Sweet Summertime: The LAST Week-Week 11

I've had 11 weeks of freedom!
It was relaxing, exciting, refreshing, invigorating and much much much needed!
I love my job and work hard to do everything I can to meet my students' needs, but it's great to get a break, especially when it's 11 weeks long.
Tomorrow is the first day back for teachers, so this is my last time for my Sweet Summertime Recap until next June!!

Thursday, August 3

This was our first day that we were allowed back in our classrooms.
I was up early and went to school.
I really wish you could see this picture better, but it's another capture of our local Amish heading out to work.
It was 6:30 when I took this picture, which means they probably left their farm around 4-4:30 that morning to make it this far into town.
I love their work ethic!

I started organizing, hanging posters and scanning books in my new classroom library book scanner.



We are fortunate enough that our school allows each teacher to spend $75 at Walmart for school supplies, so some of us teachers got the Walmart card and headed to get our supplies.

Us girls had lunch at Bob Evans before heading back into our classrooms to work.

Friday, August 4

On Friday I had a meeting at school. so I headed there early to work some more in my classroom. 

I worked for a couple hours before the meeting. 

Our meeting lasted about two hours, and then I worked for a few more hours. 

I headed home to bake some cookies. 

My mom asked me to bake 3 dozen cookies for a church function. 

I completely forgot, but thankfully she reminded me, and I had enough time to whip them up in the afternoon. 

That day it rained on and off. 

We went to my parents to drop off the cookies and got to spot the fawns enjoying our apples up at the apple trees. 

For some reason they love to come out when it's rainy.

Saturday, August 5

Saturday Alex had to work, so I got up with him and headed to the grocery store right when it opened.
How I love going right when the doors open.
I had a list and was in and out in 12 minutes!!

I came home, finished cleaning the bathroom and our bedroom and went for a run.

After my run I decided I would head back to my classroom to do some printing and finish setting up some things.
I've really never had to go to school during non-working hours.
The alarm was on and thank goodness for my awesome co-workers who saved me from setting it off!
I forgot my code, but they remembered there's, so the cops weren't called!!

Sunday, August 6

Sunday Alex was back at work, so I headed to church by myself. 

I planned to go to my grandma's later but the plans fell through, so I cleaned our whole house.

Spare room, living room, dining room, kitchen floors and basement. 

I love love love a clean house!

That afternoon I did some reading and enjoyed mother nature.

I cut some blooms for a vase in the kitchen.

Monday, August 7

For a couple of years I have told myself that I would spend all day inside. 

Usually I can't sit still and find myself outside numerous times throughout the day. 

I might deadhead flowers, pick up sticks, water plants or something that let's me move. 

Numerous times before I've tried it, but it hasn't worked. 

Monday was the perfect day to stay indoors because it was raining. 

Now, my original plan was to not workout and to watch tv all day, but guys that's just not me. 

I did a 30 minute workout, but the rest of the day I worked on the computer, read and watched a little tv. 

I finished another great suggestion by A Gal Named Al. 

Iqbal was a great book about a boy who inspires other children to believe in life outside of their carpet factory. 

Now I have to admit that around 7 that night I did head outside.

Then, I came back inside and started reading I Am Malala. 

Aw what a great start to what I believe will be another great book!

Tuesday, August 8

Today was my last real weekday of summer.
I've been trying to be asleep by 10 or 11, so I was up early with Alex, did some work around the house, and then headed out for an early morning run.

I was back after 4 miles, watered some flowers, showered, blogged, watched Live with Kelly without Kelly, did my nails and headed for a bike ride.

Alex's hours have been so unpredictable, so I have done a lot without him.
I finished another book and simply enjoyed my afternoon or evening.
It's been so much cooler lately that the pool hasn't been an option.

Wednesday, August 9-Friday, August 11

On Wednesday I was up early to get ready to head to my travel agent classes. 

I'm starting my own little travel agency. 

More on that later, but the host company is amazing, and the three days I spent there was well worth the time and money!

The company is so sweet and helpful; I can't wait to get my business up and running. 

I've been so busy since coming home from the training that I'm just now getting this post together. 

And a couple cute little picture of my hummer friends on my flowers.

Tomorrow starts my Back 2 School Series. 

If you're a teacher, you should definitely linkup!

Workin' It: Back to School

Hey ladies!

It's a Workin' It Wednesday today with Erika and Shay. 

The second Wednesday of each month these ladies share a new topic. 

If you're interested in the topics so far this year or ones to comes, check out the graphic below.

This month we're sharing: 

Ready for Back to School!

I'm a teacher, so I'm all over this topic.

I don't have children yet, and I'm sure life is way more hectic when you're a teacher and have kids to get ready, but for now I'm prepping myself and my classroom.

The whole summer is part of my preparation for myself.
At the end of the school year I'm just drained.
I love it, but I need a break, and that's exactly what I do.

I don't live and teach in the same community, so once the school year is out I don't see anyone until the school year starts again with the exception of some co-workers who I see at lunch dates throughout the summer.
It's nice to just enjoy life.
I turn off my alarm.
I sleep in; I stay up late; I read books for myself; I don't worry about what I need to do for tomorrow.
We enjoy vacations, and I really live up the almost three months of freedom because once school starts I know that I will need to do a million different things and won't take the time to do stuff for me.

So after I have a mental break I do a little shopping for myself.
Here are a few new purchases I made over the summer for myself:

I'm always cold, so a cream jean jacket was a must.
I'm still looking for a regular denim one.

The beginning of the year is so hot when you don't have air conditioning, so I'm going to try out some skirts.

I was in dire need of new black pants and found some that fit without at belt at JCrew.
Hello Winnie Pant!!

Some new black shoes!

Now on to the big part.
Prepping my classroom!!
I read new books all summer long.
This summer I've been reading lots of Holocaust books and books that go with my theme for the year-Overcoming Adversity!

Here are a few that I enjoyed:

I love having the time to try out new books.

I've made a few fixes to activities that I did last year, and I've added some new pins to my Back to School and Bulletin Boards on Pinterest.
Check me out @beabout on Pinterest.

Last week I got my classroom all set and ready to go.

I moved my bookshelves around this year, so it's still a work in progress.
I also got a library scanner system that will allow me to simply scan a book and check it out for a student.

Some new and more middle schoolish posters.
I have an extra bookshelf, so it ended up here.
There are random things on it.
I really need to make it look better, but for now it's there.

Read, Revise, Edit Board
This is left from last year.
I challenge students to find errors in books, newspapers, emails, magazines, tv, snap a picture and send it to me.
It's embarrassing at how careless we are with checking over our work!
I love this real world application!

So I've rested, shopped and decorated. 

Now, I've got to finalize my plans for the first two days, and then I'm set. 

The next two weeks I will be having a Back 2 School Series Linkup. 

If you're a teacher or would enjoy blogging about teacher topics, make your post and linkup. 

I'm excited to read how everyone else prepares for Back to School. 

I'm sure there are a lot of parents who are SO excited. 

Let the year begin!

Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg 2017

Many summers ago my aunt and uncle took me to the Smokey Mountains for the first time. 

We packed up the vehicle and drove up to enjoy a picnic in the mountains. 

It was also the first and last time I had sushi.

No thank you!

A lot is the same and a lot has changed since that first time. 

I love reliving that day each summer when I come to visit. 

This visit was extra special because we hadn't made the trip last summer with the wedding and everything. 

Also, unfortunately there was a huge fire last fall that caused a lot of destruction. 

You really could not tell any difference until you got into Gatlinburg.

We drove through the downtown area with all of the shops and could not tell anything had happened.

It wasn't until we made it to this spot that we could tell.

The hill sides were burnt.

A bit further up-some more destruction.

We saw the trail head where the fire started-Chimney Top Trail. 

It is now closed. 

You can't pull off at that area or anything. 

It's so eerie to see how mother nature works. 

There would be spots of green vegetation and then boom burnt, then grass and trees then burnt. 

Since the fire was started at the Chimney Top Trail, the area above it wasn't burnt at all. 

I'm guess the fire moved down the mountains instead of up. 

The top was as amazing as ever!

It was hard to capture all of the destruction. 

We saw one cabin area that was intact but the trees and everything right in front of it were burnt. 

I cannot image the terror those people endured!

We saw more damage going down the bypass than up the regular side.

Can you see the hillside in the distance?

All brown and charred.

For dinner we stopped at the Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge.

It's a neat little campus with a restaurant, shops, candy store, ice cream store, Christmas store and wine tasting.

Lots of dips, jams and salsas to buy.

It's a bite pricier, but the meal comes first with these apple fritters.

Then, you get a bowl of soup, salad, mashed potatoes, choice of a side and dessert.

It's really a lot to eat. 

They have an ice cream store that we stopped in before we ate. 

They had Apple Pie ice cream. 

I went to a math and science camp in middle school and that camp had Apple Pie ice cream. 

It was my favorite, and I've never had it since. 

I thought I would get to enjoy it again, but I didn't.

Have you guys been to Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg before?

What do you love?

We typically love the outlets, but we didn't get an early start, so we were nearly out of time to shop by the time we got done with dinner. 

A lot of the decorations for our home came from the Kirkland's there a few summers ago. 

Two summers ago we ate at the Paula Deen restaurant. 

It was so neat to try, but holy salt. 

I don't salt anything, and I feel like a whole shaker was used in our homestyle meal. 

It was a neat experience, but I think I would pass on a second one.

Hopefully next summer we will be back for another visit and might get to try out something else new.