Random Thoughts for a Thursday!

Have some more random thoughts floating around in my head that just need to get out I suppose!  So here goes...
Thanks in advance for reading my ridiculousness!!

I slept great last night!  Fell asleep before 11 and woke at 7:15.  I am not yet going to say that was due to the new lavender essential oil I put on before bed but...looks promising!!

I also put the stress away on my neck before bed (because now we are working on Day four of this pain!) and it's not 100% all gone but a lot less restrictive today.  Maybe there is something to this essential oil trend!  Look forward to using more of them.

It's really annoying when I'm typing and I look up to see my damn cursor has moved on its own and is no longer typing where I want it too!  This has been a problem for like a week!  UGH!!

Instead of blogging I should be enrolling kids in classes!  Now that I went to the "unofficial" first day of school yesterday, it is sincerely time to get my ASS IN GEAR!!  And maybe find a really, really, really, really, really, important thing I seem to have lost this summer!!

Is it bad that I wish death to all crickets?  I have one right outside my front window!  And he's not only there at at night.  Oh NO!  He's there all freaking day!!  Is there any more annoying sound?

I'm still struggling with my broken Keurig every morning.  I tweeted about it and they actually responded.  So I called customer service and while listening to the recordings it said I would need my serial number.  I hung up and haven't called back because I have to find that.  I'm just lazy about it I guess.  And you know what???...it feels GREAT screaming and cursing at your Keurig first thing in the morning!  And then WOO HOOing when it finally works!

So needless to say, I've only had one cup of coffee lately.  But it's ok...it frees me up for a vodka and OJ in the sun at 11!  HA!!  Just kidding Ma! #ornot  #solitarylifeprobs

I have high hopes I'll finish three books this weekend!  No...really!!

Saturday is two years since I moved into my Forever Home!  Trying to think of a post to put together for it.  Last year I posted this!  But I think I may do a second installment of this! (one of my all time favorite posts!) I kinda love my little house...

I'm not 100% sure that when I reply to comments on the blog, people get them!  I went in my spam folder in my email yesterday and saw all there messages that said undeliverable!  WHAT!?!? I have to investigate that.  I read and love all your comments!!  THANK YOU!!!

I'm seeing Fall EVERYWHERE!!  And I'm not ready for summer to end!

I'm sure next week when it's 90, humid and I'm in school melting, I'll feel differently!  But now...nope...I'm holding on!! Summer Forever!!


What random thoughts are floating around in your head today?!?  Share them with me in the comments below!!

Have a great day!!

Linking up with Vanessa and Penny Today!

More Thursday Randoms

Linking up with Vanessa and Penny today for Thinking Out Loud! 

Sharing more totally random thoughts and confessions for this Thursday!

This cutie is my new celebrity crush! 

Austin Stowell is an actor in a new show Public Morals that premieres on  TNT August 25th.  Ed Burns is in it as well.  Looking forward to it.

I tried the layered necklace trend....I think I did ok...but not 100% sure I'll ever do it again!  Any thoughts would be appreciated!!

The top to my Kuerig is broken.  But every time I slam it down and get it to work on the first try, I feel accomplished!

The sound of landscapers at 7:30 in the morning pisses me off!

I sometimes use my washer as a hamper!  Please tell me I'm not alone in this!!

The fact that I'll be back at school in less than 2 weeks gives me an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach!!  

LONG LIVE SUMMER!

I probably won't make my {6 books this summer} goal.  Even though I am THIS CLOSE!

Drunk Texting anyone is never a good idea....that is all.

I heard a story on the news that homes that have a Trader Joe's in their town, cost more money.  I always wished there was a Trader Joe's closer to me but my thoughts: WTF!! I found it online here!

I get most of my news from Facebook.

And on that note I probably should tell you all I Google EVERYTHING!!!

Sometimes I do absolutely nothing....and am completely ok with it...

Share your random with me in the comments below!
Have a happy Thursday!  Cheers!

Let's talk books!

I seriously can not even believe the year is more than half over!!  Eeeekkk...

Back in January, I posted my yearly goals and mentioned that I wanted to read more this year.  I set a goal to read 16 books in 2015 and  am using this as guide and to just read some different things.  This summer I am trying to read six of those books...and guess what?!?  I'm halfway there already! Woo hoo!!  I've been wanting to post an update on my progress for a while and thought this was as good a time as any!

A book by an author that you've never read before: The Husband's Secret was the first Laine Moriarty book that I ever read (and the first book I finished this year!)  I enjoyed it a lot...even though I figured "it" out fairly early! 

My next Laine Moriarty book, Big Little Lies is on tap to read this summer.  It fits into the category of a book with antonyms in the title  :) 

A book that made you cry: Easy....The Wednesday Letters, which I just finished last week.  LOVED it...a sweet story that I really couldn't put down! 

A book that your mom loves: Still Alice.  My mom loved this book!!  She told us all to read it so in case she ever gets Alzheimer's, we will know what to do.  This book also fits in the category of  a book made into a movie!  And as always the book was way better than that movie!!

A book you can finish in a day: Girl Talk was a book I read in a day.  Honestly, I probably should have read it in my twenties, but it was pretty funny!!

A book published this year:  Nobody's Cuter Than You by Melanie Shankle came out in April.  It was a book I had seen here and there, but after Leslie had it on her blog a few times, I picked it up.  It's another one I really really loved.  Cute stories, great little tidbits about friendship and really funny, too!  Didn't really want to put it down.  I thought about my BFF while reading it, so I sent her a copy.  I hope she enjoys it as much as I did.  It could really fit into the memoir category too!

A popular author's first book: I read The Girl on the Train, the first book by Paula Hawkins. It is a really popular book and so many people love it.  I had mixed feelings about it!  It wasn't my favorite AT ALL but I am really glad I read it!

Another book I read this year was The Single Woman by Mandy Hale. Great blog too!!! I enjoyed it. It totally spoke to me!  And was a super easy read.  It doesn't really fit into one of these categories.

I am currently reading Where'd You Go Bernadette. And see what else I have on my Summer Reading List here!


So I guess for the year being more than half over, I'm doing ok! 7 Books so far is almost halfway to my goal for the year!

 I have lots more books that fit these categories, that I can't wait to read!  One of the categories is read a book you were supposed to read in school but never did.  Maybe I'll pick up Jane Eyre again! HA!

What books do you love?  Share them with me in the comments!!

I'm linking up today with Vanessa and Penny for Thinking Out Loud Thursday!  

Love! Hate! Tag!

Can't wait to write this post!!  On Monday, I was tagged by Deena (one of my bloggy besties!) who blogs at Shoes to Shiraz for a Love//Hate//Tag post.  The rules are super simple!  Post 10 things I love, 10 I hate and then tag 10 more bloggers to do the same!  I hope you'll find a little something in here that helps you get to know me better, and maybe enjoy a laugh or two!  I've chosen to highlight the more obscure, fun things. If you've been reading the blog for any amount of time, you know my love of family, friends, my home, coffee...and drinks are a given!

So in no particular order:

LOVES
1. Books  I love books.  New, real books.  I love the smell the newness and getting lost in a new read. 
Come back tomorrow for my Summer Reads List!!
  
2. Summer I get tan...enough said!

3. Country Music Who knew all those years ago when my dad brought his very first country CD (Reba: Greatest Hits Volume Two) that my entire family and I would be hooked on country music.  I love the stories told and that I can sing along to it.  I do agree that today's country is not the country of  long ago, but i like it all!!

4. Traveling I haven't done much traveling since I bought this house, but I do love it.  That's not to say I'm the best traveler in the world, but I like seeing new places and returning to destinations I've already been.  When I travel I like seeing sites but also enjoy the relaxation of it all too.

5. My bed It's not the biggest, but I love it.  It's super comfy!  And I swear, some nights when I get in it, I can actually hear my body saying Thank you!

6. Doing laundry Some might put this on the hate list, but I love it.  Or maybe it's just my washer and dryer that I love.  No, it's the laundry.  Sorting it, throwing in the pod and setting it!  And I get super excited when I hear the chime that it's done so I can fold it!

7. Sushi Maybe this one is a given too!  But sushi  I could honestly eat everyday!!

8. People Watching  LOVE, LOVE LOVE doing this!  I could do this all day!  I may also have a problem with listening in on people convos!  HA!

9. Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil  This is my 2015 love.  I discovered it on Sunset and Stilettos blog as a saver for winter skin!  This works awesome and now that I'm wearing shorts and dresses for summer, I can't live without it.  It's a bit on the pricey side but a little goes a long way!

10. Laughing I just love laughing...and I do it every single day!  Good day, bad day I can find a laugh or two or ten in there!!

Hate is a very strong word...lol...but here are some things I hate...

HATES

1. Bills Everybody hates bills right!?!?

2. Change...lol  I'm getting over this little by little but I really like things my way.  And I like my schedule and things to stay the same.  If there is an expected change, I feel out of sorts! 

3. Mean People Some people are just mean, and unnecessarily so. Being mean is not cool.  Kindness doesn't cost a thing!!  Spread it around...  

4. Changing the sheets  I loathe doing this!!  LOATHE it!!  I don't know why but it takes me forever.  And it's inevitable that I start putting them on wrong...EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.  Ugh!!

5. Shopping {in the stores}  If you know me, you know I'm a diehard online shopper.  I haven't been in an actual store in so long.  And I think this fact makes me hate it even more.  I always get on the longest line, everyone's pawing the clothes, they never have my size, etc.  I love online shopping...I can always get great sales and find promo codes and I use EBATES...the best thing ever!

6. BUGS All of them...everywhere!

7. Getting up early when I don't have to I have this really bad habit of getting up earlier on the weekend than I do all week.  I hit the snooze but 187 times during the week

8. Getting a Peapod order, then realizing I forgot that ONE THING I REALLY NEEDED That is all!

9. Being so dependent on my device I really hate this, but I am.  When I forget my phone, it's like I'm missing something.  And lately I've been more dependent on it then ever since the battery in my watch died.  HA!!  Now that summer has arrived, and I don't need my phone as my alarm anymore, I'll be charging it out on the kitchen counter.  That way it's not the first thing I have to look at when I wake up.  

10. Winter Summer's my fave!  Winter...not so much.  I don't like the cold. And then the snow, the ice..ick!!  The fashion's not terrible though!  I can bundle up in cute sweaters and boots!  But make no mistake, that is the only upside.

Now for the Tag!  Can't wait to learn more about these ladies!

Casey @ A Little Bit of Cheer
Joy @ Quilty Joy Joy
Alison @ Puppies and Pretties

Jamie @ Loving, Crafting, and Cooking in the Country

JulieAnn @ Coach G's Wife
Ashley @ A Cute Angle 
Amanda @ A Brownie World
Amanda @ Sweet Home Alabama
Brenda @ Chatting Over Chocolate
Erin @ Our Little Life 

Tag Ladies...You're it!!

What fun....

As of 10:30 a.m. today, I'll be on Summer Vacation!!  Woo Hoo!!  Come on back tomorrow!  I'm sharing my summer reading list!  And it seems to be growing by the day!!  Oh and have you entered our GIVEAWAY yet??  There's one more day left!  Quick....enter here!

Katie

I'm linking up today with Vanessa and Penny for Thinking Out Loud Thursday!  

I am a teacher

The school year is coming to an end. I'm not going to lie...I'm excited about this!! This year was was really rough for a variety of reasons, none of which I will go into! 

But that's teaching...some great years, some good years, and some not so good years! I won't say bad...because no year is ever truly bad. There are always those silver linings in a bad day! At least for me! I might be having THE WORST DAY EVER (usually those days are middle school related! HA!) and then all of a sudden, one student can turn it all around! Be it with a click of a mouse, getting on Google Chrome on their own! Or with a silly comment, kind word or just a compliment that that was the best story they've ever heard! Even those littles who show up at my door with a birthday cupcake will do the trick!! So everyday might not be a great one but at least I can smile about it.

And with the end of the school year, comes a whole new set of issues! End of year “business” needs to be attended to, and for me, report cards for the whole school have to be printed. And there is inevitably always something that goes wrong!

Last year around this time, I stumbled upon an awesome blog post at Scholastic.com by one of their top teacher bloggers, Brian Smith. He wrote a post, entitled I am a Teacher. It was so true and funny and talked about how sometimes teaching gets so crazy at this time of year, that it's really important to take the time to reflect on all the reasons we do this job! I commented on Brian's post (and have been following him ever since) and said I wanted to write a similar list on my own blog. Well a year later, Brian, here's my list!

Found this on Insta a few weeks ago!  

#truth

Before I was the Librarian and Tech teacher I was a classroom teacher for 10 years, so I'm combining the list to include all my 13 years in teaching!

I am a teacher...

I am a teacher because I love learning...and in teaching you learn something new everyday!

I love sharing my love of reading with the children...and according to one of my littles I "read books really good!"

Laminating things is my favorite.

New books in my library make me smile.

There is nothing like hearing a student say “Technology is my favorite class!”

And I love when they tell me that they went on my Library/Tech website AT HOME...ON THE WEEKEND!!

Three Words: School Supply Shopping!

I am a technology teacher...on any given Wednesday you might hear me say the words "mouse control" 87 times!

I am a teacher...

I've been called mom, dad, grandma and every other teacher's name...and am totally ok with it!

That Teacher Appreciation luncheon every year.

I enjoy days off as much as the kids do.

Completing a bulletin board is a huge accomplishment.

I am a teacher thanks to Mrs. Grosskurth, Miss Puileo, Miss McCartin...and the few who got it wrong, because thanks to them, I knew what NOT to do!!

I love dress down days (and PJ Day!), too!

I proudly rock my spirit wear beyond the four walls of the school building.  :)

I am a teacher because seeing a child's “A HA! Moment" is just awesome...and the fact that I might have had a little something to do with it, that's just icing on the cake!

Where else do you get to feel like a rockstar everyday?!?

I know Summer's Off are not totally Summer's Off...

I am a Catholic School teacher, I make very little money but I'm rich in other ways!

I am a teacher because I've never wanted to do anything else with my life!! 

When I was a little girl I used to play "school" for HOURS on the weekends and during the summer with my sisters and friends.  Thankfully these days though, I don't yell at my students and throw them across the room for their bad behavior like I allegedly did to my Cabbage Patch dolls!! Poor Humphrey Peter!! LOL

I realize that right now in our country, it's very difficult to be a teacher but every job has it's ups and downs!   I really can't see myself doing anything else.  Even though I joke about retiring, I'll be doing this and only this (if I'm lucky), for the next 30 years and beyond!!

But first....bring on SUMMER!!!!

Check out some of my plans for summer here and here!  What are yours?

And don't forget there's still time to Enter to Win a $200 Gap Brands Gift Card!!  Check out yesterday's post for all the details!

And come on back tomorrow, when I link up with the girls again and share all the details of our Spring Gift Exchange!!  YAY!!!

I'm linking up today with Vanessa and Penny for Thinking Out Loud Thursday!  

Have a great day!
Katie

Thursday Thoughts!

I'm linking up today with Vanessa and Penny for Thinking Out Loud Thursday!  Today I'm sharing total random thoughts.

I'm on Spring Break today!!  Woo Hoo!  For the next 11 days my alarm won't be buzzing at 5:45!  I'll be sleeping in and lounging around!  I have a few lunches and day plans with friends, but other than that nothing much!  And looking at the forecast, the April showers are coming...so clearly I won't be sitting out in the sun!  I see a Netflix binge-watch sess in my future!!  It ain't a tropical vaca on the beach but I'll take it!!

My daily photo from yesterday after school!

I've always been one to talk to myself. I guess it's just Solitary Life Syndrome!  Lately though, I find myself having full on conversations with myself.  And actually it's not like talking to myself, it's like I'm talking to someone who's not there, but like what I want to say to that person if I ever saw them or when I see them next!   Weird I know...I'm trying to figure out a way to stop this! HA!

via

Today is Autism Awareness Day. I'm supporting by sporting my Counting on Hope tee today!!

Can't wait to link up with the Style Me bloggers tomorrow!  Come on back for my book recommendations...cuz we like big books...and we cannot lie!!  And link up with us too!!

And thinking about how I met all these girls reminds me that registration for the GYPO Spring Challenge, ends tonight!  I'm participating again this year!  You too could get in on the fun here!!

Winter was way more fun....

Home today for another SNOW DAY!!  Even though the calendar says March 5th, things are not looking up for us at ALL!!  The third snow "event" (thank you weatherman for that one!) has dumped a fresh 6-8 inches around these here parts!!)  Condo living affords me the luxury of sitting on my couch and blogging while the plow and pay load drivers and shovelers do the work for me. They all must be making a KILLING this Winter. I for one am so over this.  I was not made for this!  Sure I do my best to bundle up in my scarves, hats and gloves, and still look cute, but I was not made for this weather.  I was made for MEXICO.

The custodian at my school is our unofficial weatherman. He always jokes with me about the weather and I tell him I'm moving to Mexico.  The other day he told me he's had enough of this weather too and was coming with me to Mexico...and would pay for the whole trip!!  Now he asks me everyday, when I'm asking him for his credit card number!  TOMORROW will be that day!!  HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


Now I know this might sound like a contradiction, but I don't ever remember being OVERLY EXCITED about the snow, but I do know one thing is for sure...it was WAY MORE FUN when I was a kid!!

When I was a kid, my Poppy, my Dad's dad,  had a home in East Durham, NY where it snowed ALL the time!!  We spent Winter Recess (and my birthday) up there for so many years and there was always so much snow. I absolutely didn't mind the snow here!! HA!  Behind the house was nothing but woods and I remember us snowmobiling and sledding down this huge hill...for hours!! We'd have massive snow ball fights!  Sometimes, even though it wasn't the safest thing in the world, my dad and uncle would hitch the sleds up to the back of the snowmobiles and we'd  go spinning around around that way too!  It was such a thrill as a little kid going down that hill and such a blast!!
Once though, and only once, it wasn't fun, when my sled veered off course and into branches that cut my face up and landed way to close to my eye!!  LOL.

After fun days in the snow, all the kids would come in, drink hot cocoa (while the adults had something stronger!) and play...and argue, I'm sure!!

This is very random, but I have a memory of all of us sitting around my Poppy's very small TV and watching Days of Our Lives and my Uncle Ed all of a sudden busting out "Like Sands through the hour glass...so are the Days of Our Lives"...that got us all laughing!  Was Uncle Ed a closet Days watcher?!?!

Now that I'm recalling all this, it kinda of makes me wish we still had that place in East Durham so that my nieces and nephews could enjoy it!  I'm also wishing that shutterfly was around in those days so I had pics to share!

Back to reality...I'm home again...cozy in my house as the snow falls, NOT having to use the sick day that was planned, today.  Seriously...every sickness known to man, I have had this winter!!!  Ugh!!  I'll do some blogging, some reading, realxing, and clean out my DVR.  Has anyone watched Secrets and Lies?  I have the first two eps on my DVR!  And looking forward to tomorrow...FRIDAY!!  Silver Linings people!!  Silver Linings!!

Linking up with X-tremelyV and Penny's Passionfor Thinking Out Loud Thursday!

Come back tomorrow when I link up with the Style Me girls...showing off my crafty side!

TEAM BRAVERMAN

Parenthood ends tonight!!! 

I can't even tell you how sad this makes me!  I just have to share my love this show!!

Some might say (and have) that I get too involved in tv shows!  But I see nothing wrong with this!! I am #TeamBraverman all the way and think that the show is going off too soon before its' time.

I've never missed an episode, from the beginning and have followed the show through various time slots!!  I've been with the Bravermans through the ups and downs, twists and turns and many near deaths. (I am really hoping everyone stays alive tonight!)

So I'll be on my couch, with my wine, bawling into my box of tissues when it comes to an end! I might have sobbed like a crazy person last week (when she named the baby Zeke), so I can only imagine what the Series Finale has in store!

To end, I thought I'd share this Buzz Feed story, written by a writer on the show!  I think she sums up pretty well how fans are feeling!
P.S....I cried!!

If you haven't seen Parenthood yet, you're totally missing out!  Get the DVD's, watch it on NBC.com, on Netflix,  or On Demand...do what you have to do to see this show!  My love for Parenthood runs so deep, I've even blogged about it here! and I'm sure there's been a half a dozen more mentions! LOL

If you are a viewer...enjoy the show!!



Joining Vanessa at X-tremelyV for Thinking Out Loud Thursday