25 Days of BlogMas | Day 8

Hello, hello, hello!

Happy Monday

This week marks my last week as an undergraduate college student. I literally never thought I'd see this day. After years (5.5 to be exact) of stress, switching majors and transferring twice, I'm finally going to have my Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education.

I have assignments I need to email by the 14th, but my last actually class, that I need to drive to, is tomorrow!!

I was 18 degrees (F) this morning, so as soon as I woke up, I started my car so that by the time I was ready to leave my house, it was already nice and warm inside. I had to wear my fleece leggings.

Once again, my classroom teacher was out sick... I hope I never catch pneumonia! So, I took over the classroom again.

I don't know if it was because it was Monday, or if it's because most of my students either got their Christmas tree or decorated their houses, but they were totally out of control. Three times I had to totally stop what we were doing and redirect them on the rug. They were having a rough day. Totally not like them. 

It totally put me in a bad mood. I tried to relax as much as possible by drinking some tea during lunch and reminding myself that it was just an 'off' day. 

Thankfully, when I got to work, my afternoon got a lot better. For the most part, they were all pretty well behaved, which is totally not like them. For some reason, today was just a backwards day for everyone.

On my way home, I stopped at Walgreens to pick up a binder, dividers and pocket protectors for my portfolio. 

I also got a monster. 

I'm going to need it. I plan on finishing as much as I can today, and printing it all out at my student teaching internship tomorrow morning. 

I'm still not done with it, and will keep working on it for a few more hours (I just need to get this blog post up before midnight).

So, that's the plan for the rest of my night.

Actually this is my current view...

Yup, Willie and homework.

I can't wait for it all to end this week!

How was your weekend? Let me know in the comments down below!

Until next time,

XOXO Ines

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 6

Hey Guys!

I totally slacked yesterday. I was on the go from the moment I woke up til the moment I went to sleep. Please, don't kill me, but I'm finally getting Day 6 of BlogMas up. Day 7 will be up later tonight. 

I woke up almost as good as new. No cough, no fever, no soar throat and no stuffy nose. And I didn't even have a headache! Woohoo!

I had breakfast (some toast and coffee) and answered lots of school and work related emails. 

2 o'clock rolled around and Brendan picked me up to go to the mall. Can we just talk about how this weekend was the first December weekend of the Christmas season. You could say that the mall was a bit... crowded. 

This will be our third Christmas together. Our first, we wnt the traditional route and surprised eachother with gifts that we really thought about. For me, because I stress about everything in life, buying gifts for someone is SUPER stressful! I compulsively over think and worry that there is a chance the person would hate the gift.

Now, no matter the holiday, we give each other a rough list of what we would like. Not something spur of the moment, but maybe something we've had our eyes on for a courple months and just havnet gotten around to getting it.

It's much easier this way. There's no stressing about not knowing if the person will genuinely like it, and you also don't need to stress about trying to figure out what they want or would like in the first place.

Our first Christmas Dec. 2012

Totally the way to go when buying gifts for anyone.
Find out a few things they're had their eyes on and from there, pick the ones that fall into your budget.

This way, you know they'll love it and it will still be a surprise.

Anyways, we spent a couple hours at the mall, just browsing stores in search of potential Christmas Presents for friends and family members.

We shared a milk shake and just spent quality time catching up with one another.

I've been a lame, tired and a depressing slug all week, so I'm happy I finally have enough energy (physically and mentally) to enjoy his company. 

After the mall, we went back to Brendan's and caught ourselves up on The Walking Dead. We still have one more episode to go, but we will save that for some night during the week.

For the first time in two weeks, I didn't lay down and automatically fall asleep.

We ordered Chinese takeout and finalized out vacation in January. We are going on a Caribbean Cruise (Brendan's graduation gift to me) so we had to pick out the shore excursions we wanted to do.

The one I'm most excited about is the snorkel/scuba mix!

Eventually I fell asleep as Brendan rubbed my back. It was exactly what I needed. About an hour later, I really wanted a snack, so Brendan ran out to the store with exactly what I needed. 

Brendan's seen how tired, stressed and totally drained I've been for the past two weeks. He's been wonderful. Not once has he been frustrated or expressed being annoyed. He understands that I'm overworked with my 15 hours days. 

I hear too many horror stories from girlfriends' about how the guys in their lives complain and just don't understand.

I'm one lucky girl to have a guy that most people spend their whole life searching for.

Well, when he got back from the store, I was in the mood to watch Hercules.

And I got Brendan in the bandwagon. 

And so that's how our nigh ended.

We watched Hercules while eating out snacks.

Eventually he drove me home and I went right to sleep. 

Sunday I'm going to need to clean my room and upload a lot of assignments to my online portfolio. Thankfully, I only have one week left of my undergraduate college career!

Thanks for reading :-)

Until next time,

XOXO Ines

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 7

Hello world! 

I slept in this morning until 11am. 

I woke up to the lovely smell of coffee and pancakes. Ever since I can remember, Sunday is always homemade pancake day at my house. 

I layed in bed for about an hour, watching some of my favorite youtubers and cleaning out my phone photo album. 

Around 12:30pm, still laying in bed, there was a knock on my bedroom door. It was my mom and she brought me breakfast in bed :-) 

After finishing my breakfast, of course I continued to lounge around in bed. 

Eventually I had to get out of bed to clean my room. It's become a messy pit and needs to be completely cleaned. Not only do I suffer during the end of the semester, but so do my car and bedroom. 

I'll get to my car eventually...

I spent a majority of my afternoon cleaning my room. Come the evening I was exhausted and starving. My mom made meatballs so I grabbed a plate and sat down in my living room to enjoy it. 

Of course, I was greeted by my snuggle buddy, Willie. 

I tried to take a picture as fast as I could, before he stuck his face into my pasta. Although a little dark and blury, the picture is not half bad. 

After dinner I spent the rest of my night trying to type up the remainder of my lesson plans. 

My portfolio is due Tuesday so I tried to give myself a head start. Usually I do everything the night before, but it looks like I'm growing up.... Scary! Lol. 

Before heading to bed, I quickly did my nails. They were starting to chip, and I hate that! I used my new Seche Vite UV nail polish and a new color Brendan bought me in his vacation. 

Instead of doing a first impressions, I've decided to review the UV Seche Vite. I love the polish, but my first impression of it is totally negative. But, that's because I used it wrong. Oops! 

Now that I've figured it out, I'll practice til I perfect using it, and then review it. 

Sound good?

Well, I'm off to bed! I have work early in the morning and it's my last week of class. 

Almost over!!!

Until next time,

XOXO Ines

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 4

Good evening babes :-)

Can I just start by saying, I'm feeling SO much better! I finally got a good night worth of sleep (even though I woke up wishing I could sleep in). I actually took the time to look nice today, too!

I think it also really helped that I got to see Brendan last night. Something about him, just sitting next to him, having a face-to-face conversation, sharing silence, whatever it is, it's just so comforting. He melts away all my stress and anxiety.

So, this morning went a lot smoother that the past few days have been going. It was day 4 of my take over week and I'm pretty sure my classroom teacher will just stay out until next Monday. She has pneumonia and we all want her to take as much time as she needs to get better! and I personally don't mind that she's out anyways because coincidentally, I'm in charge of the room this week.

I enjoyed sipping on tea all morning and afternoon and I can tell that by just doing that, my body is recovering so much faster than it normally would.

My students finished up assignments they had been working on all week, so there wasn't a lot of 'teaching new content' going on today. Math also went really really well!

Like usual, I briefly stopped at home, come to find one of my Devon Rex cats, Willie, in a snuggly mood. Talk about not wanting to leave the house!

But sadly I had to rush off to work. The two hours I was there flew by and I enjoyed goofing off with the kids and my co-workers. 

Something I was NOT looking for was going to the super market at 6pm, when everyone else was getting out of work. But, I had to. I needed some essentials...

Well, I got other essentials, but ice cream definitely takes first place, duh!

Once I returned home and put everything away (something I hate just as much as grocery shopping) I sat back on my couch, only to be once again greeted by my snuggly friend Willie.

We cuddled for a bit, until he got up and left, and that maked the time in which I drove to Brendan's to order and share takeout :-) I could see him everyday and still not get enough of him. 

I love ending my nights with him and I'm always so sad when I have to drive back home. 

Looking back on my day, I'm realizing that tomorrow is already December 5th. 

What?

Where the heck has the past week gone? I can remember back to the end of October, right before Halloween, thinking UGH I don't want to go through my take over week. I just want to get it over with! And now I'm here, sitting with a tea, planning for my last day tomorrow. And Christmas is right around the corner. 

Hopefully this weekend I can get some shopping done and I can clue you guys in on what I'm buying and for who. I can only imagine how sick you are of my day to day unchanged routine this past week. 

I also just recieved an email from Venn, a fellow blogger, with a guest blog post! That will go up by the end of this weekend. 

  

I also just received the Seche Vite UV Top Coat in the mail, so I'm planning on doing a first impressions on the product. Hopefully that will be out by the end of next weekend. 

Any suggestions as to what you want to see next? Let me know!

Until next time,

XOXO Ines

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 3

Hi guys!!

I woke up feeling a lot better today! I'm glad that I took that medicine last night because I'm pretty sure it was the reason why I could actually breathe this morning. 

For the past three days I've been waking up around 5 o'clock in the morning and not been able to go back to sleep. Ever since my 5-year high school reunion on Friday my schedule and sleep pattern have been totally messed up. Brendan seems to think it's because I'm overstressed and overwork. Which is true. I student teach every day, then I either go to class or to work depending on the day of the week, and then I come home and do nothing but homework until go to sleep. 

I'm hoping after today, I can finally get a night of real sleep. 

My day started out full of drama. I found out that my classroom teacher has no Munoz so she couldn't come in today. I was supposed to have my last observation by my professor so I got all nervous that my classroom teacher wouldn't be there. I thought I would have to reschedule. 

But, my professor is just as amazing as my classroom teacher and she came in and observe me and she's just going to come back next Wednesday for my classroom teacher is feeling better to go over the paperwork and sign all the forms. 

I'm was really proud of myself; I taught a self created lesson today and all the children really seem to enjoy themselves. And I was so impressed by their work.

The rest of the day went smoothly and I can officially say that day number three of my take over a week has come to an end.

Half way there!!

Once again, right after dismissal I headed home for about 20 minutes and then drove to class. Today, I had to present my parent workshop on social/emotional curriculum. Of course it took everyone at least a half hour to present, so we went way over the 2 hour class time. 

....of course, I got a ticket for an expired meter....

Nonetheless, I'm happy I got my last workshop out of the way. I'm also super pumped because today was my last Wednesday class!!! Woohoo!!! 

Almost there… Right? 

Once I got home I had dinner and I took a shower. It felt amazing putting my pjs on!

My boyfriend picked me up and we stopped by chipotle on the way to his place. 

Boy, did I miss him!
Brendan that is, not Chipotle...

Together we watched the newest American Horror Story.  I couldn't wait to hang out with my boyfriend. I haven't seen him in days!! 

Another great day to add to the book! 

Until next time,

Xoxo Ines

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 2

Hi there world! 

I woke up again this morning as sick as a dog. My body is finally catching up with all the stress I've been putting it under;  I'm just glad my soar throat is gone. Now I have a stuffy nose and headache to deal with all day. I might not look sick, but I definitely am! 

Something is floating around amongst the first grade....

Day 2 of my takeover week went really well. My classroom teacher was out again so, although I love having her there and she is the best support system, it was definitely more relaxing to know that I didn't have her eyes on me the whole day as I taught. 

With the first day of December comes celebrating and learning about December holidays. 

Yesterday I introduced The Nutcracker advent calendar to the whole class. We opened window one and today we got to open window two. It took them until today to really understand how an advent calendar worked. 

I really love the one my classroom teacher has because it tells the story of the nutcracker over the 24 days of the advent calendar. Each window has a miniature book; so every day you find out more to the story. I love the concept!

After dismissal, instead of heading to work, I went home for a few minutes then drove to class. Class was the LAST thing I wanted to do today. I actually ended up leaving because I had a pounding headache and by this point, I was also much sicker!

As soon as I got back home, dinner was ready. My mom made steaks and I couldn't help myself; I had to dog in. At least I still have my appetite! 

Sadly, because tomorrow is my observation day, I had to write up my lesson plan and email it to my professor. Homework, or really any work, was the last thing on my mind. I wanted to be a couch potatoe until I was too sleepy to sit up straight 

It took me a couple of hours to write up my lesson plan. Between typing, watching Elf and procrastinating, it took way longer than it should have. But atleast I did it, right?!

Well I'm off to put pjs on and get in bed. I just took a big dose of night time cold medicine so I'm hoping it kicks in soon!

Try not to get sick!!

Until next time, 

Xoxo Ines 

25 Days of BlogMas | Day 1

Hello world! 

Not only did today mark the first day of December but it also marked the first day of my take over a week. Besides waking up with the worst soar throat ever, I was anxiously excited to start the day. For the most part, because I've had other teaching jobs while completing my undergrad, I'm pretty comfortable being in a classroom. But, because this is the first time I've had one whole full week of full responsibility, I was a little nervous. 

I've been fortunate enough this semester to not only have a wonderful group of students but also have a wonderful group of support staff. This placement is by far my favorite and definitely solidifies that I should be a teacher; i'm in the right career field. Its going to be sad once December break comes and I have to say goodbye. 

All in all, I had a great first day of my take over a week. It was more that I could've asked for. Everything went smoothly, I didn't lose anyone, and all of the children seem to just really enjoy themselves; it was like any other day of the week in the classroom. 

Of course as soon as 2:30 hit and all the kids were dismissed I had to rush over to my real paying job at an after school program a few towns over, until 6 o'clock. Of course as soon as I got there my soar throat grew more painful. 

I genuinely enjoy my job and because of how my schedule worked out this semester, I could only be there three times a week. So, I'm actually looking forward to coming back in January full-time (Monday through Friday). It's a different set of staff, it's a different set of students, it's a completely different population but I love it just as much. 

We picked secrets today so there was a lot of excitement floating around amongst my coworkers.

You wouldn't believe how well we all get along. It's more like a family than it is a group of casual acquaintances that you work with. 

6 o'clock finally hit and we were free to go. I hopped on the highway and headed home. Then, I ate dinner with my parents and sat in my living room for about an hour and watched elf. That's when I noticed my stuffy nose and my headache; it was time to make some tea and take some Tylenol. 

Finally, around 9 o'clock, I couldn't take being downstairs anymore so I headed upstairs to my room, where I put on my pajamas and got into bed. Maybe some extra rest will help me fight this cold (hopefully that's all it is). 

All in all I think I had a pretty sweet first day of BlogMas. 

Now I just hope that I wake up tomorrow morning feeling a whole lot better! 

Until next time,

XOXO ines