Merry Christmas to Me

I went and did a little last minute Christmas shopping and naturally found some items I couldn't live without. I normally would not buy things for myself this close to Christmas, my mom always used Santa as a reason why we couldn't get anything the month before Christmas. I was my own Santa today, I couldn't pass up these amazing deals! My favorite pajama pants were on clearance today and who couldn't use another pair of pajama pants. I have a hard time justifying paying full price for pajama pants so it worked out perfectly! These pants from Target are amazingly comfortable and affordable!

While I was in the shoe section looking for a pair of brown flats, I noticed that they had a section of boots that were on sale. I have had an obsessed with boots lately and I found these cute ones that I had to take home with me. I decided against the flats I originally found and scored these cute ones for $4.00!

It was finally nice to slow down and get some errands done that I've been needing to all week. I didn't even mind all the craziness with the traffic and shoppers! I am looking forward to spending time with my family and friends this weekend. I love seeing people that I don't normally get to see throughout the year! This year has brought a ton of changes in my life and I am so thankful to have a wonderful group of friends and family to keep me going when things get tough and to laugh with when things are great! 

Ashley

Christmas is Finally Here!

I have been waiting for break to start since December began! One day until a much needed break begins! 12 wonderful days where I can knit, read, stay in my pajamas all day if I want, hang out with friends/family and not be called Miss H. Don't get me wrong I LOVE being a teacher and I love my students, but we are in need of some separation. Getting through this 3 day week has been harder then I thought it would be...Monday morning brought an unexpected event. It was actually my worst nightmare (the reason I almost didn't become a teacher) VOMIT, and not just a little....were talking projectile vomit all over the new kid in my class. I knew having a student throw up in class was inevitable, but it was worse then I thought it was going to be. Thank goodness for my good friend Tiffany that also teaches Kindergarten next door,  she came to my rescue and helped me handle the situation. Today was much better though! Are principal had a beautiful breakfast for the staff this morning and our P.E. & Music teachers surprised us and took K-2nd grade all morning so teachers could have extra plan time. It was glorious!! Now all I have to get through is my first Christmas party with 16 Kindergartners cracked out on sugary treats....it should be interesting.

I just started reading the book 19 Minutes by Jodi Picoult. This is my first book by her and I LOVE it. I can't put it down and two of my friends are reading it at work too. It's been so much fun being able to talk about it with people. I'm excited to read more of her stuff, one of the other teachers in my school recommended one of her new books. I can't wait spend break reading!

Ashley

Christmas Challenge Day 3/ Pumpkin Pie Making

I had a hard time thinking of a gift that has meant the most to me, so much to choose from. I would have to say a ring my mom gave me a couple years ago. I had always wanted a nice ring to wear that meant something/ wasn't from Forever 21 or some random store. I think I got it two years ago from her....but I just love it and never take it off. It's not that it's the perfect ring that I just had to have, I love it cause my mom picked it out and it's from her!

On a different note, yesterday was Pumpkin Pie Day in my classroom! It went SO great!! The kids had a great time and so did I. They all acted great and I only had a minor hiccup when I spilled part of the evaporated milk on the ground and on a student. She was not very happy with me.....and gave me a look like "Are You Kidding Me!". She got over it real quick and helped me pick up the mess though. I forgot the can opener at home and had to use the schools, which my goodness I think it was from 1980 and I'm pretty sure had rust on it. My friend Hannah came and led a small group and I took one as well, and the group size worked out perfectly so everyone could help make the filling. Miss Hannah (as the kids called her) was a huge hit in my classroom...she will definitely have to come back and visit! In the afternoon I had the kids make pilgrim hats which I thought they might think was cheesy, but they absolutely loved them! All the boys were wearing them around and having a great time. The girls were a little upset that they couldn't color the bonnets, but they ended up having a great time as well. Here are some pictures of us with our hats and goodies....

After school Hannah and I decided to go to my new favorite place to get coffee/tea...PT's. Oh my goodness I have recently had a slight obsession with their Cinnamon Spiced Tea. I go probably on average 3-4 times a week to get one and it is like a little piece of heaven in your mouth. It's like Fall and Winter collided and decided they wanted to be a drink!

After we got a hot beverage we did a little shopping and then decided to go see Harry Potter!! Hannah and I have seen the last 4 movies together, sometimes we go on opening night and do it big. This year worked out perfectly since she was already going to be in town. The movie was awesome!! Their were parts were Hannah and I were holding each others arms because it was so intense. Which is kind of silly considering we've read the books and know what's going to happen. It's been awhile since I've read them though so my memory was a little foggy and I kept second guessing myself on what was going to happen next. I felt like the ending was great and got me real excited to see the final installment!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!!! Happy Turkey Day!

Ashley

12 Days of Christmas Challenge: Day 2

To be honest I can count on one hand how many times I've been shopping on Black Friday, so my knowledge and skill level on this crazy situation is minimal. But....I am however heading out with my girlfriends Molly, Tracy, Melissa and a couple others this year. From what I hear were going all out and waking up in the middle of the night like a true Black Friday shopper. This is kind of what I picture us looking like come Friday...I'm not going to lie I'm prepared to get my game face on for this!

I plan on eating a little turkey the night before so I can go into a turkey coma and try to get some sleep before the madness begins. Some things I have done to prepare for this event is look online at the adds before hand, it's been great seeing what's on sale at what places. I have ideas in my head of what to look for each place we go...and since I shop frequently I'll be able to go directly to the area I need to in the store. I feel like if I'm going to stand in a line like this....

I definitely want a game plan, so if you have some good strategies I'm all ears!!

One thing I have noticed this past week is that some places are running their Black Friday sales right now, I got some great deals at Gap over the weekend. It was great because the selection wasn't picked over yet and I could find my size in just about everything. So I definitely would recommend checking out to see who is starting their sales early! Till Tomorrow!! Happy Blogging!
Ashley

12 Days of Christmas Blog Challenge- Day 1

This blog challenge is getting me in the holiday spirit!!! We have so many family traditions it seems like....


Extended family traditions include having The Oliva Family Christmas, which is one of my favorite things! My Mom's side of the family is crazy and huge, so we have to rent out a shelter house to fit us all. It includes all of my grandpa's siblings and their families and then their kids families, so we always have around or over 45 people. It is such a fun time to hang out with everyone and play games together, my uncles are all really loud/hilarious so it makes for a ton of laughter.


One of my favorite parts of Christmas is getting to eat my grandpa's Cranberry Ice! I honestly could skip all the actual food and just eat that on Christmas morning. It's homemade sherbet/ice cream with cranberries and it's my families favorite. We start eating it in the morning when we arrive at my grandparents house and end up grazing on it all afternoon.


A new tradition that some of my best friends started last year is making Christmas candy together! This will be our 2nd Annual Candy Making Event and I can't wait for the cooking to begin! We all bring a recipe and bring the ingredients and bake our treats together, then we all trade and end up taking some of everything home.


Check back tomorrow for my Black Friday shopping tips!!!
Ashley

Thank goodness it's Saturday, I have had a not so good end to my week at school and need a break. We only have 2 days of school next week and Thanksgiving break can't get here fast enough. I've been trying to think of cute Thanksgiving activities/crafts for us to do on Monday and Tuesday. This month for Science were talking about Sequencing and our Language Arts has been talking about recipes/ cooking. So I was thinking about making a pumpkin pie with the kids....It might be a disaster will see what happens. My friend Hannah has offered her time, hands and eyes to help me out with the project. I feel like I'm going to need some extra hands on deck....I can just picture my kids picking there nose and boogers falling into the mixing bowl. I think they'll enjoy it though so I think I'm going for it!! Today I have been missing New York City and just being with the girls. Turning off my brain to responsibility and being carefree for a few days was so so nice!

I have been listening to Christmas music all day and can't wait for the Holidays!!!  I am excited for my friend Molly's blog challenge!! 

Ashley

This and That....

The kids were great today! I have been under the weather the last couple of days and today wasn't any better. My throat was killing me....so teaching all day didn't sound like much fun. It was amazing the way my kids acted today after I told them my throat was hurting. I didn't have to talk over them or raise my voice today.....it was fabulous!!! I'm not sure why we can't seem to have these kinds of days everyday, but I will definitely take them when I can.  Tiffany the other Kindergarten teacher and I are SO excited about Winter!! My classroom at the moment is all Falled out....I have Autumn posters and leaves everywhere. It's my favorite season so naturally I felt the need to go over board. I decided today that I am over the season of Fall and really just want to decorate for Winter/Christmas! I even started cutting out snowflakes after school...I feel the need to go to the Dollar Store and go crazy. I can't wait to play Christmas music during the day and drink hot tea!! I'm trying to contain myself and wait at least until Thanksgiving is over...I think the kids would be a little confused if I put up a Christmas tree before Thanksgiving. So I will wait for their sake, but next Tuesday after school Fall is coming down and Winter is going up!! Can't Wait!

So I have recently become obsessed with boots....really any kind of boot! I have finally caved and decided I want a pair of Uggs. I have the cheaper version of them currently, but they've finally gotten to the point where I need to retire them. So I'm thinking about putting them on my Christmas list this year! 

I had never seen boots like this before made by Uggs....I think they are super cute!

I can't decide whether I want the classic boot or the button boot, I think they are both cute and would do the job. 

Have a Great day!

Ashley

I Have Crossed Over

I have officially crossed over into the blogging world....still trying to figure out what that all means. I just figured why not? The past 6 months of my life have been a complete whirlwind and I wanted some way to look back and remember the great and not so great times. So if any of ya'll have advice on a newbie blogger comment away!! More to come soon!


Ashley