Friday, June 11, 2010

Review Coming

Yes, summer is here, and I'm "working" at school. Actually I'm getting a few things organized for the homeschool part of my job that I'm taking on this fall. But, I decided it was time for a break. And since I don't have a comfy sofa to relax on, what better way to relax than write a blog post!

All the rain we've had the past couple of days has made me think about camping. Not because I would like to be camping in the rain.... it's just that we usually have rainy weather when we are camping. When such weather occurs, we usually find ourselves spending time in the screen tent, playing games for hours and hours. Our games of choice? Well, we have several. Various card games, Farkle, Scattegories, and Upwords to name a few. A new game my sister Erin discovered a couple years ago has also become a favorite. It's called Ticket to Ride. We've spent many hours enjoying this game and my sister Becky even dreamed up some alterations to the game.

Several months ago, I received an email from Ashley at CSN stores asking if I'd like to do a review of one of their products. I'm embarrassed to tell you that it was a looooong time ago. And yes, I'm finally getting around to writing this post. After searching through a lot of their products, I decided it would be so much fun to introduce a new game at McCarthy Beach Camping 2010. So... keep your eyes open for a review coming sometime soon (you can determine what "soon" means) for this product. I can't wait to try it! I would say "hold your breath for a review coming soon," but I don't want to be responsible for injuries caused by my tardiness!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Summer's Here

It's been busy month since I last blogged. I guess that's to be expected with the end of the school year approaching. Now it's officially summer, and it's time to catch you up on the last month. My to-do list seemed to grow by the minute. You know... pictures to take, DVD slide shows to make, cakes to order, decorations to buy, kids' books to assemble, butterflies to release, parties to plan... the list could go on. There were many late nights (or rather, early mornings) just trying to squeeze everything in. I managed to finish everything on time and the parties were a lot of fun, although I was extremely exhausted at the end of the week.

Then when the dust settled, I was left with many happy memories of a great year. Yes, there were stressful times, but overall, we had a lot of fun. It was such a joy to see the excitement in the kids' eyes as they discovered a new toy or the pride in their smile as they showed me their latest art project or handwriting. And listening in on their conversations? Wow, I could probably write a book of cute kids' quotes!

I was showered with gifts at the end of the year, great reminders of the precious students I had this year. Several gift cards (who doesn't love those?), a yummy candle and much-needed CHOCOLATE, a brightly-decorated terra cotta flower pot which all the kids from my afternoon class signed, an adorable Caribou Coffee mug and tea set, yummy-smelling lotion and shower gel, a pretty butterfly stained-glass box, and gorgeous flowers flowers flowers! I just had to take pictures because they're so beautiful. Don't you agree?





Yes, summer's here, and even though I have things to do at school yet (moving to a new classroom, arranging furniture, dreaming of decorating possibilities), I am enjoying a break from hectic schedules and long working days.