone. As Kate discovers that time has a way of standing still at Lost Lake can she bring the cottages—and her heart—back to life?"

I really liked this book....it is a warm, comfortable read that left a smile on my face. 

I have read all of my books now and would love some suggestions of books that you recommend!

Monday Made It-June 8

I am so excited to be on summer vacation! I just got back from a week at Panama City and now I'm ready to start tackling my to-do list! I did get one thing done recently that I want to share with you all, so I'm linking up with 4th Grade Frolic's Monday Made It linky. 

I have had this long blank wall in my kitchen for a while now and finally decided what to do with it! I turned it into a little bar area!

You can't see it very well, but my boyfriend went to a flea market and found some Life Magazines from the 50's and an old bartender's guide book that added the perfect touch to the bar :) 

Matt's Marathon Dream for a Good Cause/Giveaway!

My cousin, Matt, is getting ready to run in his first marathon. He will be running in the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, which supports St. Jude. He needs to raise $1,500 to run in the race. All proceeds go to St. Jude. My cousin is such a caring guy, and I would love to help him reach this goal. This is a young guy that got married last year and asked for donations to his and his wife's favorite charity in lieu of gifts.   How many people do you know that do that! He is such a giving guy and I want to see him reach his goal! 

If you would like to donate, you can click on the link here.  I would love to offer up an item from my TpT store for any donation of $10.00 or more. 

If you decide to donate, post a comment with your email address and I will email you so that you can pick out your item of choice from my TpT store!

Thank you!!

Bike Day!

We have been having lots of fun in the 4th grade for our last full week of school! Yesterday our 4th graders competed in Bike Day! All 82 of our 4th graders brought their bikes to school. The day started off with a nice bike ride around town. This ride definitely separated the strong from the weak! One of our teachers rode behind in her car encouraging the stragglers along! We even made a trip over to the K-3 building where we rode around in the parking lot until some of the classes spotted us and came out to cheer us on! 

In the afternoon we had three different stations set up. One station featured a local "bike guy" who showed the kids how to make sure their bike was safe to ride and how to keep it in good condition. He also showed them how to change a flat tire! He was even kind enough to fix a couple of the bikes that had broken throughout the day!

Another station featured the local police officers, and they taught the kids bike safety. At the end, they had each student practice riding and using the correct hand signals when stopping or turning. 

The last station featured a bike ride to a nearby park. 

With only one injured student, I would say the day was a success! 

Stitch Fix #12

So much for only signing up for a Stitch Fix once a season! It is more like once a month...yikes! I have an addiction! Take a look at the cute things I got this month!

I loved everything when I took it out of the box, but once I tried everything on, I only loved the two tank tops. So now I have two new tanks to take with me on vacation!

If you have been wanting to try out Stitch Fix, I would love it if you used my referral link :)

Stitch Fix