Cozy Toes Gift Tag

Who doesn't love cozy socks?!  I decided to give my teammates a pair of cozy socks for Christmas.  It is simple, practical, and cute!  Christmas break should be a time of relaxation, hanging with family and friends, and of course...watching Netflix.  Hopefully my co-workers can watch a movie and keep their toes nice and cozy while enjoying their favorite beverage.  

I purchased these socks at Target, and I have the free printable for you HERE!

Merry Christmas!

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Gift Ideas from Pinhole Press

My son is starting to recognize people in photos and remembering the names of people in our family. He knows me, daddy, and Hercules (aka Bubba), but I really want to practice all of our family members' names with him!  Harrison loves looking at the Christmas cards that come in the mail, and he lights up when he sees a familiar face, and now is the perfect time to start practicing those names!  

Pinhole Press offers personalized games, magnets, flashcards, puzzles, books, etc. and these will be under our Christmas tree this year!

I had to get Harrison the Name and Faces Puzzle.  Right now, he will just look at the pictures, but before I know it he will be able to match the word to the picture. The basic concept that a word carries meaning is a building block to learning to read.  This is such a fun way to introduce those words!

 The Alphabet Magnets come with a letter in the corner, and you can personalize it with a picture.  I decided to put family members on the pictures, but I also thought about taking pictures of some of his favorite things and putting those on the magnets as well (his blanket and light saber...lol).

 My favorite product Pinhole Press makes is the Custom Board Book.  Harry loves looking at books and he is going to FREAK OUT when he sees all of his family in this book!  My family hasn't seen this yet, so I am so excited for when he opens this Christmas morning! 

Flashcards are another fun option for practicing people and favorite things.  You can customize the letter and word as well as the picture!  Everyone in my family was represented, as well as some of our favorite places (Disneyland) and some inside jokes for my husband to see!  I am excited to practice letter names and beginning sounds with these flash cards.  ;)

Pinhole Press sent me these items to review and feature on my blog and I really love their product and would recommend it if you have a little one at home that is ready to learn names and words!  Head on over to see if there is anything you want to put on your Christmas list.  Oh, I ordered them and within a week they were on my front door!!! 

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Life Stride Teacher Shoes

Annnnnnd I am obsessed with finding comfortable teacher shoes.  It's official.  I partnered with LifeStride to showcase some of their fall shoes that I love wearing in and outside the classroom!

First up is the Riding Boot.  These bad boys are comfortable and super warm.  One thing I love about LifeStride is their shoes come in narrow, medium, and wide.  This way, any person can fit comfortably into their shoes.  (Even you Mommy, lol.  I know she will text me the second she reads this!!)

Most importantly they go perfect with my LuLaRoe leggings from Jessica Preece. ;)  Jessica styled me up with leggings and the long Sarah Sweater!  If you are looking for a consultant that sells LuLaRoe, join her FACEBOOK GROUP.  Not only does she have amazing sales and giveaways, she loves helping you pair outfits to fit your style!

Next up is the Wendy.  I have really been into wearing booties with heals with dresses and also skinny jeans!  The Wendy has the perfect size heel, with fun straps/buckle around the ankle.  I am also wearing a Carly dress from Jessica's LuLaRoe shop! :)  This is the same outfit I wore for our family Christmas cards this year!

Hercules' favorite pair is the Smirk.  These flat boots are so comfortable to wear and walk in all day.  When I put these on, he knows he gets to go for a little stroll around the neighborhood. 

I like these boots because they aren't super girly.  I feel like they are great with ripped jeans, a sweater, and a beanie!

Thank you LifeStride for sending me these shoes to share with my readers!  Make sure you take a looksie over on their website to find the perfect pair for you!

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Minted Family Christmas Cards (and a giveaway!)

Drum roll please.... I can't wait to show you our 2016 family Christmas card!  I partnered with Minted this year to create our Christmas Cards.  Take a look...

I was able to use one of their Christmas Card templates, but move the text around, change the color, and edit it to make it say whatever I wanted!  I did use their "Heaven + Nature Sing" design though, I just changed it up a little.

My FAVORITE thing about Minted is that you can upload a spreadsheet of your addresses and they can print them on the envelopes for you!  You can also have your return address added to it as well.  I opted out because I have a cute stamp that I use on my envelopes.  ;)

I am obsessed with the quality, the quick turn around time, and how many different style selections they give you.  It's the perfect mix of designing your own card, and already having it done for you.  

Minted was so kind to provide me with my Christmas cards so I could show them off to you!  They also are partnering with my for a giveaway of $250 in product to their store!  To enter to win, click the link below.  The giveaway will close December 10, and is only open to U.S. residents.

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Christmas Gift Ideas for the Classroom

Christmas is my FAVORITE time of year.  I love the songs, lights, movies, and everything that involves the celebration of Christ's birth.  I have a couple gift ideas for you to use for coworkers, students, parent helpers, or whoever you want! 

I found these little milk jars at Michaels and they were on sale for $2 each.  I filled them with some chocolate and markers because WHAT TEACHER DOESN'T LOVE MARKERS?!?  I am going to attach a Starbucks gift card to them and give them to my son's teachers.... this would also be a great gift for your coworkers!

This next idea is for the students to make an ornament for their parents.  It can get expensive trying to supply the materials for gifts for the kids to make, so I like to think about what I already have in my classroom, and if I can get away with spending under $2 per child then I totally scored.  I found this pack of 6 wood ornaments on sale for $6.  These are perfect to cover in liquid glue and then sprinkle with glitter.  It is basically fool proof and will be a gift the parents can have for many years.  

This next gift is something I will give my students as a gift.  I made gingerbread crayons using old crayons that we don't use anymore.

Here are the steps to make the gingerbread crayons:

Step 1:

Find a silicone baking tray and some old crayons.  I found the bat tray at Michael's.  It is supposed to be used for melting chocolate!  I keep a box of crayons that are broken or have been used so they are now a little nub, I peeled them and chopped them up into small pieces.

Step 2:

I put the crayons in the gingerbread tray, trying to spread out the different colors so when they melt they will be vivid and visible.

Step 3: 

Heat your oven to 250 degrees and melt the crayons for 10-15 minutes.  The length of time will vary, so keep checking on them.

Step 4: 

Take the tray out and let them cool.  I actually put mine in the freezer so they would cool down faster so I could make the next batch!

I am going to put a couple inside a small stocking and give one stocking to each student.  I might add a candy cane as well.  

Merry Christmas!!

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Dansko Shoes for Teachers

Bring on the scarves and jackets!!! Oh wait, I live in Southern California and it's still 80 degrees once a week.  😏  BUT it was raining today so I got to wear a scarf, which was super exciting!  (by the way Miss Kindergarten gave it to me, and I am kind of obsessed.)

This is my second year partnering with Dansko, hunting for comfortable shoes to teach in during the winter.  I have shared before, but something changed with my feet after I had my son and I have been wearing higher quality shoes to ensure that I can stand all day long.

I always thought loafers were a more "elderly" (no offense!!!) type of shoe.  Boy was I wrong!  They are comfortable, sophisticated, and with the crackle leather look that the Addy brings I am ready to go for a full day of teaching.  

For casual Friday I like to wear jeans, but these Lolas dress up my simple look.  I felt brave going for a light shoe in the winter, but I am excited to wear them throughout the year.

My new hobby has become figuring out what colors are on trend for the current season.  Though wandering through social media, I found that maroon tones are the new red.  I decided to snag the Sandra to incorporate a pop of color!  These shoes have a subtle heel and are perfectly comfortable to each in all day long.

My dress (WITH POCKETS) is from Dainty Jewells.  Form fitting dresses are not my thing, so this flowy dress with pockets is my JAM.

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These shoes are courtesy of Dansko, but my review is my honest opinion.  I love working with brands to promote their product as well as find items that am excited to wear.

What are your favorite shoe brands? I would love to check them out!

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Thankful Tree for the Lounge

Building up the teachers' morale can be a simple/difficult task.  Here is an easy way to bring cheer to your staff during this Thanksgiving season.  I found this "build your own thankful tree" at Target for $5.  It comes with the tree, 28 leaves, and twine.  You could make your own bulletin board and not purchase this, but if you want this one, take a look in the party section at Target!

I am going to place the "give thanks printable" in every teacher's box and tape a leaf to it!  I will place the tree in the lounge for each teacher to hang a leaf sharing what they are thankful for.  

If you want to use the printable, grab it here!

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Minted Christmas Cards + Craft

This year I am partnering with Minted to showcase some of their newest Christmas card designs.  I narrowed down my choices down to my 3 favorite card designs.  One helpful feature is you can order a sample card for $1, that way you can see the colors, quality, and style in person.  I really appreciated being able to hold the different cards in my hands to better pick a card! (You can't personalized the card, they just send you a pre-made sample.)
  Note- In my partnership with Minted, I do have referral links within this post that I earn a small commission from through your purchase.  

I ordered about 5 different cards but these are the front runners:

Be Merry & Bright

Fa La La

Heaven + Nature Sing

I also decided to order a "Baby it's Cold Outside" print to add to my Christmas decor.  I didn't hang it up yet because I am being a good wife and waiting until after Thanksgiving! haha!

This year, I decided I wanted to send a little craft along with my Christmas cards.  I made this printable and stamped my son's fingers on it to turn it into a string of lights!  As he stamped his little finger I kept repeating the color, he loves trying to repeat words, but for now he just catches the first sound in the word.

I thought this would be fun for my son, but would also send some extra Christmas cheer along with our card.

P.S.- If you are looking for felt garland, check over on Minted!  You can purchase it in several different lengths to meet your decorating needs. ;)

We are taking our photos this weekend, wish us luck!  I will post photos of our cards once we send them out!

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Halloween Bat Crayon

I always like to give my students some sort of small gift on Halloween and this year I am avoiding candy.  They will get enough candy on this holiday and this way I don't have to worry about food allergies!  This year I decided to make each student a small bat crayon.

Here are the steps to make the bat crayons:

Step 1:

Find a silicone baking tray and some old crayons.  I found the bat tray at Michael's.  It is supposed to be used for melting chocolate!  My coworker had some old crayons that she didn't need, so I peeled them and chopped them up into small pieces.

Step 2:

I put the crayons in the bat tray, trying to spread out the different colors so when they melt they will be vivid and visible.

Step 3: 

Heat your oven to 250 degrees and melt the crayons for 10-15 minutes.  The length of time will vary, so keep checking on them.

Step 4: 

Take the tray out and let them cool.  I actually put mine in the freezer so they would cool down faster so I could make the next batch!

I have this free printable for you to use if you want to make the bat crayons, or give your students some sort of bat toy!  Disclaimer: The photos says "We are batty for you, Love Mrs. Schenry," because I am sharing a classroom this year and we call ourselves "Mrs. Schenry"... its our names together! haha!  The free download has different text for you. ;)

Happy Halloween!

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