Saturday Snapshots...Spark Student Motivation...Lovin' It & Over It

Happy Saturday, from Pismo Beach, California.

Still on the linky train...

I'm linkin' up for Saturday Snapshots with my bestie Miss Nelson

from Run! Miss Nelson's Got the Camera.

 Day 10 Cali...We headed to Oakland to watch the Boston Red Sox play
the Oakland Athletics.  Unfortunately, the Red Sox didn't win, but we still had
a fabulous time.  I've been lucky enough to visit many baseball parks growin' up.
I think my count is up to ten.
We took a shuttle from the hotel to the park and back.
Less hassle for the most part...except people were rude pushin' to get on the shuttle.

Day 10 Cali continued...We had dinner at a restaurant named Francesco's

that has been in business for 45 years.  Our waitress, Lisa, has been

workin' there for 39 years.  Talk about dedication!

The food was scrumptious. 

I of course had Chicken Piccata because I love capers!

We had to check out grapes there too.

Yep...they were drinkable.

Day 11 Cali...We went back to the ball park for some more baseball.

This time, the Red Sox WON!  

We left early though to catch the shuttle to break down on the crowds.

We listened to the end of the game on ride home.

Day 12 Cali...I took my first trip to Trader Joe's.  

O-M-G...I am in LOVE with the Sea Salt Butterscotch Caramels.

If you haven't tried these, get you some!

On the way to pick up dad from golf we watched the deer 

walkin' around the course. 

We also saw wild turkey babies, 

but didn't get a chance to photograph them.

We ate dinner at a place called Baja Cantina in Carmel Valley.

Wonderful atmosphere.

I had Prawn Scampi and everyone else had ribs and garlic fries.

Day 13 Cali...We ran some errands...one bein' to Grocery Outlet 

to pick up these Nonni's Salted Caramel Biscotti.  

They are individually packed and only 100 calories.

If you see these...pick them up!

Mom made a fabulous pork loin, broccolini, and slaw for dinner.

YUM!

Day 14 Cali...Ran some more errands to my favorites...

Costco and Whole Foods.

I seriously wish we had these where I live.

We did some readin' and relaxin' at Tehama and then

met some friends for a delicious dinner

at Cafe Rustica in Carmel Valley in the Village.

Day 15 Cali...I didn't leave the house...not once.

Do I feel guilty?  NOPE!

I spent time workin' on my Monday Made Its, readin' and 

gettin' ready for THIS....

Want to check out my first five days in Cali?

Read here.  

Want to check out days 6-9 in Cali?

Read here.

I'm also linkin' this up with Christy from 

Teaching Tales Along the Yellow Brick Road for 

her "Eating, Drinking, Linking...Oh My" linky 

because I gobbled up a lot of yummy food this past week.

I'm also linkin' up with my sweet BBB Joanne from 

Head Over Heels for Teaching for Spark Student

Motivation Saturdays.

Firstly...Joanne, I hope you had a FABULOUS birthday this week!

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Nextly, my bestie ACH sent this to me and I was thinkin' this would

be a fabulous thing to spark some motivation in students.

I haven't tried it, but I definitely will be.

It was too good not to share with you...my other besties.

Become a Scholastic Kid News Reporter

(click on the link to find out more info)

Applications will no longer be accepted after September 26, 2014

My super funny friend Ali from Teaching Powered by Caffeine

is back with Lovin' It & Over It.

Relaxin'.

Enough said.

I needed this.

BIG TIME!

I'm on vacation, so I don't really have anything that I'm over right now,

except for maybe my belly flip-floppin' every time we 

are on a curvy road.  I'm not really a great back seat driver

as it is, but put me somewhere that is not flat and straight like Florida, 

and I get a little queasy.  

Nothin' a lil' air-condition' in the face can't fix.

Happy Saturday, friends!

Saturday Snapshots...Spark Student Motivation Saturday

I'm gonna make this quick because I'm gettin' ready
for a road trip.

Don't know where I'm goin'?

Read here.

I'll be back on Sunday to catch up with you.

I love Saturdays because I get to link up with two of my favorite girls...

Miss Nelson from Run! Miss Nelson's Got the Camera for 

Saturday Snapshots

and

Joanne from Head Over Heels for Teaching for 

Spark Student Motivation Saturdays.

Day 6 Cali...We basically stayed around the house most of the day...in pajamas!

I seriously had no problems at all with this.

We had to drink the grapes at dinner to make sure dad 

is growin' them correctly.

I'd say he's doin' a pretty awesome job.

Yum!

Day 7 Cali...We went to Mission Ranch to drink some grapes to make 

sure they were okay for the rest of the public to consume also.

Yep, yep, yep...they are good to go!

I always have a great time here because I actually used

to work at the Mission Ranch Inn...almost ten summers ago.

I met some wonderful people and friends from that experience.

Wow...how time flies!

Mission Ranch has a bea-u-ti-ful view.

Where else can you find sheep hangin' out by the ocean?

Of course the lone black sheep was far in the pasture, so I didn't

get a good shot of him.

Day 7 Cali continued...

We went to dinner at the Sea Harvest Fish Market & Restaurant.

Great atmosphere and I got some scrumptious grilled shrimp tacos.

Day 8 Cali...Got my hair trimmed.   Drove up to Tehama to pick

dad up after golfin' and then bee bopped around the back yard

checkin' on mom's garden before eatin' dinner.

Nothin' overly excitin' happened, but that's fine by me.

I love lazy days.

Day 9 Cali...Went to see Jersey Boys with my parents and some of their friends.

If you like Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons...go see this!

I grew up listenin' to them with the two pictured above.

I knew every single song in the movie and danced in my 

seat most of the time.

If you were ever a sorority girl...you have 

been on a dance floor singin' "Oh What a Night"...

I can almost guarantee it.

I finally got my movie theater popcorn I have been talkin' about

here and here.

Day 9 Cali continued...We ate a quick dinner after the movies.  

Grilled chicken, cauliflower puree, and veggies.

This was as good as the grapes!

I'll be takin' lots of snapshots on my mini trip.

Be on the lookout this week.

Want to check out my first five days in Cali?

Read here.

P.S.  I don't garden, but I want this.

This is at mom's bestie's house.  

It just looks invitin' and makes me want to go buy

cute flowers and flower pots.

I seriously did not inherit the green thumb from my father.

This is not a joke.

This motivates me and makes me want to buy more.

These sweet girls took every book off all four bookshelves 

in our class and organized them without me promptin' them. 

All the money I have spent on books is so worth it when 

my babies love to read and love books as much as I do!

Mo-ti-va-tin'!

Happy Saturday, friends!

Sleepin' with Sea Turtles...Spark Student Motivation...

I'm pretty certain that Saturday is my 

FAVORITE

day of the week.  

Can I get an "Amen"?

I'm linkin' up with one of my BBB's, Joanne,

from Head Over Heels for Teaching 

for Spark Student Motivation Saturday.

I'm just goin' to go ahead and admit...

I was NOT happy when my team suggested 

we go on a 5th grade field trip to Sea World in Orlando, Fl.

My complaints...because y'all KNOW I was complainin'...
Not only was I thinkin' these...I was definitely
sayin' them out loud bein' VERY vocal...

1.  What???

That's SIX hours away...I get car sick...which then 

translates into...I'm goin' to barf on the bus.

I am NOT cleanin' up barf...on a movin' bus.

This is why I don't have children.
No...I'm not goin'...you can't make me.

2. AND...there are NO showers??  I don't like to be dirty.
This is not natural.

I shower at least two to three times a day...EVERY day.

I'm not a germaphobe, but I like to be CLEAN.
You have smelled the 5th graders after P.E.?
Yes?
You want them to go the ENTIRE time without
a shower TOO?

Eww...GROSS!

3.  Furthermore, you want me to sleep AT Sea World?
 In a habitat? With creatures?

In my pajamas?

I will have nightmares every day for the rest of my

life about sharks if you make me sleep with sharks.

I DON'T do sharks.

4. Seriously?
Are you INSANE?
You want me to be at school

at 1:30 in the A.M...in the DARK, to get on the bus

after teachin' ALL day?

Y'all have seriously done lost your minds!

5. Do they have plugs for air mattresses and devices?
I am not sleepin' on the floor.
Who is goin' to pack me a sleepin' bag?
I don't camp...or glamp...or anything of this nature.
What happens when my cell phone dies?
What if there is an emergency?
How will parents get ahold of me?

There were some positive thoughts....some...

1. Kids are goin' to WANT to go on this trip.

It's goin' to spark some student motivation 

to make them earn this trip.
I'll get to hang it over their heads to behave...

every.second.of.every day...like whoa!

Me likey this idea!

2. We are goin' to miss a WHOLE day of school?
I don't have to write lesson plans?

I like school and all, but I like a "Get out of Jail FREE" 

card every once in awhile in this real-life game of Monopoly.
Okay...I'll think about it.

3. We get to sleep with sea turtles who are calm and relaxin'
instead of the sharks?  Sign me up.

I can totally get down with sea turtles.

No blood curdlin' screams will be escapin' from me.

4. All the kids will have to sleep from 2 a.m. until sunrise
on the bus without bein' able to use devices?
YES!
Maybe this won't be so bad after all.

Y'all know I wasn't goin' to let my team
and kiddos go without me...right?

I kicked and screamed just about every minute
before we left on that trip.
I let my teammates that planned it know that
I was NOT happy with their
choice of not sleepin' at a hotel...
on a BED...a soft and comfortable bed.
I even shot laser outs of my eyes when they were
textin' my administrators pictures of "Oscar the Grouch"
on the bus, just before sunrise, after she did not sleep
as promised and didn't have any caffeine in her bloodstream.
There WILL be payback!

When all was said and done though,
the field trip was a HUGE success with 96 happy travelers.
The parents were extremely helpful and complimentary.
All the kids were well-behaved and had an
AMAZIN' time.

Would I spend the night in Sea World again?
That's still up for debate.
There was a lot of walkin' and draggin' our
bags back and forth.  The kids were a little too tired
to enjoy it after bein' up all night the night before.
(No, they did not sleep like we thought they would
on the bus.  Surprise, surprise!)
Next time...if there is a next time,
I think we should stay in a hotel the night before,
enjoy the park the followin' day and THEN
spend the night in there.

Check out the craziness.
Warnin'...lots of pictures ahead.

The Sea Lion and Sea Otter show.

Some of my girls were textin' me selfies...or groupies....so I returned the favor.

The best photo of the day.

Winnin' Brainy Smurf was absolutely fittin' for my Nerd Herd.

More groupies.

I don't know which impressed me more at the dolphin show...
the dolphins or the aerial acrobatics.  Best show of the day!

We did a craft, ate some pizza and licked some Shamu ice cream before
headin' off on our night tour.

My kids pretty much called me a wimp because I didn't want

to touch any livin' creatures.

I wasn't goin' down like that in front of a bunch of 5th graders, so

I stuck my hand in that tank to pet a shark...I know...

I'm NUTS! 

One of my sweet parents held my hand to to be sure I wouldn't

pass out from this.

Tourin' the shark habitat...at night.

Obviously they aren't fraidy cats like their teacher.

Whatevs.

After draggin' our stuff about five miles to the bathroom
to change for the night (okay, I exaggerate a little)
and kiddos losin' underwear on the way back even though the tour
guide warned them to wrap them up tight....and every 5th grader
used a wet washcloth WITH soap to get off the dirt and germs...
it was FINALLY sleepy time in the sea turtle habitat.
This was super awesome.
I only woke up one time at 2:30 a.m. when one of my kids was
sittin' straight up...asleep.
Lol!
I don't think the tour guide was too excited to see
my face when I was beggin' her to let me use the
SECRET bathroom.

The mornin' after our sleepover...the turtle was sayin' goodbye to us.

Checkin' out the dolphin grotto before breakfast.

Our final roam around the park before it opened for the day
and we headed back home.

These two lil' stalkers refused to let me sleep on the bus ride back.

They pretty much stared at me through the cracks of the seat

the WHOLE way home!  

I finally gave up and took a billion pics with them.

Smiles all around for an eventful trip.

36 hours later....I was so excited to take a hot shower

and hop in my Big Comfy(that's her name) bed.  

I didn't emerge from my cocoon for FIFTEEN hours.

I didn't feel guilty for sleepin' that long at all.

Joanne, don't be mad at me that I didn't text you while I was there.

I was conservin' my phone battery for fear I would never

see an electrical outlet while I was gone.

One finally appeared at 11:00 at night.

I was able to sleep well though knowin' you might hear me yell

if a sea turtle got me in my sleep.

This week we went on another adventure to

our local waterpark.

This is a tradition for all 3rd through 5th graders...

for a celebration after our state testin'.

This trip is another fabulous way for the upper grades

to spark some student motivation at our school before summer break.

I'm sure you aren't surprised to learn I took another very long nap 

after this adventure also!

Happy Saturday, friends!

My students HIT me...Spark Student Motivation Saturday

Hello, Saturday! 

Today I'm joinin' my sweet BBB Joanne from

Head Over Heels for Teaching for 

Spark Student Motivation Saturdays.

I was ready for this week to be O-V-E-R!

My poor kids deserved this weekend to have a break from me.

They have worked so hard the past several weeks.

They needed some F-U-N to get them 

through the next few weeks.

It was a MUST to spark some student motivation 

before the dreaded state testin'.

What could be more fun than peggin' your teacher 

with water balloons?

Yep...that's right...

I promised my kids that if they gave me their full attention

this week and practiced all of the test strategies I have

taught them, they could then peg me with water balloons.

Turnabout is fair play though...teachers also work super duper

hard durin' state testin'.

So...WATER BALLOON FIGHT!

Got these at Dollar General.  $4 a pack.

I didn't fill up all of them...I still have plenty left.

This took a while to do because the nozzle that was included

in the bag did not fit the sink at school. 

I was soakin' wet before we even made it outside.

The girls gettin' ready...they look a lil' scared.

Not the boys...they are ready for action!

Of course we had to take a selfie.

Ruuuuuuuuuuuun!

The kids let me get each of them individually.

Then...BOMBS AWAY! 

They all got ME at the SAME time.

Let's just say...some of them have unbelievable aim.

They all helped clean up the tiny pieces and are

already beggin' me for us to do this again before the end

of the year.

They will just have to wait and see.

I also asked parents to send in snacks so we could 

have a ROCK the FCAT grazin' party.

The idea behind this...eat all day and be merry!

I have a feelin' my kids are goin' to knock this test out...

just like they knocked me out with the water balloons!

That's okay...it's just water and I know this will be

a day my kids will remember for a long time to come.

Happy Saturday, friends!