Erin and Audrey ~ Engagement Photos

Erin and Audrey are engaged to be married in the fall of 2016. I was Audrey's teacher back when she was in high school, so we were not all strangers when we met up for the session. Erin was goofing off the entire time, and so the photos turned out so comfortable and genuine! I adore the images we captured!

We walked around the creek bed near Bennett and loved the warm, summer sun!

Is this not Pinterest perfect for a rustic, country wedding?

This silly moment turned into such a sweet photo of these two interacting together!

That ring! Good work, Erin!

Congratulations, Audrey and Erin! I am looking forward to your wedding next year!

18 month update

Jaxon is no longer my little baby it seems like! I never got around to an 18 month update, so let's just call his 20 month update the same thing, shall we? Give a busy, workin' mama a break, ya?

He is still 32.5 inches tall and weighs 22 some pounds...but the weight is an estimate and he would never sit still enough to actually know accurately!

This little guy is ALL boy and keeps us running on our toes from 6:30 in the morning to 7:30 at night! He is a non stop busy body like his mom, and fearlessly in love with all things messy like his dad!

Thank goodness we have a fenced in large back yard, because I can let him play outside as much as he wants and not worry very much. He has dug himself a dirt hole over here! Don't judge the pink car toy...we got it free from Grandma and he loves it, so I figure why spend $40 for one that's more "masculine?"

Jax talks all day long now, but some of it I still can't quite understand. His vocabulary consists of:

mommy

car

puppy

doggie

hot

bird

owie

food

more

baby

no

bye

hi

phone

choo choo

moo

oink

shoes

There are a few words I have to translate for people, like:

nanny = daddy, as we can't really make the D sounds effectively yet

night night = blanket, not bed time

mow = cat, his version of meow

nana = banana

There is also a word he says many times a day, that sounds like "moy" and is a word he is using to talk about coins and money. I just can't figure that one out!

He loves all things money related and will carry a handful of coins around from the time he wakes up until he goes to bed if we let him! We have been very fortunate that he hasn't swallowed any coins!

He also loves everything having to do with water, he just hates being splashed in the face! He has enjoyed the pool, the lake, the hose in the yard, the water table, the bath tub, and running through every random puddle he encounters.

If Jaxon always got his way, he would live outside and spend every minute of his life outside. But, Mommy can't quite handle that, so we spend a couple hours a day indoors. Jaxon wants to be in the water, in the dirt, in the mud, in the grass, picking up rocks, watching bugs and frogs, checking out flowers and plants and of course, playing with the dogs all day-every day!

He got his first bee sting this month, also, but we were lucky he wasn't allergic and the swelling from it went away very quickly. Check out that swollen ear though!

Currently loves: playing with cars, running and jumping off things, hot dogs and cottage cheese, his pacifier and blanket, holding hands and sitting with Mommy, being tickled, playing with stickers, watching race cars, watching the movie Turbo, naps and his daily schedule. 

I can't think of many things he dislikes (other than sitting still), but I am not sure if that's because he doesn't have many dislikes, or if I just block out the tantrums he throws when he is unhappy. 

First carousel ride.

Driving with Grandma.

Slides are a big hit! 

Happy 4th of July.

Trucks and mud forever.

Watching races with Daddy.

Don't you just adore a sleeping baby?

....................Babies are growing up too quick in this Little Life....................

Spartan Chick

This time last year, if I was to do one of those activities where I imagine my life a year into the future I would have NEVER pictured it like this!

One of the biggest surprises that has come along this past year was running a Spartan Race (or three) and loving it as much as I did!

When a friend at the rec center first asked me to do the Spartan Race, I giggled nervously and brushed it off. Then I kept thinking about it, but just didn't think it was possible. I had a million reasons excuses.

1. I can't run.
2. My knees hurt.
3. I don't know what to expect.
4. What if I fail?
5. How can I eat during the race?
6. It's too much money.
7. Mud is not exactly my thing.

And so on...

But, I have committed to my One Little Word of "push" this year and part of my objective with that word is to push myself to try new things by saying yes to every new opportunity I got this year. So, I hesitantly signed up for my first Spartan Sprint Race.

And then the day came. I hadn't done much of anything outside of my normal workouts to prepare. I just figured I would see how it went.

The Fort Carson Sprint ended up being a little under 5 miles with 26 obstacles and was the most fun I have ever had during a competition of sorts! I quickly learned that my knees didn't hurt, I wouldn't fail and that mud is EXACTLY my thing! I loved every minute of it and the sense of accomplishment at the end is unbelievable!

Figuring out my own technique for the barbed wire crawl.

Coming out of the muddy water in the Dunk Wall.

Swinging across on the rope, hoping my butt doesn't hit the water.

My first finish and the best feeling ever!

#swolesisters

My favorite little cheerleader!

Very soon after completing this first Sprint race, I signed up to do a second one. I was so excited and now I had a better idea of what to train and practice for. 

Breckenridge was another beast entirely and no matter what I prepared for in my head, it was a different type of challenge. The altitude, to begin with, was very tough to overcome! Some of the obstacles were completely new to us, and we struggled at some points.

Running out of the 40 degree water.

Barbed Wire Crawl in the snow up the side of a ski slope.

The best choice I made for this time around was to purchase a Flip Belt. It's a belt made of stretchy, fitness clothing material, that has small slits in it and is a large pocket all the way around. With it I carried protein bars and Power Bar gummies right around my hips, which made me feel much more confident knowing my blood sugars wouldn't crash mid-race!

Log carry.

Now with two races under my belt, I was completely addicted! All I could think about was another race and training even better. I quickly signed up for the next race in two weeks in Salt Lake City, Utah. This time, I went even bigger, to the Super, which is approximately 8 miles long with more obstacles. 

I had to get a Spartan Selfie!

A Frame Cargo Net Climb.

My first tire flipping experience! 

Going across the rope...I would have been more scared if it was over water.

The muddiest barbed wire crawl known to man!

My workout buddy, Sam, couldn't make this race, so I was going at it alone. But something you quickly learn as a Spartan is that the sense of community and teamwork is incredible! Anyone will be willing to help you on obstacles where you struggle and there is always someone cheering you along!

Now, here it is barely three months after running my first Sprint race and I have completed an additional Sprint as well as a Super. I am also signed up to run the Beast in Dallas, Texas in October. I am so nervous about having to run 13+ miles in the Beast, but I am working my hardest to bring the biggest A-game possible! 

That post race glow!

If I manage to finish the Beast without collapsing and dying (which is a possibility here...) then I will have completed a Spartan Trifecta my first year as a competitor! A Trifecta is completing one race of each length in the Spartan brand and I am super excited to get the last piece to my Trifecta medal!

One thing I love about being a Spartan is that it is the exact opposite of who I thought I was, and yet it makes me feel so complete! I usually run the race with lipgloss in my pocket the entire time and I have come up with the term "Team High Maintenance" for Sam and I. I absolutely believe that I can be girly and one tough mama all at the same time! I am my own kind of badass and pretty darn proud of that!

Here is to the two sides of me...the beauty AND the beast!

.................... I'm making gains in this Little Life! ....................

Classroom Tour

I think I am feeling like a lot of teachers and I am struggling to love my work as much as I used to. There is a ton of pressure, lots of added responsibilities, there is less importance placed on education, the students are more difficult to engage...yadie yada ya.

I don't want to spend any time griping on the negatives of the job, because unlike lots of teachers I am truly dedicated to the job and will do whatever it takes to make this work! I am hoping to find a new energy in my classroom this year and really connect with my students. My 2015-2016 school year goal is to remember why I started teaching to begin with, and then get better from there!

I have been spending weeks thinking of ways to get more excited about getting back into the classroom. I am employing strategies like: building a much more fun wardrobe (cute clothes make me want to go somewhere to show them off), trying a new style of teaching and completely flipping my classroom, and also changing the physical decor. I am excited about some of the decorative changes I have made so far...and I think my classroom is *essentially* ready for students!

Here is a tour of what I have been working on for the last week in my room:

Let's start with my desk! The biggest change for this year!

I am working on more of a "paperless" and "minimalist" approach to my work. Paper and clutter on my desk is one of the biggest factors in my classroom stress, so I thought I would try to cut it out all together! I used to have a huge, L shaped desk and I took half of it out. Now I am left with this very small desk and hopefully I will be able to function with this and only this.
*Disclaimer: the other piece of the desk is in storage across the hallway. Nice and close if I break down, panic and need it for security!*

The view of my classroom while standing behind my desk. 

I love my B letter block and the tiny sugar skull! The black magnetic easel board is an old product from Creative Memories. An oldie, but a goodie! The containers holding my pencils and supplies are actually kitchen containers from Target! Cheap and multi-functional!

Right next to my desk, in the front, is my SmartBoard and I added this faux bulletin board.

I saw this idea on Pinterest (duh!) and had to copy it! It's just white butcher paper, but cute borders from Target. I added some of the paper flowers I got from Party City last year and some banner labels from Teachers Pay Teachers. The banners came out much smaller than I thought, so I will probably end up re-printing them bigger. They say "Espanol 1" on the left and "Espanol 2" on the right. The hanging folder pockets are also a bargain find from Target and I hope to use those for absent work, student documents, etc. I still love my little cart! An Ikea knock off, found at Sam's Club. Perfect for toting supplies with me from room to room, or letting students have access to my supplies (when I feel that generous).

A close-up of the banners...still want to re-do them. From Teachers Pay Teachers.

The entire classroom, when I am standing in front by my SmartBoard.

I am going to keep the students in rows and in pairs this year. I think that's the most effective seating arrangement for my teaching style as well as for my students. I wish I could make collaborative pods work, but it's just a recipe for disaster with my students chatting and distracting each other. I did angle the outside rows to help students engage with me and focus on the SmartBoard. 

New addition: my Meme wall. I just can't resist these funny, classroom related memes 

The students probably think I am a total nerd, but that's okay with me! I love the meme posters. The milk crates hold folders that have the unit packets, vocal flashcards for games as well as the scan tron sheets for my iPad app. The chair to the right of the table will not stay there long. That is my "Hot Seat" and my favorite classroom management tool! The students dread it, but that's what makes it effective! (More of Hot Seat later...)

Turn in trays and student supplies.

This year I moved the student shelf to the back, near the table with the milk crates. I thought keeping all of the "paper work" grouped together would help students. Also, it will encourage me to get more steps in having to walk all the way across the room, right? I found that little chalkboard sign at JoAnn's and am going to use it for no name papers (yes, believe me, no names really happen in high school!) I hot glued little white clothes pins on the bottom of the board and will just hang papers there when they come along.

Chalkboard quotes, pre-designed from Teachers Pay Teachers.

I was already missing all the colorful posters hanging around the room, so I threw in these chalkboard quotes to help brighten things up! Plus, if students are staring into the distance, at least they have a healthy dose of motivation staring back at them!

The Rules poster.

I found this idea on Pinterest as well and wanted to make my own because I thought the hashtags were funny next to each rule. I wanted something hanging that wasn't a "NO this" and "NO that" type of poster. I thought this was the perfect middle ground...we will see if it hits home with the kiddos when they come in! #keepingupwithteenagers

That's all the decor changes I have made so far in the room! There are some very small details I need to add still (table cloth and dry erase poster board), but for the most part the classroom is ready to be filled with eager students! Let's be real about the eager part...I will be lucky if they are awake the first week of school!

Let me know what you think of the room or if you have any suggestions! 

What are you changing in your classroom this year?

Things are gearing up in this Little Life!