First day Back!

Today was the first day back with students. They came in VERY excited and raring to go. Many of them actually brought in most of the supplies from the supply list, which is always a nice surprise. I started the morning with neat and organized piles of each supply on my front table. 10 minutes later I had a supply MOUNTAIN. I have had years were hardly anyone brought in the supplies we had requested, so, having a mountain of supplies is a wonderful problem to have. As I sit here writing this post, I realize that I should have taken a picture to share...oh well, maybe tomorrow. Um, yeah, that mountain of supplies is still looming, casting a beautiful supply shadow over the the pile of papers I didn't put away either.
:c)

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From Icky to FABULOUS in 3 Easy Steps

So, lots of us have these clear plastic countertop drawers in our classrooms, right? Right. I have a few sets of them that I have had for YEARS and they have definitely seen better days.

Icky. 

Yucky.

I needed to do something about these, stat. My fantastic friend Julie, (who teaches kindergarten, brave soul!) recently texted me a picture of her clear plastic drawer makeover and, holy wow, They looked AH-MAZING! I was impressed, inspired, and excited. I got right to work gathering my Julie-suggested supplies.

I am sure this is what Fiestaware fruit dishes were meant for.

Scrapbook paper from Mardel. ADORABLE.

Once I had everything gathered up I "measured" the paper by just sticking it into the drawer and folding the sides in until I got it were I wanted it. I then cut the paper to size and painted the watered down glue onto the printed side. The paper molded nicely to inside of each drawer and actually was easier to install than I expected. I painted more glue onto the backside of the paper and VIOLA! Totally new (looking) drawers!

So crafty.

The wonders of contact paper

I am always looking for ways to "fab up" my classroom. I figure I pretty much live there during the school year (and a bit in the summer!) so why not make it as fabulous as I can? Last summer I painted the back wall and added curtains. This summer I decided to tackle the hideously boring cabinet doors. The cupboards are painted a blah beige that looks dirty no matter how many Clorox wipes I use.

Blah Beige at it's finest. 

I had planned to paint the cupboards but I really didn't want to was worried that the paint wouldn't dry quickly enough since our building can get SUPER humid, especially in the summer. My wonderful Aunt (love her) suggested that I try high quality contact paper instead. Hmmm...interesting. I searched on Amazon and found some beautiful turquoise and white chevron, grey and white chevron, and a funky grey and white geometric design. You can find them here: Macbeth Collection Contact Papers. The best part? There is a promotion of buy 4, pay for 3 plus free 2 day shipping. I heart Amazon Prime.

TA-DA!  Please excuse the blurry photos, I was shaking with excitement. 

I am really happy with the results. The contact paper was easier than expected to apply. The hardest part was lining up the chevron pattern. Luckily, the paper is very forgiving. I could reposition the paper as needed and it kept its stickiness. 

Well, that's it for now! I have my first work day of the new school year tomorrow and I my goal is to finish up as much of my room decorating/rearranging as possible. Wish me luck!

Well Hello There!

This is my first voyage into the world of blogging and I am SO EXCITED (and a teensy bit nervous) to get started! I regularly read many different "teacher blogs" and have become very inspired to start my own. I love the idea of sharing stories, ideas, lesson plans, photos, etc. with other educators and blogging seems like a fantastic way to do this. I am really looking forward to getting to know other educators and to share my 3rd grade adventures! 

Drumroll Please!

It is finally here. The day I have been looking forward to for months. It is the debut of my WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL, INCREDIBLE new blog design. I must say I am in LOVE. Chirsti from Designs by Christi did an AMAZING job bringing my blog vision to life. I am so excited to be starting my "blog-sperience" with such a fab new design. I am looking forward to sharing my 3rd grade adventures and getting to know many more fantastic teachers along the way. Thanks for stopping by!